Merry Christmas

Great news

This week, David was accepted into the College of the Ozarks in Point Lookout, Missouri for the 2018 fall semester.  He will be joining his brother, James, who starts his junior year this January.

Mikulaš Day

Mikulás

Mikulás is the Hungarian version of Saint Nicholas, and a similar figure to Santa Claus. In many cities, Mikulas is getting more conflated with Santa Claus. Still, it is believed that Mikulas arrives to celebrate his day, December 6, and leaves before Christmas. This tradition is also well known in Romania, Slovenia, the Czech Republic, Slovakia,Croatia and Poland.

 

 

On Tuesday evening, we were able to distribute 150 Mikulaš Day tracts . This tract includes the gospel and a true story from a young Czech lady who was so afraid of Mikulaš day when she was a child.     

Czech National Day of Freedom

What is the Czech Republic National Day of Freedom?

The Czech Republic National Day of Freedom started off as a demonstration by university students in Prague in 1989 and quickly turned into a protest that created a movement, now known as ‘The Velvet Revolution’ or ‘The Gentle Revolution’.

 

Research carried out by the Medea agency found that although 84% of Czechs know the 17th of November is a public holiday to celebrate The Velvet Revolution, only 30% of people under the age of 30 are aware of this fact.

November 11th

In the United States, Novemeber the 11th is known as "Veteran's Day", but here in the Czech Republic it is known as "Saint Martin's Day". He is the patron saint of soldiers, horses, riders, geese and wine makers; most often he is depicted on horseback with his half coat and the beggar.

Saint Martin was born in 316 AD as Martin of Tours. His father was a pagan Roman senior officer in the Roman province of Upper Pannonia, present-day Hungary, and forced Martin to become a soldier as early as the age of fifteen. He was named Bishop of Tours in 372, but continued to lead the life of a monk in a hut by the Loire River, where the Marmoutier abbey was later founded. Saint Martin died at the age of 81 in Candes near Tours, in 397.

Saint Martin’s Day is one of the most popular days of the year since early history. This day is associated not only with the coming of the first snow, but also with annual festivals and all that belong to them. It is impossible to separate this feast from a well-fed and roasted St. Martin's goose, usually served with bread or potato dumplings and red cabbage.

Legends:
On a cold, dark night Martin encountered a half-naked beggar who asked him for alms. However, Martin had no money on him and, as he wanted to protect the beggar against the cold, he cleaved his coat into two halves and gave one to the beggar. The following night, Christ appeared in front of him dressed in one half of the coat. It is likely that this apparition caused Martin to be christened at Easter 339 and to decide to devote his life to God.

One says that the goose is eaten because geese disturbed Saint Martin’s sermons so they are now punished in the pan.

The other one holds that Martin was so modest that he concealed himself in a goose house to avoid his appointment as a bishop, but the cackling of the geese gave him away.

Country's weather lore:
Saint Martin is supposed to bring the first snowflakes to us.

Printing and future outreach

The three tracts I mentioned in my last prayer letter are being printed at this time. We praise the Lord for offerings that came in for this printing. The tracts will be distributed near the train station and in the underground tunnel beneath the station. We pray the Lord will use these new tracts to convict people of their false ideas and idolatry.

We are planning our outreach to the homeless that we have done in previous years. We collect necessary items as well as food. Every person is given a Bible along with clothing items to help them keep warm, and gospel tracts. Many homeless here are mentally ill with nowhere to go and no family to help them. Jesus went about doing good, let us follow his example while we spread the gospel.

Along with handing Bibles to interested people, we have placed a few on benches to let people pick them up. Many Czechs will not be seen receiving a Bible from us, but are willing to take it from a park bench. The other day, we placed a few Bibles out and when we returned we saw a man sitting and reading it. We quickly prayed for the Spirit to guide and show him the truth. Every opportunity, every place, every soul. Please keep us in your prayers.

