LCM Slovakia

Pictures from 2009 Slovakia Missions Trip

2009-04-02T21:20:00.000-07:00

Here are a few pictures from our trip. Enjoy!

This is the church where we stayed in Hermanovce.
A few of the kids from Hlenne, a nearby town

Snowball fight!!!

Heather with a child who came to the Hlinne kids ministry

Each time we visited Hlinne, the kids had the opportunity to color a picture that was connected with the lesson we taught.

There is a 7 hour time difference between Wisconsin and Slovakia. On the train ride from Hungary to Slovakia, we were trying to stay awake so we could quickly get over the jet lag. The "human pyramid" was one activity we decided to do in the train car to keep ourselves awake. :)

Unforgettable experiences...

Liz with a child from Hlinne

Every Sunday afternoon the young adults gather for a hike into the mountains near the church. We loved the times we had during our stay to connect with them.

Still trying to stay awake in the train car on the way over...

In addition to children's ministry in Hlinne, we led three meetings for the teens. This picture was taken on our last evening together.

Back in the United States...

2009-03-11T12:56:00.000-07:00

Hello!

The Slovakia team of 9 arrived safely to Timber-lee yesterday evening. We had no problems getting to our destination. It was sad to have to leave our friends in Hermanovce, but we are all thrilled for the ministries that took place. We'll never forget our friends in Slovakia.

We'll post more later, so check back! For now, enjoy this video from the kids ministry in Hlenne, a nearby town. The team came to this kids ministry 3 times during our trip to teach a lesson, do a craft, sing songs, and play games. This video captures a tune that is familiar to our team. The kids would sing several Roma songs together at the beginning of each meeting, and later we would teach them an American song. Enjoy!

Ahoj! (Bye!)

Betka (Bethany)

The Holy Spirit Moves

2009-03-05T14:59:00.000-08:00

Hello Everyone, greetings from Slovakia! We just had an incredible night of ministry at the Hlinne church this evening. First of all it is always amazing to hear the Hlinne people sing. You can just tell it is deep from within them.

Our teams participation started with Paul Huck giving his testimony. He did a great job in making it real to the people there. One man at the end of the service even stood up and told everyone how Paul's testimony convicted him of areas of his life he was not fully giving to God. The man said after he heard Paul speak that he had to confess his sins and give every part of his life to Jesus. That in itself was just great to see how God was working.

Jon Hill followed with giving a really good sermon on Light vs. Darkness and how even as Christians we can be tempted by darkness, but that we need to constantly look to Jesus as our light and that God's word is a lamp unto our feet. Jade then came with an offertory violin piece "When I Survey the Wondrous Cross". Before she played she explained the words of the song in which many of the people responded with "Amen", or "Alleluia".

The last part we conducted was leading the church in a few 'American' songs: "All in All", "Heart of Worship", "Open the Eyes of My Heart", and "Blessed be Your Name". The first three songs fit very well with the message and were not the original songs that we planned to share. So the Spirit led and we thankfully followed. The people here knew "Heart of Worship" and "Open the Eyes". So here we are, Slovaks and Americans, singing the same song but in two different languages, to a God who understands both. It was really a spirit-filled time with the people tonight.

Many of the congregation members at the end said how they were encouraged and challenged by what we shared. They gave us many thanks. I just wanted to say, don't thank us, thank the Lord for the way he orchestrated the evening. It truly was a God thing. May He receive all the glory for what was done in both the Slovaks' lives and ours. I hope you are encouraged by this story, as the team was encouraged tonight. Praise the Lord!

-Brant

Building Relationships

2009-03-04T14:32:00.000-08:00

As I write, our team has just gotten back home from a busy evening program with the Hlinne youth. This group of LCMs, like others in the past, continues to impress me with their love for children, passion for camp ministry, and skill in effectively building relationships with youth. I believe we are clearly communicating the importance of living a life that is submitted to the Lord Jesus Christ. Our host ministry partners continue to tell us encouraging stories of how our coming to Slovakia is helping to further the work that is already being done. I am thankful for this collaboration. Thanks everyone for your prayers! LCMs, keep up the good work!

-Ed Hooke

Serve the Lord

2009-03-04T14:24:00.000-08:00

Serve wholeheartedly, as if you were serving the Lord, not men. Ephesians 6:7

I have been watching the adults here in Hermanovce. They truly work for the Lord and not for man.

