next international

How Was the Trip?

2011-07-26T09:33:00.000-07:00

Today is the 6th full day for Joyce and I and our work partner, Jack Duerst to be back in the USA. One week ago we were finishing up the last of the projects we had set out to complete at "Selah" ... the Josiah Venture retreat facility in Eastern Czech Republic.

We are so appreciative of all the encouraging smiles, words and conversations we've been able to have since we've been back. Of course, the winner for the "most-asked-question" would have to be the title of this blog ... "How Was the Trip?"

That question always throws me a little off ... not because I don't expect, but it really is hard to put into words the experiences we have as we go to another country and serve. Honestly, we don't consider ourselves all that special ... but we are humbled and feel very privileged to have the kinds of opportunities that we do.

I guess what makes it the most special are the people we get to work with.

Yes, there certainly are some "exotic" parts of eating different foods, seeing, hearing (and yes, even sometimes speaking) other languages, but in the end, being away from the familiar gives an opportunity to see other people (and ourselves, certainly) in a different light.

We've found that people everywhere have some of the same basic needs; to be recognized, respected and loved ... to share joys and sorrows, to connect with others in meaningful ways ... and to live a life of purpose.

These are the things we remember most about each "trip" ... and the answer to the winning question is pretty much centered around these thoughts ... "It was great!!! ... We met some fantastic people. We got to work with some really great young men and women! ... and finally ...

"You've got to come with us next time!!!" ...

So, click here on this picture album to enjoy the of our last few days ... and thanks again, so much ... for being with us! Stay tuned for future adventures!

WOW!! What a Great Team and Great English Camp in Slovakia!

2011-07-12T23:57:00.000-07:00

It was just 2 weeks ago that you last heard from us ... (that may seem like way too long of a time for our readers!!). At that time our Slovakia English Camp Team was packed and ready to fly ... and honestly, much of these 2 weeks are pretty much a blur!!

I'll try to pick out just a few highlights to share here ... but suffice it to say that everything about this camp was a "home run!" ... despite Amanda's luggage being lost for 3+ days ... and almost an entire week of rain!

The team did great ... and from what we saw and heard, the students really enjoyed all of the camp's activities, English classes, sports events, hikes ... and even the food!

It was "rise and shine" at 6 am for the leaders ... to get personally ready (with some strong coffee!) and then a meeting with the American and Slovak camp leadership team. That was followed by a very full day ... with lights out somewhere around midnight. Although midnight was the "official" lights out call ... there was always some "after hours" talk going on in the Man Cave! ... which Dave and Peter's room (along with Tomas and Robo) was officially christened the first night ! Actually, I don't think any of the leaders had more than 5 hours of sleep per night for the entire week! It's amazing what energy young people have after midnight!

Our cook was a gas! ... and we enjoyed getting to know her ... and her sweet smile ... and readiness to pour the "early morning coffee" for the old guys!

We had days filled with songs, dances (ask Steve and Terry to do the camp dance for you!) ... English classes, team-building activities, sporting challenges, American sports (baseball in the rain!), evening talks and "E-Nights" ... which were environment nights; designed to create an atmosphere for further discussion on various topics.

Here are a few more pictures of the team in action!! ... just click on THIS LINK to view an on-line album! ...

And here's ANOTHER ONE! (photo album, that is)

We want to thank everyone who gave, prayed and tried to follow our escapades! As I'm sure you can tell ... this camp was a great success!! Please ask us to tell you some stories when we get back!

Stay tuned for more adventures!!

Packed and Stacked and Ready to Roll!

2011-06-29T05:32:00.000-07:00

So after nearly 6 months of planning, preparing and praying ... our team of adventurous servants have packed a mountain of duffel bags with teaching materials, sports equipment, treats, t-shirts, and everything else needed to help host an English/Activity/Adventure Camp in the country of Slovakia!

Our team consists of (l to r) ... Joyce Johnson, Jack Duerst, Peter Duerst, Amanda Chartrand, Steve Duerst, Dave Johnson and Terry Sullivan. Everyone except Jack will be traveling together. Jack will be joining us in about 10 days.

We'll be flying out of Minneapolis this afternoon (Wednesday) ... skip across the Atlantic Ocean tonight, and have breakfast in Amsterdam in the morning. From there we fly to Vienna, Austria tomorrow afternoon.

In Vienna we'll meet up with all of the other North American Teams who are coming to help with these camps all over Slovakia. The camps are hosted by our partner organization; Josiah Venture ... and specifically their Slovak division; TCKompas.

From Vienna we'll take a bus to Zilina, Slovakia where we'll gather for an exciting time of getting to know our co-workers and preparing to connect with the Slovak students who come to camp.

After spending a couple days in Zilina, we'll make our way to the camp where we'll greet the students with raucous and crazy excitement!

Our goal is to help build bridges into the students lives through teaching English, leading fun activities, teaching, coaching and playing "American" sports like baseball and football ... and all-in-all, having a blast!

Above all, we want to share the love of God with these students, most of whom have never had the opportunity to hear a clear explanation of how much God loves them and wants to have a relationship with them.

Recently, as I was thinking about this camp, I had a "small" inspiration ... I thought ... what if, what if, what if ... God would use the 6 of us to really impact the lives of the 60 or so students who come to camp. And what if, what if, what if ... those 60 would go back to their friends and family and really impact the lives of 10 people each ... As the Bible says, that would be "hundred-fold" fruit!

Would you please pray with us and for us to that end! ... That God, in His great grace and love, would use these 6 humble and pretty inept folks to bring 100s of people to Himself!

In addition, please pray that we travel safely, that no one gets sick, that our luggage all makes it to its destination on time and that we connect deeply with our new Slovak friends! Oh, and pray for our families, who also sacrifice that we can go and be a part of what God is doing in Slovakia!

Stay tuned to this blog for future updates! We appreciate comments and encouragements!

KECY Team 2011!

2011-05-22T16:41:00.000-07:00

We're super excited to introduce the KECY Slovak English Camp Team for 2011!

Six courageous and adventurous folks will venture forth on June 28 on a 12 day trip to Slovakia. Our Eastern European partner, Josiah Venture, is the sponsoring organization for this event. And, specifically, we will be working on the Slovak arm of JV, called TCKompas.

Our team will be partnering directly with a leadership team from a church in the Slovak capital city, Bratislava. They are organizing the camp and currently promoting this opportunity in their local schools.

The essence of this camp is to help be "bridge builders" ... by offering English instruction done by native English speakers to high-school students. That's the "English" portion of the "English" Camp. The rest of the camp experience for these students will be filled with ice-breakers, games, events, hikes and other relationship-building activities. Ultimately, our goal is to connect these students with young leaders from the Bratislava church, who will work to follow up with the campers throughout the school year. Our prayer is that God would use us to impact lives and draw them closer towards knowing Him!

So, give thanks for Amanda, Joyce, Steve, Terry, Peter ...

... and "Coach Dave!" ... (he wasn't able to be in the team picture!) ...

Please pray that we'll be effective "ambassadors for Christ!" ... and that God's love will shine through each of us!

Full Circle!

2011-04-01T13:45:00.000-07:00

The final days of work on the conference center expansion in Eastern Czech Republic were filled with beautiful weather and very satisfied folks!

Kyle and Dave continued to cut pieces and build frames for the 24 windows in the 2 cabins. That meant 48 frames and trim (24 inside and 24 outside!). They completed 18 of the outside frames and 16 of the inside frames.

Jon and Chris spent copious amount of time filling holes, sanding and painting the frames; making them ready for the installation. Unfortunately, the paint sprayer quit working around noon on the last day, which made it unable to put a second coat on the frames and begin the final installation.

Even though we were disappointed that we couldn't install them completely, everyone was very pleased with the final outcome and what we were able to accomplish!

Probably the best part was the great friendships and strong bonds that were created with our new Czech carpenter friend, Tomas Klim ... and his helper, Petr.

It was fun to pose in front of some of the completed window frames with all of us (left to right): Jon Shields, Dave Johnson, Tomas Klim, Kyle Stratton, Chris Ehlert and project manager/good friend, Petr Bozon.

We're hoping and praying that they can finish these cabins in the next month ... in preparation for a big conference the first weekend in May.

So, once again, we left an impact ... and chunks of our hearts behind ... in hopes of someday returning again, perhaps with some more "NEXT" adventurers! Oh, ... but our adventure wasn't over!!

We were scheduled to take an early flight back to the states ... leaving Krakow, Poland early on Thursday, March 31 and arriving home in Minneapolis late that day. So, Petr Bozon took us to Krakow in the afternoon, where we had booked a little "gasthaus" for the night ... in preparation for an "O-dark-thirty" departure. We had a little time to snap some "tourist shots" in Krakow and enjoyed coffee on the town square and a few minutes of souvenir shopping (that's all that a guy needs, right!?).

"Oh, how nice!" ... you're probably saying! ... well, it was nice ... but the adventure wasn't over. After enjoying a nice Polish dinner at the restaurant -Chłopskie Jadło we made our way back to our guesthouse to get a short-nights' rest! When we turned on the computer for one last email connection, we discovered that our flight from Krakow to Prague was cancelled ... and that we needed to start our return trip ... not from Krakow ... where we were ... but from Prague! ... which was an overnight train ride away! So, we checked out of the guest house (without even laying down on the beds!) ... got a taxi to the train station ... went up and down and round-and-round to finally obtain tickets, and at 10 pm boarded an overnight train to Prague!

Click here to see a short video of us waiting on the platform at the Krakow main train station!

Everyone had a great attitude about it ... even during some "tense moments" ... when some guys of questionable character slowed down before us in a pretty dark part of the Krakow train station! But, everything turned out fine, and now everyone is home safe with family and friends!

