Poland Update

I'm back!

Our week in Poland was a very worthwhile time. I feel like I got a lot of exposure to ministry and the daily lives of missionaries.

Some highlights:

• The student festival. This is a secular event that is for Polish college students and is primarily about the bountiful beer taps and live concerts, however they also have booths set up of different college groups, etc. Sienna church had two booths (the only Christian ones!):

1. An AIDS experience booth, which is an interactive story about a college student who finds out he has AIDS. This then creates a platform to talk to the participants about AIDS and also share with them about Jesus.
2. A very creative evangelistic booth: they had really cool water bottles they gave away that had the Gospel message on the label; they had a table set up with cool stencils and paint and painted things on peoples shirts and sweatshirts; they had signs that people wore that said, "I was once dry like a raisin; do you thirst like I did?" and the young adults from the church walked around and genuinely started conversations with people and established relationships.

I was so impressed by the young adults at the booth! They were super creative, cool, had awesome graphics and so genuinely shared about Jesus to everyone they saw. It was awesome to see evangelism done in a relevant way that was full of life. I got to absorb all this happen, as I was mostly hindered by the language barrier, but I did get to have some conversations in English and helped out with the AIDS experience booth.

Below is a video clip of one such conversation with a Polish guy named Bart. I think you will find it as amusing as I did. :)

• Another highlight was getting to talk with Robert and Ulla and see their lives in action on a day to day basis. I learned a lot about setting boundaries, communicating clearly, being hospitable, and loving deeply.

All in all it was a great trip in so many ways!

Now I'm back in Vienna! We're getting back into the swing of things, celebrating birthdays (like my wonderful boyfriend Jeff's!) and joining Austria in its many BBQ's and summer festivities!

I'd appreciate your prayers that God really directs my heart and brings confirmation and peace as to the ministry He wants me to join in these coming weeks and months.

Love to all!