We rejoice in all the Lord

We rejoice in all the Lord is still opening up for us here in Brno. He has opened up so many opportunities to testify of his mercy, love, and grace. Just the other day, I had the chance to sit down with a small group of atheists to discuss the truths of the Scriptures. They are a group of people with which I have scuba dived. The Lord granted liberty to speak from Psalm 19.   “The heavens declare the glory of God and the firmament showeth his handiwork”. The best evidence to use with an atheist is the evidence from creation itself. There can be no painting without a painter, no building without a builder, no creation without a Creator. Even the staunchest atheist knows that these first two could never come to pass all by themselves, they will stick stubbornly to the idea that the third, this glorious universe, came about from nothing all by itself. With a recent dive still on our minds, I described the wonders we had seen. I asked several times how these incredible creatures could possibly exist without a very intelligent Creator?   One out of the four people began agreeing with me yet the other three refused to consider even the possibility. Milan began realizing the logic behind the conclusion so please pray for him to open up to the gospel. The others, Honza, Daniela, and Martin need prayer as well. First of all, to realize that everything we see came from the mind of an incredible God.

Taking a break

On Saturday, Jeff and David decided to enjoy the sunny afternoon with a game of basketball.  They arrived home two hours later covered with sweat.  Jeff was not sure that playing ball with his 16 year old son was much of a break.  So back to the office for some rest.

Czech Population Rises To 10.588 Million

 

Prague, Sept. 11, 2017 The number of inhabitants of the Czech Republic rose by 9,200 to 10,588,063 by mid-2017 thanks to immigration, mainly from Ukraine and Slovakia, according to the preliminary data released by the Czech Statistical Office (CSU) today. There was a higher number of deaths than births. Between January and June, 57,787 people died, the highest number since 1996, the CSU said.
In the same period, 55,528 children were born, roughly the same number as a year ago, when it was the highest over the past six years. The proportion of the children born out of wedlock reached 49 percent, while it stood at 48.6 percent last year. In the first six months of the year, 22,590 people moved to the Czech Republic, while 11,088 moved out. Roughly 2,600 more Ukrainians, 2,100 Slovaks and 700 Vietnamese were registered in the Czech Republic.
pv/dr/kva

Religion in the Czech Republic

     Religion in the Czech Republic was dominated by Christianity until at least the first half of the 20th century; since then it has steadily declined and today the Czech Republic has one of the least religious populations in the world.

     The most recent Pew Research Center, found that in 2015 72% of the population of Czech Republic declared itself religiously unaffiliated—a category which includes atheists, agnostics and those who describe their religion as “nothing in particular”, 26% Christians, while 2% belonged to other faiths. The Christians divided between 21% Catholic, 4% other Christians and 1% are Eastern Orthodox, while the religiously unaffiliated divided between 25% as atheists, 1% agnostics and 46% as nothing in particular (also atheists and agnostics when we have questioned them about their belief). Also 29% said that they believe in God, 43% had a belief in fate and 44% believed in the existence of the soul.

 

 

 

Blessing of encouragement

We received an email form a man that found one of the Bibles that we are giving away free.  I think this is the first emal that we have received thanking us for the Bible.   God is so good!

P.M - našel jsem dnes Vaší Bibli Kralickou v parku v Lůžánkách. Pokud ji budete chtít vrátit, nechte mi na sebe kontakt. V opačném případě jsem za Vaši Bibly vděčný a určitě v četbě ji užiju a mnohokrát děkuji. S pozdravem

Jeff - Nene, to je naš cil. Rozdavame bible zdarma. Čti to s Božim požehnanim

P.M. Haleluja, děkuji. (haleluja, thank you)

Renewing old relationships

We continue to meet with people who have either attended in the past or have worked through the correspondence Bible studies. Yesterday, I met with Allen, a man we have known for many years. The conversation turned to spiritual things and I was able to share the gospel with him once again. He continues to have many objections to the gospel. His life experiences and earlier false teaching are hard for him to let go. As you all know, there are only so many reasons people use for rejecting the gospel. We can answer the objections; but if the ground is not prepared, the seed will not take root.

Galatians 6:9  And let us not be weary in well doing: for in due season we shall reap, if we faint not.

Bibles and tracts

Our Bibles in the park ministry has had a great deal of success throughout the summer months. We have been blessed to supply Bibles to over forty different individuals and families. As I stated in a previous letter, we do not simply hand out the Bibles as we do tracts but rather offer them for free. We locate in a high traffic section of the park with our Bible display and wait until people come to ask if they are actually free. We get such joy in hearing the responses of gratitude from those who have never owned a Bible and are excited to receive one. Here that tends to be one out of a thousand people that walk by, but we are grateful to be able to offer the Bibles. We are very grateful to Bibles to the nations for providing the Bibles to distribute. So far we have not seen any further response to the invitations inserted in the Bibles, yet we trust the Lord will use His word in people's lives.