Thanks to everyone who gave, prayed and encouraged us with your words along the way! Much was accomplished ... with both hands and hearts! Stay tuned for the NEXT Adventure ... which isn't very far away, for sure!!!

Not all Work!

2011-03-27T13:32:00.001-07:00

OK, so some of our readers are calling for more information! They're asking, "What have you guys been doing for the last 4 days!" Well, hopefully this update will help!

On Thursday and Friday we put in full days working on cabins near Hotel Malenovice. We are refining the process to get as far as we can before we leave on Friday. At the same time, we're enjoying getting to know our Czech co-workers ... carpenters Tomas and Petr ... and the welding crew! Not to mention the caulkers, log setters, painters, plumbers, and whoever else happens to show up! Its a busy place! You can see a few pictures by clicking HERE ...

Also, you can view some videos of our escapades by clicking on these links - VIDEO 1 ... and ... VIDEO 2.

Friday evening was spent having a wonderful visit and meal with the Ellenwoods in their home in Cesky Tesin. For those who are connected to my facebook page, you know that this family is in the midst of an amazing opportunity! Their son, Noah (15 yrs old) is in the final 20 (10 men and 10 women) of Cesko Slovensko Superstar (the Czech/Slovak version of American Idol). You can view a video of him singing on Saturday night (March 26) ... by clicking HERE!!

This young man has taken a solid stand for his faith, and his family's work as missionaries here in Eastern Europe. What a joy we had being with them on Friday night ... then ... oh, yeah!! ... traveling to Prague on Saturday to see Noah perform LIVE!!! What a blast! Actually you can see us a little on Live Czech TV by CLICKING HERE!! Look for us at about 47 seconds! Chris Ehlert is wearing a bright yellow NEXT t-shirt, and Kyle Stratton is sitting next to him with a camo cap on!

So, our Saturday and Sunday were spent being on live Czech TV, TOURING PRAGUE (click on the link to see video) with some Czech friends of Dave's and getting back to Frydlant nad Ostravici.

We're looking forward to a couple full days of work tomorrow and Tuesday! ... so stay tuned for more!

Couldn't Be Better!

2011-03-23T12:18:00.000-07:00

The team arrived!! Hooray!

As I was walking back to the hotel last evening after doing some more "prep work" at the site ... I saw a small station driving past with 3 guys wearing baseball caps inside! My heart leaped for joy! They made it!! After almost 48 hours the guys were finally at their destination! I'm so thankful for the calm and easy-going nature of these 3 guys. They all came with the greatest of attitudes and perspectives through the long travel delays, and we're all certainly glad to be here!

We got them checked in, and settled into our accommodations right away, took a walk down to the site for a look, then hiked back up "the hill" to have supper! The goal was to keep these guys awake until at least 9 0'clock! ... and for the most part, it worked!!

There were some very distinct sounds reverberating through our room last night, and some of us decided that ear plugs were the way to go! But, everyone slept well and woke with great expectations and hopes of a productive day. And it certainly was! We got a great start on trimming the 12 windows in one of the two newly constructed cabins. Our hope is, by Tuesday night next week to have all the windows trimmed! That goal is definitely within reach!

We're especially enjoying working alonside the Czech carpenters, Tomas and Petr. Kyle is already learning some Czech construction terms! Ask him what v vaze means!!!

So, here are a few pictures and a short video of today's adventures ... enjoy! Oh, and for those wanting to know what the accident report looks like ... a few slivers were encountered, one band-aid was used, and legs are just a little sore from the hike up and down the hill. I think everyone will sleep well tonight ... oh, and from the sounds of things, one already is!

"The guys" ... Jon, Tomas, Kyle, Chris, Petr

You can watch a video of today's activities by clicking on THIS LINK!

Stay tuned!

Waiting ...

2011-03-21T11:07:00.000-07:00

Well, my guys were supposed to arrive this afternoon in Krakow ... but ... due to some problems on their departure from Minneapolis to JFK in New York, they were unable to fly across the ocean last night.

After a very long and tiring travel day ... they made it to New York, where the airline put them up in a hotel ... in preparation for their departure tonight to Prague (7:30 PM EDT). So, when its all said and done, they'll have been traveling for over 2 straight days to get here!

Chris, Jon and Kyle will (oh, please!!!) ... arrive in Krakow, Poland on Tuesday afternoon at 1:25 Central European Time. We'll be there with smiling faces and caffeine loaded drinks to make sure they make it to our final destination ... Frydlant nad Ostravici ... and Hotel Malenovice.

As far as my schedule ... well, as most of my "followers" know ... there isn't much moss growing under this "rollin' stone" ... so, today I worked some more on Selah projects, moved all my stuff ... and all the tools, over to the projects at Malenovice, met with the carpenter and talked through the plans, and got settled into our "quarters" at Hotel Malenovice.

Here are a couple pictures of the cabins we'll be working on.

Our main task will be to trim out all of the windows ... inside and out! There are 12 windows on each cabin, so we're gonna have our work cut out for us ... but I know these guys (and I've really been braggin' them up!!!) ... so I think we'll do pretty well. And, oh ... the weather is supposed to be beautiful all week long!!

Stay tuned!

"Selah-ing" Along

2011-03-19T12:21:00.000-07:00

The mountain-side retreat house called Selah in Eastern Czech Republic has been my home since this past Monday. My dear friend and colleague, Mel Ellenwood, invited me to come over ahead of our NEXT International outreach team to help finish up the "rolling to-do/punch-list" of items that are necessary to complete before this facility can be opened for regular use by Josiah Venture staff who desire a place to come and be renewed and refreshed! Anyone who's gone through a building project knows how long it takes for all those little pieces of trim to get put on, so I was glad to come and help Mel for a few days!

At first, being here completely alone was a bit strange ... especially since I usually don't sleep at the site where I'm working. I guess it's happened in the past, but I've most often been with a team. In this case, all of the essential necessities were available at Selah (water, heat, electricty ... and some pretty sweet furnishings, if I might add), so why pay to stay in the town. Mel probably didn't think about it, but having me stay right here insured that he'd get a few more hours work out of me if I didn't have to pack things up and travel down the mountain! He was right!

I've settled into a nice routine ... just in time to move out and go across the valley to stay with our team of guys coming on Monday (March 21). These 3, Chris, Jon and Kyle ... will be traveling to Krakow, Poland from Minneapolis, where they will be met and transported to Frydlant nad Ostravici, Czech Republic. (click on the blue letters to read more about this town! We will be here until March 31, working on the expansion of Josiah Venture's conference center, Hotel Malenovice, which is just across the valley from Selah!

As far as what Mel and I have been doing ... well ... you'll need to check a couple videos!

Click here on SELAH PUNCH LIST to see some of the projects we've been doing.

Click on THIS LINK and you'll see what thing are looking like outside!

Just as a teaser ... here are a few pics from around Selah this morning!

Please stay tuned for more adventures!!

Project Eternity

2011-02-21T15:51:00.000-08:00

As you look at the picture on the left, obviously, it wasn't taken in Wisconsin in February! No, actually, this is one of the last shots of me that was taken in Czech Republic last August. I had been working on Selah, the JV retreat center for a couple weeks and I was about an hour away from jumping on a train to start making my way back to the US.

Although I left the people and the project physically, I never really left emotionally ... and so ... when Mel Ellenwood and I began to dialog about remaining projects, I jumped at the chance to return!

My tickets are purchased and I'm strong into the plans for getting back to Czech in mid-March. One of the greatest joys about this trip is that I get to take a few friends along!! A couple carpenters and a close family friend are cued up to be a part of the team!

So, what about the "Project Eternity" title? ... Well, I have a very strong commitment to invest my greatest and best resources to see "His Kingdom come and His will be done ... ON EARTH ... as it is in Heaven. Eternity is written on everyone's heart ... and as we invest in serving others, I truly believe that we are working on "Project Eternity" ... so stay tuned ... its gonna be a wild ride, as usual!!

Los Quatro Gringos en Guatemala - Day 7&8

2011-01-18T19:35:00.000-08:00

These past two days have once again been filled with some amazing opportunities to experience first-hand some of the rich history of Christianity in Guatemala. One of the cornerstones of the development of the Christian church has been the deep commitment to Christian education.

On Monday we visited La Patria School where Mario Fernandez is the General Director. Mario's strong faith, significant life's experience and long history in education have well equipped him to lead this school. This is the oldest Christian school in Guatemala and was established by North American Presbyterian missionaries in 1912. It was very encouraging to hear this rich history and God's faithfulness in the lives of the founders on to those who lead the school today.

Today (Tuesday) we visited America Latina, which is the Christian school founded by the father Becky (Zapata) Fernandez in 1954. This school has 2 campuses with a total of nearly 1500 students. We were treated to the "executive tour" by Becky and one of the administrative assistants. Besides being inspired by the vision and passion to provide Christian formation and education to Guatemalan children, Dave was especially impressed by a visit with the "ice cream man" ... who has been providing the kids with sweet cold treats for 47 years!! He is the only ice cream man allowed to sell ice cream in the school!

The leaders of this school also have a great vision for future development, even for the establishment of a very unique Christian University ... under the direction of Becky's brother, Virgilio Zapata, Jr. What an inspiring and visionary leader! We are eager to share much of what "Junior" would like to see and how teams of short-term workers of all kind can help accomplish this vision!

Listening, connecting, encouraging!

2011-01-17T07:50:00.000-08:00

Sunday was truly a full day, but a great day of connecting with our brothers and sisters here in Guatemala. We attended the church service of Iglesia Biblica El Camino, which is the church that Enrique and Becky Fernandez planted nearly 20 years ago. It was really fun to sing along (in Spanish) with the worship team! Click on the video below to hear the church praising God!

