A cathedral within walking distance from my new friend's apartment.

I knew that our schedule was jam-packed, but I also knew that I could slip away for a brief time without causing a problem. And so I agreed. When Chris phoned the woman later that evening to ask if she’d like to see me, she immediately said yes. And that’s how the special encounter came about.

Chris, my husband, and I arrived at the woman’s apartment at 10 AM. She was waiting outside her door. She greeted us with a warm smile and the traditional kiss on each cheek and then welcomed us into her living room.

We chatted about her family and her education, and we listened to her stories about life under Communist rule. Then she got up and went into her kitchen to prepare tea. “May I help you?” I asked. “You can come with me,” she said.

Women around the world share many similarities. One of them is the ability to make a soul connection in a short time. That’s exactly what happened once we were alone. She told me about experiencing a traumatic situation that had resulted in a huge amount of stress (I’m sorry I can’t give more details, but I must respect confidentiality). Everything climaxed during a 10-day period. It was during that time that Chris, who’d been a friend and business associate for many years, learned of her circumstances and gave her the book. “It came at just the right time,” said my hostess, and she gave me a warm embrace. “Thank you, thank you.”

I returned her hug, dumbstruck at how God orchestrated details leading to this moment…

• Moving from Fear to Freedom was published and released in August, 2007.
• Two weeks later, we launched International Messengers Canada. Multiple ministry trips to Eastern Europe followed.
• On one such trip, in late January 2009, I spoke at a women’s event in Slovakia and sold a few copies of Moving from Fear to Freedom: A Woman’s Guide to Peace in Every Situation.
• Ten months later, my new friend experienced tragedy, and Chris gave her a copy of my book. (Funny thing is that he doesn’t remember how he got it. I suspect that someone who bought it in January passed it along. But why would she have given it to him, an unmarried man?)
• Last week, my hubby and I brought a volunteer team to Slovakia. Our team was short-handed, so a week prior to our arrival, Chris volunteered to join the group. On Friday evening, I met Chris for the first time. He recognized my name and knew that I’d authored the book that he passed along in 2009.
• Chris asked me if I had time to meet this gal if she was willing and able. Both of our schedules allowed this.

I look at these details and marvel at how God has demonstrated His love for my new friend. But there’s more. When I told her about the new Bible study and DVD to accompany the book, her eyes lit up. She smiled and said, “Ohhhh…I would like that.”

It just so happens that one of our career staff who ministers in this city is in Canada now. I plan to phone her when I return to home, and to ask her to deliver a DVD and study guide to this gal upon her return to Slovakia in September. I’ll also send a copy of the original book because, when I asked the lady if she still had her copy, she said, “No. I gave it to a friend. It’s making the rounds.” Praise God!

This encounter was one I hadn’t anticipated when I arrived in Kosice. Authors love golden moments such as this, when they learn about how their books are impacting people’s lives in ways that only God could orchestrate. What a thrill! Now I’ll pray that He’ll use the Bible study and DVD to do far more in the lives of women here.

On Wednesday, I’ll tell you about a dream that’s come to mind since worshiping in a Roma (“gypsy”) congregation.

We stayed two nights in a little house down the street from our IM Canada career staff, Brad and Karla Thiessen. I was able to wash our clothes in a washing machine – yahoo! What a treat to do it this way as opposed to in a bathroom sink or on the floor of a hotel shower. I hung the laundry on a makeshift line and it dried in less than an hour, denims included.

I was glad to have several hours to review my manuscript for the study guide that will accompany Moving From Fear to Freedom. The editor has done her job on it and sent some suggested revisions. She also asked me to check several references – that’s a bit tricky to do because I didn’t bring the Bible from which I quoted. Hmmm…I’ll need to find a fix for that so the production process can continue while I’m away.

We had a delightful surprise here. Our IM Canada short-termers were invited to a “garden party” hosted by a woman named Irena and her husband. Irena was my translator when we brought a team to a Slovakian evangelistic family camp in 2008. She and I really hit it off then and have been friends every since. We didn’t know about the party until we arrived here, and she didn’t know that Gene and I were in Kosice until she opened her door and saw us standing on her doorstep. What fun to see the look on her face and to exchange kisses on each other’s cheeks! We even had a few moments to share from our hearts and to pray for concerns. “Thank You, God, for the gift of girlfriends worldwide who share my love for You.”

