It's been a while but don't worry everyone, I am still safe and sound in the Czech. The past couple of weeks have been very busy and nothing short of amazing for me. I have done more than I ever thought I could do and God has shown me how easy it is to be used simply by surrendering and being willing.
The weekdays have kept me busy with office work and attempting to update and organize Ron. He is actually a former pastor and has been preaching at their church plant here and I have found him to be no different than the crazy pack of pastors I work with at home. In my Czech "office" (i.e. the kitchen table) I have discovered there are many similarities to my WR office. For instance, here there are always random outbursts of songs (think Matt), loud obnoxious laughter (think Charlie), constant teasing and long discussions (think Billy), kids running around screaming (think Josh), wise advice being poured out (think Dennis), team meetings (think Bro. Jerry), silly jokes (think Randall), technical support (think Jim), and even praise team recruiting (think Brian). So, gaining the atmosphere that I'm used to takes nine pastors to accomplish at home but translate it into Czech and it is all rolled into one person: Ron Barnes. How's that for a pleasant work environment?
As crazy as it is though, it is so fulfilling and rewarding. Thought the seeds are not always visible and the plant doesn't always seem to grow, I know I am completing the tasks God set before me and helping assist a missionary who has an incredible passion and dedication to bring Christ to one of the darkest areas of the world.
When I am not working in the office, I have two students that I tutor one-on-one in English. Never did I think I would be teaching English and until now I did not truly realize how complicated our language is. These women that I work with amaze me though because of their eagerness and their desire to expand their languages. How often do we fuss for having to learn a second language in high school? Though the schools teach English, it is very watered down and difficult to walk away with a full vocabulary. Yet the students that we meet take extra time out of their lives to come and learn a language that is not even promoted in this country. We don't realize how we are limiting ourselves by thinking we only need to speak one language! My Czech words are few so there are often times when I want so much to be able to piece the words together into sentences so that I can communicate with these people. They realize the importance of communication and the need in their lives to know other languages. It has been a great learning experience for myself as well as for them.
When the weekend comes, it is almost as busy as the week. Last Friday, we had several couples from the church over to the Barnes house for a fellowship time. We made pizza and sat around talking with three extremely nice couples. This was a great opportunity for me to have more interaction the members of the church and learn the culture but I found it hard to find things to discuss with them. They are so friendly though and I soon broke out of my shell and began to converse a little more. After two couples with kids left to get them home, the younger couple stayed to play games. This turned out to be really exciting because I love to play games and I love to win even more. And I was called out for my competitiveness by the locals but I am not ashamed of my drive to be the best. Unfortunately, drive can only get you so far and in a game of "Spoons" speed is the real key to winning. Then they taught us games using only our hands and things got really silly after that. But I still had a great time and even better, the families had a great time getting to know each other more. It reminded me of a life group meeting....The part that stuck out in my mind most though was when I was talking with Ron and Jon about my church. They asked me how many people there were in my church and I said roughly 3,000 members. I then found out that in all of Czech Republic, there are roughly 3,000 Baptists. Let me say that again in case you missed that statistic. My home church, one church out of many churches in my city, has the same number of members as there are Christians in this entire country. This is indeed a dark country that needs our Lord and Saviour.
On Saturday, my roommate wanted to make sure I had every opportunity to explore the sights so she took me hiking up a mountain in a nearby town called Klet. It was really beautiful to see the area from high atop a mountain and though the hike was exhausting, it was a great time for us to get a break and spend some time together. Sunday I was a part of the Praise Team again and yes you read that right, I actually stood up in front of people and sang. Luckily there was no mic but I did play a pretty mean egg shaker. I think I could go on "American Idol" just with that. It was a neat experience though because I got to see how they worship from a better point of view. The culture here is so laid back that even in the church the worship is very soft, for lack of a better word. But the idea of the Praise Team is to get them more involved and help lead them into a spirit of true worship unto the Lord.
Like I said, every day is a new experience and I find myself stepping out on limbs left and right and though I may lose my balance or teeter on the edge, I never fall. God has held me the entire time and I look forward to every new day as a day that I can be used to encourage and plant a little bit of hope and light into a dark and dying country.