Eph. 6:18 -- " And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the Lord’s people."

November in Poland

We've just celebrated Christmas and we'll be heading into a new year in a matter of days! So I'm really behind on catching you up! But here goes...

I spent the first half of November in Poland and then flew to the States on Nov. 20th to spend three weeks there. I returned to Poland just two weeks ago and working on this blog has been helpful in re-transitioning. In the next blog I'll share about my time back home. But for now, here's what happened in Pruszcz in November before I flew home...

A New Look At Our Church

a more inviting color

Look carefully at this photo on the left and then compare it to the photo above -- the title photo. Notice anything similar? Yep, that's the same church. Notice anything different? Yep, a fresh new color! We had the facade of church renovated (--well, half of it, anyway... the other half will be done in Spring).  The new spring green color with wood paneling looks much more inviting.  

We hope to have a couple verses on the church building as well as a sign situated closer to the road to make it more evident what this building is.

Of course a church is much more than a building -- it's the people of God, the Body of Christ.  And this part needs more renovation -- perhaps restoration would be a more fitting word.  It's much easier to restore & renovate the outside of the building than to see spiritual (and thus) relational restoration within the Body of Christ.  This is my greater hope and prayer. To see God lifted high amongst the people inside of the church.  After all, a facade is just a facade.

Having said that, we're very grateful for all the work that's been done and thankful for God's protection over the workers.  I pray that in some way while working here, their eyes were opened a bit more to see the reality of Christ.

Women's Brunch (14 Nov)

The verse I received was Proverbs 31:10 but I've included vs. 11 here. 

I think it's a great encouragement for things to come very soon! :)

"10An excellent wife, who can find? For her worth 

is far above jewels. 11The heart of her husband 

trusts in her, And he will have no lack of gain."

A few times a year, the pastor's wife, Asia organizes a get-together for the women in our church.  She teaches art in a middle school and is very creative and skilled in working with her hands.  She gave us each a very special pre-Christmas gift -- beautifully decorated candles specifically designed for each one of us. Each had a verse attached which although she had NOT specifically picked out for the individual, seemed as if it were. Perhaps they were hand-picked by God?!  :)  

All of us who were there were very encouraged and touched by these beautiful gifts and we enjoyed our time together as sisters in Christ. 

Armia Pana (Youth Group)

We wrapped up a series on the Armor of God in November, which we started in September (Ephesians 6). I'm so thankful and so blessed by all of our guest speakers. Each one put so much time and heart into preparing well for their talks. Each had a different approach and made sure to include interactive elements. Our list of guest speakers included parents, three Sunday School teachers, our worship band leader, a student preparing for full-time ministry, and a missionary along with his fiancee.  I'm also really happy that list includes not only Polish people and Americans, but also an Indian young man and a Puerto Rican young lady.  Here are our final speakers/talks:

Helmet of Salvation (7 Nov)

Guest Speaker: Grace Sotomayor 

Grace was recommended by one of my friends in Warsaw you read about in a previous blog, Jennifer Nagy. Even though I'd never met Grace before, I knew I could trust Jen. Grace is very dynamic and vibrant so she had no problem grabbing and maintaining the attention of the kids! On a fun personal note, we discovered so many similarities in our experiences growing up as bicultural kids -- including limited understanding of American metaphors! (She was born in Puerto Rico, raised in Georgia, and served as a missionary in Poland the last two years.)

fun icebreaker

Grace grabbed our attention right away by showing a clip from the movie, "Inception" (starring Leonardo DiCaprio) as an illustration of how powerful the mind & subconscious are -- both in their creative and destructive power.

During her talk, she also pointed out that Satan's attacks on the mind are strong because if the mind is destroyed, we are to a great degree debilitated. Furthermore, if our mind is not protected and we don't know the Word of God, it's like walking into a battlefield unarmed (and unarmored).

They're trying to act natural but they're actually posing. :)

She also explained that the plumes on the helmets of Roman soldiers were not only decorative, but they displayed one's status in the army.  She made the connection that when we truly understand what salvation through Christ means and that covers our mind, we're declaring our status and whose Kingdom we belong to. 

One essential message that came through very strongly in almost all the talks was how vital God's Word is. As Grace put it: "God's Word keeps us from collapsing despite circumstances we face."

