Some of you may want to know our testimonies and how we got to the point of heading for Croatia to be involved in a church planting ministry. We needed to give a five minute FaithStory at Wooddale Church for each of their six services on 12/30/06 and 12/31/06. We think it gives a quick look at where we have been.

 

Here is what we shared:

 

MICHAEL
My faith story is literally a colorful one. By the time I was four I knew I needed a savior. A Sunday School teacher showed me the “wordless book” which uses different colored pages to tell about our sin and need for forgiveness. I agreed that my heart was black with sin, and I wanted it to be pure white. I believed that the only way for my heart to be white was for Jesus to wash it with his red blood. With a repentant heart, alone in my family’s kitchen, I silently prayed this prayer, “God, Jesus, please come into my heart.”  I used no fancy words but I knew, then, that my heart was now white and I would be walking someday with God on streets of gold.

BRENDA
Popularity can be a dangerous thing! Although I had received Jesus’ gift of forgiveness as a young child, my desire to be popular led me to rebel. When I was 13 my family moved from a small town to the city, and I was determined to be popular no matter what the price. My desire for popularity caused me to begin turning my back on God. I turned away more and more through my high school years. It has been said that the worst kind of rebel is the kind who has heard the truth, responded to the truth, and then has turned away from it. That was me.

Shortly after my high school graduation a friend and I were down by the Mississippi River swinging on a rope swing. We would climb up a tree and then jump out, swinging over the water.  Everything changed when I swung and lost my grip.  I fell about 15 feet, landing on my head on rocks and packed dirt. I instantly went into a coma. I wasn’t expected to live. I stayed in a coma for three days and was semi-conscious for another three, but God used that as a time of spiritual transformation. When I awoke I was surrounded by Christians who had “prayed me through” and I awoke to belief again too. I realized fully then that I was in need of a savior.

MICHAEL
My adult life has been spent in the IT field. When opportunities would present themselves, I didn’t hesitate to share my faith. I even led a men’s Bible-study at work. Yet, I felt God wanted more from me. I felt he wanted me to give my life to full-time ministry, but I wasn’t sure how.

Three years ago, God set our hearts on Croatia. Our home church, Berean Baptist Church, in Burnsville, spent time focusing on God’s purpose for our lives, and during this time I sensed God calling me to pursue full-time ministry. I thought maybe in about twenty years, when we were in our fifties and our children were grown, I would change careers and go into vocational ministry. I wasn’t saying “no” to God, but I was saying “wait.” However, by the end of this focused time God made it clear that my commitment to serving Him full-time was to be now. Brenda and I began to explore what that might mean, we met Steve and Jenny Meeker, missionaries to Croatia, and soon sensed a call for us to also serve in Croatia.

BRENDA
Croatia is a country with a long history of calling itself Christian. Unfortunately, as Croatian pastor Mihal Krecko puts it, “Most Croatians have been baptized. They just haven’t believed.” God has placed it on our hearts to teach the Croatian people about true faith in Jesus Christ.

MICHAEL
Since starting this process, I have learned that I need to let go of my own plans and desires and embrace God’s plans. God sees things I don’t, so even when I believe that a plan is from Him, I need to hold it with open hands. For example, God originally used a camping ministry in Croatia to open my heart to missions. Then in January 2006, I was asked if I would switch from the camping ministry to leading a new church planting team instead. I was unexpectedly excited. God has taken me from a point of saying “yes” to the ministry that got me excited to saying “yes” to whatever His plan is for us.

Brenda

In the beginning of our journey I thought that God’s faithfulness was about how He treated me and how He encouraged me by answering my prayers. I am now learning that His faithfulness is about the fulfillment of His plan. God is always faithful to His own plan. He knows all of the details and I don’t need to. I just need to step forward, trusting that He will give me something to stand on.  Please pray for us in 2007 as we continue to learn more of His plan and begin serving Him in Croatia.