May 6, 2015
Sheila Spielman writes, “Many of you travel a distance of 25 miles or so in order to attend worship and Bible class. You do it because you think it is important. … We have several of our students who travel that far each day to study with us for an hour. It may be free English lessons they value, but over and over, our students have said that they like the Bible stories. They are meaningful to them and teach them important lessons for life.
One pair of friends, who are in the 10th grade, have been doing at least one lesson a day. They told Brian [Leavitt], their teacher, that they are so busy with school work. … But they spend time doing homework for us. These boys travel 25 miles (40 kilometers) on public buses to reach us. The buses are dirty, no air conditioning, crowded, the seats are just the frames—no seat or padding. The travel is slow as the bus stops for new passengers and lets others off. Then they must walk from the bus stop in Podgorica. It takes them an hour to get here and an hour to get back home. They are so eager and excited to learn.
There are also two 10th grade girls who travel about 40 kilometers to come for lessons. They take a commuter train part-way and a bus part-way. Yesterday, there was an automobile accident that was delaying traffic. So the girls got off the train and ran the rest of the way here so they would not be late. They are doing two lessons each day as well as their school work.
It is such a wonderful feeling for us teachers to see that light in a student’s eyes and to hear that “Ahhh” of recognition, when the student understands and realizes the concept of a Bible teaching. …
We wish you could watch the power of God’s word sink into a bright and willing mind like these students have shown us. The inconvenience and tiredness and aches of travel and being away from home become minor when compared to the smiles and sparkles in the eyes of these students.
And so we have completed over half of our teaching time here. It goes so fast. Thank you for your prayers and encouragement. You are our partners in teaching these students.”