Pastor Peter is the pastor of the church in Hermanovce, oversees Camp Opal, then is in charge of 5 other church stations, in nearby towns, where he also preaches. Maya is newly married, lives in her parent's house, helps with programs and fundraising for Camp Opal, and leads kids club and youth group programs in Hlinne three times a week. They are both very busy but make worshiping God through service a priority.

The people here have been an inspiration to how I look at service. I see the love of God working through Pastor Peter & Maya, and many more. When I serve I use to look for earthly benefit. I asked, "What am I going to get out of this? What will I learn?" That doesn't matter to me anymore. If I love God like I claim to do, I will love my neighbor & serve as an act of worship. Slovaks know how to serve the Lord. Praise God for their faith.

-Heather Labine

Dobryden! (Good day!)

2009-03-02T14:49:00.000-08:00

Various people from our team will be writing for the upcoming blogs. Following are comments from Brant, Jade, and Liz...

From Brant...
Dobryden (good day)! We've been having a blast participating in ministry in Hermanovce and Hlinne. We spent Thursday with the Hermanovce youth having a snowball fight, building snow forts, playing ultimate frisbee, and participating in fun activities, through which we have been able to build relationships. It is awesome to see how big God is in that He is the God of all people and of all languages.

On Friday and Saturday we stayed busy with ministry in Hlinne working with Roma children. Many of us have shared a Bible lesson, a testimony, or played games with the children. We have been excited to see the kids, build relationships, and share Christ with them. They have been excited to see us. I must say when they sing it comes from deep within them. It is awesome to sing with them.

Sunday the team sat in on the church sevice in Hermanovce. Being the first Sunday of the month, other villages joined together for communion and a community lunch. It was a joy to be a part of the community of believers.

The team was asked to present a program after lunch to share ourselves with the church. We shared a children's song ("Praise Ye the Lord") and two common worship songs. "Betka" (Bethany) shared her testimony. Jade played a special music piece on the violin. I was able to share a message from God's Word. Heather, Amy, and Jade presented a short music drama, which has also been used for Timber-lee's winter retreats.

We have done a lot, but there is still a lot to do. Please pray for us to have renewed strength. Pray that our translators would communicate well. Pray that God (through us) would encourage the ministry workers here.

Dovidenia! (Goodbye for now!)

Brant

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From Jade...
As I was asked to share, my mind goes in a million directions. So please forgive my randomness! :)

1. Things observed about believers here:
**The Roma children have such sincere worship. They truly sing their hearts out and it is inspiring!
**The people are soo hospitable. They are all so giving and want to serve us while we are here.

2. Going beyond the language barrier – One thing I and many on our team were worried about was how we could be effective despite the language barrier. Here are some ways we have connected without words:
**Games
**Music, They love hearing our music and it is something we can both read!
**Snow, Let me tell you, guys are the same here… We went on a hike with some youth here and while we were out the guys sabotaged the girls with snowballs!

3. God “sightings” – (Where we have specifically seen God at work)
**Safety in traveling
**Getting through the airport. The weight limit of each bag is 50 lbs. We had one bag that was full of climbing equipment. There is no way that bag was 50lbs. or less. Anyways, the airline registration attendant checked our bags without weighing them!
**The week we were able to come fell on the youth’s spring break, giving us more opportunities.
**Resources being available - We led a church service this past Sunday and as we were planning we were seeking more to fill up the time. So I offered to play something on the violin, but unsure how that would work seeing I didn’t bring my instrument. Needless to say God provided a violin.

God has been good! Our team continues to grow together and God continues to put opportunities to minister in front of us. Please continue to pray for us and that we would be tools to give Him all the glory and honor He deserves!

In Christ, Jade

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From Liz...

-Habakkuk 1:5-
“Look among the nations and see;
wonder and be astounded,
For I am doing a work in your days,
that you would not believe if told.”

This verse stands true as we are coming alongside the ministry here in Slovakia. The Lord is doing a great work in the hearts & lives of the people here. Already they have been a blessing to my heart. I am very excited to have the opportunity to serve & be a blessing to them as we are here.

