No Rest for the Weary

Wow! Last week was long and rough! Last Saturday, we got back from Bible Camp, unpacked, ate, and went straight to bed. We were all so tired after a hard week. Sunday morning, we woke up,went to church, and followed Kris and Mariola around until we got back to the house really late at night. Thus started another hard week. 

English Camp started at 10, but we would get there around 9:00 for morning pep meetings. Those meetings were so helpful because our leader, Teah, would remind us everyday why we were there. On multiple days, I would teach my craft lesson and then back off and think I'm done. Teah would constantly remind us that we are there to share the Gospel with them through enthusiasm and presence. She would constantly remind us of Romans 12:10 to constantly "outdo one another in showing honor." I was so thankful that she would point us right back to showing glory to God. She was such an encouragement to me. We had one little girl get saved at English camp. After the English Bible Lesson, she stayed behind with a couple of her friends to ask Mariola questions. One of her friends got saved last year at English camp and was greatly encouraging her to get saved. Her other friend grew up Roman Catholic and was told not to participate in the Bible portions; however, she also was asking a lot of questions. This little girl did not ask Jesus into her heart, though, because she was scared of what her parents would say. Please pray for that God would continue working in her heart. She sees her friends often, and they encourage her to join them, so she will still be hearing the Gospel quite a bit. 

Five Day Klub was probably the hardest part of the day. On Monday, I was so stinkin' tired after a long week at camp. However, I did my best to give my all at the Klub. I was very discouraged though when the leader of the Klub later told me that I needed to have more enthusiasm. I could not believe what I was hearing because I literally gave my all at the Klub and then I was told that my all was not good enough. Later, Mariola and I were talking and she reminded me that we were there to share the Gospel in any way we could whether or not we could speak the language. She reminded me that most of these kids had never been told that they were love, and even just a smile from me could mean the world to them. I was so encouraged after to keep giving my best in order that I might show Christ's love to these kids. Later in the week, the speaker was telling the kids that Jesus loved each of them, and he would point to each one and tell each one this. It made my heart melt to see their little faces perk up at those words. 

Although there were moments were I was greatly discouraged, I was reminded every day why I wanted to come back to Poland. To show Christ's love to the children here who may have never been loved before. Thank you so much for all your prayers this past week. 

God Works in Amazing Ways

Last week was a long tough week. However, I loved it so much. It was so amazing seeing God work. I asked all of you to pray that God would prepare the hearts of the people we would be ministering to, and it was so awesome seeing the fruit of those prayers. 

The last time I was in Poland, I picked out a couple of campers that I wanted to pray especially hard for. As I was getting ready to come back, I asked God that He would show me at least two campers to specifically pray for. One was a girl in my cabin. I worked with teenage girls, and the second night that we were together we shared testimonies. The counselor asked that the translator could come to our cabin that night so that I could hear the girls' testimonies, and I could share mine. Pretty much all of my girls confessed that they knew Jesus as their Savior except for one. She told us that she grew up in a Christian home, and she somewhat believes what the Bible says, but she didn't want to go any deeper. Another night, we were talking about spending time in God's Word, and how we each personally did it. She told everyone that she didn't bother reading God's Word because she already hears it in church. However, she is confused because they jump around a lot, but again she didn't want to go any deeper. Every time she said something like that, my heart broke a little. She spoke very good English so we were able to talk a lot. She would tell me over and over that she did not enjoy being at camp and playing games all the time. I prayed specifically that she would build a relationship with someone that was her age to help being at camp easier for her and help soften her heart to the Gospel that she would hear every night. I was so thankful that towards the end of the week, she seemed to be doing better and getting to know the girls in her cabin a little more. I am still praying that God would continue working in her heart. 

The other camper that I felt compelled to pray specifically for was another teenager. He had been to the Kolt's camp about a year before the last time I was in Poland. His mom was not really in the picture, and his sister was taking care of him. He loved being at that camp so much that he asked to stay for a second week because he knew things at home were rough. However, after that camp, the Kolts didn't hear from him again until this past December. He told them that he was currently in an institution and asked if he could stay with them for his summer vacation. He really wanted to go back to camp. So, the Kolt's took him in for the summer. As I watching him, I knew God was doing a work in his heart, so I was praying fervently for him. You could see he was interested in all the messages. He became friends with one of the younger counsellors, and the counselor would tell how he was asking really good questions every night. One of my friends told me that he would go for a run every morning and see a bunch of counsellors out reading their Bibles. The next morning, she said that he went running again with his Bible in hand. It was so obvious God was working in Him. Thursday morning, we workers were meeting like we did every morning. Kris asked if anyone had anything to share about the campers, and the one counselor shared that the night before, he accepted Christ into his heart. It was such a huge answer to prayer! I was so excited for him. The really cool part is that God is still working in his heart, only now, He's using him as a tool. This week we are working English camp and 5 Day Club, and he is just so eager to share the Gospel with everyone he meets. We are in the same group together at 5 Day Club and I watch him walk up to a child sitting by themselves at the park and talking with them. Last night, he was telling Mariola and Kris about sharing the Gospel with this one child. The child told him that he was smarter than the priest and he just smiled and told the child that he only got saved just last week. I just can't say enough how exciting this is to see. 

Please continue praying as we finish this week of English Camp and 5 Day Club. Our English camp slowly grows everyday. Pray that We would be able to share God's love with these children this week. 

Here it comes!

Excitement and nervousness are bubbling up as we get ready to head off to camp for the week. Four of us girls arrived on Tuesday, and a team from the Kolts' church in Wisconsin arrived Wednesday. We spent the last couple of days touring the city and bonding with new people. This morning we are getting ready to head off for camp. The camp is a combined junior and teen camp, and we are very excited to get to know the campers and workers. 

Here are a couple of things you can be praying for us this week:

1) The Campers -- there will be a huge launguage barrier between most of us and the campers. However, there are still ways we can minister to them. Please pray that we will find ways to touch the campers' hearts. 

2) The Workers -- there will be other Polish workers there as well. Please pray that we would be able to find unity with each other and find ways to encourage each other. Most of the workers speak English, and we want to look for ways that we can encourage the workers as they counsel the campers this week. We want to be an example of a unified body of Christ working together to further the Gospel. 

Thank you so much for all those who have been praying for us so for. We greatly appreciate them. I am not sure about wifi access at the camp, but We will do our best to keep all of you updated. 

Love, 

Elizabeth and Tory