War & The Wonderful Peace that Surpasses All Understanding

Before I get into Friday's events, I just wanted to let you know that Leland's luggage did indeed arrive the day after we did. He and Pastor Bernard took a drive to the Croatian border to pick his bag up from the authorities. He'd prayed for a shirt and a jacket the night before and the Lord provided; both were hanging on the door to his room when he woke up in the morning. Leland was grateful that he only needed to rely on borrowed clothing for one day.

We started Friday with devotions with our wonderful hosts Andrija & Marica at the breakfast table. They are such Godly people and we have been honored to share their home this week. The early days of the Capljina Evangelical Church began in the very room that B. J. Colleen and I have been sharing. Yesterday they showed us a picture of the first "small group" that was the church. After breakfast and devotions, we swung by the church to pick up Bernard and head to Pocitelj and then on to Mostar.

In Pocitelj there is a Mosque that was bombed and nearly destroyed in the war of the 1990's. Much of it has been restored but the evidence of war is so obvious everywhere you look. According to Pastor Bernard, the village is over a thousand years old. People still live there and their homes are high above the Mosque where no cars can go. They must travel on foot high up into the mountain to reach their homes. I climbed only as far as the Mosque and I am so glad that I did because it was really something to see. We left there and headed to Mostar, Pastor Bernard's home city. There we had a lunch of sandwiches made with small "house made" sausages & pita. The bread was just about the tastiest pita most of us have ever had. Driving through Mostar we saw many, many bombed out and bulleted buildings. Some have been restored to usability but it's very apparent that there was war here not too long ago. After our tasty lunch we walked through the city down toward the famous bridge which has been restored to it's original beauty. Both before and after the bridge there are many small merchants and artisans selling trinkets and things to wear. We had fun shopping and chatting with the merchants. I'm sure that I was snowed by one of the shop owners but what can I do? What's done is done.




Friday evening we had "A Night of Worship" at the church and though we do not speak the language it was a wonderful experience of praise & worship among Believers from both the Mostar Evangelical Church and the Capljina church. Most of us sang along in the native language since the words were on a screen in the church. We are learning the correct way to read and pronounce the words. Our God is so awesome, the language was no barrier. We all felt as though we were wrapped in the arms of Jesus as Toni, No No, Matea, Eleanor, Ivan and sweet, sweet Veronika skillfully led us in worship & praise. They all love the Lord fully with their entire hearts, souls and minds. One can feel His goodness and light emanating from within them.

This morning we took a little trip to Veronika's apartment where we listened to some of her story and prayed for her. The Lord has wonderful plans for this special girl. She has managed to get herself invited to join an organization for the youth in the city and has secured a meeting with the mayor to discuss the youth of Capljina. She is very bold with her faith and never fails to put it right out there for all to see which easily could cause pain and persecution in this area of the world. I am so honored to call this special young woman my friend, my sister in Christ!

Please pray for the health of the team members as we've had some illness and headaches. FYI: The Lord has healed Andrija!

In His Awesome GRIP, Tracy Anne