After church we met some of the Fernandez' closest friends who had helped start the church.

They accompanied us to lunch, where we met the Doyles, a couple who is doing construction ministry here in Guatemala. Brennan is from Rhinelander, WI and Mariajose is Guatemalan, and also an architect. They are using their talents to serve a variety of ministries with facility development and construction. It was a joy to sit with the Doyles in their home and dialog about the reconstruction of the Fernandez' home.

Our days continue to be filled with incredible opportunities to get to know a wonderful group of people here in Guatemala and encourage them in whatever way we can! Thanks for following our escapades and encouraging us with your comments!

Wonderfully Weary!

2011-01-14T19:27:00.000-08:00

Our team concluded "phase 1" of our time in Guatemala today with some very "impactful" activities. The first thing we did after breakfast this morning was deliver gifts to the children of the orphanage we were staying. It was wonderful to love on these beautiful children and give them much enjoyed presents. We'll hope to post some pictures on our web album tomorrow (Saturday).

Next, the team boarded a bus for a cultural outing to the historical city of Antigua. This was the former capital of Latin America, but was destroyed so many times by volcanic eruptions and earthquakes that they moved the capital an hour northeast to Guatemala City. We enjoyed visiting a number of shops decked out in a beautiful array of colors, and purchased a few souvenirs to bring home. One of the neat events of the foray into the "mercado" was running into a few folks who were in Guatemala drilling a well with Living Water International! I'm hoping to be able to connect Oscar Chiquito of Los Olivos church with LWI's Guatemalan rep to see about getting a well drilled in one of the villages where Los Olivos is working.

We rode the bus back to Sumpango, where we quickly helped load the Woodlands Church team's 30 action packers and 30 suitcases on the top of a "chicken bus" ... ready to head to the airport in Guatemala City. These buses are pretty sweet rides ... decked out to the max!

Our experience with the Woodlands team was excellent, and it appears that the doors are wide open for some kind of connection to continue with them in the future!

We are now in Guatemala City; Christi and Cherise are staying with our friends' family, the Fernandez, and Joyce and Dave are staying in a comfortable hostel. We're looking forward to a restful night (without a 6AM wake-up call!) ... and then some time looking at some potential ministry projects here. Hopefully we'll be able to upload some pictures and videos tomorrow.

Blessings to all ... thanks for all your encouraging comments! Buenas noches!

Doing it for the least of these!

2011-01-13T10:19:00.000-08:00

Our team of 4 is doing well on Day 4!! Yesterday (Wednesday) ... Joyce, Christi and Cherise continued sharing God's love in practical ways by serving with the Woodlands team at the clinic. Cherise especially connected with some young boys who were helping people move from one place to the next. What fun to share smiles, laughter and hugs!

The clinic opens about 8 AM and there are already dozens of people lined up outside. After a group prayer, the seats fill up fast with people waiting for all kinds of services. They aren't left for long, though ... as the providers and their assistants invite the people in to the "exam rooms" to evaluate the patient's need.

Everyone is attended to with love and compassion. One of the very essential components and great blessing to all of us are the national translators who work right alongside the providers. The day is busy, but after 8 hours and over 200 patients, everyone is still energized and filled with joy and thanksgiving.

Each day the team boards a bus and heads back to our accommodations at the orphanage. Wednesday's bus ride was "extra eventful." What normally takes about 15 minutes took us about an hour. There was a "bus jam" at one of the major intersections ... and we watched 5 buses pass each other (ours being one!) with inches between!

Lots of pictures were taken ... and some video, which you can see a little of below!

While the girls were serving at the clinic, Dave was able to go with Pastor Oscar and 5 others to visit a nearby rural village where the Los Olivos church is serving the community in some amazing ways. To see the poverty of this village and hear the stories of how God is opening doors to show his love by bringing practical help was "heart challenging" and at the same time, super encouraging! The highlight (and emotionally charged moment) of the day was being invited to serve a noon meal to over 350 children and mothers who are receiving a nutritious meal three times a week. Our smiles were soaked with tears as we waited on these dear people.

God spoke to me (Dave) very clearly as we loved on these kids. As Jesus answered those who were asking how they had served Him, He told them that when you serve "the least of these," you are serving Him. The children in El Yalu are definitely among "the least of these."

All four of us will return on Wednesday of next week to serve again, and have everyone experience this tremendous work! I'm posting just a short video here for people to "get a taste" ... but I'm sure we'll have much more to share when we get back.

Tomorrow we visit La Antigua with the Woodlands Team, see them off at the airport and then back to Guatemala City for the weekend. Thanks for all your encouragement!

Guatemala Update - Day 1 & 2 - Excersing the Heart!

2011-01-12T06:57:00.000-08:00

Greetings and Blessings from Guatemala!

As the morning church bells ring out the start of another new day, our hearts are feeling strong by the tremendous experiences of the last couple days.

On Monday, our flights from Minneapolis to Guatemala City were mostly uneventful (except for a brisk "sprint" from one end of the Houston airport to the other! We made an easy transition through customs and were met with smiles and hugs from our friend, Becky Fernandez. It was great to renew our friendship of 18 years!

The night was short as we had a 5:45 departure on Tuesday morning from Guatemala City to Sumpango and our temporary residence, the orphanage Los Misioneros Del Camino. There we were warmly greeted by the Woodlands Church team, a great breakfast, wonderful Guatemalan coffee and an encouraging morning devotion.

After breakfast we boarded a school bus for the 10 minute down into the center of Sumpango and the community center where the clinic was being held. The clinic has a number of different services they offer, including; general medical care, optometry, Ob/Gyn, a pharmacy and a "spiritual clinic" where elders from the Los Olivos church talk with and pray for the people who come.

Dave & Joyce started off in the optometry department, fitting glasses. They quickly learned to ask (in Spanish) ... is it clear "claro?" ... is it better "mejor?" ... and most importantly, to say, "Dios le bendiga!" ... God bless you!!!

Christi and Cherise volunteered in the pharmacy, where the filled prescriptions and counted lots of pills! More Spanish words ... "una ala dia" ... "one-a-day" and also "Dios le bendiga!"

The wishes for God's blessings were returned to us in many ways ... through the words that were spoken, the smiles of the people who were being given care, and the thankfulness in their eyes!

We returned to the orphanage where we heard testimonies from a number of team members of how God showed up "big-time" in their lives and in the lives of the people they were attending to. The evening ended with an amazing story from the founder of the orphanage; Leonor Portela. 25 years ago, this lady of incredible faith started this orphanage. We were inspired and challenged by her life of faith and trust in God! Please take a look at their website by clicking on this link: Los Misioneros del Camino.

Today, Joyce, Christi and Cherise will once again be tending to patients at the clinic while Dave takes a "field trip" with Becky, some of the leaders from Woodlands, and Pastor Oscar Chiquito. El Yalu is an outreach location of Los Olivos church, who is sponsoring the clinic, and serving the people of the region with the love of God! This should be another exciting day!

Thanks so much for following us and praying for us! These first few days were tremendous! ... and we've agreed that their theme should be a quote from the cover of the brochure for the orphanage where we are staying:

“There is no exercise better for the heart than reaching down and lifting people up.”

We definitely sense God using us to lift up the lives of the people around us! We look forward to sending more reports in the days to come! We have some pictures posted in an on-line album which you can access by clicking on this Guatemala Album Link.

Adios!

January 2011 - Guatemala!!

2011-01-09T15:17:00.001-08:00

In the shadow of active volcanoes lies the Guatemalan town of Sumpango.

This town of 33 thousand people will be our first stop on a 10 day outreach in Guatemala. We excitedly looking forward to this new adventure for a NEXT International outreach team.

The team is made up of Dave, Joyce and Christi Johnson, and Cherise Nielsen. Our first opportunity will be connecting with a medical mission team from Plover, Wisconsin. We're looking forward to learning from this group who conducts a number of medical missions each year. Our desire is to serve in whatever way we can, helping to reach out to the people in this community with the love of God.

We'll also spend some time with Oscar and Karla Chiquito.

Oscar is the co-founder of Los Olivos Christian Mission. This organization is reaching out to people in this city to help meet physical, education and spiritual needs. We are eager to explore the possibilities of possibly sending teams here in the future to come alongside Oscar and help meet these needs.

We'll leave Sumpango on Friday to go back to Guatemala City. There we will be visiting a church on Sunday, and looking for how God will connect us with other ministries.

Please watch the blog for future updates!

Headin' Home

2010-08-23T22:06:00.000-07:00

Yesterday (Monday) was my last day working on Selah (this time around!) ... and I'm heading home! It's been a great 2 weeks, and we were able to accomplish a lot! As it always seems, the time seems to go by too quickly on these trips, and you leave a good portion of your heart behind ... but something tells me that this won't be the last time I see the train station in Frydlant nad Ostravici!

Thanks for following the blog and the encouraging comments ... til next time, na shledanou!

Blessed to be a blessing!

2010-08-21T13:29:00.000-07:00

Our work continues on Selah with great joy in Eastern Czech Republic. Things are coming together nicely and we're really enjoying every aspect of serving together ... 2 cowboys and a lumberjack ... quite a combination!

I'm putting another video on YouTube ... so you can see the latest progress!

Simply click on LATEST VIDEO to see what we've been up to! Enjoy!

Greater Things are Yet to Come!

2010-08-19T22:06:00.000-07:00

The last 2 days have been filled with opportunities to join our hearts and hands with our friends and co-workers here in Eastern Europe. As I mentioned in the previous blog, on Wednesday we drove to Southern Poland to visit H2O.

