“OPENING NIGHT,” with some amazing behind the scenes details!

Saturday, May 16, 2009

















Despite a flat tire on one of our vans, we made it to our very first program last night (Friday) in Janikowo, a small town about a half hour’s drive southeast of the camp where we are staying.















It was a personal blessing for me to see the church building there. I’ve seen photos of it in prayer letters from my dad’s ministry, Poland Evangelical Mission (PEM). He and his group have been raising funds to support works in Poland for many years, and one of his pet projects in recent years has been the re-modeling of this building so it could be used for a gospel-preaching church.

The building was a picturesque Lutheran church, dating from the post World War II days when many Germans had settled into this region of western Poland. However, that congregation closed down, and the building ended up in the hands of the Communist government and was used for several years as a fertilizer warehouse. In recent years it became available, and, with the help of PEM funds, was purchased and remodeled over a long period of time to where it is today. And VISION XVII had the privilege of presenting their first ministry there!

But Janikowo now represents even more than that!

As you know, we are working with Katie Yates, who was on VISION teams X and XI that visited Poland in 2002 and 2003, and has now been serving in Poland full time for the past two years plus. After the program, a young man came up to Katie and wondered if she remembered him. When he gave his name, Sebastian, it all came back to her.

Seven years ago, after one of VISION X’s concerts near Janikowo, Katie had a brief conversation with Sebastian and shared the concept of Jesus being the bridge between man and God. She had kept his name on her prayer list for a couple of years, praying for his salvation.















Caleb helps Sebastian tell his story, as Katie listens in.

Last night he brought that conversation back to her mind and told how God had used the “bridge” image to work in his heart. About a year and a half after that visit, Sebastian got back involved with the local church and accepted Christ as his Savior. He is now nearing completion of his seminary training in the city of Bydgoszcz (where VISION will be on Sunday), and will become a pastor!

Katie is so thrilled, because this is the first time she’s learned of a person to whom she witnessed becoming a believer, and beyond that, a pastor! God planted a ten-minute conversation as a seed in Sebastian’s heart, which is springing into a tree, and potentially into a forest here in the heart of Poland.

The story is not over! It turns out that Katie has been working in her church in Szczecinek with a young couple, and she learned last night that the husband, Rafał, is Sebastian’s brother, whom Sebastian led to the Lord a few years back. She had never known the connection until last night! Her witness to Sebastian came full circle, resulting in a strong family growing through the ministry of her own church in a city two hours away from Janikowo!

Katie told all this to us, with tears in her eyes, describing the complex tapestry God weaves in our lives, that seems crazy to us because we see only the underside, with threads running in apparently random directions. Once in a while, however, God gives us a glimpse of the top side and we see the beautiful pattern He was making all the while.

What an encouragement to give a word of witness whenever we have the chance, not knowing what God will do with it to bring many to Himself!

Now it’s Saturday, not nearly as pretty a day as yesterday, cloudy and cool with a few sprinkles, but our hearts are full as we continue to rehearse some of our newer Polish lyrics in preparation for our second program tonight. We’ll need every song on our list, because tonight’s church doesn’t wish to have drama presentations.

At this moment, my typing is being accompanied by a very energetic and dedicated team singing with full voices and hearts in a language that is very challenging. I’m even having to blink back the tears, so blessed I am by this team. They know how much their efforts to sing in Polish connect with the people of this beautiful but spiritually dark land, and they have made themselves available for God’s use!

All are in good health, and we’re getting over our jet lag gradually. Unexpected moments of sleepiness and wakefulness at inappropriate times are occurring less often – or at least no more often than normal in a student’s or professor’s life!

As always, I remind you pray for our trip, in all aspects. May there be more stories like Katie’s, even years from now, about what the Lord did through this VISION team!



Oh, rehearsal must be over!