The church here is a symbol in the community as a place of joy, hope, and refuge. One can only find that in trusting in the Lord. The people of Slovakia have very little, yet they serve with their whole heart in all that they do. They make sacrifices each and every day, whether it’s food, money, or their time. Not long ago, this church began children & youth programs throughout the week for youth in a village called Hlinne where the Roma live.

Over the past week that we have been here, the children’s & youth programming has been our biggest form of ministry. The first day as we walked into the room full of children who spoke a completely different language, it amazed me how we were still able to communicate through our actions & expressions. It was such a beautiful thing, especially when we all gathered together to sing praises to our God. It was a room filled with children praising their Savior at the top of their lungs & with their whole heart.

This morning I read a verse in 2 Corinthians 3:18...
“And we all with an unveiled face, beholding the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another.”

Praise the Lord for the work He is doing in our lives & through us as we reach out & embrace these people with Christ’s love!

Liz

Hello from Slovakia!

2009-02-25T15:07:00.001-08:00

Hello from Hermanovce, Slovakia!

The team of nine (Ed, Brant, Jon H., Paul, Jade, Liz, Amy, Heather, and Bethany) has arrived safely! We had no trouble along the way, and all were able to get some rest at some point. This really helped with jet lag, as it seems the team is handling the 7-hour time change well.

Thank you for your prayer support! We certainly have seen the Lord at work during our trip. From the safe travel to the ministry that has occurred since our arrival, we have many shouts of praise to God for the work He is doing...

Tuesday morning started off with a tour of the church, Camp Opal, Hermanovce (the town where Camp Opal sits), and some nearby woods. It was awesome to see what Camp Opal looks like, as we have discussed the land, resources, and ministry for quite some time back at Timber-lee.

On Tuesday evening Brant had the opportunity to preach the message to one of the nearby churches. In addition, Amy shared her testimony with the people. It was great to jump right in and see the ministry that is already in place.

On Wednesday morning we drove to the nearby town of Hlenne. Two of our translators, Maya and Pierre, are actively involved in leading a children's ministry here. Liz gave a message on David and Goliath. While the kids were working on a craft after the message, each one of us was able to interact with the children. It was so much fun! We learned how to say "How do you say ... ?" in Slovak, and that got many of us engaged with the kids, even though the language barrier can be tough at times. Quicky funny story...So I was grabbing random objects around the room and asking the kids, "How do you say ...?" (whatever I was holding). Eventually we got to working on how to say the numbers 1 through 10 in Slovak. After several tries to say the numbers correctly, one girl finally said in very plain and clear English, "ONE, TWO THREE, FOUR, FIVE, SIX, SEVEN, EIGHT, NINE, TEN!" She made me smile.:) The children are very sweet. Afterwards, Jade led some games outside.

This afternoon we had a similar type of program with some young teens. Jon Hill shared a message about trust. We were very thaknful to have twice the number of kids show up than what we were expecting! Ed led some games outside for this session. It was neat to begin building relationships with the teens, as we will have the opportunity to meet with them again later in the trip.

Please keep us in your prayers! We are planning for more ministry with children in the coming days. Please pray that we would have the eyes to see how we can best connect with the kids. Tomorrow the church is hosting several neighborhood kids for the day. If all goes well, we will lead snow games in the afternoon, then go on a hike to a nearby rock face for some climbing. We brought along some climbing gear from Timber-lee and are hoping to put it to good use. If that doesn't work, we'll gather around a campfire to eat s'mores and share testimonies.

Thank you all again for your support! Things are going well, and we are praising God.

Outdoors for Christ!

Bethany (for the team)

Arrival!!!

2009-02-24T09:02:00.000-08:00

The group arrived at Hermanovce, Slovakia. I recieved an email from Brant this morning at 9:36am Slovakia time letting me know that they've made it safe and sound and they are planning to relax for most of the day. They will be visiting a church tonight at 6pm Slovakia time (which is 11am CST) to share a testimony and a message on the Parable of the Sower (Mark 4:1-20).

Please continue to check this blog as the team hopes to update with photos and stories of how the Lord's work is being carried out through their experiences in Slovakia.

Na zdravie

-Andy Hodges
LCM Assistant Director

Departure!!!

2009-02-21T19:21:00.000-08:00

Hello!