We were very encouraged to see the progress ... and visit with Leszek, Kazik and Susan.

The plan is for H2O to open the main part of the facility for groups to use this fall.

It's great to hear and see the passion and vision of these faithful and diligent workers who have given their lives to see the youth of Eastern Europe come to know the living God! To be a "Barnabas Team" and encourage these dear friends is a privilege and joy!

After our visit to Poland, we returned to help Petr on some projects on his apartment. Along with his many responsibilities, he's been remodeling his "flat" while his American wife and children have been family in the US. Again, encouraging this very talented and committed young man is a significant part of what we do. We know that we cannot do the tasks that he does, but we can come alongside and bring joy and energy to his ministry.

Thursday it was back to Selah, where we continued working on building the railing on the deck and trimming windows.

Wayne and Dave had to perform a bit of a "high-wire" act to get some of the pre-built frames in place! We should finish the outside trimming today, and get well along on putting together the railing parts.

Today (Friday) will be the last day that we see Petr on this trip, as he is going to the States for 3 weeks to be with his family and visit some churches. We'll miss him for sure ... and his absence puts a lot more pressure on Dave's language ability! But, we're hopeful that our friendship and partnership in the gospel will continue to grow in the years to come! There are many more opportunities to serve here, and our hope and prayer is that great results will come, not only from our work, but from the tireless efforts of the many people who serve with Josiah Venture here in Eastern Europe.

Stay tuned for at least a couple more updates as we continue the adventure through the weekend!

One Week Into It!

2010-08-17T21:56:00.000-07:00

It's been a week since I left the States to come to Czech Republic to help on the Josiah Venture retreat house, Selah. Things have gone well and we're "branching out" to new venues. Tuesday, Mel and Wayne continued with the window framing while I started laying out the railing system. This is kind of tricky business, given the fact that this entire log-constructed building will probably settle 4 - 6 inches! So, we had to scratch our heads a bit and "commiserate" on what would be the best way to proceed. I think we've got a pretty good handle on it, so we should be able to get at least a couple sections together before I leave next week.

Working together with the Czech project manager, Petr, is a real joy! We connect on many levels, so its fun to sense a real "kindred spirit." Tuesday morning is the Czech Josiah Venture (KAM) team prayer meeting. Petr invited me to join him and the rest of the group, which was a wonderful privilege! I was able to pray with a few of the guys who I knew from past times together and encourage them in their work. What really struck me was the fact that I can't do what these guys are doing ... but I can certainly encourage and bless them with my prayers and friendship. I look forward to more opportunities to "build God's Kingdom" in this way.

Last evening was also very special as far as relationships go. The "tri kamarady" (three comrades) are now staying in the manager's apartment at Hotel Malenovice. It's a nice set-up and we're thankful for three separate beds!!! Supper is even provided, so we were blessed to sit together with Petr and share stories of our growing up and family life. These "connecting points" are super important and really help to encourage and build up one-another. We are blessed to see friendships grow!

Today we're heading to Poland with Petr to do a project update on H2O. This is the conference center/camp in southern Poland that Joyce and I worked on last summer. Our March team visited the project when we were here, so it will be very interesting to see the progress. Also, I'm looking forward to greeting my dear friend, Kazik! He's taken a real place in our hearts! In addition, we will be taking Bratr Orawski, a pastor with whom I worked 17 years ago on a new church building! WOW!! Has it been that long that I've been doing this?

Thanks for following the adventure and your encouraging comments! Look for more pics and video tomorrow!

Monday, August 16 - Working on Selah in the rain

2010-08-16T11:56:00.000-07:00

After a wonderful relaxing Sunday and a great time with our Czech friends in church, we started out the week with some big goals!

We want to try to get all the windows trimmed ... outside and inside! So, as we looked at the weather, it appeared as though we'd have a pretty nice day ... but, as is the case when you're in the mountains, things can change quickly!

Even so, we were able to get all but two of the second storey windows trimmed out and ready for the "tin-benders" ... who will install the sill flashing.

The day ended by us moving over to Hotel Malenovice where we will be staying until Saturday. Then, who knows where we'll be ... maybe camping at Selah!

I'm posting a video on YouTube for you to watch ... so as before ... to watch it simply click on the blue highlighted letters here - Mel, Wayne and Dave working in the rain ... Enjoy!

Video Update

2010-08-15T00:17:00.000-07:00

Enjoy the YouTube video update!

Click on the highlighted blue letters to view!

Getting Things Rolling

2010-08-14T14:01:00.000-07:00

We've put in 2 good days at Selah and feel like we've gotten off to a great start. As with any "new" project and crew, it takes a little time to start to click, but by noon today the three of us (Mel, Wayne and Dave) feel like there's some good chemistry between us and we know how to proceed forward with the work, together.

This morning, we helped our friend, Petr with some projects on his house before heading up to Selah to continue with the window trimming project. Along with window trimming, Mel "put fire" to the final piles of brush that we cut down in March!! There was a lot of brush!

While Mel was burning brush, Dave and Wayne were measuring and installing trim on the outside windows. This important step in the process will make the windows ready for the "klempíře" ... the "tin-benders" to install copper sills on the windows on Tuesday.

At the end of our day, Petr treated us to supper at a favorite restaurant in the area. This area was famous for its "characters" in its day ... just like many parts of the United States. This is the Valašsko region of Moravia, for it's "cowboy-type" characters who were famous for their traditions of sheepherding and unique rural architecture.

Well, not to be outdone, our own authentic Texas cowboys sat down next to a couple of Valašske cowboys before dinner. We caught them on film engaged in deep cowboy conversation! What a treat! ... not to mention the great food!

Tomorrow we're looking forward to being in church with our Czech brothers and sisters and perhaps seeing a bit of the very historical area. Stay tuned for more adventures!

Riding and Arriving

2010-08-12T21:40:00.000-07:00

I'm safe and sound in Eastern Czech Republic! The trip went well with no glitches at all!

Click on the video below to see some of my travel adventures!

Petr, Wayne and Mel met me for a great Czech lunch and we spent the rest of Thursday afternoon planning and preparing for the work ahead of us!

We're gearing up for some great days of service and friendship! Stay tuned for more updates!!

Called Upon!

2010-08-10T13:26:00.000-07:00

Many times life's journey has some surprising twists and turns. I can honestly say that, even though my family and I have had plenty of those, it still often catches us off guard a little when they come! But, in God's great goodness, He leads us around those curves, even when we don't see what's ahead!

Our last blog post related a "Mission Accomplished" story ... and we were greatly pleased to share the results of our time at the Josiah Venture retreat house "Selah" last April. Our team departed that beautiful setting with a feeling of accomplishment ... but also with a knowledge that there was still a lot of work to be done. Our hope (along with Josiah Venture leadership) was to have Selah up and running by July 1.

Unfortunately, because of many circumstances, that goal was unable to be reached. But, we all believe that God can be trusted, and that He isn't up in heaven wringing His hands wondering what He's gonna do now???!!!

As we've moved around this summer, we've made a point to keep in close touch with the leaders of Josiah Venture (www.josiahventure.com) regarding the status of Selah. Last week we were on an international call with Mel, one of JV's Executive Directors. As my wife and I were talking with Mel, we had a "Macedonian call" experience (Acts 16: 6-12). As he explained the need for carpenters to give the final push to complete Selah by September 1, Joyce and I agreed that I should go. So, despite "other plans" ... this unexpected turn of events has me leaving for Czech Republic tomorrow, August 11, to work for 2 weeks on the Josiah Venture retreat house ... Selah!!

Completion of this facility is a critical component for the Josiah Venture organization to offer rest and refreshment to their 100+ staff members. It's situated in one of the most beautiful parts of Czech Republic: the Beskydy Mountains of Eastern Moravia. In fact, the brochure cover to the right proclaims this area as the "most beautiful living in the Beskydy Mountains! Not a bad place to spend a couple weeks working! Our desire is that God will use this facility to touch the hearts and minds of many, who will in turn, be able to reach out with the love of God to those who are far from Him! I love the fact that Jesus, the Master Builder, is building His church!! ... and am blessed to be used by Him!

I won't be working alone on this project as I've heard that Mel's dad, Mel Sr. ... and another fellow, Wayne, will be joining me! That makes me super excited. Our work will be done under the very capable direction of project manager Petr, who is a JV staffer and good friend! I'm getting very excited to meet him on Thursday afternoon and see what work he has in mind for us!

Please come back often and see what we're up to and make comments! I'm even hoping to post videos (for the first time!) on the blog!

Thank you in advance for your thoughts and prayers. We sense God's leading us very clearly in this latest "call!"

Mission Accomplished!

2010-04-03T10:32:00.000-07:00

The Czech 2010 team returned to the US on Thursday after a very successful ministry week working on Selah! Every team member left a little of themselves in Eastern Czech Republic!

Our final projects were to put as much manpower as we could into finishing the first set of stairs from the first to second floor and get a good start on the framing of the outside walls on the second floor. 4 guys worked pretty much for two days laying out, machining and installing two massive sections of stairs. We estimated that the sections weighed about 500 pounds apiece.

While that was going on, Art led Joyce and Lenore with the framing project ... and nearly completed it! ... even insulating the walls! What a great trio!

As a team, we so grew to appreciate each other, and the gifts and talents God has given us to use to serve others. Its our prayer that God will use the work we did on Selah to help provide a place of rest, renewal and restoration to the lives of the many Josiah Venture workers who will stay there. It's a beautiful place, but even more so ... its a place where God's Spirit is present and evident. Lives will be changed because of being at Selah ... and there are seven people who will attest to that fact ... because their lives have already been changed as they served here together!