It was also a delight to meet our IM Canadian short-termers within hours of their arrival here. They didn’t know we’d be here so it was fun to surprise them and have dinner together. I felt sorry for them – they were heavy into jet lag. One of our women sprained her ankle in the afternoon so Irena set her on a futon with her foot elevated and then found ice chips to place on the swelling. Poor thing! She’s wondering what lesson God plans to teach her through this unfortunate accident. She needs our prayers, as does everyone on the team as they head to the camp venue and prepare for a week of sharing God’s love with campers of all ages.

IM short-termers and interns at Irena's garden party

My friend Irena (right)

Here’s what the Scripture says about this scene: “Some of his disciples began talking about the beautiful stonework of the Temple and the memorial decorations on the walls. But Jesus said, ‘The time is coming when all these things will be so completely demolished that not one stone will be left on top of another’” (Luke 21:5,6).

As I travel through Eastern Europe, I see massive stone cathedrals. They’re incredible works of art, designed and built by people with creative imaginations and skill beyond my comprehension. These structures are magnificent to behold. Some are hundreds of years old. They’ve endured centuries of sun, rain, wind, and snow. Some have even suffered bombings and undergone reconstruction as a result. They’ve done well, but their days of glory are coming to an end. When Jesus returns, all manmade monuments will crumble and fall.

Cathedral in Kosice, Slovakia

Herein lies a teachable moment for us. What manmade monuments might be captivating us? Money? Reputation? Our physical appearance? Earthly possessions? Ministry success?  Sadly, for some churches today, a physical building becomes an object of worship rather than a tool for worship. We must be careful to remember that the tangible, and sometimes intangible, things we find so appealing now will someday perish. Jesus Himself says: “The time is coming when all these things will be so completely demolished that not one stone will be left on top of another.”

Let’s be sure to keep our focus not on what’s temporal and will be demolished someday, but on what’s eternal!

Kosice, here we come!

Somewhere in Poland, taken from the train window. Brrr! It was cold outside!

Riding the trains in Eastern Europe is an adventure. Here are a couple of things we’ve encountered:

• Most people believe that a draft will make them sick. As a result, windows and doors in the train berths are rarely opened for air circulation. Berths can become stifling hot, but opening a window to get fresh air is not looked upon favorably. Last summer when I traveled in the heat, I gave it an honest try – I was sitting next to the window, so I reached up and opened it about 6 inches. An elderly woman eyed me with contempt and then stood to her feet, stepped to the window, and promptly closed it. I thought I’d die of suffocation before reaching my destination. That was like a “don’t try this at home weight loss program” – sweat off a few pounds in transit! Thankfully, today’s trip was totally comfortable. Gene and I enjoyed a berth to ourselves for the first 5 ½ hour leg of our journey, and this train’s engineers seemed to have mastered the art of regulating the heat in the berths.
• Switching trains adds stress to one’s journey. Maybe that’s because we don’t understand the languages spoken here, so we can’t decipher the arrival/departure announcements over the loudspeakers. Or maybe it’s because the station masters wait until the last moment before they post the appropriate platform number on the departure board – or they post a number and then change it as the train pulls in. Perhaps it’s because there may be only 10 minutes between our train’s arrival and our next train’s departure. We have to hope that the arriving train is running on time, get off with all our luggage, find a departure board, hope that the next train’s platform number has been listed correctly, and then run for it!

 Today’s switch was stressful. Thankfully our arriving train was on time. We climbed off with luggage and backpacks in tow, walked across the tracks and climbed onto the covered platform. That’s when we discovered that our connecting train’s platform number wasn’t listed on the departure board outside. So then we wondered, Is it not listed because our next train hasn’t arrived yet? Or is it not listed simply because the station master hasn’t updated it recently? Or is it not listed because this departure board isn’t working properly? Gene walked into the station to see if he could find more information, but no such luck.

