Filling in the Details for Friday, May 22

After our adventure-filled time in the northwestern part of Poland, we left Kamien Pomorski early Friday morning – 6:30 am – having hurriedly prepared breakfast to go: sandwiches of meat, cheese, tomatoes, and cucumbers. We needed to get to a school four hours away in time for their assembly.

The school was in a small town named Łubowo (woo-BOH-voh) and we soon found ourselves presenting for a group of some 200 elementary and junior high age students.


They listened politely to our songs, but they especially focused on our dramas, as is typically the case. With little or no restriction we were able to share the good news of the gospel in testimony, song, and drama. After the program the team was mobbed by students of all ages, seeking autographs. If paper wasn’t available, the students insisted we sign directly on their arms.



















We then traveled another hour and a half to a small but picturesque town named Borne Sulinowo. We didn’t exactly know what was planned, but we entered a large, official-looking building and were ushered to a room where coffee, tea, and cookies were served. A gentleman gave us a PowerPoint presentation on the history of the area, particularly its role in both the Nazi and Communist eras. The building we were in had been built as a hospital for German troops during World War II, and now serves several capacities, including a care facility for elderly people.



After “dessert,” the people operating the facility brought in a wonderful lunch, followed by more. As we learned, our afternoon concert was to be held in this same building, in a nicely designed ball or party room.

The room filled up, not only with the seniors who are cared for there, but several of their family members who were visiting them, and a good many local evangelical church members who came to support us. We were privileged to lift their hearts and spirits along with our own!


After the late afternoon program, the VISION boys were invited to play some basketball with the local guys. Caleb and Colin took up the challenge, and would join us later. The rest of us drove 20 minutes to our next destination, the beautiful lakeside city of Szczecinek.

We were brought to a large house which serves as the local Baptist church, where Katie Yates has been serving for the past several months. It sits in a row of houses right along the lake shore, with a nice tree-lined bike and walking trail running behind them. Many team members took advantage of the beautiful evening to stroll along this trail before coming in to make a late dinner in the little church kitchen out of the groceries that our hosts, missionaries Craig and Carolyn Rucin, brought to us.



After a long travel day with two concerts, we were well ready for a good night’s sleep and a morning to sleep in on Saturday!

VISION's location for Google Earth fans

53°42'36.26"N
16°41'57.70"E

Szczecinek, Poland
The church building where we're lodging is on the lakefront about 1/2 mile W of the center of town.

Fire and Water

Thursday, May 21















We began this day with a visit to the new and modern Kamień Pomorski fire station. Before leaving San Diego, I had been contacted by Daniel Kowaliński, who serves as pastor to the local evangelical church, but whose main profession is that of assistant chief of firefighters.

In that message, Daniel told me of a tragic fire that occurred last month, just after Easter, in which 23 people died, including 13 children. The firefighters were able to save 11 people. He was the one in command that night, and he and all his crew were deeply affected by this experience.

He asked if we could bring any sort of gift from our community and/or fire department that would be an encouragement to the fire crew, as well as be a positive testimony for the church in the community. In response, I took several medallion-style San Diego souvenir key rings, and prepared a framed certificate expressing appreciation to their Fire Department for their heroism in saving the 11 lives. I included a graphic of the El Cajon Fire Department's shoulder patch on the certificate, as well as the logo of San Diego Christian College.


At the station, we were ushered into the main fire chief's office, along with Daniel and several of the crew that had been on duty that night. We offered a few words of thanks, and mentioned the fact that three of our team members, Lindsey Davies, Colin McDonald, and myself had lost our homes in the Cedar Fire of 2003, and we therefore had a sense of the devastation that fire can cause. We then presented the chief and crew with the certificate and key rings. The chief in turn presented us with a memento with the fire station etched in three dimensions within a glass-like cube. (I was told by Daniel that his chief put the certificate on the wall immediately after we left.)










Daniel then gave us a tour of the very sophisticated and modern station, and we posed for photos with some of his crew. He was especially taken by the story of the families who lost homes in 2003, and had a special photo taken of the three of us.