Thanks so much to the many family and friends who prayed, supported and followed us during this ministry time. We appreciate each of you so much ... and thank God for you!

Enjoy a final group of pictures of the group in action!

Double the Fun on Monday/Tuesday!

2010-03-30T15:03:00.000-07:00

After a great Sunday, the team headed back up the mountain to Selah on Monday morning. We took advantage of another sunny day to clear brush, remove old fencing and pruning some old fruit trees. We can now actually see the back side of the old barn!

Plumbing pipes were placed in trenches and wood was delivered for the stairs project. At the end of the day, we headed across the valley and up another mountainside ... as we changed our accommodations and moved to Hotel Malenovice. This facility is owned by Josiah Venture and is used for many of their conferences. During the early 2000's, many volunteer construction teams worked on this renovation to create the beautiful facility it is today. Our team members who hadn't been here before were blessed and impressed!

On Monday evening we helped celebrate Amy Ellenwood's birthday at their home in the nearby town of Chotebuz. It was great fun hanging with the entire family ... Mel and Amy ... and their 3 children; Hannah, Haley and Noah. They are a very special family.

Tuesday was a very busy day. Noah Ellenwood brought his friend, Simon, to work with us on a variety of jobs. They hauled brush and firewood, filled a dumpster, moved material, hauled sand ... and had fun with the team!

After enough head scratching and "ciphering" ... Dave J and Fran finally seemed to have the stair plans figured out. The first cuts were made and things seem to be taking shape. We should have the main set of stairs done on Wednesday.

Joyce and Lenore joined Art in framing the upstairs. It was fun hearing the "sisters" pounding and praising!! Art said that he never had better students!

Our hopes were to have a fire going to burn brush ... and have a "bursti roast" ... but it was too windy ... so instead, Joyce and Dave picked up the fixings and we made a bon-fire in the fire pit at our hotel (Malenovice) and enjoyed sharing a beautiful evening under starlight skies and a full moon!

Honestly, the team is tired ... but each day God is showing each of us a little more about Josiah Venture and the vision and mission He's given to this organization. We all feel very blessed to have a small part in preparing a place for God to refresh and rejuvenate the awesome people He's called to live and work here. We're looking forward to a final great work day tomorrow ... and then home on Thursday!

Oh, and sorry ... no pictures tonight ... Lenore wrote this out and Dave is typing this at 12:30 ... so its time for bed. We'll try to post pictures tomorrow!

Thanks for following our adventures! The "Czech Team" - 2010.

Sunday will never be the same!

2010-03-28T13:57:00.000-07:00

The Czech Ministry Team from Wisconsin spent Palm Sunday worshiping with their Czech brothers and sisters in a church in Cesky Tesin.

After church it was off to Poland, where we shared a pizza lunch with Daniella, another JV missionary. The team really enjoyed spending some time relaxed time together ... and seeing and hearing about some of the many things that God is doing in this part of the world!

With tour guide Dave J at the wheel, the team was given a short ride to H2O, Josiah Venture's retreat, camp and conference facility in Poland. Joye and Dave were greeted especially warmly by their dear friend Kazik, with whom they had worked for 3 weeks last summer!

It was great to see the tremendous progress that has been made on the main building! Hopes are that the facility will be used by campers this summer!

The vision for what God could do in this place was super uplifting to everyone, and we left with hopes of seeing how God would have any of us continue to be involved in helping this place become all He wants it to be!

With Art and Fran needing a little "pick-me-up" ... we decided to do a shopping trip to the Polish version of Home Depot ... Castarama ... WOW!! What a sight with boys picking out their toys!

(And Joyce's sister Lenore even found some nice blue rubber boots!)

The remainder of Sunday was spent enjoying the sights, sounds and tastes of the 1200 year-old city of Cieszyn.

The Dave's drank the smallest cup of coffee they could find ...

Dave J and Art demonstrated the intricacies of laying cobblestones ...

... and the 3 (Lakes) brothers posed in front of a sign on a cobblestone street that described them perfectly!

It was truly an inspiring day ... and we were reminded of the need to continue to invest our lives "preparing the way of the Lord!" ... here in Eastern Europe, or where ever He leads us!!

Czech Team 2010 Update1

2010-03-27T10:59:00.000-07:00

Greetings from Eastern Czech Republic!

Our team of 7 arrived safely on Thursday evening and have had a wonderful first two days of serving here. God put together an awesome team ... Dave Kirby, Art Pekoc, Fran Schmitz, Larry and Lenore Johnson ... and Joyce and Dave Johnson.
For our first day in the beautiful Beskydy mountains at Selah; the Josiah Venture retreat facility, God gave us sunshine and warm breezes. What a gorgeous day all around. We spent the majority of our muscle power outside, cleaning up construction debris, clearing brush and bramble and dismantling old fencing.

On Saturday we all continued with the work God has given us.

We were blessed to have Noah Ellenwood (Mel and Amy's 14-year-old son)
working with us. He moved a ton of rocks that will be used for a retaining wall. Art worked with the electrician, Fran worked on trimming out skylights, Kirby and Larry dug a trench for the sewer system and Dave made coffee!! ;-) Joyce and Lenore continued to dismantle old fencing among the most horrendous and gigantic thorn bushes anyone has ever seen. They both have the wounds to prove it. Ask to see them when they return!

During our busy-ness ... God set the valley below us aglow with the setting sun, causing us to "pause" with thankfulness to Him ... knowing that "Selah" be used as a wonderful tool to bring blessings, rest and refreshment to the lives of many who will come here. We all consider it a great privilege to serve God's kingdom purposes in this way!

Enjoy the pictures of our team in action!!

What a Team!

2010-01-20T18:32:00.000-08:00

We're packed, stacked and ready to hit the sack!

Last night Cedarbrook Church's teams did the final "weigh-in" and packing in preparation for our departure on Thursday.

Take a look at this great group of people!

... and then, take a look at the Cedarbrook blog for further updates and prayer requests.

Thanks for going with us!!

Heading South to Serve!

2010-01-18T16:21:00.000-08:00

For nearly the past 6 months, a group of people from our church; Cedarbrook, in Menomonie, Wisconsin has been preparing to go to 2 different countries in Latin America to show the love of God as we serve people in practical ways.

Our team of 6 (the one I'll be on) will be a team that is going to Chincha, Peru to help with rebuilding homes for people who's homes (and lives) were devastated in an earthquake in 2007.

Another team of 8 will be going to a village in Honduras to help drill a well that will provide people in that village with clean water ... something that many people in the world don't have access to. Our church is partnering with Living Water International to "provide a cup of water in Jesus' Name!"

To follow these 2 teams, please click on our church's brand new World Missions page. I'll be linking my blog to that page ... as well as posting things myself on this blog!

Thanks for your thoughts and prayers as we travel and serve for the Glory of God and the good of others!

Witaj v Domu!

2009-09-19T04:50:00.000-07:00

As I crossed the border into Poland yesterday afternoon, this was the sign that greeted me ... "Welcome Home!" I guess its no different than when we cross into another state in the US and we see "Welcome to Wisconsin" ... but it seems different when its written in another language!

I had a great sleep last night in this quiet, peaceful place called H2O. Being here is sometimes hard to imagine that there are 4 million people within a short driving distance from here. The day dawned cool and clear, and after a great cup of strong coffee and a Polish "snidane" of bread, cheese, ham, and hard-boiled eggs, Kazik gave me a bucket of plaster and a couple trowels and we started in plastering!

It was great to finish a wall of the "domek" - cabin ... that we worked on with a team from Colorado in July! The buildings look great (not to mention my wall!)

Hey Colorado Team ... we could have used you this week ... probably could have finished the plastering on building number 3!! Oh, well, maybe next time!

It's been great to hang here with Kazik and help just a little with the continuing reconstruction of this facility.

This afternoon I'm traveling back to Czech Republic to attend a Czech youth group meeting. We're gonna talk a little about being "a loser!" ... as in losing your life for the sake of the Gospel!

S Bogiem!!

Dave J

World Changers!

2009-09-18T09:01:00.000-07:00

Wow ... that's about all I can say!

I just finished attending a conference with over 100 young Christian leaders from 11 different countries in Eastern Europe. The theme of the conference was "Passing The Baton ... making Disciples of the next generation." These 20 t0 30 year-olds inspired me and moved me like I haven't experienced in a long time. It's gonna take some time to process these past few days. The hearts and passion of these young people to share God's love and make disciples is a refreshing breeze in a region that has long felt the stifling oppression of post-communist cultures.

Phrases like "hunger, pain, and loneliness each now have a face and a name since I began to work with the homeless and outcasts in our city" brought tears to my eyes as I listened to these men and women share their hearts for God and for reaching their peers with His love! A song that was sung a number of times during the conference was "God of This City"

... and from what I saw and heard ... these folks aren't just singing ... they're investing their lives in seeing God do greater things in the cities and countries where they live!!

So, now I'm in Poland for a day ... to check on a project that we worked on this summer and visit our dear hard-working friend, Kazik. He's making supper for us (himself and me) right now! Tomorrow we'll do some plastering together ... then I'll head back to Czech Republic to visit a youth group that is led by a couple of my new friends!

Stay tuned for more updates. (Oh, sorry about no pictures this time. I just didn't have any that come near expressing the power present at this conference. I'll maybe send some pictures of me plastering!).

Dave J

Making Connections and Progress!

2009-09-15T23:17:00.000-07:00

Morning sounds fill the valley below my room at Hotel Malenovice as I send this short update.

I arrived here safe and sound on Monday evening after a long night and day of travel.

