Kuchnia Polska ~ Polish Lunch May 9, 2008

Polish Lunch!
Our lunch at this great place was delicious….here are our chefs. They each took Bibles and bracelets. The lady on the left came to us later and asked for two more Bibles to give to her family.
Please pray for all those we witnessed to in Poland and pray for revival in Poland.
Thank you and God bless you!

God, Please Heal Him

Warsaw, Poland
This morning Gosia picked us up. We returned to Alexandria’s flat to pick up our postcards that were left there yesterday, then went to the grocery to buy lunch. As we were loading the groceries in the car, a homeless man walked up to Gosia. I knew he was asking for money or food. His face was covered with scabs and my heart went out to him. Gosia handed over several items of food to him. I asked her to ask him if we could pray for him.

We gathered around him. The smell of alcohol was very strong and he leaned against my hand as I laid it on his shoulder. The boys prayed one at a time and the man’s emotions overtook him. When it was my turn to pray, I felt called to pray for him to be re-united with his family. I stood against his addictions and asked for God to cleanse him and make him whole. He was very grateful and spoke to Gosia in Polish.
As we walked away, my heart was very heavy. It is one of my main struggles right now with the Lord. I pray often for the answer to this. I want to see this man’s life changed. I want more than his emotions to be overwhelmed. I was to see the scabs disappear from his face. I was to see his teeth reappear in his mouth. I want the spirit of addiction to flee. I want his whole life to change. I want him to know God in a deep and intimate way. I want him freed from his captivity. I want him to dance joyfully down the street, praising God for the miracle He has performed in him.
I know God can do all this. Even though my heart feels much love towards this man, I know that God loves this man more than I do. I also know that God wants this man freed from his captivity too. So why is he not freed and healed?
I desperately wish I had the answer. I know that God is God. He is God of all. It is His ultimate decision of who He heals miraculously. I also know that God has set in place boundaries, laws and consequences. We all reap the consequences when we do not follow the laws God has laid out. He has given us free will to make those decisions. He also often uses our consequences to help us learn. He has given us the Bible to make sure we know what the boundaries and consequences are. The more I read the Bible, the clearer His direction is.
The law of gravity has a consequence of a hard landing when you go against it and jump off a wall. “Do not be drunk on wine, but be filled with the Spirit” ………. has consequences too. These consequences are not as immediate as the jump. But the consequences are there and real….as this man proves.
What will it take to change this man’s life? I don’t know, God does. I pray. I do my best to be obedient.
Maybe God puts this man on my heart to pray for him…maybe He will use my prayers to eventually heal him. Maybe we drove away and suddenly his scabs disappeared and he danced down the street telling everyone he met how God had healed him.

It is one of the many things I look forward to about heaven. To learn the rest of the story of those I meet and witness to or pray over. What an exciting eternity…to hear their stories of how God changed their lives and to share how God has changed mine through the acts and prayers of others….like you.
Thank you for your prayers!!

Fellowship at #7 Slotsky Flat Warsaw, Poland

Kasia, her nephew Tomek, sister Alexandria (due to give birth in two weeks ) and brother-in-law. Joseph. Please pray for Alexandria’s health and the health of their new baby. The boys and Tomek played legos…no language barrier with legos.

Statue in Old Town Warsaw

The statue in the center square of the old town area in Warsaw

May 8th, 2008

Kids with Bibles, Inspiring Gosia in Warsaw...

I had shared with Gosia how we had purchased Bibles in Czech Republic and had stood on the street to give them out. The next day Gosia shows up with a box of Bibles! She asked someone where we could get Bibles and her friend produced the box.
Don’t you love how God provides?!

We went to a wonderful park and the boys could not get over what great play ground equipment they had. After a couple hours of play, we struck up a conversation with some teenagers. As Gosia translated, we shared the Gospel. All but one of the kids took a Bible and several took Polish copies of The Passion (many thanks to Calvary United Methodist Church for your generous support for this!).

I am always amazed how kids really listen to the Gospel. Even though my words were translated, they all listened attentively, answered our questions and responded to our message. When you speak the Truth, it has a way of penetrating hearts. Thanks be to God!

Please pray for these young people that God will use them in a mighty way to share the Gospel in Poland.
Jesus said to him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me". John 14:6

Samuel School, Warsaw Poland

Our dear friend from IHOP, Gosia and her family met us at the train station yesterday when we arrived in Warsaw. They have found a delightful flat complete with kitchen and all the necessities. Again, we are blessed.
Today we spoke three times at a local school. The ages were pre-school to 5th grade with a total of about 80 children. I was very impressed with the amount of English the children knew. The principle of the school, Jack and Lucas, the public relations administrator translated for us.
What struck me the most of the entire day was the love of the Lord the staff have at the school. Each class was started with Lucas playing the guitar and all the staff and children singing praise and worship. The adults participated with gusto and genuine praise. What a great role model they are for their children!
This school is very blessed with Jack, Lucas and many others we met. Their love for God and their devotion to the children was very evident.
Jack, the school principle is enthusiastic about the Lord! Ok, so am I!