Our tract canvassing of the city continues to go well. Remember there are 400,000 residents in the city of Brno; therefore, this is a long-term project. We know that our labor is not in vain in the Lord. The results are up to Him. We have three tracts prepared to print this fall. One called “mittens”. Debra wrote this after seeing so many babies in the winter without mittens. We will hand them out to parents along with a pair of mittens. The next is the tract about their St. Nicholas figure, Svatý Mikulaš for the December 6^th holiday. And the third is called “Ježiš je důvod na slavení”, Jesus is the reason for the season.  The plan is to print these three tracts this month or next to be prepared for the winter months.

Our Facebook campaign continues to receive responses. Nearly every day, there are several new page views. Even with many negative responses, the higher level of traffic causes more people to view the pages to see what we are about.

Filling-in

Had a great service this after noon filling in for a fellow missionary.

Reaching out to Former Friends

We recently began attempting to reach out to people we have had contact with in the past. To those which had either requested correspondence Bible studies or had visited services. Praise the Lord; one man, who had fulfilled a portion of the correspondence course, came to church as a result of our invitation and has been back several more times. Pray forJiři (George) to be saved. Pray that we can minister to him and be a blessing. I do not think he can hear very well, because he asks questions during prayer. He also seems to have no idea how the meetings function as he regularly interrupts me with questions. I just praise the Lord that he is there. I pray the Lord will draw Jiři unto Himself.

Sowing the Seed

Psalms 126:6  He that goeth forth and weepeth, bearing precious seed, shall doubtless come again with rejoicing, bringing his sheaves with him.

We are continuing to work our way through the city with the distribution of tracts in mailboxes. The city is laid out in sectors or regions. We have completed the regions of Veveří and Ponava. We are now working on the section of Černé Pole (Black Field).

The Word of God is quick and powerful, and sharper than any two edged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.      

We are able to function as messengers, but the Word of God is what will perform its job in the hearts of the hearers. Pray for the Holy Spirit to use His word to bring more people to repentance.

Gleaning the Corners of the Field

1 Corinthians 15:58  ¶Therefore, my beloved brethren, be ye stedfast, unmoveable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, forasmuch as ye know that your labour is not in vain in the Lord.

What a blessing it is to know that the Lord is always faithful in keeping His promises. Some of you may remember Martin. I met him ten years ago through the sport of scuba diving. We became friends after I helped him complete the drywall work in his house. Martin is in his mid thirties and is a lifetime atheist. His father committed suicide about seven years ago. He is also one of the best auto mechanics I have ever met. Through the years, we have had many discussions about God and the Bible. We have talked at length about why evolution simply does not make sense. Several times, we have stayed on the phone for a couple of hours with me answering question after question and responding quietly to objection after objection. During a recent call, I was reminding him that he still needed to repent and trust the Lord Jesus Christ to be saved. His response was that he had recently done that and that was one of the reasons he was calling. Praise the Lord! Pray for him to follow through and bring forth fruits meet for repentance. There are so many others which simply need to stop kicking against the pricks and humble themselves before the Lord.

Family Health

I mentioned in the last prayer letter the surgery on my finger. The result is not as good as I hoped, but it is better than it was. Praise the Lord. David spent three days in the hospital with a urinary tract problem. Not an infection, but he had a problem with his internal plumbing that needed to be repaired (Narrowing of the urethra). He is doing fine now. Glad to be out of the hospital. We are grateful that we have access to good medical care for a reasonable price.

 

Evangelism

 

We are currently finishing the editing of two new tracts. I am encouraging the people, which have made professions, to write their personal testimony tracts. We got David’s testimony translated into Czech this month. That is one of the two we intend to print.  Our desire this spring is to reach into surrounding villages and communities to seek those with spiritual interest. I am currently teaching lessons on personal evangelism to church members and attendees. Our hope is to replace the fear people have of speaking to others with faith in the Holy Spirit to guide them in witnessing. I believe that anybody who has been truly saved can tell someone what God did in their life. Just like in any other sphere of life, we need to be prepared. So, together we are memorizing Scripture verses helpful in sharing the gospel. First, we completed the Roman Road. Now, I intend to encourage people to practice with one another. I am adding other important verses as we go along.  The Bible distribution in the park continues as well. We are encouraging church members to take Bibles and our display to their village and offer the Bibles. We are laying out villages and providing maps so that people can distribute tracts in these various villages and mark the maps so we know where we have been.     

