Adventures WorldRace SethBarnes Sponsorship Giving

| by archiveworldraceblogs

Once again, we’re ATLing. From our two teams we were split into four teams. The four guys were all together for their “manistry” time and then the girls were split into three teams. Our team leader Tamica planned to be a floater between the teams. So with that figured out, our dear friend David from Osijek dropped us off in the city of Vinkovci in front of the post office and after many hugs, he said goodbye and drove away. The first thing we did was pile up our bags, stand in a circle, link arms to keep each other warm and pray. I prayed that God would bring someone to us, that they’d even stop driving and ask if we needed help or that they would show us where we could stay cause we really had no idea where to go.
   
 
About a minute later, a red car pulls up. A man and his daughter roll down the window and ask if we need help or a place to stay. They tell us of hotels we can go to and give us a bunch of advice and offer us a ride to get there if we need. We decline the ride just because we’re on a very limited budget and don’t know how much hotels will cost and we didn’t want to drag our stuff way out there and then find out it costs too much and have to trek all the way back. So after that we prayed some more and then Stacy and I went for a walk to scout out the said hotels. We went to three different hotels to find out how much it would be for 7 people to stay for a night, maybe even possibly four nights. All the hotels here charge per person, its not a flat rate for a room like it is back in Canada and the States and none of them would let us sleep seven in a room. We only had 61.50 Kuna per person to spend on lodging each night. The cheapest we found was 90 Kuna per person, per night. We had found out from a restaurant owner about a park near the river and he said we could probably tent there without getting arrested by the police. So we ran with it.

We decided to see if we could rent a hotel room for  the price of one person and just leave our bags there and then go set up a few tents by the river. Thankfully, the hotel agreed and we headed upstairs to drop off our big backpacks for night and take a break before heading out to the river. A man walks in to fix the heater and we asked him if he was the boss. “No. I just work here.”  He answered. We ended up talking and he asked us a bunch of questions about what we were doing and where we were staying for the night. We told him about how were were going to tent by the river and that we were Christian missionaries. He then told us that we could stay in the room for the next two nights for the price of 430 Kuna (one US dollar equals 4.85 Croatian Kuna) and by doing so, he revealed to us that he was the owner of the hotel. He had been testing us! They had originally told us it would 700 Kuna for one night and that was even a special deal. So now we got TWO nights for almost half that. Its basically six dollars per night. That is an incredible price. Oh, and he threw in breakfast for free too.

I’d like to mention that there are four beds in this room and only three have pull out beds. Thats the perfect amount for the seven of us girls. We each got a bed!!! How could this get any better?
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
(This is our newly settled room with all the pull out beds. Sorry for the mess, but we just moved in!)
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

And then the Lord decided to show us that he’s a God of abundance.

I had basically finished writing this blog when there was a quiet knock on the door. The hotel receptionist Manda walked in, looked around our full room of seven beds that we had just set up and said “Come, three of you can sleep in another room.” They gave us a SECOND room for FREE! So the other team of girls went in there.

I’d also like to point out that this is the second time this has happened to us this month. The first was in Budapest, Hungary and now we’re experiencing it again in Croatia. God is such a good God! He’s such a good Daddy! He totally takes care of his girls! Its what he does best.

Just like how the hotel owner tested us, I think God was testing us too. We were willing to go and sleep in tents beside a river in a park, huddle together and try to keep warm. God saw our hearts and that we were willing to do whatever it takes and he rewarded us for it. We could have totally slept in the tents and it would have been fine, but God went over and above and just showed us how much he loves us. We have our own beds, blankets, a big fluffy pillow, a warm place to stay with a roof over our heads, a shower and there’s even internet downstairs in the restaurant where we go to have our free breakfast from 7am-noon. Each of us even has our own night stand beside our bed! You have no idea what a luxury that is!

Wow. I have been completely blown away. Who am I to ever doubt God and his love for us?