“I started carrying a knife when I was 14, and got into a lot of fights. I gained respect on the street. During the war years, the streets were especially dangerous, and when I was 15 or 16 I started carrying a gun. My father’s monthly paycheck was like $400 USD per month, but I could make $1500 USD in a day from drugs and crime. I spent 100% of it on prostitutes, bikes, and more drugs. Through it all, I always felt I was missing something.”
His mother died when he was four months old, and his dad never cared about his drug habits. He left home at 16 and never went back.
“My gang was untouchable. We’d hang out together all day, beating up people regularly, getting into fights every day, dealing and doing drugs. The temptations all around me were too much to pass up. We started doing criminal work, making businesses pay us to protect them. If they didn’t pay, we’d tear up their place. I was doing steroids, getting big muscles, I had two pit bulls, shaved my head, got tattoos. It wasn’t nice for people to see me. People passed on the other side of the street because no one could tell when I might hit somebody, so I kept up with the violence to keep my pride. When you have pride, you have everything on the street. You don’t have to wait in line for bread.“
It wasn’t always glamorous for him, though. He once overdosed on 7-8 grams of cocaine and nearly died. This was the worst experience in his life, but not for the reason you
might expect. It was hell to him because he couldn’t feed his addiction
to cocaine for those five days he spent in the hospital.
“I got married at 19 and divorced at 21 because we couldn’t have children. It was a hard time, so I got ten of the most beautiful girls in town and spent all my money on them. I still knew something in my life was incomplete. Girls never satisfied it. Years passed and I met my second wife from Italy. She was very beautiful and I was very proud of her, we married when I was 26 but it didn’t work out, either. Through everything, I always felt like something was missing, but I never knew what. My last girlfriend got pregnant and snuck away to have an abortion without telling me. She wanted to still hang out and I said, ‘no,’ because she killed my child. It hurt very deeply. I was very lost at this time.”
Something inside him kept yearning to find what was missing and he knew he would die if he didn’t change. At age 30, he decided to quit everything. He first tried talking to a Catholic priest, but the priest said he couldn’t help and refused to associate with him. At that point, he didn’t know what to do.
“I ended up meeting a Christian girl from a local Bible college. She said she would give me her Bible if I promised to read it. She invited me to the Global Café. There I met Tim and the rest of the guys. I went to the Saturday Night social event and other activities. I realized everything that I missed all those years was God. Finally I found it. Now I’m Christian. I believe and know that the LORD is my savior. I was baptized ten days ago and attend the church at Global Café every Sunday. Life is wonderful for the first time. God is the best thing that ever happened to me. I have a clear perspective on life and on what life is supposed to be. My physical and emotional dependencies on drugs are completely gone. Completely.”
God is radically transforming Neno. It’s a beautiful thing to see, and I’ve only known him for two weeks. He was the first person in Croatia who I had conversation with, and immediately I was drawn to him. I believe God is going to use Neno and his powerful testimony to reach many. He has an extraordinary servant’s heart. He helped find the apartment for us, helped us find things around town, and regularly offers to help at the café.
He brings a unique flavor and enthusiasm to everything he does, but what really blows my mind is how God is already speaking to him. Just a few days ago, he was praying about a difficult situation in his life and God placed it on his heart to seek counsel from Tim and another guy (which turned out to be me). The three of us sat down and talked about his life and the situation he was going through. Try to get this… just imagine the setting. Here is a guy who used to beat up people like Tim and me on a regular basis, who is now humbling himself by seeking our counsel. This is a guy who owned the streets, who grew up in an environment in which pride meant everything, who has been his own master for over a decade. Imagine the incredible obedience and humility in seeking our counsel and in opening up to us with such vulnerability. That day we witnessed something in Neno that he had never before shown anyone: brokenness, submission, and real tears.
He wants to use his testimony to show people that the LORD can pull people out of hopelessness. Drug addictions can be overcome, and the blood of the Lamb can wash sin away. Neno’s struggle isn’t over, though. Two days ago, there were some men who stopped by the café and recognized him from his past life. They threatened him violently to get out of town. They told him if they ever saw him around here again that they’d send him to the hospital. (I really think he needs our prayers even as I finish this blog a few weeks later).
Perhaps most encouraging of all is the knowledge that the missionaries at Global Café are doing awesome things for the Kingdom. One of the missionaries, Chris, is planning to head up a men’s Bible study for Neno, Matko, and the other guys who hang out at the club. Dave, who has really been doing a lot of the behind-the-scenes work for the team, is now sharing an apartment with Neno, both to help out costs and to provide Christian discipleship. And Tim continues to provide counsel, pastoral care, and-honestly-a cool example of Godly living (all the guys really do).
I really want to thank the team from Global Café for hosting us, for serving God so wholeheartedly, and for really caring for the people of Split, Croatia. I want to thank Neno for all the help he offered our team while we stayed, and for being bold with his testimony. Finally, I just want to ask you to remember the missionaries at Global Café, Neno, and Matko in your prayers. And don’t forget to praise God for everything He has done and continues to do!
