Friday, May 31, 2013

Updates to Entries

I just received several emails with a few updates to Phil's and Mike's blog entries. Please make sure that you take a look at these two entries.

Janell

(a note from Elijah)

We had our final breakfast and devotions at Camp Timok early in the morning, and got packed up to head to Belgrade. Our final goodbyes were said. We safely arrived to Belgrade three hours later, and got checked into a hotel that we will stay at until Sunday. We met a couple from GEM (Greater European Missions) at the hotel, that lives here in Belgrade. They showed us around the city. We went to down town Belgrade and walked around for a couple of hours buying and looking around at different shops and vendors. After that, we went and walked around the Klemegdan Castle, and saw numerous ruins and ornate architecture. While we were there, we got to see the confluence of the Slava and Danube Rivers. We had the privilege to see part of a movie that was being filmed within the walls of the castle. They were filming under the productions of the Warner Brothers. Some of us also had the opportunity to take a couple pictures with some of the cast. Later that evening, we ate with the couple that lives in Belgrade at a fancy restaurant that was in the walls of the castle. Later that evening we said our farewells to Kim Garrity and Crystal Dueck, who were our leaders for this trip and had to leave early Saturday morning. That would complete our Friday in Belgrade.

~Elijah Stoesz

How Great Was That!

(a note from Glen)

Serbia Team Report: Wednesday, May 29, 2013

I went for a five mile run before breakfast this morning. I’ve had a cold the last several days, but today I felt great. The weather was perfect. Wooded hills, mountains in the distance, wild flowers, little gardens, small fields with crops of corn or wheat, quaint farms with dogs and pigs and turkeys and goats…it was all beautiful. At the beginning of the run I meet a young boy on his bike with his dog heading to catch the bus to school. I had met him yesterday and talked with him briefly and found out that he spoke some English. Today he greeted me with a clear “Good morning.” About 2.5 miles into my run the tiny country road I was running on again met up with the main road. That same boy was on the bus which was stopped to pick up more passengers. He saw me and gave me a big smile and a wave. How great was that!

But even as I rejoiced in the beauty around me and the wonderful people we have met, I remembered that on the spiritual level this land is extremely dark. In Mt. Lake we have 9 churches. Our church alone has about 400 people. Here the only evangelical church in the town near here has six people and the pastor’s family. The population of the town is about 50,000.

Evangelicals here are considered a cult and are strongly suppressed by the established church which tells people they get to heaven by infant baptism.

The camp we are helping to build is a little candle of light in a dark world. Young people come to hear the Gospel. Adults gather for encouragement and instruction in the Word.

This morning we spent some time in town experiencing the culture of the town market. In many ways the people, especially the younger people who had been influenced by the West, look like us. They are friendly even though we don’t know their language and most of them speak little or no English. But so very few of them know Jesus.

The work at the camp that was planned for us to do, and more, is nearly completed. This afternoon we finished the last of the concrete work that we will do. Tomorrow we will do general clean up and organizing to help them get ready for another work team that is coming and for the campers. The camp leaders have told us they are very happy with our work. They appreciate that everyone on the team works hard and enters into the work with enthusiasm.

We did have some excitement today. Novica was bringing a load of dirt with the tractor to fill in along the drainage ditch that we helped build. He got too close and one front wheel fell into the ditch. The ditch is lined with concrete slabs and is about four feet deep. The front axle was resting on the top of a slab. The good news was that no one was hurt and that the slab didn’t break. The bad news was that we had to get the tractor out. With the help of a small bottle jack and lots of “woods” (that Novica’s term for any piece of wood) we were able to gradually jack the front of the tractor up enough to drive it back. There was much rejoicing and thanking the Lord

Final Day and Being a Tourist

(a note from Mike)

Thursday, May 30, 2013

Today was our last day of work here at Camp Timok. We had finished all of our major projects yesterday, so today was a day to clean, organize, and spruce up the camp. We worked until 1:00, had lunch, cleaned ourselves up, and went into Zajacar one last time.