Daniel then took us to the scene of the devastating fire. It was a three- story apartment building that was being used by the city as a shelter for homeless and disadvantaged people. Apparently, during the cold night, someone brought a charcoal grill indoors to provide heat and used a flammable liquid to get the fire going. It got out of hand and the tragic results ensued, leading to nationwide news coverage.

The problem now is that some are questioning the response of the fire department and even the state of things in the building prior to the fire, as maintained by the city. There are investigations going on that have put a great deal of pressure on both Daniel's department and the mayor's office (the mayor with whom we prayed the day before). We join with Daniel in prayer for the outcome of all of this, and especially that there be no hindrance to the gospel in this city.

Leaving Kamień Pomorski, we headed the rest of the way to the north coast of Poland, on the Baltic Sea, to the "beach town" of Międzyzdroje. Several of the team got their feet into the frigid waters, and spent some time walking down the beach, searching for the elusive amber that often washes up on this shore.

When we came to a pier stretching out over the water, we decided this was a good place to do our famous tradition, spelling V-I-S-I-O-N with our own bodies in some interesting location! Why not the Baltic Sea coast?






























After a late lunch in a seafood restaurant near the beach, we drove on to Świnouijście, the absolute last outpost in the northwest corner of Poland. Although it is not on an island, the only approach is by ferry. It is isolated by the Swina River and by the German border, yet it is a rather large and bustling city with two good evangelical churches that met together to hear our concert that evening.

Daniel presents his testimony in the Świnouijście church.

Swine Flu (SF) Affects VISION Team…

Don't panic! I should have said "Swine flu hysteria (SFH) affects VISION Team.

WEDNESDAY, MAY 20. We were scheduled to do two public school programs today, but they got canceled. It seems that one of the parents looked us up online and found that we were from Southern California, which meant we had to be carrying the BUG! Apparently this person spread the SFH virus and convinced school officials to cancel our programs.

We're very disappointed, of course, but our prayer last night and again this morning in group devos was that God would reveal His real plan for us today.

One opportunity that was part of that plan was a visit to the Ratusz (Town Hall) here in Kamień Pomorski, where we had the privilege of meeting with the mayor of the city, Mr. Andrzej Jędrzejewski.
















This very gracious man met with us in a beautiful conference room, having made arrangements for cookies and drinks to be served. We couldn't help but notice a very nice grand piano in the corner, and hoped for a chance to use it for a song.

The mayor gave us some insight on the history of the city, which, as we learned, earns much of its income these days from tourism, being right near the Baltic Sea. He mentioned that, while he is Catholic, he likes to maintain an open mind to various belief systems. He also told us that he and his family pray daily.

After we gave him a little information about our team and our college, I asked him if he had any questions for us. Did he ask about our school? No. About our families? No. The first thing out of his mouth was "How you take care of your spiritual life?"

Luke jumped in with both feet, giving a clear testimony of his relationship with God through a decision of personal faith in Jesus Christ and how he continues to walk with Him though the study of the Bible. I believe God gave Luke just the right balance between personal testimony and challenging witness, and we pray that this thoughtful gentleman will continue to ponder on the words he heard in response to his question.

The mayor and other officials are going through some difficult times, due to a building fire that took place on the day after Easter, which has resulted in a series of investigations into how things were handled. Somehow the accusations involved have made it all the way to the top of city government and may have even placed the mayor's position in jeopardy.

















When we were given opportunity to sing for him, Pastor Jan suggested we sing "Jesus, Bring the Rain," which speaks of the way God brings challenging things into our lives, not to punish us, but to draw us to Himself. Enough of the song is in Polish so that the mayor could follow its meaning. Jan then filled us in briefly about the investigations taking place and asked the mayor if we could pray for him about these matters. We formed a circle and joined hands, including the mayor himself, as Jan lifted a wonderful prayer to Lord. The mayor was clearly moved by both the music and the prayer, and didn't mind saying so. He thanked us profusely, warmly shaking each hand as we departed. May God guide him and draw him close through the challenging days ahead.

Having met with the most important political figure in the city, we went on to an appointment with the most important religious figure - the priest of the local cathedral. He was also amazingly kind-hearted and warm to us. He gave us a tour of the church, the garden (cloisters), and a little museum they have which contains artifacts that have been discovered in various modern excavations, representing the centuries of local history.