14 Nov -- The Christian Soldier's Character & Call to Duty :
" And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the Lord’s people." (Eph. 6:18)

Speaker (not a guest speaker): me

I started off with the question: "How would you describe the character of a good soldier? What makes a good soldier?"  I was very impressed with the list of character traits they came up with.

Here's the list:

Character of a Good Soldier

--  good
--  obedient
--  brave
--  physically & mentally competent
--  just, fair
--  honest
--  conscientiously performs his/her duties
--  clever
--  trustworthy
--  always prepared for battle
--  ready to sacrifice
--  noble, honorable
--  serves God
--  listens to commands
--  speaks truthfully
--  responsible
--  helpful
--  wise
--  systematic (orderly)
--  well-built
--  defends the weak
--  persevering !
--  loyal (I added this -- but only this to their list)

I think they did pretty well, didn't they? And if this describes a "good" soldier, how much higher is our call as Christian soldiers who represent the King of Kings?

"Boot Camp"

After this discussion, we put them through some "military drills".  Krzysiek was the commanding officer and instructed them to put on each piece of their armor, had them march around, put them through sword drills by reciting verses and Scriptural truths, and then the real fun began... I played the enemy and came up to them periodically, attacking them with lies, doubts, accusations. If they couldn't effectively use the Sword of the Spirit, I wouldn't leave.

At Phase 2, the accusations & lies were more insistent but they were also instructed by Krzysiek that they could (and should) help defend each other.  At Phase 3, the untruths were not only insistent, but also more complex.  Krzysiek instructed them that they could call on him for help.  Interestingly enough, none of them did.  But he graciously offered assistance anyway and helped steer them in the right direction.

This was to transition to the main point -- besides being well-prepared, training, and having a Godly character, we also have a Commander of the Army (who is also the King whom we fight for) who comes to our rescue when we call on Him. He doesn't just issue out orders to His army, but rather, He comes to the aid of every soldier who calls out to Him. What an awesome King & Commander we serve! And the truth is that we fight a fight none of us can be victorious in without His help. Thus, 24/7 prayer is not just a command and duty we're called to, but a necessity as well as a privilege!

Bringing Others Into God's Army (21 Nov)
Speaker: Krzysiek Wiśniewski

Paul's writing about the Armor of God concludes with this:

"19 Pray also for me, that whenever I open my mouth, words may be given me so that I will fearlessly make known the mystery of the gospel, 20 for which I am an ambassador in chains. Pray that I may declare it fearlessly, as I should."  -- Eph. 6:19-20 (NIV)

Not only are we to stand firm and defend ourselves effectively on the spiritual battlefield but there is also an active part going out -- beyond our comfort zone -- to help others -- to free the oppressed, bring the good news of salvation to those who are dying, and to call people into allegiance to the One and Only True King.  (As I write that, I'm reminded of those in the Middle East who are literally living that out -- loyal to the One & Only True God to the point of martyrdom.)

For this lesson, Krzysiek gave them some very practical training. Using role play, he portrayed two very different people they were to share the  gospel with -- first, a rich young man and secondly, a drunk man.  Although it was a little uncomfortable for the youth -- particularly in the second situation (they started to joke around and the drunk man was very turned off by this in the beginning) -- they were able to share. There was debriefing after and I asked them more about this when I returned. 

The great thing is that one of the youth expressed the desire to grow in this area. She wants to learn more about sharing our faith effectively and overcoming obstacles to sharing. 

(Sorry, I don't have any pictures from this talk because by this time I was in the States. Thankfully, Krzysiek did a great job while I was away of caring for the youth and it was a huge blessing to know that I could leave the youth group in his hands while I was away in the States. )

                           ***************************************************

Stay tuned for the next blog update -- a glimpse at my time in the States!

Romans 12:1 -- "I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service. " (NKJV)

October Ministry Highlights:

A Charles M. Tanner classic, DIED: OCT. 20TH

Elbe Unit in Poland!!! 

I was so thrilled that the Elbe Unit (Jodi Wideman, Naomi & Dale Norman) spent two weeks in October in Poland.  And I was so happy to have a small part in partnering with them. Although it was a lot of work arranging performances and housing for them, it was also a HUGE joy and I have absolutely no regrets about any minute used to support them. Krzysiek and I had the privilege of joining them  for a few days (18-20 October) while they were in Kraków.