Some of our group stayed in town to relax and access the Internet while some of us went exploring. Zajacar is only 15 kilometers from the Bulgarian border so we thought we'd go and check it out. :-). We walked up to the Serbian check point (if we drove we'd have to pay a large tax) with Novica, who translated for us. They thought we were a little crazy for wanting to just cross the border, check it out, and come back....but they allowed us. We then had to cross 300 meters of "no-man's land" and then we had to go through the Bulgarian border crossing. They too, thought we were a little strange for wanting to do that, but checked our documents and let us through. Once in Bulgaria we took pictures (regular as well as "jumping" :-) ) and had fun checking out the scenery as well as some of the abandoned structures just over the border After about 45 minutes, we reversed the process and went back to Serbia with a few more stamps in our passport and the ability to say, "We visited Bulgaria!" :-)

We met back up in Zajacar and then headed back to the camp for one last meal there. Novica made it a special one by grilling 5 different kinds of meat! The food was delicious, the fellowship great, and the sense of accomplishment that we shared from the last two weeks of hard work....priceless!

We all love this place and feel that God knew what He was doing when He sent us here (as He always does). :-) The need is SO great and the workers are FEW. Out of 7 million people living in Serbia, only about 11,000 are "born again believers". We praise God for directing us here, to this ministry, through a wide variety of circumstances that He has been orchestrating over the last year. :-)

God truly is good ALL the time!

We're all looking forward to reuniting with you, our family and friends in a couple days.

Thanks for sending us!

In Him,

Mike

Wednesday, May 29, 2013

(a note from Phil)

Day 10 – Sunday

This morning we were excited to learn that Novica, Slovica, and Igor from the farm would be joining us for church today. Branko said this is the first time that they have gone along to church. Novica and Tamara came by the farm and picked them up and we followed them to Bor to go to church. The church building is a former apartment that has been remodeled to hold church services. It is a small church that was started by Branko. They have a lay pastor and about 10 to 15 attending each Sunday, so our group doubled the congregation this Sunday. The service here was much like we are used to. They had a worship team with a keyboard player. We sang some familiar hymns, although when the words in front of you are in Serbian, it’s hard to remember what the English words are and put the message of the song together. It was fun to see the enthusiasm of the congregation during singing. It just reinforces that we all worship the same Savior no matter what part of the world we are in.

Wade gave a greeting from our group and Kim gave the sermon. Kim spoke on Mark 5:1-20, the story of Jesus freeing the man with many demons. He presented the story as a question and answer talk and the congregation was not bashful about giving out answers. Obviously they are being taught the Word

Elijah's Serbian "brother"

After church we toured the area around Bor. Bor is a mining town, so we saw some of the mining equipment that was on display. We also went to a museum that once was a house for a Turkish duke. Then we went to Branko’s for lunch and for church again at 5:00.

Branko asked Mike if he would speak during the church service. Mike wasn’t comfortable with the idea, but he relented. He spent the rest of the afternoon preparing. He gave his testimony relating it to the story of the narrow and wide gate from Matthew 7:13-14. He did a good job telling his story and giving the lesson from these verses.

After church, Rada got a text message from Slovica saying that they enjoyed going to the church service today and something to the effect that ‘the Lord is good’. Please pray that they will continue on this path and someday accept Christ into their hearts.

Day 11 – Sixth work day

Today was a pretty typical work day. We laid more block, poured some concrete and dug in the ditch. The block is nearly complete. We poured two more of the columns, so that is half done. They will have to get some more materials for us to be able to finish everything but that doesn’t sound like that will be a problem.

A problem has developed with Kim’s van. On Saturday, it developed a fuel leak that has gotten progressively worse. Novica looked at it today, but it was not something he could fix. Kim and Branko took it to a couple of mechanics to look at and one said he could fix it but would need to have it all day Wednesday. Pray that it gets fixed and we don’t have any problems getting back to Belgrade on Friday. Also Kim and Crystal need it to make the drive back to Germany.

During devotions today, we talked a little bit about the team and the various ages and how well we have been working together. It doesn’t seem to matter who works together; everyone gets along and has a good time. We are definitely bonding and getting to know each other better. They also gave us and update on the status of Sashko, the man who killed the intruder who broke into his home. He is still in the hospital recovering, but a petition is being circulated and as of this mornings’ paper, more than 12,000 people have signed asking for his release. It is encouraging that people are rallying behind this Christian man.

