There is no water in the city. It’s normal.

Twice a year Ternopil turns the water off in the city to clean the pipes. The water is off for, at most, three days. It’s really not that bad.I’m actually glad they do it. Here is a picture of why:

Yum, iron!

Yeah, that’s sediment left in my bathtub. I usually fill my bathtub with water before they turn the water off to use for flushing the toilet. This is a picture of what was remaining after I drained it.

The city usually gives 8-5 hours notice, so you have a little time to run home and take your shower, do any laundry, buy drinking water, and fill up every pot in the house with tap water. The rough part though is that everyone in your apartment building is doing the same thing and if you live on the top floor, the water pressure is almost non-existent.

The water doesn’t have a whole lot of bacteria or anything, but there is a ton of minerals, like WAY more than the normal amount. It’s mostly iron and calcium, or it could be rust… You won’t die from drinking the water, but your tummy might not be happy if you drink a lot. I still use it for cooking and cleaning and brushing my teeth. The water is better here than in some places. I know in Moscow the water can be off for 4 weeks so I’m happy with a few days!

Herrnhut has been called the little town that blessed the world. I had read the book by the afore mentioned name and wondered what it was like there. At the time that I read the book, I had no idea that I would one day visit the places mentioned in the book.

Herrnhut’s history begins in 1722 when a group of Moravians arrived and asked Count Zinzendorf if they could settle on a portion of is property. This soon turned into the town of Herrnhut which translates to “under the Lord’s hat.” The little community continued to grow but disagreements between the churches of the area also grew. In 1727, Zinzendorf worked to reconcile the churches and bring people together. They did and in August they had communion together which was followed by an outpouring of the Holy Spirit. This was the start of one of the longest lasting revivals.

Hanging out with the count

Out of this revival came a 24/7 prayer movement that lasted a 100 years! The Moravian church was one of the first church bodies to begin sending out missionaries. They sent missionaries to the Caribbean, North and South America, the Arctic, Africa, and the Far East. They actually came to America and worked with Cherokee and Algonquin Indians! Their missionaries started new works, they learned and translated the Bible into other languages around the world.

View of the prayer tower from afar

Inside the Moravian Church

Zinzendorf's grave

And I got to see where it all started first hand! Allison and I visited Count Zinzendorf’s house, the first Moravian church, the prayer tower, and various places of note in the area. The YWAM base in Herrnhut wants to carry on that tradition of sending missionaries out. The base functions out of a small castle that is nestled in the woods and surrounded by peaceful trails. They are over 100 staff and have over a hundred students at the moment. There are lots of things going on!!

View of downtown

It was great to see this base that has a large focus on areas of justice (human trafficking, prostitution…) as well as focusing on the arts. They run different DTS schools that have different foci; for instance, at the moment they are running a justice DTS and a Marriage of the Arts DTS, earlier in the year they ran what is called a fire and fragrance DTS. There are examples of art all over the building; paintings, photos, sculptures, handicrafts… you name it. The leadership of the base love to have young people leading therefore many of the leaders are under 30. You can learn more about the base by visiting their website here.

Allison and I met with so many people and gathered so many different ideas, we had a hard time sorting everything out! It was great to meet with the students there and encourage them as well as challenge them. We connected with people interested in Ukraine and helped them make more connections for the surrounding countries. We of course encouraged lots of people to come to Ukraine, we are naturally biased and think that everyone should experience Ukraine.

I look forward to being able to visit Herrnhut again.