Yesterday was the first full day of the conference and I was able to renew some friendships, as well as make many new ones (any surprise to that?).

In the afternoon Mel Ellenwood "kidnapped me" and we drove across the valley to the site of the Pstruzi House ... or Beskydy Retreat House. What a thrill to see the foundation for the new building nearly complete and hear that the logs are going to be set in place in about 2 weeks!

Here's a picture of the new foundation.

We are so looking forward to having teams come this spring and summer to complete the building and make this place a "haven of rest" for the many JV staff who will use it.

Stay tuned for more updates!

Blessings for the day,

Dave Johnson

Going Back!

2009-09-09T14:45:00.001-07:00

As the song goes ... "my bags are packed, I'm ready to go!" ... well, not quite! And I'm certainly not "leaving" in the way the song said, but on a much more positive and exciting note!

On Sunday, September 13, Joyce will take me "across the boarder" to the Minneapolis/St. Paul International airport so that I can fly back to Czech Republic Sunday night in order to attend the Josiah Venture Fall Leadership Conference!

When we left in July, one thing that the leaders of JV said would be extremely valuable for them and for us would be for one or both of us to attend their leadership conference. We thought and prayed about it and asked others what their thoughts were, and ultimately decided that to further the "budding partnership" between NEXT and Josiah Venture, I (Dave) would attend this conference this fall.

Our goal is to connect with many of the young national leaders that work in the 11 countries where JV serves and talk about the possibilities for leadership development/service projects, along with offering project management services. This seems to fit well with our goals as an organization.

I will be gone for 10 days, so pray for Joyce as she's left here holding down the fort and continuing her teaching at UW Eau Claire.

The Google Earth satellite photo below shows the area where I will be spending my time, mostly at Hotel Malenovice ... but hopefully I'll be able to get "eyes on" updated progress on H2O as well as the Pstruzi House (Beskydy Retreat House). Stay tuned for more updates!

Dave & Joyce Johnson

Stepping into the Vision (and the work) at H2O

2009-07-27T02:27:00.000-07:00

It’s Monday morning, July 27 and we are sitting in a beautiful loft apartment in Frydlant nad Ostravici, Czech Republic. We came here on Saturday to spend a couple days reflecting and debriefing with Dave and Connie Patty, the president of Josiah Venture. As we look back at the last 5 weeks, we feel incredibly thankful and blessed to have served here in Eastern Europe this summer. The people we met and the experiences we had will remain vivid memories in our hearts for a very long time!
Last week was filled with nearly dawn to dusk activities at Camp H2O with the team from Foothills Bible Church in Littleton, Colorado. Our primary task was to get as much renovation done on one of the “domeks” as we could. Well, this group pulled out all the stops and did much more than anyone thought could be accomplished in just 5 days!

The most encouraging part was, by far, working with such an enthusiastic group of people whose desire was to serve God by doing whatever they were asked! The process included some major tasks: like installing 50cm x 100cm x 10 cm thick Styrofoam blocks to a concrete wall, and wire-brushing, sanding and painting a metal roof!
The blocks had to be cut to fit -

... and glued on with cement mix which was “globbed on” to the back of the blocks! Pressure was often needed to get the blocks to line up straight and plumb!

After the blocks were glued in place, we had to drill a 20cm deep hole in the concrete wall and install plastic anchors through the blocks. It was really fun to work with a couple gals (actually Grandmas!!) who had never run a hammer drill before!

While the “wall crew” was busy making the domek look like and igloo, a crew was busy on a “hot tin roof” cleaning and applying 2 coats of durable paint … with brushes and 3 inch rollers! They worked early and late to get the roof done!

By the end of the week, the domek had a nice newly painted roof and walls covered with 10 cm (4 inches) of Styrofoam insulation. We were even able to put the fiberglass mesh and a layer of plaster on a couple of the walls!

There were a couple more people who were an integral part of the team … actually they are key components in the renovation of H20 and its future ministry!
Susan Ellis is a Josiah Venture missionary who has given her life to discipling young people and encouraging them disciple others as well. Her focused life and strong commitment to serve in whatever way needed was an example to all of us! We so appreciated getting to know her in some special ways.

And last but certainly not least, was Kazik, our newest Polish best friend! When the camp was purchased, Kazik came with the camp. He has worked there for 23 years and knows every aspect of the facility. Not only that, he’s a trained cook and provided delicious Polish delicacies 3 times a day (plus pastries!!!). Everyone fell in love with this “energizer bunny” of a man, whether he was welding a hole in the roof, or running and errand on his scooter!

Even though there is much left to be done at H2O, we all saw the huge potential for God to use this facility to touch lives of the 3 million people who live in this region of Southern Poland (South Silesia). All reports indicate that there is not another facility like this in this area. We were blessed to be at this place, by the beauty of the lake which is owned by the camp and by the lives we were able to connect with. We’re looking forward to telling more personal stories and casting a vision with many of you as to how you may become involved in God’s work in Eastern Europe.

Connections and Preparations

2009-07-18T06:59:00.000-07:00

Our first week here in Silesia, Poland has gone by quickly! We're currently awaiting the arrival of a construction/encouragement team from Colorado. They will be joining some Polish youth next week to make a huge dent on some cabin (domek) renovations ... as well as some demolition on the main H2O building.

Here's a short run-down on what we've been doing since you last heard from us:

We took a trip back to Czech on Wednesday, to Hotel Malenovice, so that we could observe some "English Camp training" that was being done for the English Camps that would be taking place all around the Czech Republic this week. It was a hugely encouraging time ... to meet with Czech and American leaders as they prepared for the camps. We had one very special conversation with Greg Strock, whom Dave was in seminary with. Greg serves full time with JV and told us he's done 34 English Camps!! It was great to reconnect with a dear friend and "partner in ministry!"

On Thursday, we had a very hard-working Polish "encouragement team" show up to help us prepare cabins for construction teams to stay in.

They really pitched in to help, even in 90 degree temps to make the cabins "spic-and-span" for people to stay in! What a joy it was to hear one young man's testimony of how he came to realize the need for Jesus in his life, after hearing about God's love at an English Camp.

Rafalo and Dave hauled furniture in and out ...

... while Joyce and a number of other Polish gals chased spiders out of the long-closed-up cabins and washed them from top to bottom! With new foam mattresses and bedding, these places are starting to feel almost like home!!

Tomorrow we'll be spending the day with the team; going to church in Zory, Poland (Dave is speaking), and doing a little sightseeing! The goal is to keep the team awake as long as possible!

Watch for more updates when we get going on the work on the domky (cabins) after Monday!

Dave & Joyce - Serving this summer in Eastern Europe with NEXT International and Josiah Venture

H2O - Living Water in Skocow, Poland

2009-07-14T11:04:00.000-07:00

Greetings from Skocow in Southwest Poland!

We arrived in Bielsko Biala on Saturday, July 11 in fine shape after a short stop in Czech Republic to do laundry and "Czech in" with our friends Mel and Amy Ellenwood. It was nice to have a couple of "down days" to recover from the Slovak English camp. We made some great friends there and look forward to hearing about the lives that are being changed because of being at the camp. There is no doubt that God will bring fruit from these experiences.

As far as what's happening here; we had a delightful Sunday with a Polish lady named Ursula and her friend, Rose, from London. After attending a Polish brethren church, we were invited to have lunch at Ursula's house and then went with them on an excursion to the nearby Beskidy Mountains. We rode a chair lift to the top of a 1000 + meter high mountain and enjoyed a short hike around the top and a delicious piece of fresh-baked blueberry cake!

On Monday (yesterday) we started our ministry here at H2O, the training, retreat, and conference center that is being renovated by Josiah Venture. We had hoped to have a team from Katowice here for this week, but they had to cancel at the last moment. In a way, that may be a blessing in disguise, because there is much planning to do and prioritizing the work for future teams. Dave has been working on outlining a work plan and itemizing the tasks that need to be done as well as how long each task may take.

Joyce has been a great second set of eyes and ears ... and has helped with the planning process and has provided some very practical ideas. It's been great to work together as a team!

Our "domek" ... or cute little house ... for the 10 days or so is a one room, two twin-bed, half A-frame cottage on the H2O property. One of our tasks is to help update these "domky" so that they are warmer and dryer. We have a team of 8 people coming in on Saturday who will help to renovate one of these by applying 4 inches of styrofoam on the outside and repainting the roof! Anyway, now you know where we are! Thanks for thinking of us ... we'd love to hear from you with a comment on our adventures!

KECY Camp - Slovakia ... CRAZY FUN!!

2009-07-11T04:58:00.000-07:00

When you last heard from us we had hiked up to the top of a mountain to join with other Slovakian believers for an incredible day of fellowship and worship. So, just when you start to think that things can’t get any better, God brings something into our lives that completely blows us away. Such were our experiences for the last 10 days! All we can say is that God is amazing and the opportunities He’s giving us are beyond belief!

Hopefully you will hear in our stories, the echo of 1 Corinthians 2:9 – “things which eye has not seen, and ear has not heard and which have not entered the heart of man, all that, God has prepared for those who love Him.

On Monday, June 29, Pierre and Lisa Vanvuuren took us to their church in Hlinne, Slovakia. This church has been started with Roma (gypsy) believers who have to be about the liveliest group of people we’ve ever been with. As we drove into the yard of the house where the church holds services, children who had come for the children’s ministry time were waiting with eager anticipation. Joyce got out of the car and the children swarmed her and surrounded us with their excitement!