We ate lunch with the children and the boys were thrilled to join them for recess. The soccer balls we brought got lots of use! Thank you Samuel School, for your warm welcome and for blessing us with the opportunity to be there. May God richly bless you!
Poland as a nation is mostly Catholic. There is a need for more to come to know Jesus personally. Please pray for the Holy Spirit to be poured out here in a mighty way and that more would have a personal relationship with the Lord.
Thank you for your prayers!!!!!

Taken advantage of in Eastern Europe?

(click for larger pictures)
Photos by Reid Geary
May 4, 2008

At least twice in the last 48 hours we have experienced situations where someone was kind and helpful to us, only to then tell us how much we “owed” them for their kindness. In my many travels, I have experienced this often. In the past, I would get angry and sometimes even argue. This trip has been different.
First, let me explain what God is teaching me about money. It is all His. Whatever I think I “own” is really just a temporary ownership. I have temporary stewardship of everything….my home (someone else will one day own it), my children (they will soon be on their own), and my money (it simply flows through me to whomever God decides, whether I recognize that or not). What I need to be aware of is how I steward what God has given me. One day I will stand before the Lord and give an accounting of all that He has entrusted to me. When I look at my life from this perspective, it really brings all that I do and where I spend my time and money into a different perspective. That perspective takes on a more eternal perspective versus the temporal perspective we often have of this life.
Now I have known and understood this concept for several years however lately God is teaching me a deeper meaning. If indeed someone has taken advantage of us or is unjustly taking funds not due them, then they are really taking the money from God…not me. I have recently learned that God can deal with those who are unjust or dishonest much better than I can. I have also learned that what may seem inappropriate to me, maybe God’s way of getting funds to someone else from me. I do my best not to judge their motivation. Only God knows their heart, not me.

Secondly, I understand that everything I do reflects on God. As a Christian, I am called to walk in His ways. As I profess Jesus with my mouth, my actions need to speak more clearly than my words. If I argue about the value of their service, then money becomes more important than the person in front of me. From God’s perspective, nothing and I mean NO THING is more important than the person in front of me. If my actions taint the words “Jesus Christ” than I will have to give an account of that on judgment day too. Far be it that I would be a bad influence on another. This is much easier to say than to do. In both cases when I was told to pay for their services, I simply smiled brightly and paid up. I then thanked them profusely for their help, placed my hand on their shoulder and said, “May God richly bless you.” I meant what I said. I trust that God, who is a just God will make right any wrong, whether from me or to me.
You shall not take vengeance, nor bear any grudge against the children of your people, but you shall love your neighbor as yourself: I am the LORD. Lev. 19:18

The great benefit of this is I walk away blessed and I don’t have to worry about someone’s motives when they help. I have been helped (and in both cases we really needed help) and they have received what they felt was proper pay for the help. If I feel the least bit taken advantage of, I just give that to the Lord. I trust He will take care of it.
May I also give credit where credit is due….it is God’s grace that has changed me. The more time I spend with Him, the more He molds me to be more like Him. I praise God for His goodness in my life. Please praise Him too!

We have discovered that
one can learn real humility
and appreciation by
downsizing from a 4000
square foot house
to 4 suitcases!

Fear and Faith...

Train from Prague, Czech Republic to Warsaw, Poland

Fear
Many people have told me that I am brave. I am not. What bravery I may have had about this trip died about 2 weeks before we left. Fear has haunted me almost daily. I have feared that I had misunderstood the Lord about this trip. I have feared for my children’s safety, for the finances to hold up, for lost relationships, for offending those we visit, for our health, for missing a flight, losing our passports, losing our minds….you name it, it has come across my mind as fear.

I would have thought that since we are following God and doing His work that He would allow nothing to happen to us. I was wrong. What I am finding is God has allowed many of my fears to come to fruition. At first I would get angry with God. “How could you allow this to happen to us?” I would say. In my sinful pride, I expected a shield against anything I didn’t want. This thought was me forgetting that God is in control, not me.
Faith
God in His marvelous way has shown me this is more about teaching me to trust Him and walk in faith, regardless of what happens. That is not always easy.

Harrison steals a peak out the train window…looking for the yellow flowers.
In London, both Adrian and Helen in separate conversations brought up the idea of staying focused on the eternal, not the immediate. I have prayed for the last month that God would teach me more about the “Kingdom of God” and exactly what that is.
What God is teaching me is the Kingdom of God is the spiritual side of life. The more I focus on the spiritual and worry less about the physical the more God is able to step in and take care of the physical for me, in His way and His timing.

“Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death,I will fear no evil; For You are with me; Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me.” Psalm 24:3
Please pray that God will strengthen my faith and the faith of my children. Pray that God will be our strength and that we will always lean on Him only.
I pray God will teach you too. He is gentle and His yoke is light.

The beautiful yellow flowers were everywhere!

"Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For My yoke is easy and My burden is light.” Matthew 11:29-30 (NKJV)

Prague, Czech Republic

The Bonaparte Pension
“Therefore I say to you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink; nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food and the body more than clothing?” Matthew 6:25
The boys discover 'Hote'.
This is our first venture into a foreign country that does not speak English. I expected it to be a little tougher getting around and it has been. The boys have rolled with the punches pretty well. We’ve all gotten pretty good at saying Thank you in Czech. Harrison even ate schnitzel today and liked it.
Yesterday was a major holiday and we had a lot of difficulty getting a place to stay. But God was faithful to provide. We found out today that the entire city was sold out of hotel rooms and many were not able to find a vacancy. Considering the cold and rain, I am praising God for His provision for us.
Prague is a beautiful city. The country is mostly atheist. I have been amazed at the number of people I have seen wearing crosses today. We have handed out bracelets (both salvation and our website ones) to everyone we can. I have been verbally beating myself up that we did not bring tracts in the Czech language.
As we walked around, we found a bookstore and purchased every Children’s Bible they had and 5 adult Bibles, all in Czech. We walked out of the shop and stood in the sidewalk trying to give them away. It wasn’t easy. Many turned us away. Those who stopped were skeptical, but interested. As best we could we explained about Jesus using our bracelets. Although I know their lack of English (and our total ignorance to Czech) was a hindrance, I would just pray that God would give them understanding. I trust He did.
We were led to give out Jesus films and soccer balls to several people randomly and were even able to pray over a few. I am finding this an exciting adventure….who will God call us to today? Each day it seems different and I am learning to be open to His leading….His mercies are new every day.

A Divine Appointment at a London Train Station

Divine Appointment
We often pray for God to give us Divine appointments with people and today He answered in a dramatic way. Adrian dropped us off at the train station. Once inside we learned that a lightning strike had stopped the trains and they weren’t sure when they would be running again. The boys and I decided to sit for a while and wait. I went to get a drink and as I paid, I felt led to give a tract to the man in the kiosk.
I shared we were on a mission trip around the world to share the love of Christ and asked if he was a Christian. “No, I am Muslim” came his kind and gentle reply. He then began to share with me how Muslims hold Jesus in high esteem. I became slightly anxious and prayed, “Lord, tell me what to say.”
May I just tell you quickly, I always feel inadequate to debate another religion and get a sense of angst when I meet someone of another faith. Yet I have learned that IF I pray and ask God to speak through me, He ALWAYS comes through.
The man spoke and I listened. Inside I wanted to argue every point, but I kept my mouth closed and nodded my head. Other customers queued up (nice English term for standing in line) so not wanting to hinder his business I took the opportunity to go check on the boys. As I sat down with them for a minute, the Lord spoke to me, “Pray for his relative who is sick.”
I looked up and the train ticket booth man told me the trains were running and we needed to get to our platform because he didn’t know when the next train would arrive.
On the way to the platform I saw my new Muslim friend was free. I walked up to him and said, “The trains are running now and I believe God stopped the trains so I could meet you. Do you have an ill family member we can pray for?” His look spoke volumes. “Yes, my daughter. She is brilliant and had a very good job in Brussels. Two years ago she became ill and the doctors do not know what is wrong.”
The boys and I gathered around to pray and at that exact minute the train arrived. Hatcher noted that our train was here and our friend encouraged us to catch it. “The next train won’t come for another ½ hour.” In my heart I knew there was no better time to miss a train than that very minute. Instead of running to catch the train, we began praying for Sarah, his daughter. Each boy sweetly prayed for this man and for God to heal his daughter. When I prayed I boldly asked the Lord to miraculously heal her so he would know that Jesus is the son of God. I trust that God will heal Sarah and in such a way that my new Muslim friend will one day be my old Christian friend.
Please pray for Sarah and all her family to come to know the love of Jesus.

Prophetic Evangelism
The above story is a great example of what is called prophetic evangelism. According to 1 Corinthians 12:8 the Spirit gives a word of knowledge. Sometimes the Lord does this so we can be a witness for Him. What a powerful way for someone to come to know the Lord, by the Christian to receive a word from the Lord for them. Be open for God to use you in this way and be bold to speak when He does. God will honor your faith in Him. I pray God will use you in this way this week to be a witness for Him

“For to one is given the word of wisdom through the Spirit, to another the word of knowledge through the same Spirit” 1 Corinthians 12:8