For the team,

Phil

Saturday, May 25, 2013

Friday and Saturday News

(a note from Wade)

Friday May 24:

Greetings from the Balkans. Our team has now settled in very well here at Camp Timko. We are about 20 km from the Serbian town of Zayecar (zy a char). The scenery is outstanding, with rolling hills nestled among jagged mountains. Small farms dot the hillsides. Most farms are 15 to 20 acres. Each farm has its own apple, cherry, and plum orchard. A few chickens roam the farmstead. There are two or three sows with piglets and a few milking cows. Large vegetable gardens are found on virtually every farm, with strawberry beds planted seemingly everywhere so that there is little lawn to mow. We men feel like we have been placed on a farm back in the 1930's in the US. The women stay at accommodations at the camp.

The local Serbs have all been very friendly to us, using all sorts of gestures to help us communicate with them. The irony is that 95% of all Serbs "belong" to the Serbian Orthodox Church. The church teaches that salvation takes place at infant baptism, so few Serbs feel any need to have any sort of spiritual walk. In fact, evangelical Christianity is viewed as a cult by the Orthodox Church and thus by the govt. There is a close connection between the church and the government which breeds corruption of both institutions. Branko, the head of the camp and the pastor who has started a house church in Zayecar, stated that Camp Timko is the only evangelical Christian camp south of Belgrade (which is most of the country!).

Because of that, we sense an urgency to finish our part of building up of the camp facilities. We are all gaining a heart for the Serbian people. We ask you to join in prayer with us, that the devil's hold over the Serbian people would be broken. That God's light and His message would break through to the heart's and minds of the people. That the Gospel could be clearly presented and received. That God's glory would be revealed and the banner of Jesus Christ be raised high.

We appreciate all the prayers on our behalf. And we ask that you would remember Sasko, Ira and Abigail. He is the Serbian brother in jail now for protecting his family from burglar. We need a work of God so that he would be free to return to his family.

Saturday, May 25, 2013

Hello again from seven times zones ahead of Minnesota.

The work in Serbia is progressing well. The team has completed the plumbing connecting the new restroom/shower building to the main sewer and connected the water supply to the building. To have completed that project was wonderful, since that was one of the main reasons we are here. The clay block walls are going up and completed in certain areas. We are also working to compete a system of concrete trenches that will protect the main house of Camp Timko from any sort of heavy rainfall or quickly melting snow in the Spring.

Our days are going by quickly. We begin work at 8:30AM and usually go until 10:30 when we break for a short snack and group devotions. The snack has consisted each day of huge locally grown strawberries and cherries. During devotions, every individual on our team is giving us their spiritual story and quoting a section of scripture that means a lot to them. This devotional time has been an important time of the day, as we learn more about each other and spend extended time in prayer together. We then head back to work for a couple of hours and then break for lunch (more strawberries!!). Two more work sessions in the afternoon (with a break for strawberries and cherries). And finally a wonderful dinner served by Branko's wife (with strawberries usually on the table). Then we either head into Zayecar so we can access the Internet or we stay home and relax the rest of the evening (so we can dream about strawberries!).

As we talk with Branko about the local Orthodox churches, we are dismayed to hear about people leaving food for dead relatives a number of times throughout the year. We find the Orthodox priests condoning their parishioners going to witches for advice on how to live their lives or to talk to their dead relatives. We learn that the people are resistant to the Gospel and reject the scriptures, most because it is too hard to make a break with the traditions they grew up with and feel their family ties won't permit them to let Christ be their Lord and Savior.

Would you continue to pray for our team? For unity, for protection and for great spiritual growth. And continue to pray for the Serbian people. Traditions and customs are difficult to give up, unless you can understand the grace of our God and the love of our Savior. Also, continue to pray for Sasko, the Christian brother from Belgrade who killed a man who was breaking into his home. The latest is that he is in jail for 30 days at least, until a trial date can be set. His wife, Ira, planned to meet with the burglar's father and brother some time soon. Ira (pronounced ear-a), seems to be one courageous, deeply committed young woman who desires to do whatever God asks of her. Pray for Ira and their daughter, Abigail, so that they may stand firm in their faith and continue to be lights in a very dark country.