The childrens' time lasted for about 1½ hours and was full of teaching and exuberant singing! The adult (and children’s) service started after that and went for nearly 2 hours. It was obvious where the children learned to sing! Everyone in the congregation sang at the top of their lungs (in tune and harmony!) for each song! What a joy to share the word of God and encourage such enthusiastic followers of Jesus! We felt humbled and privileged to share this day with our Roma brothers and sisters!

Our next “stop” after our “mountaintop” experience in Hermanovce was Presov, Slovakia where we met our Slovak/American team who would be doing the English Camp. Connecting with the 4 other Americans and the 15 members of the Slovak camp leadership team was a real joy.

From that moment on for the next 10 days we were busy almost every moment doing all sorts of crazy activities that youth thrive on; we learned some really great games ...

We had some awesome conversations, we saw beautiful surroundings and we were amazed that we really could get by on six hours of sleep each night for over a week!

The Slovak campers were enthusiastic about every part of camp and were so appreciative of “the Americans” coming to help make the camp possible. We felt like God really enriched our lives through this experience.

The highlight for us was making connections with our group during the entire week.

At the “good-bye party” back in Presov on the evening after returning from camp, a young man from our camp group said that he was thankful every day to be at camp and that this experience showed him that life is more than girls and partying. We have many more stories about this amazing camp and lives that are being changed here in Eastern Europe! We look forward to sharing them with you after we return in about 3 weeks.

On the Top of the World (or close to it)!

2009-06-29T02:48:00.000-07:00

Since we last checked in, Joyce and I have transitioned from the bustling city of Budapest with its 2.5 million people to the serene, almost idyllic village of Hermanovce, Slovakia … population, 660!!

Friday started with another exhilarating taxi ride and a trek into the Budapest train station. We got our tickets with no problem and waited for the announcement to board the train. Track 12 was our destination, so we climbed on board with a few hundred other travelers and settled into a nice “cabin” for the 4 hour trip to Slovakia. The train ride through the eastern European countryside was very nice; including a fun conversation with a 17 year-old Hungarian/Slovak girl named Esther, who was returning to Slovakia with 50 classmates who had been on a school trip! Meeting new people is becoming a real highlight of our time here. Our arrival in Kosice, Slovakia meant that we had to hoist our 50 pound backpacks and carry them through the train station. For those who have been praying for our ability to lift those packs … well, mission accomplished!

Even though we had a small delay on our connecting train, we eventually arrived in Hermanovce for a wonderful reception from Pastor Peter Pristiak and a delicious late supper (10 PM!!) prepared especially for us by his wife, Renata.
After supper, Peter announced that Saturday they would have a “brigada” … or work day at the church and camp which is adjacent to prepare everything for the summer camping season to start this week. Dave joined with a group of gypsy believers (men) who had come to the camp for a retreat! We dug a ditch to bury a gravity-fed water line that would supply water for an outdoor shower! An very interesting sidelight is that Dave and his partner were using shovels that were brought from the US by work teams that Dave organized 9 years ago. It was obvious that they had been well used!

After lunch, Dave and Joyce visited some families who had hosted teams and worked alongside them as the church was being built from 2000 – 2003. This time was great blessing (but a little “stretching” for Dave’s old noggin’ … translating Slovak for Joyce and then back to Czech/Slovak for our hosts)!

We got a good rest Saturday night, which was needed in preparation for the hike up to the mountaintop on Sunday. This is the gathering that we told some of you about … a tradition started many years ago when the church was more clandestine and met in obscure places. At least once a year, people from all over the region would hike to the top of a 3500 foot mountain in order to gather together for food, fellowship, worship and to hear the word of God. What a privilege it was to join with this group and share in their tradition!

After hiking 5 or 6 miles (actually, Joyce got an exciting ride in a 4X4 jeep-type vehicle … they didn’t have to twist our arms to take part in a traditional Slovak “weenie roast!” Only these weren’t your typical hot dogs, these were kolbasy and spekacky … kolbasa and smoked pork belly (real fatty bacon) threaded on a stick! With some wonderful brown bread and horseradish mustard, this was a feast fit for a king and queen! And we enjoyed every bite!

Today (Monday) we are going to the nearby town of Hlinne to participate in a childrens’ club and an evening service with a congregation of Roma (gypsy) believers. Please pray that as Dave shares from God’s word that the words will bless and challenge these brothers and sisters who are from such a different culture.

Tomorrow we travel to the English Camp, so we’re not sure when we’ll be able to check in again, but keep praying! We’re so thankful for each of you as you journey with us this summer!

A Day in Budapest - Missionary Style!

2009-06-26T01:34:00.000-07:00

As we sat on Wednesday evening in the falafel/gyros restaurant at Moricz Zsigmond Square, Dave recounted, that from best recollection, he had been to Budapest 12 times, starting in the summer of 1996. That must account for the "success" we had in the last 24 hours ...

1) Being awed by the evidence of the hand of God at work through those whom He's called here ...

and:

2) Seeing a whole bunch of famous sites in this grand European city.

The "tour" started with our arrival in Ferihegy Airport and Joyce's "official" welcome for her first visit.

From there it was a fast taxi ride to the Griff Hotel, where many, many groups have stayed while they served at the MOZI Ministry Center, just a short walk away. After a quick shower and change of socks and "unmentionables" ... (its not a new day until you change your socks and undies), we walked from the Hotel to the Olimpia Mozi Ministry Center. On the way there, we took a short detour through the playground that Dave helped with by organizing construction teams who came and built it 7 years ago! What a joy it was to see the playground in wonderful condition, with dozens of children with their parents playing and enjoying this beautiful place. It's so rewarding to know that the work of so many is still paying dividends!!

The Olimpia Mozi Ministry Center has undergone significant renovations since it was purchased in 2000, but this summer some of the most dramatic changes are coming about through the complete reconstruction of the coffeehouse and auditorium. Brad Mullet greeted us with two cups of the most wonderful espresso (and Joyce doesn't even drink coffee!!) and shared the most recent "God sightings" that have moved this renovation forward. Suffice it to say that there is no doubt in our minds that God intends to reach many people in the 11th district of Budapest through the myriad of ministries that use this building. We count at least 8 ministries currently at work, and more to come! The stories of how the finances were obtained would alone fill up this blog, but we just want to relay to all of you who read this, that God is at work in this part of the world in ways that we never hear about. We were very encouraged to hear Brad update us on all that's happening.

Always the gracious host, Brad offered to drop us at the foot of the Castle Hill with a handful of bus/tram tickets and some rough directions on how to get back to the hotel. We took his offer and Joyce soon found herself gazing out at the Danube River through the windows of the turrets in the Fisherman's Bastion. This famously photographed landmark didn't escape our camera's lens ... and Joyce was especially awed by the view. We then walked the cobblestone streets of the Castle Hill in search of a restaurant where we could get a good Hungarian dinner and we were not at all disappointed! The chicken paprika with dumplings tickled Joyce's palette, while Dave opted for the grilled pork medallions with sweet red cabbage and roasted potatoes. While the prices aren't the same as they were 13 years ago, the flavors haven't gone away and we thanked God for a great day, great food, and most of all, for great friends who are praying for us today! We felt especially blessed!

Sleep came easy as we we were able to lay horizontal for the first time in nearly 48 hours! 9 hours later we were awoken by a beautiful sunshiny day ... and ready for more touring!

We won't cover all the nitty gritty, but here's a taste of what Thursday was like:

We rode a tram over a beautiful bridge crossing the Danube, walked through the largest covered market in the city, had a lunch of Hungarian gulash (csipos!!), walked down the Vaci Utca (shopping street) without getting pick=pocketed!!, rode the oldest metro line on the continent of Europe (not counting "the Tube"), gazed at the "heroes" on Hero's Square, had a delicious coffee and cake at an outdoor cafe along the Danube, and rode the tram back across the Danube to the gyros restaurant that we mentioned in the first paragraph! Wow!! ... and Joyce's leg (recovering from shin splints) held up through it all!! What a day!

Today, we will leave Budapest and head for Slovakia. Our eventual destination is Hermanovce nad Toplou ... the small village on the end of the road that is such a contrast to this city of 2.5 million, but where the hand of God is also incredibly evident in the lives of people. We're not sure when we'll get the next blog updated, but stay tuned for more adventure!!

And They're Off!

2009-06-24T08:35:00.000-07:00

This is Abi, Dave and Joyce's daughter and I am an honorary blogger on behalf of my parents. Zach, Janlee and I dropped Mom and Dad off at the airport yesterday with two full bags and lots of excitement and anticipation! By now they've probably arrived in Budapest Hungary and I am sure are working hard to get over jet lag and stay awake.

A few prayer requests for the next few days:
~Safety in continued travels over the next week

~A quick adjustment to European time

~Joyce's overall health especially her shin splints - let's pray for complete healing for her

Keep checking for updates here along the way. Thank you for taking this journey with us!

Gearing Up!

2009-06-13T07:49:00.000-07:00

Well, we're back at it again! For those who haven't heard, Joyce and Dave are heading back to Eastern Europe on June 23 for an "extended ministry" that will last nearly six weeks!

Once again, we will be partnering with Josiah Venture, a youth outreach and leadership development organization. They have invited us to participate in a number of different activities which are designed to give Eastern European youth an opportunity to clearly hear about and respond to God's love for them. We are super excited about what we'll be doing this summer.

During the first week of July we will be helping to facilitate a relational evangelistic English camp in Slovakia. Joyce is excited to use her ESL expertise in this camp setting with students who have had little or no contact with Christians, the Bible or the truth of Jesus Christ! Dave will be able to use his Czech language as well, to build relational bridges into students’ lives! (Slovak and Czech are “sister languages”) We look forward to sharing the gospel with some who have never heard it before!