Angel & Devil engage in a battle for the soul of a young man 

They were troopers, performing in two services on Sunday in different cities (an hour apart).  The pastor of the Redeemed Christian Church of God has services in both Kraków and Katowice.  So the unit ministered in both services.  They performed one of my all time favorites --  Charles M. Tanner's timeless classic, DIED: OCT 20TH. The call for us to present ourselves a living sacrifice (Rom. 12:1) is one of the crucial messages of this play.

casting: "Angel" -- Jodi; "Devil" -- Naomi; "Peter" -- Dale

Although they didn't actually need my help in performing in English, they let me in on the fun! :) I performed a short play with them in the beginning (Charles M. Tanner's JUST CONSIDER). And Krzysiek had the opportunity to touch many people's hearts at both services through sharing his testimony.  (He shared his testimony in English! I was so proud of him!)

Besides sharing his testimony, the main reason why Krzysiek and I wanted to visit the unit was to be support to them.  As you might imagine, full-time ministry and life on the road can be extremely demanding. It is a lifestyle that requires constantly pouring out oneself. I remember hitting points in mission where I was desperate for spiritual refreshment and renewal.  So this is what my heart's vision was for our time with them.  I wanted to just bring some much-needed refreshment to them. And I was so happy that Krzysiek not only understood but joined me in fulfilling this vision.

Dale leads us in a time of worship

Monday morning we led a retreat morning for them.  Dale was able to borrow a guitar and led us in worship. After that, Krzysiek shared from II Kings 6 about Elisha's servant's eyes being opened to see horses and chariots of fire (the Lord fighting on his side) after Elisha prayed for his disheartened servant, "Lord, open his eyes that he may see."

After this came an opportunity for our eyes and ears to be opened to the Lord. We went on individual "walk-talks"with the Lord: 20 minutes of pouring out our hearts to the Lord, 20 minutes of restraining ourselves from talking and instead, doing our  best to listen to the Lord.  

After returning, I shared from Matt. 11 about the Lord's yoke being easy and releasing our burdens and weariness to him. I led them through a focused time of prayer -- prayers of release (which Bobbi Johnson-Tanner, international director of CP once led me through).  As the Lord showed us things we were unnecessarily carrying and holding on to, we released these things one-by-one into His hands, by His grace. 

After releasing these things, we focused on blessing one another.  We wrote down verses of encouragement  for each other.  We closed the morning by having the unit lay hands on one another and pray over each other.  

After that it was lunch time... and then we surprised our hosts by singing for them. Jodi, Naomi and I all missioned as Catalysts in Covenant Players. Catalysts in addition to performing Chuck's plays, minister through singing music composed by Chuck's daughter, Christina Tanner Morris. 

We sang "I Will Praise You, Lord" which had very special meaning to our host, Ola. For many years, she sang with a worship band/choir connected with the Center of Mission and Evangelism (in Dzięgielów, Poland) and they sang a Polish version of this.  (Non-touring CPer, Darek Kawulok served as their director for many years and was given special permission for this.) Ola had tears in her eyes as we sang.

Our hosts do so much for us. We don't have much materially to give back. But what we can offer is ourselves as living sacrifices.

While in Kraków, Krzysiek and I stayed with another CP host/friend, Aneta Wszołek.  She's so full of joy and so open to people and being used by the Lord. I thank God for the many brothers and sisters around the world He's crossed my path with.  

Although we returned home physically tired, we were spiritually refreshed. While ministering to the unit, they too also ministered to us.

Zuzia's Birthday  

the birthday girl :)

Zuzia's birthday was on Sunday, the 26th. She has a tradition of holding a birthday party at the church on Saturday.  It's a great idea -- classmates from school then have exposure to the church she's part of. Leading games at her party serves as a great connecting point. Her best friend, Laura, who didn't grow up in our church, joined our youth group about 1 1/2 years ago.  Another friend wanted to come regularly but her parents are atheists and won't allow it, unfortunately.

It's not part of my official job description here at the church. But I certainly see it as a priority to build relationships with our youth that extend beyond just Friday meetings.

As a youth leader, I have to say, I am really happy to see that there was a very marked difference between our church youth and her school mates. Laura, Noemi, and Małgosia (from Armia Pana) were at the party and there was a world of difference.

A handful of the school mates were well-behaved but the others were so out-of-control, a bit disrespectful, and you could see they "needed" to call attention to themselves.  Feigned modesty stopped them from singing karaoke in the beginning -- until they evaluated themselves as being better singers than the first ones who had the courage to sing. Then they re-sang the same song to exalt themselves. I'll be honest. It was very hard to love some of these girls.

an old American favorite:
pin the tail on the donkey!