God bless you all. Hvala lepo.

The family we are staying with in Serbia

The "guest house" where the men sleep - about 1/2 mile from Camp Timko

The four row planter in front of the barn where the men stay

Nowitzka, the camp leader, supervising the installing of the plumbing

The walls going up

Devotion time

Thursday, May 23, 2013

The Work Continues and Some Exploring

(a note from Emily and Annie)

Yesterday (Wednesday) we continued to work some more. The drainage ditch has gotten to the point where we need to make more concrete slabs in order to continue, so everyone worked up on the bathrooms. The morning was cold compared to others and it eventually started raining. We all got to wear some pretty awesome rain gear and our cement mixer even had its own colorful umbrella to protect it. By lunch time the rain had gone and the sun came out for the afternoon. A thunderstorm came just as we were cleaning up and it started pouring while we were getting ready for supper. We got to see the drainage ditch in action!

Today (Thursday) was a sight-seeing day, but it started out with pouring rain. We had devotions and discussed religion while we waited for the rain to subside. However, we couldn't wait forever, so we headed out to the Roman ruins near Zajecar. We explored in the rain which was quite the adventure. As we were leaving, we saw the American ambassador on his way to the ruins. After the ruins, we went to see a friend of Branko's who is a potter. At 76, he had evidence of his many years of work. As we got to explore his rooms and rooms of beautiful pottery, he kept pulling out more and more. We eventually headed back to Branko's, and then headed to a pizzeria for lunch. The pizza was made in a brick oven and tasted very good. We spent the rest of the day exploring Zajecar and relaxing at Branko's.

Tuesday, May 21, 2013

(a note from Emily)

On Sunday we went into Zajecar to Branko's house for lunch and were able to explore the town a little bit. We found some nice coffee shops with free WiFi so we sat there for a while. At 5 there was a church service in Branko's house with our team and about six or seven others from Zajecar. It was a neat experience to sing in Serbian and worship with the people. Glen gave the message while Branko translated for him. After the service, Rada (Branko's wife) had supper for us all and we visited until we headed back to camp in the evening.

Monday began our construction work. We started off the day with a time of devotions then got to work. Some of us laid concrete slabs in the drainage ditch and others helped to dig a trench for the plumbing of the bathroom. A truck with blocks came that we unloaded via assembly line. Annie, Elijah, and Emily learned the difference between cement and concrete and also learned how to mix concrete. We finished a row of blocks on two walls and are hoping to get even farther tomorrow now that we've got the hang of it.

It is definitely summer here with hot sun and temperatures. Mike, Daniel, Glen, and Wade made use of the river behind the camp after supper while the rest of us weren't quite brave enough yet. It is already pretty warm by the time we start in the morning, so the river will more than likely be utilized often in the evenings.

Today (Tuesday) we continued to work and made a lot of progress. We used up all the concrete slabs for the one drainage ditch. As for the bathrooms we are building, we are a slippery (here in Serbia we have learned the phrase "slippery" which means "about") three rows up. We also got to unload another truck of brick. We seem to have gotten a bit of a system down so the work is going a bit faster. Today we moved devotions to later in the day so we wouldn't have to work so much during the heat of the day. One exciting moment of the day was seeing a ten inch gecko. He didn't seem to like us very much... After work we got cleaned up, had supper, and headed to town for exploration and WiFi

Sunday, May 19, 2013

We Arrived Safely!

(a note from Phil)

We got to the camp and met Branko (the director of the camp) and his wife Rada and their daughter and son-in-law and their kids. We had a quick tour of the camp and learned a little about what we’ll be doing in the next two weeks. We will be putting up cement block walls to make a bath house and will also be continuing to dig out a trench and lining it with cement for drainage of the camp. Rada and her daughter made us spaghetti, cucumbers and tomatoes, and fresh bread for supper.

The girls are staying at the camp with Crystal, a GEM intern and the camp dog. The men are staying across the highway at a very eclectic farm. They walk through a field and down a dirt road to get there.

This morning we had a little orientation and the best strawberries we’ve ever had. Today we’re going into Zajecar to Branko’s house for lunch and church later in the afternoon.