Tuesday morning, we left the second most amazing city in the world to come to Osijek, Croatia. On the train, we had a team prayer session that would hopefully find us illuminated and filled with wisdom and insight into exactly what steps to take once we got off the train. Tim shared his revelation with us: follow the Croatian flags. Cue visual in my head of the seven of us frolicking down the streets of Osijek singing, “Follow the Croatian flags! Follow, follow, follow, follow, follow the Croatian flags!” Judy Garland would have either laughed hysterically or rolled in her grave had that actually happened.
So we get off the train in Osijek, and a group of us set out to follow the Croatian flags. We find one outside the train station, one outside the police station, and one inside an internet cafe. In we went, and Tamica started up a conversation with the guy at the desk of the cafe. He ended up helping us find a grocery store, a potential campsite, more potential contacts, and bought us milk and juice. The sense of provision and the generosity were overwhelming. I’m set on going to that internet cafe at least every other day.
Today we’re planning on finding the police headquarters to register our arrival in the city. Apparently, foreigners who don’t register with the police within 24 hours can be fined or deported. I had no idea Croatia was so intense.
Right now, I’m writing from a youth center in the city. Somehow God provided us with two nights of free lodging, tonight being the second. Our team leaders are meeting with the pastor overseeing the center, and we’re praying that somehow we’ll be able to continue operating from it. My concern mostly lies with the Croatian police. I’ve never been arrested or had any kind of criminal record. I’d really like to continue that streak.