Half a year ago, I also saw this difference between Noemi and some of her classmates who came to a special event. It's not easy being a teenage girl -- even when you have a relationship with the Lord. But without Him, I see that the struggle to find identity and self-worth is easily 10x's greater. I wanted so much to strip these girls of the masks they were so obviously wearing and  get down to the nitty-gritty of who they really are deep inside.

Zuzia's blessed with parents who love the Lord

Part of my vision as a youth ministry overseer is to lay a solid foundation for our youth of who they are in Christ. I want to see them so deeply rooted in Christ's love for them and so "sold-out" on following Him that the world cannot pull them away.  We've seen a lot of young adults in this church fall away from the Lord.  I want to see these girls 10, 15 years from now not only following the Lord, but discipling and leading  others to follow Him.

Speaking of our youth group...

Here's a glimpse of the last month's meetings in Armia Pana as we continued our series on The Armor of God (Eph. 6:10-20):

Oct 3rd :  Food Collection Weekend (No regular youth meeting)

Our church helps organize a food drive in our city several times a year.  Some of our youth stood for hours in local markets/shops to collect donated food.  The food is later distributed to families in need in Pruszcz Gdański and is also connected with our weekly evangelistic outreaches.  (This was the weekend that Krzysiek and I were out of town, so sorry, no photos from this.)

Oct. 10th : Breastplate of Righteousness -- Part 2 (speaker: me)

We had to do a rescheduling of speakers and had a hole in our schedule. But actually, it worked out well because we also felt that the Breastplate of Righteousness was difficult for the youth to grasp.  I think it's even difficult for adults to grasp sometimes.  So I elaborated on this a bit more.

In many ways, we all carry some sort of breastplate of righteousness, trying to protect and defend ourselves and also trying to "work out" our own righteousness at times -- which doesn't work.  The only effective breastplate of righteousness is the one given to us by God. The payment for this breastplate has nothing to do with our own sense of righteousness. It has everything to do with the blood of Jesus poured out for us on the cross -- our only means of being justified or redeemed. I remember hearing someone say that be "justified" means "just as if I'd died". 

(Sorry no photos from this meeting. I had my hands full!)

Oct 17th :  Belt of Truth      

Special Speaker:  Abel  Easwara Dhas
Special Worship Leader:  Dorota Sikora  

Our special guests traveled from Warsaw (a 5 hour bus ride) to minister to our youth group. Abel is a student in Warsaw, originally from India.  God's anointing on his life is very evident and I loved hearing him share about his church in India and his experiences of God's presence and leading in his life.  You can see he is filled with the Holy Spirit. He hopes to serve the Lord in full-time ministry and has a passion for teaching -- especially youth.

His fiancee Dorota blessed us by leading us in songs of worship with her beautiful voice and piano playing.

Abel's presentation was very well-prepared and his use of the projector & power point was very helpful.  He's a great story teller and I think we'll remember the story of he told for a very long time. In short, the story was about an eagle who was raised in a chicken family due to a mix up in eggs. His mother thought he was just a really ugly chicken and he grew up thinking the same thing.  It wasn't until one day he looked up to the heavens and saw a majestic creature soaring in the sky. Upon looking more intently at that majestic creature -- an eagle - and then at himself, he realized who he was. After some time and effort learning to flap his newly-discovered wings, he too was able to soar.  

Noemi searching for God's Word

It was a very humorous and yet poignant analogy of how if we ever want to grow into who we are designed to be, we have to discover the truth of who we are, looking up to the Heavens and looking into the mirror of God's Word.

The other inspirational story he shared was the story of Jeremiah.  God had set him apart as a prophet while he was still in his mother's womb.  When he heard God's call in his life, his first objection and fear was that he was too young.  But as he began to believe and trust God's word to him, he became one of the greatest prophets.  I felt God really inspired the youth through the sharing of this Word. 

At the end of the meeting we celebrated Zuzia's birthday with cake. :)

Oct 24th:  Feet Readied in the Gospel of Peace

Special Speaker:  Pastor Mirek Nogaczewski and his wife, Asia

I love Pastor Mirek's passion for God's Word and I loved his explanation of the spiritual shoes we're fitted in. As you can see, he and his wife prepared a lot of interactive explanations and demonstrations of the importance of this piece of armor.

