“Do you speak English?” (Always my go-to conversation starter. Y’all, reintegration is going to be a real struggle.)
This was the question I opened with as I approached a kind-looking woman getting out of her car outside of a building where we mistakenly thought we might be able to find a church service in Bratislava.
Upon arriving at the church we found via “Google: church in Bratislava”, we realized we were not in fact at a church but surprisingly found ourselves at an apartment building. (Note: never trust google in foreign countries.) None the less, we rang every bell of the apartment complex to see if someone would answer and potentially point us in the right direction, but either everyone was already at church or still asleep and rudely awoken by our well-intentioned church-seeking hearts.
The woman kindly answered that she did in fact speak English. You’d be surprised how many Europeans tell you they don’t speak English just so they don’t have to engage with you (insert: flashback to Macedonia where we constantly had to face the fear of rejection as we passed out flyers for the Qiriazi Center. Not everyone is keen to have a conversation with you, no matter how American you are! Crazy, I know.) Her name was Barborka and even though she didn’t know where the church was that we were looking for, she generously offered to walk us to her baptist church just down the road. We gladly accepted and were promptly escorted to one of the oldest baptist churches in Bratislava. Barborka passed us off to another English-speaking gentlemen who guided us to seats in the balcony. A few whispers later, and we now had a Slovak man sitting behind us prepared to translate the entire service for us from Slovak into English. #kindness #exceededexpectations. Remember y’all, this is month 11. We are very used to sitting through hours of church with very minimal understanding because the service in conducted in a language that we have about 2 weeks of exposure to.
After the service, we gab with a few church members and in that time jot down at least 12 different names of contacts in the surrounding area who could be potential new ministry hosts.
That, my friends, is how we do Unsung Heroes.
One of the biggest lessons I’ve learned in these last couple months as we wrap the race up in Eastern Europe is the importance of using people instead of a map to navigate the world.
Where should we go to eat? Let’s ask someone! What are the best places to stay in Kosice? Well I know someone who’s been there, let’s ask her! Not only does this rule of “ask first, Google later” apply to small things such as a restaurant or hostel, but it translates to the big things too. What is breaking your heart about this city? How can we be love and life here? What areas need the salt and light of Jesus? Engaging with people at a coffee shop landed us a hot date on the Bachelor (just kidding, just a 5-on-1 date with a barista who took us out for beer & to a romantic overlook of the entire city. Casual.) Being open for God-interruptions allowed us to meet Robert, a homeless man who crashed our music-video creating party in the park.
Everyday we’ve used people instead of a map to guide our day has led to all of us coming back together at night praising God for all the divine encounters he placed on the path we didn’t even know we were on.
I think I can say this is true for the Race as a whole. I sure didn’t have a “map” for the World Race. I was not well blog-read nor had I have a copy of Seth Barnes’ book, “Kingdom Journeys.” I was led along the way by teammates, ministry contacts, and most importantly the Spirit Himself who showed me the way at every relational and physical turn.
Following the Spirit’s lead is the only effective way I’ve learned to navigate the World Race. And I pray it’s the only way I continue to navigate my life as I return home in just a few short weeks.
Forever His,
Grace