We had been originally scheduled to present our concert in the Cathedral at 6pm that evening, but as part of the fallout from the cancellation of the school concerts due to SFH, the priest had felt compelled to cancel that concert as well. To replace that concert, Pastor Daniel, whom I mentioned in the previous blog posting, planned a program in the local house church instead.

During our visit with him, however, we sang a couple of songs, and he seemed to enjoy them thoroughly. To partially make up for the cancellation of our concert, he invited us to sing two songs at the beginning of their 5pm "first communion" mass, after which we could slip out and get back to the local evangelical church concert we now had at 6. We took advantage of that invitation and gave them our renditions of two songs that present the gospel ("How Deep the Father's Love for Us") and our future hope ("Hallelujah, We Will Sing").









VISION "opens" for the cathedral mass. The little heads in the foreground are the children about to receive their "first communion." We slipped out after singing and then presented a full concert in the local evangelical church.




The evangelical pastor in the area, Daniel Kowaliński, was very pleased with the bridges VISION built in the community, both with the mayor and the priest. Christian evangelical groups are often considered "cults" in Poland, and either or both government and the traditional church can be quite oppressive towards them.


Though a tremendous contrast with the cathedral above in terms of architecture and ceremony, this "house church" is where things are happening spiritually in Kamień.

Updated Post from Tuesday, May 19

Tuesday, May 19

We got an early start today, meeting at the church at 7:30 and departing promptly at 8:04. We had a four-hour drive, needing to be in the town of Nowogard in northwestern Poland by noon. Katie drove of the yellow van named “Bumblebee,” and Caleb was in charge of “Pomidor” (Polish for “tomato,” which tells you what color that van is), got us there even a few minutes early! (Pastor Jan normally drives the red van, but he was at home taking care of personal matters.)

These highly qualified drivers got us to Nowogard in plenty of time to meet Pastor Cesary and his wife Andrea, who have been serving faithfully in this town for many years. (VISION X members will remember Cesary, the large and happy man who joined us at various times during the 2002 trip.)

After a quick lunch at one public school, we drove several blocks to another, where we found ourselves setting up hastily in front of some 200 very excited junior high age students. Though restless, as one might expect in a large crowded classroom near the end of the school day, the students responded very well to the team’s message. As requested, we focused attention on the decisions of life that can lead to the traps of alcohol, drugs, and other destructive behaviors, but we were not hindered from clearly presenting Christ as the real answer to the problems of life.

Though he now teaches at another school, Pastor Cesary has had an ongoing ministry in this school, where he used to teach. He was very excited about the additional impetus provided by our team’s visit.

Tuesday evening we presented a program for his church. Though the audience was not large on a weeknight at 5pm, Cesary was excited to report that about half of them were first-time visitors, including a teacher who had seen the school concert earlier and brought her daughter to hear us in the evening. SEEDS BEING PLANTED!

One other blessing! Before the concert, Cesary pointed out that we would not need to set up our sound equipment for the program. Why? Because the church was all set up with the system that VISION X left for use in Poland back in 2002! (We get a new portable system every year and leave it behind, for the ongoing ministry in whatever country we visit. The one we have with us now is our 11^th!) It was fantastic to see part of VISION X’s legacy still serving in Polish ministry!

After the evening’s program, VISION drove another hour or so north, almost to the Baltic Sea, to the town of Kamień Pomorskie. There we were welcomed by Pastor Daniel Kowaliński and his wife Edyta at a large home that has been converted into a church building. The story of the house and how it was provided for the church is another miracle in a long string of them, showing us how mightily God is working in Poland.

There is also a story with this town, about which we will tell more tomorrow!

Before closing this day’s summary, let me add: I’m hoping that, as they have online time, the team members will add their own perspectives to these various events. I know you’ll enjoy hearing about these things from their unique perspectives. (ATTENTION: If you’re a VISION XVII member reading this during or after the trip, STOP right now and write something!)