After the camp, we will travel to southern Poland to spend five weeks working with teams from around the globe who are helping to do an “Extreme Makeover” on an 18 acre training center called H2O. Dave will be able to put his project management and team facilitation skills to good use as we work with hundreds of people during the 5 weeks that we are in Poland. To learn more about what H20 is all about take a look at the H2O Blog

We invite you to follow us as we move about in Eastern Europe this summer. We anticipate great things to happen in and through our lives!

Blessings to all!

Dave & Joyce Johnson

Final Reflections

2009-03-21T04:44:00.000-07:00

Our final days in Czech Republic flew by before we knew it! It’s now Saturday morning, and we are in Amsterdam, Netherlands on our way back to the United States. It has been a great week, with many “God sightings” as we’ve sought to be a “Barnabas Team” … encouraging people in whatever way we can. Our hands encouraged the Josiah Venture Staff as we were able to so some construction work on the Pstruzi House Retreat Center. Our lips expressed words of encouragement and prayers for the leaders and families who live and serve here. And last, but certainly not least, our hearts connected with the vision and passion of the entire Josiah Venture organization. We’re hoping and believing that there will be many more connections and opportunities for people to join with us in this part of the world!

Thursday was our final work day. Our hope was to get our project to a point where the work remaining was easily “transferable” to a next group coming in. We finished nailing on the 1 inch sheathing on the end wall of the barn … soon to be guest house … and framed in a roof system for a wood storage area that will store wood to heat part of the facility. Oh, we should mention that the weather on Thursday was a full-blown mountain blizzard, so cutting rafters outside brought its own challenge!

Dave and Mark rejoiced to “reach the top” of their project, and congratulated each other as they thanked God for the work which He was able to accomplish through them.

One highlight of Thursday was a side trip to a log home building factory in Frydlant nad Ortravici. Josiah Venture is seriously considering hiring this company to put up a traditional style Czech “timber home” complete with exquisite dovetail corners and massive beams! This visit really lit Dave’s fire for the facility. The log/timber construction would provide a very peaceful and calming environment for JV staff to come and refresh and recharge.

So, our day ended with one last walk down the hill …

... and memories of a week well invested for the Kingdom of God.

Please pray with us that, unlike these locked barn doors at the retreat facility, the doors of peoples’ hearts here in Central Europe will be open and unlocked to receive the Good News of God’s love in Jesus Christ.

Pray also that God continues to lead NEXT as to how we may continue to build a strong partnership with Josiah Venture to help move their God given vision forward in Eastern Europe.

Oh, one last thing. We want to thank our dear “Czech brother” Marek Susta for the use of his car for the week. Marek and his family has been wonderful friends for many years, and it was great to reconnect during this trip. His generosity and friendship are very special to us, and we look forward to more time together in the future. And thanks to everyone who has read and prayed and followed our adventures this past week. We’re excited to see many of you very soon!

Girls at School and Training a Young Zednik

2009-03-18T13:03:00.000-07:00

Today we split up ... girls and guys. While Dave and Mark got up at 6 and took off for the work site by 7:30 as usual, the girls stayed back in order to go to the high school where Amy Ellenwood teaches. Before going to the school the girls were able to go across the border to Poland for a short sightseeing/shopping trip.

Joyce and Amy spent the afternoon interacting with senior English students at the "gymnasium" ... college prep school. The students asked Cathy and Joyce questions in order to find out about them, told about the Czech school system and described typical Czech students and teachers. The time together was enjoyed by both students and teacher(s).

Dave and Mark had the joy of working with the Ellenwood's son, Noah today. Our first stop was the building supply store to pick up a couple more bags of mortar mix. They've gotten to know us quite well! We needed to build a couple small brick walls, so Noah learned the skills of a "zednik" or bricklayer. Although he's been around some building projects, he told us that he has never layed bricks, or seen anyone lay bricks, up close. But today, that all changed!

Mark taught Noah how to mix a perfect batch of mud, and Dave had him layin' down bricks one after another.

The day ended with the supporting brick knee walls in place, all the framing in place to support the rafters, and some rafters cut. Working as a three-some including Noah was definitely one of the highlights of our week. It's great to pour into a young man's life! Oh, and Mark and Dave kinda enjoy working together pretty much as well!

Tomorrow will be our last work day ... so we're hoping to complete as much as we can. We're also going to take a "field trip" to the log home company that the Ellenwoods hope to have build the retreat house and we're looking forward to that as well. Stay tuned for at least one more blog to see how our week ended up!

Goofy Tuesday

2009-03-17T14:43:00.000-07:00

Our team moved into our second work day with great joy! The weather turned from a beautiful sunrise to a blizzard in less than 2 hours ... but that didn't squelch our enthusiasm.

We started by stopping by the stavebniny (building supply) to pick up some mortar mix for laying up a small brick wall. Mixing mud in the snow was a real treat!

While Mark and Dave got things going with that, the girls (Joyce and Cathy) started picking out rough sawn pine 1 inch boards to use as exterior sheathing on the new barn wall. Not only did they pick them out ... but they measured, cut and installed over 50 boards!

For a warm-up, we went into the nearby town of Frydlant nad Ostravici to a restaurant for a hot meal. Joyce thoroughly enjoyed her hot pear drink ... along with halusky s zelim (small boiled dumplings and boiled cabbage!).

Mel Ellenwood stopped by to discuss some ideas and plans ... and we made a shopping list of things we needed at the hardware store!

We finished the day with the knee wall in place ... and a great 30 minute ride back to the Ellenwoods where Amy had some delicious chili and corn bread waiting for us.

Oh, by the way, the main reason for this being goofy Tuesday, is that Cathy entertained us with the giggles most of the day ... and we're glad to say that, "missionaries do have fun!"

So long until tomorrow.

Dave & Joyce and Mark & Cathy

Work Day Monday

2009-03-16T14:08:00.000-07:00

Today we were able to get after some of the projects that the Josiah Venture folks had in mind for us. We're working on the Pstruzi House ... which will soon be used as a retreat/vacation center for the staff of JV here in Eastern Europe.

We had to shovel our way in because the snow is still piled pretty high in these mountains!

Joyce and Cathy tackled a "deconstruction" project which entailed using hammers and nail pullers to disassemble a floor system. The reason they are doing this is that the JV leaders have decided that they can rebuild a brand-new square log home on the old foundation for just about the same amount of money that it would take to renovate the old house. This will provide a much nicer facility ... with much more flexibility in construction!

While the girls were hard at it, the guys were figuring out how to re-frame the end of an old barn which will be used as a guest house at the retreat center. The rough sawn 2x6 pine (5x15s in cm!) were amazingly straight ... and the final product is kind of starting to take shape.

Tomorrow we'll continue on with the wall framing, along with laying some brick to support a knee wall and nailing on wall sheathing (2.5 cm thick boards) on the outside of the frame wall.

Thanks for keeping up with us, we'll try to update again tomorrow!

NEXT CZ - March 09 Team ... Dave, Joyce, Mark and Cathy

Czeching It Out!

2009-03-15T09:05:00.000-07:00

Greetings from Chotebuz, Czech Republic (try typing that in on Google Maps ... you'll find it!).

Joyce and I, along with Mark and Cathy Jensen arrived here in Czech on Friday morning. Our dear friend, Marek Susta, met us at the airport and took us to our hotel to drop off our bags.

Mark and Cathy wanted to see Prague, so we showed them the way to the Metro stop and jumped into the car with Marek to head off to Chomutov ... the city where we lived from 1993 - 1996.

We had a wonderful lunch of svickova (beef tenderloin with cream sauce) made by Marek's mom ... and a great visit with her and his dad, Stan.

After lunch, Joyce and I wandered 3 blocks over to the Novak's house ... the family who shared their house with us for three years ... where we had an amazing afternoon with the entire Novak family! All of the family members were there, so we shared many stories in an emotional two hours with them. This is the first time that Joyce had seen them in over 10 years! Its hard to imagine that we've been gone from here nearly 13 years! So, after stories, tears and hugs ... it was back to Prague.

Mark and Cathy saw all the main sites in Prague ... so we reconnected with them over dinner. By 9:00 pm we were all plenty tired (Mark hadn't slept in almost 36 hours!) ... so we hit the hay in order to get ready for our 4 hour drive to Eastern Czech (where the Ellenwoods live).

The day was beautiful ... and the ride perfect ... with Dave driving Marek's car, Joyce and Cathy navigating ... and Mark lending his wisdom every once in a while (Mark - "when I see some of those Czech words, I want to buy a vowel!).

The Malenovice Hotel was our first stop! This hotel is an awesome setting on the side of a
mountain! They've had a ton of snow ... so we were stunned by the beauty of this place that is being used by God to touch hundreds of lives each year!

Following our time with the Josiah Venture leaders, Dave Patty and Mel Ellenwood, Mel drove us through the valley and up the other side to the Pstruzi House, which is the retreat house where we will be working this week. By this time, we were all ready to go ... but it was dark, so we'll have to wait until Monday. We're ready!

Sunday we went with the Ellenwoods to their church plant in Karvina. Dave was asked to bring a short greeting ... and praise God, the Czech language came out of his mouth pretty clearly! It was fun to bring greetings from our friends and family in the US.

Our day is nearly done ... and we're ready for some work tomorrow bright and early. We're excited to be able to serve the Ellenwoods and their ministry with Josiah Venture in a variety of ways ... so keep us in your prayers and look for future posts in the days to come.

Intro

2008-03-24T10:20:00.000-07:00

Welcome to the blogsite of NEXT International!

As we get this site, as well as our home website up and running, you will be able to find up-to-date information regarding the activities and opportunities of NEXT!

Please stay tuned!