To the left, he's demonstrating how important it is for our feet to be firmly planted. The sandals of the Roman soldiers were studded on the bottom so that they could firmly stand their ground.  (Krzysiek of course doesn't have studded sandals, but we get the point!)


In the above pictures, using normal yarn instead of leather straps, we were instructed to tie the yarn around our feet and ankles for reinforcement.  A big difference was felt -- the ankles felt secure, like they wouldn't turn in or out.   Somehow, we felt stronger.

March on, solidiers!

To the right, you see them marching around with bread and water, because the legionnaires in training wouldn't receive much else.

I, personally, was very challenged when Pastor asked, "Where have gone today with your feet? Where have you walked?" -- because every place we walk into, we have the opportunity to sow the gospel of peace. That day, I had been inside all day  This reinforced my decision that I really need to get out more and that while I love spending my mornings in solitude, reading my Bible, praying, worshipping intently, I can't stay in that zone. I look forward to starting language classes (learning Polish in a small group) when I get back.

Oct 31st:  The Sword of the Spirit -- God's Word

reading the affirmations we've received from one another

Special Speaker:  Dorota Trybała

Halloween in Poland is not nearly as big as it is in the States, but over the last decade it's become increasingly as popular. But while many youth in Poland were at Halloween parties, Armia Pana met at Małgosia's place for a better occasion.

Zuzia's pretty pleased :)

Besides, every Friday being a great occasion to meet in fellowship and learn more about God, that Friday, we also celebrated Krzysiek's "Re-Birthday".  Years ago, on Oct 26th, he gave his life to the Lord. This is what he continues his real birthday. And since we didn't celebrate the previous Friday, we celebrated on the 31st with a longer meeting in a warmer and friendlier atmosphere. In addition to the regular lesson time, we had a movie after (and lots of snacks!).

The whole meeting was upbeat and encouraging. Dorota demonstrated how impacting words are.  She asked each of us to write down on a piece of paper, something that someone's said to us sometime in our lives that has meant something to us.  I remembered the words my dear friend/sister, Penni Jo Blatterman, said to me at a Covenant Players banquet many years ago: "I see you as a giant." I'll never forget that.  That God has called me, a tiny little Asian-American woman, to make a great impact in His Kingdom. He uses ordinary people to do extraordinary things.

the "Re-Birthday" boy :)

After some teaching on the Sword of the Spirit, she also asked us to anonymously write down encouraging (but true) affirmations of one another.  (This also reminded me of Covenant Players.) I could see that each person was very touched by this.

We had a plan to bake cookies but had to let this idea go because of needing to have some sensible time restraint. :(   Oh well, next time...



Note:  At the time of this writing, I'm in L.A. visiting my family, friends, and home church, Chinese Evangelical Free Church. This past weekend we celebrated our 50th Anniversary!  With my dad being the founding pastor, the celebration was an exceptionally meaningful and joyous time.  Photos to come soon!

2 Tim. 1:6-7 -- "For this reason I remind you to fan into flame the gift of God, which is in you through the laying on of my hands. For God did not give us a spirit of timidity, but of power, of love, and of self-discipline."

October was a particularly rich month of deep fellowship.  t was a month filled with divine appointments. I had the opportunity to reconnect with dear friends and co-laborers in Christ -- including Covenant Players.  I will post again in a couple days about that very special time as well as other ministry happenings that took place in October, but this particular post is a bit more personal and reflective and is devoted to sharing what took place in my heart during a weekend away -- a vital time of evaluation, renewal, and revisiting vision.

Weekend in Warsaw (4-5 Oct):  A Time of Personal Reflection

Krzysiek's 2nd year of theological/pastoral studies commenced on October 4th. This time I traveled with him to Warsaw, not only to visit his school and attend the inauguration ceremony but also to visit a very special sister in Christ I hadn't seen in nearly 3 years. 

visiting Jennifer Nagy

I first met Jennifer at a playdate with Covenant Players several years ago. She offered help and housing and as my units and I stayed with her, a bond of sisterhood was quickly formed formed. 

My time with her was much-needed.  I realized how important it is for me to reconnect every so often with fellow missionaries who not only understand but are also walking through both the joys and challenges of living and serving in another country, culture and context.  