Pray for: good health (some throats are getting dry and sore), unity among the team (very strong, but always subject to the enemy’s attacks), and above all, effective ministry in the hearts of Polish people, both believers and "un-"!

VISION on the road in Poland

Saturday, May 16 (continued)

Saturday afternoon VISION left Camp Eden for a two-hour drive to Włocławek (pronounced vwohts-WAH-vek.), where we presented our second program in a very friendly and encouraging church that had recently celebrated its 40^th anniversary. This means that it was founded during the Communist domination of Poland. A man who spoke English quite well told me that in those days, an evangelical church could be started and registered with the government if they could muster 15 people who wanted to join together. They had to put up with nosy officials checking into their activities, but otherwise were not particularly persecuted. In general, I’m learning that Poland was one of the less oppressed nations in the Soviet bloc, and I’m thankful God’s work was less hindered, for there was and still is enough challenge in the ministry here without that extreme burden.

The pastor preferred to have music only, no drama, so we got a chance to make sure all nine of our songs were prepared. This includes five that are half in Polish and half in English, and therein lay the challenge. I’m pleased to report that this team has been extremely diligent in working, both alone and together, to master the Polish pronunciation, and they get great reviews from Poles who seem quite amazed to hear songs in their language.

After a too-leisurely, but delicious, dinner in the church basement and the two-hour road trip back to Camp Eden, we had a very short night before it was time for another road trip to our Sunday morning concert.

Sunday, May 17

The city of Bydgoszcz (BID-goh-sh-ch) was the scene for our Sunday morning program in Pastor Jan’s home church. Not only is this church a tremendous lighthouse in this part of Poland, it also houses a seminary, with some thirty pastors and leaders in training to fan out all over Poland. (Among these is Sebastian, the young man who was influenced toward salvation by Katie’s conversation with him during VISION’s 2002 trip, as reported in an early blog posting.)

Incidentally Caleb, Katie, and I got a chance to renew acquaintance with Wojciech Muranty, who was one of our main hosts in the 2002 and 2003 trips. Our VISION X and XI members will remember him well! It was great to see him, his wife, and his much more grown up son again.

After lunch, back at the camp, we prepared to head to Gniezno for a Sunday late afternoon concert, only to find that it had fallen through. So, we decided to go anyway and enjoy the picturesque town and get a little much-needed exercise walking its streets and a lakefront park. Then we undid all our exercise at a sidewalk pizza/Mediterranean restaurant called “Sphinx.”

Monday, May 18

Our last morning at Camp Eden found some of us (a) furiously squeezing all our stuff into our bags that suddenly seemed smaller, and others of us (b) furiously squeezing in a bit of last-minute kayaking on the camp lake, and then doing (a) even more furiously (trying not to make their leaders too furious!).

We had the most amazing kielbasa (yes, REAL Polish sausage) as our last meal at camp, then hit the road for three hours, heading north to the town of Chojnice (Hoy-NEET-seh).

We were to have a program at a “correctional facility” but didn’t really know what that involved. It turned out to be an amazing experience at an enclosed school-like building complex that houses boys between about 14 and 20 or so that have been in trouble with the law and are confined to this setting for some period of time. They receive education and training from what appears to be a very competent and caring staff. It is not a Christian institution, but the local pastor has built a relationship with the administrators and made arrangements for our visit.

The boys were very well-behaved (more so than usual, according to the director as he thanked us afterwards).

After the program several quite intense discussions ensued, with VISION members, Colin in particular, explaining our gospel-related dramas, with the help of an interpreter.

I hope to learn and report more about those conversations, but at that point we were whisked away to our evening concert, which was announced in the local newspapers and radio stations and held at a secular Szkoła Muzyczna (Music School) here in Chojnice.

Some of the audience were members of the local church, who also brought unsaved friends. Quite a few attenders were students at the music school, which appears to be a university-level institution with a wonderful recital hall and a beautiful concert grand piano. This mix of people seemed to receive us well. We are now separated out to various church members’ homes, with some of us staying at the church, which has suitable facilities for that.

That’s the latest, up to the minute (1:30 am Tuesday morning here)! The next update will come the next time we have internet access! Keep praying for the team and their effective ministry here in Poland!

“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!