I will speak for a very excited group of 9 looking forward to departure to Slovakia in just a few hours! We are looking forward to partnering with the ministry already going on at Camp Opal in Slovakia and seeing what God has in store. Please keep us in your prayers!

The plan is to depart from Timber-lee tomorrow (Sunday) afternoon, drive to Chicago, fly to Germany, then fly to Hungary, then go on a 4-hour train ride to Slovakia. From the time we leave Timber-lee to the time we arrive at our final destination, if all goes as planned, we'll have travelled 30 hours. Please pray for a safe trip and for the team to recover quickly from jet lag so we can have an effective ministry. We'll return to Timber-lee on March 10th.

The plan for the missions trip is to run a children's program and a program for young adults. In addition, we'll be helping to lead a seminar for summer staff training, and we have the opportunity to share our faith through Bible lessons and giving our testimony to the church.

Please keep the team (Ed, Jade, Amy, Heather, Liz, Bethany, Paul, Brant, and Jon H.) in your prayers. We'll do our best to keep our blog readers informed as to how the trip is going. Thank you for your financial and prayer support!

Outdoors for Christ!

Bethany (for the team)

Camp Opal and LCM Fundraiser

2009-02-07T00:30:00.000-08:00

Hello from Timber-lee Christian Center!

It's hard to believe that in just two weeks from Sunday we'll be flying to Slovakia! The team is getting very excited about the upcoming trip. From travel plans to ministry plans, we have been hard at work preparing the details of the journey. The LCMs have been split into 4 teams to cover each area of ministry we will be encountering on our trip. The itinerary includes plans for running a children's camp, a youth camp, and helping with summer staff training. Please keep us in your prayers as we pull together the final details.

I thought our blog readers would appreciate reading a short excerpt from a Timber-lee Christian Center 2007 Newsletter. It will give you insight into "Camp Opal," where we'll be assisting in Hermanovce, Slovakia...

Question: Is Camp Opal already an established camp?
Answer: Just a few years ago the Christians in Slovakia were meeting in homes. When the Velvet Revolution ended Communism, the Christians set out to build their church, speciﬁcally the Hermanovce church, Cirkev Bratska. They acquired land at the end of the town, near open land. When they went to the architect for drawings, he said, “You have enough property to build a retreat place, as well.”

Question: So, Camp Opal was built?
Answer: Not exactly. The church built its masonry-constructed church with an adjoining parsonage, a full kitchen, wing of bedrooms, and bathroom. But, in their thinking the church members were also aware that larger surrounding countries were pulling their young people away to better jobs. The church knew it must have a program that attracted, evangelized, and trained youth in the Word; and it needed jobs to keep them in the country.

In addition to making plans for the trip itself, we are about to embark upon a fundraiser. The plan is to sell a well-known local company's pies and breads to members of the community. Please pray that people would understand our mission and be willing to support the team. Besides, who doesn't love a good apple pie?!:)

Thank you all again for your prayer and financial support. We would appreciate your continued prayers during the next month. We'll be flying out on February 22nd.

Outdoors for Christ!

Bethany for the Slovakia team

LCM Slovakia team

2008-11-24T21:31:00.000-08:00

Hello!

The LCM missions teams here at Timber-lee are in the midst of preparation for Romania and Slovakia. We are very excited to see what the Lord is going to do through our mission trips overseas. The following LCMs will be traveling to Slovakia:

Ed Hooke (Director of the LCM program), Amy Peterson, Bethany Peelman, Brant Hougas, Heather Labine, Jade Burley, Jon Hill, Liz Lauer, and Paul Huck.

While we are heavily involved right now in helping the Romania team prepare for their upcoming trip (leaving December 2nd), we are very excited about traveling to Slovakia in February. Please be in prayer for the trip and the plans to be made. Recently Ed met with Don Oleson, a man who is very connected with ministries in Slovakia. He has agreed to help us make contact with a few churches that run camps in Slovakia. In addition, he will assist us in linking up with several youth ministries.

Thank you so much for your prayer and financial support. We're so glad you partnered with us in camp ministry overseas!

For the Slovakia team,

Bethany

The Call

2008-07-29T07:48:00.000-07:00

Hey Guys,
Not too long ago Timber-lee's LCM Program was invited to join a camp in Slovakia to do ministry. Please pray for us as we begin to plan what that will look like.

Thanks,
Matt