While Jennifer and I serve in very different contexts, there's plenty of common ground in our passions, priorities and purpose. We also share many similarities in talents & giftings (both spiritually and "naturally"), but I see her as being a couple steps ahead of me in the development of these things. I mean this in a healthy way. It's like having someone who's close enough to you for you to relate to, and yet, as you listen to their experiences, gain from their wisdom & God-lessons learned, you begin to sense that your own potential is being unlocked and released a bit more .

I felt a sense of release as I was able to share with her some of the hurts and frustrations I've been wrestling with related to conflicts within the church. The perspective she offered was helpful.  She listened carefully, didn't offer loads of advice -- just 3 concrete observations which were very valuable. As I returned back to Pruszcz, I knew the situation hadn't changed but I think I did. I had a lot more compassion and a lot less fear. 

As much as I love serving the Polish people and as much as I feel called to serve in a Polish church, it was extremely refreshing for me to be in a non-Polish context because it is still a struggle for me to communicate in the language. I went with Jennifer to the church she serves with, International Christian Fellowship in Warsaw and she asked me that morning if I wanted to sing with her on the worship team. It was really spontaneous and it did my heart and my soul so much good to sing freely and boldly to the Lord in my native language. Sometimes I get really tired of feeling imprisoned by the boundaries automatically set by language limitations. I struggle constantly with feeling misunderstood and put in a box. I know that I'm doing reasonably well in comparison to the average American who has to learn Polish and credit is really due to God for this gift. But I am also painfully aware that I have not been doing much to develop this gift and instead, I've actually taken a couple steps back due to being overly concerned about making mistakes, sounding stupid, and mis-communicating.  In addition to this not being indicative the Spirit of boldness God gives us (II Tim 1:6-7), it's also bad stewardship  of gifts given for Kingdom purposes.

CP's Risk Award (2011)

I also saw that rather than blossoming in my giftings and sense of leadership and in exercising spiritual gifts, I've become more timid, less confident, and less courageous in these areas as well.  I was saddened as I saw this.  As I reflected upon this, a memory came back -- years ago Covenant Players honored me with the creation of a new award, the "Risk Award" to identify and affirm risks I took in stepping out in faith as a Covenant Player in Poland.  I look back now and think, "Where has that girl gone?"  I saw that there definitely was a tie between this linguistic step back and this spiritual/personal step back.  So while refreshed to be in an English-speaking environment, it fueled a fire in me to step out into deeper waters in the Polish environment God has me in.  

As for attending Krzysiek's school's inauguration, I had a good time and besides getting to know this part of his world a bit, it fueled my desire to keep growing intellectually.  I believe there will also be a time for me in the near future to grow more and be further-equipped in seminary/ministry school.  For now, I think the more pressing schooling I need is to enroll in a Polish course at a private language school. I hope to start in a few months. It is very very expensive but I believe it will be a very important investment as a missionary.  I also look forward to sharing my faith outside of this area, with future classmates.

 Krzysiek & his classmates commence their 2nd year in seminary

(Krzysiek, 3rd from the L is their class representative)

Prov. 4: 25 -- "Let your eyes look straight ahead, fix your gaze directly before you."

Ministry in the Month of September

September 1st is a very significant day in Poland, because unlike most other countries, all the kids start school on September 1st -- and many churches also use this as the mark of a new cycle.  Church attendance and meetings are at a low during the summer time as many people go out of town.  Thus, the 31st of August marks the end of vacation and Sep 1st marks the return to norm. So we kicked off various ministries with special events/celebrations and we fix our eyes ahead of us, looking forward  to what God will do in this new school year.  

waiting for kiełbasa (Polish sausage)

Evangelistic Outreach Campfire 
(2 Sep 2014)

our little campfire in the church's front yard

For those from our community who attend our weekly evangelistic outreaches, we had a campfire/grill. There was plenty of kiełbasa (Polish sausages) to go around. Many people enthusiastically brought salads. We love seeing how many people are so eager to give.

Mariusz  :)

Mariusz, a teenager

is the oldest "kid"

that comes to the outreaches.

He has a mental disability

but he also has a heart of gold 

and the younger kids love 

playing with him.

Here are some other 

very lively kids. :)

First Sunday Service of the new school year (7 Sep 2014)

The first sermon of the new school year was preached by Krzysiek.  This was actually Pastor Mirek's first time hearing him preach because he was away the first time Krzysiek preached.  And he was very very proud and touched by Krzysiek's sermon. Krzysiek spoke about various experiences one faces when they decide to give their lives to the Lord and about the the importance of being tested and found faithful in our walk with the Lord.   As part of his second year studies in seminary, Krzysiek will be preaching more frequently this year. 