In the meantime, I asked a uniformed man if he spoke English. He shook his head. Time was ticking, so I tried to communicate anyway. “Kosice?” I asked. He held up one thumb and forefinger and said, “One, two.” Then he pointed down a nearby stairwell and to the right. He repeated his hand gestures for emphasis and then walked away. Ah, I thought. Perhaps our next train leaves from platform 2. Or… maybe he didn’t understand what I asked, and whatever he said bears no relevance whatsoever to my question.

A moment later, a man’s voice made a lengthy announcement over the loudspeaker. A crowd of 50 or 60 people pushed through the station’s exit and headed down the stairwell. I caught the word “Kosice” in the announcement and figured they were all bound for our destination, or to one of the stops along the way. But I was guarding our luggage, and Gene was nowhere in sight, so I had no choice but to stay put and hope that, if those folks were heading to our train, we would join them in time to catch it, too.

It felt like eternity until Gene returned. We grabbed our luggage and headed the direction that the crowd had taken – down a long flight of stairs, through an underground tunnel, and up another flight of stairs to a platform between tracks. But there was no train. And still no number listed on the departure board. And that 10 minute window between our arrival and departure was now down to mere seconds. Were we in the right place or not? If we missed our connection, we’d have to spend the night in that town and find our way to Kosice on Wednesday, and that wouldn’t work well with our hostess’ busy schedule.

We must have looked like lost foreigners, for suddenly a young man came from nowhere and spoke to us with a heavy Eastern European accent but in perfect English: “May I help you?” I wanted to hug him!

“Can you please tell us the correct platform for the train to Kosice?” I asked.

“Number 2. This is it.” He smiled reassuringly. An angel, I’m sure.

Seconds later, the train roared into the station. Our reservations were for Car #3. We watched helplessly as Car #3 ripped past us and then stopped ‘way down the platform. My oh my, it was a long run. My backpack weighs at least 20 pounds, and I was hauling two suitcases – the handheld one weighs about 25 pounds and the wheeled one weighs about 45 pounds. By the time I got to Car #4, I couldn’t go another step. My lungs felt like they were going to burst from breathing the frigid air.

“Keep going,” called Gene, also on the run. “Our car’s the next one.”

Forgive me for sounding unspiritual at this point. At the threat of collapsing beside the train and thereby missing our ride, I opened my mouth and out spilled the words: “Just get on the stinkin’ train!” I’ve never seen my husband move so fast.

Car #4 was the dining room. Imagine us hauling our suitcases between the linen-draped tables, trying to keep our balance as the train rocked and rolled and picked up speed. Boy, was I relieved to fall into our seats when we finally reached Car #3. And so began the next leg of our journey to Kosice, Slovakia. Another 4 hours lay ahead. My computer battery died enroute, so this turned into a welcome time of relaxation and rest.

Laura Stein's discipleship group

Slovakian women discussing how to overcome the fear of inadequacy.

Journal entry for Thursday, February 5, 2009

It looks like I skipped a day, but in reality I didn’t. We lost a day traveling east, so it was actually Wednesday when we arrived in Kosice.

I woke this morning feeling like I’d been hit by a truck. My nose was stuffed, my head was conjested. The last thing I need is a cold. Considering all the germs that probably circulate in an airplane, it’s a wonder that I’ve never caught a cold before while flying.

We spent this day with Bevan and Laura Stein, a couple who have worked with orphans in Kosice for about a decade. Laura is trained in therapeutic horseback riding programs, so we traveled to the city’s outskirts to see the horses and the outdoor arena they’re using for this purpose. Later we visited their home for lunch and then Darlis Anderson and I went with Laura to meet the delightful women she’s been mentoring.

Interestingly, Laura’s been using my book Moving From Fear to Freedom for some discussion starters. She’d emailed a couple of weeks ago and asked if I’d speak to the group about overcoming fear, so that’s what I did. When I finished speaking, three women shared stories of their own fears – all had been left by their husbands in the recent past and had struggled with the fear of facing an unknown future. What a sweet time of fellowship we enjoyed.

When we closed the meeting, they jokingly said, “We wish you could come back and speak again after we have a chance to read more chapters from your book.” I told them that I’d be returning to Kosice in March, and they immediately asked me to reserve an evening for them. What a joy! I look forward to returning and meeting with them in a month after they’ve had a chance to read a couple more chapters from my book.