This month's ministry began with our time in Cacak, preparing newly purchased grounds for a youth camp. In leaving just before the camp began, we were so thankful to hear of the fruits of our labor the next week.
The remainder of our time was spent in Uzice, where our ministry was built around expanding on the friendships that were already within the ministry and developing new friendships, while demonstrating what it is to walk in a personal relationship with Christ. Wednesday evenings in Uzice we held English club at a local café named Vremeplov Café. My team built much of its ministry from the English Club as we spent late hours hanging out and speaking English on the patio. With these friendships we had a game night, where we exchanged dance moves. We taught them the Cupid Shuffle and the Electric Slide, while they taught a traditional Serbian dance. We actually saw this traditional dance played out in town during an outside wedding celebration. The bride is holding hands with the groom on one side and another fellow in the family on the other.
Further, my team went on a day long fishing trip and got to hangout with young Serbs, swim, fish, eat, and learn Serbian music through translation. It’s so interesting to see how God uses circumstances and time to give His children hope. We weren't sure of the opportunities present, almost 3 weeks into our month in Serbia, in spending a day learning how to fish with a 5 meter long pole and some maggat balls. We had been struggling with our ministry opportunities and we weren’t sure how our friendships at the lake would develop. Then, a couple of the guys came to English Club and later invited the group to a raft party. They were hosting this party and therefore we were treated very well. We sat up on a little stage next to the bar and watched as 15 and 16 yr olds danced, drank, and smoked below. We were having a great time, having good conversation in the midst of very loud music. Some of the girls, who were friends of our new friends, were telling me a lot about Serbia and its people. They mentioned how the people of Serbia are not controlled, especially the young people. You can drink at any age, have sex at any age, and party non-stop. Believe it or not, this event (something that brought a huge discussion up within my team about whether this would be a potential environment for ministry) was vital to the relationships we built and the opportunities we were given to speak truth into the lives of our friends.
The library is another place of ministry that Ben, Emily, and Jenny really enjoy. They go for 2 hours in the morning and help a group of 20 kids do crafts and speak English with them. This is a ministry where we are building relationships with the ladies that conduct this program and hope to speak into their lives, encourage the kids by speaking with them in English and giving them our attention, and in the future allow for open doors in potential ministry areas with those observing our actions.
In a previous blog you read about my team cleaning up the streets, not only in Bela Zemlija, but also at the old city. Every morning we would clean the streets and most mornings we would come across a boy, about the age of 9, who's name is Victor. We had no idea what Victor ever said to us and he hated the game of pictionary (darn-it, because I'm pretty good at it). Victor was mentally handicapped in some form, from what we could tell, and communication was difficult. One day we decided to bring extra trash bags and we "asked" Victor if he wanted to help (through sherades of course). I wrapped his hand with a bag to use as a glove and he helped for a few minutes, then got on his bike and went home. We spent many mornings with Victor walking along the streets, having no idea of the impact we may be making on him, but we saw him helping us for those few minutes as a success in bringing him closer to understanding who we were and our reason for being in Bela Zemlija.
We also had an amazing discipleship that developed between Ben and a new believer, Petar. If nothing else, this was enough reason for us to be in Uzice, Serbia. I am coming to a new appreciation for discipleship and its importance in any and every context. I believe that we all need someone further along in their walk with God to pour their wisdom in us and guide us into a deeper relationship with God.
Many times this month was difficult because of the initiative that was needed on our part to work with a ministry that is still in its pioneering stage, and the lack of experience and knowledge we have in expanding on a ministry that is new to us, while in a country that is new to us. We have grown in our understanding of the Orthodox church and the tensions that exist between them and us. We have come to believe that God used this month to not only prepare us for this year, but to actively soften the hearts of those we came in contact with so that they begin to know what a personal relationship with Christ looks like.
Prayer Requests:
1. Pray for Chris and Mirjam Klop as they continue to evangelize and establish a group of people who desire to follow Christ in Uzice, Serbia.
2. Pray for Eddie and Andrew who are new Youth with a Mission missionaries and who will be staying in Uzice for 6mo (Eddie) to over 1 year (Andrew), building on the friendships that have been made and expanding the kingdom of God in Uzice.
3. Pray for God to soften the hearts of those we came in contact with over the last month and that the seeds we planted would be contnuously watered.
4. Pray for my team and unity within it and the holy spirit to ignite a fire within our souls to spread the gospel.
I praise God for your prayers and for your support.