Pastor Mirek proudly introducing
our special speaker :)  

blessing our children & youth in the church 

It was a very special service.  Pastor Mirek also brought all the children, youth, and Sunday School teachers up to the front to be prayed over.

Armia Pana meetings in September

School year kick-off  (5 Sep)

Pizza parties have become a bit of a tradition for us.  And we love ice-cream too.  Don't worry -- we don't eat this way all the time.  We just wanted to give them a bit of a treat so the beginning of the school year wouldn't be so traumatic. :)

Armor of God Series

This season (Sep-Nov) we're focusing on the Armor of God as described by Paul in Eph. 6.  After all, with the name Armia Pana (Army of the Lord), the youth group should be readied for battle, right?We've opened up the meetings to include guest speakers each week.  It's been a real treat to see brothers and sisters pour out so much effort in preparing for these speaking sessions.  I also love seeing how diverse the Body of Christ is and yet, how all the different gifts and individual creativity, when channeled into a single goal, reflects unity.  Each speaker has presented their lessons in very different manners and I think (and hope) our meetings have been a little more interesting this way.

We've gone a bit out of order from how Paul has listed the different pieces of armor just because it's worked out better for people's schedules and the topics they felt most passionate in some cases.  Here's what we've studied and who spoke in September ...

Introduction & Overview to the Armor of God  (12 Sep)

Guest Speakers:  

Aron & Sylwia Nogaczewscy (with Baby Natanael)

It was a pleasure to watch my neighbors work together in ministry.  Aron often preaches when his father is out of town.  Sylwia helps teach Sunday School for our youth and her studies in University were in pedagogy.  Her giftings in teaching and in working with pupils were very apparent.  And having "Natek" with us was a special treat. 

They gave a clear, solid and insightful overview of the Armor of God. To help make things clearer, they handed out diagrams illustrating the Armor. 

One of the many good points they made was that we are armed for battle facing forward.  We carry our shield in front of us -- not behind us.  Thus, we're to look forward and move forward -- not backward.

The Shield of Faith (19 Sep)

Guest Speaker:

Ola Olendzka (mother of Zuzia)

"Seed of Faith"

watering the Seed of Faith with the water of God's Word

Ola did an outstanding job of explaining the Shield of Faith. The lesson was extremely interactive and the amount of preparation she did beforehand was very evident.  She is, by profession a jewelry designer, so by nature she is very creative and artistic.  She is, as a child of God very passionate about her faith, her Father, and His Word. What a glorious experience it was to see her put this to work to bring revelation and understanding of God's Word to our youth.  What was even more surprising to me was that this was the first time she ever taught kids/youth. She worked so well with them. I don't think there was a minute where she didn't have their attention and the kids weren't engaged.

a memorable & powerful illustration : 
How big & effective is the shield you're carrying?  
How great (or small) is your faith?
(Krzysiek looks so smug about the big shield of faith he was RANDOMLY chosen to receive!)

The Breastplate of Righteousness (26 Sep)

Guest Speaker:  Anita Regenbrecht-Nowak

Anita :)

Anita is a German teacher in middle school, who is filled with a lot of love. She has a lot of experience in walking with the Lord.  She taught about the Breastplate of Righteousness by sharing many testimonies from her own experience to try to show what Righteousness looked like.                                         

Her task of speaking about the Breastplate of Righteousness was not an easy one.  I realized that here in Poland, I've never really heard much teaching about this subject.  In Polish, "righteousness" and "fair" share the same word --sprawiedliwy -- which, I think, can be very deceiving because although they share some common ground, they are in fact not the same.  Plus, in modern-day usage, we often mix righteous with self-righteous.        

One very important connection Anita made was that Righteousness requires Trusting in the Lord.  Righteousness requires Trust because we are to trust in the Lord, trust in His ways, trust that they're better than our ways. This was a very important point made.

We also celebrated Mateusz's birthday at the end of the meeting.  As you can see, he was delighted.  He's only been in our youth group less than two months so this was his first experience of having his birthday celebrated amongst us.  It was really uplifting to see how much a cake and card could mean to someone.

Small treats can bring big smiles! (I sound like a fortune cookie --but it's true!)

 The October update won't be far behind since it's already nearly November!  Check back in a week!