Happy Fathers' Day

Happy Fathers' Day

 

 

 

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Safe in His hands

What a blessing it is to serve the Lord. No matter what the world or the devil throws at us, we know we are safe in His hand. On May 1^st, there were protests around the city of Brno. There was even a communist gathering and march through town. The police and military were on high alert all day. A few arrests were made, but no major problems or violence. An overwhelming show of force by riot police kept the crowd under control.  The attitude in the Czech Republic seems to be very similar to what we see in America. Civil conversation is all but completely absent. Society appears to be polarized in ways we have never seen before. Dear friends, we must work while it is day, for the night cometh when no man can work.

Happy Mothers'Day

                               Happy Mothers' Day (Šťastný Den Matek)

First time visitor

At the end of March, we sent invitations to all of our prior correspondance students. Today, we had a man come to our services that received an invitation post card.  He was somewhat different and had many questions including the question asking Jeff if he had Slivovice (moon shine) in his water glsss on the table. He also asked me if I had added Rum into his coffee when I served refreshments. Okay how would you respond? We hope he returns next week.  Pray for this man who needs the Lord to save his soul.

Burning of the Witches, April 30th

On the evening of April 30th, Czechs gather to build a bonfire and prepare an effigy of the witch that kept winter around so long. Czechs used to believe that the power of witches would weaken as the weather got warmer. So they thought that if they made something that looked like a witch and burned it, they could finally get rid of the cold weather. First, they tie two large sticks together to form a cross. Then they stuff old shirts, pants and socks with straw and place a pointed hat on the top of the stack. The witch is tied to a broomstick and set aside until darkness falls. When the fire is roaring, people roast sausages on sticks, strum guitars, and sing their favorite songs. Everyone looks forward to nightfall, when they will face the spirits of the witches. As soon as it's dark, the effigy of the witch is brought out and held up for all to see. Then, with a heave of the arm, it is thrown on top of the bonfire. As the witch burns, so does the last of winter's chill.

 

 

 

Czech Bible Museum tour

Today after our morning services, Biblické Baptistické Shromáždění Brno (Brno Bible Baptist Church) had a great picnic and then a wonderful tour of the Czech Bible museum and memorial (Památník Bible Kralické a muzeum).

 

And then it began to sleet and snow.........

Happy Resurrection Day

✞✞Happy "Resurrection Day" to all of our family and friends. Have a great day! We love you!

     

Easter eggs, food and tradition

The decorated Eastern eggs are called Kraslice, a name derived from the old Czech word meaning "beautiful". And they are truly beautiful! Some eggs are coloured in red to symbolize the blood of Christ. Most are decorated with motifs that are geometrical, floral or religious using ancient techniques and patterns that vary from one region to another. In Czech households the decoration of eggs has mostly been a chore for girls, because boys have been busy making whips and play with rattles. There are many stories about why Maundy Thursday has been nicknamed the “Green Thursday” in the Czech Republic. Some believe it is linked to Christian tradition, when you eat a meal free of meat and only vegetables are consumed. In Czech Republic it is also celebrated with the production of green beer, which is only produced once a year by the brewery Starobrno in Brno. Green Thursday (Zelený čtvrtek) is also the day when young boys go out on the village streets equipped with rattles to chase away evil spirits. Rattles are a symbol to ward off the apostle Judas, who betrayed Jesus. The Czechs go all-in with desserts on Easter. Sweet, fermented bread dominate, usually in the form of a lamb. Buns are popular such as "Jidáš" (Judas bread) that is decorated with a spiral that is supposed to represent the rope which Judas hung himself with after having betrayed Christ. Although chocolate Easter Bunnies have become more common, it is more traditional to form a sponge cake like a lamb.

Family photo

                                                      Jeff, Debra, and David (16 years old)

Jeff’s surgery

Many of you remember me regaling you with the story of my hand surgery. How I managed to find the surgeon who finished last in his class? For those who hadn’t heard I will give a short recap. In 2015 I went to a surgeon to ask about repairing my “trigger” finger. It is a situation where one, or more, fingers do not bend smoothly into the palm. They sort of snap back and forth. Well, the surgeon told me it would be no problem to repair it and we scheduled the operation for two weeks in the future. In America, I would never have had this done, but here we have socialized medicine so it was not going to cost me anything out of pocket. I found out that this doctor, who I knick-named the butcher of Brno, had never fixed a trigger finger before. Only months later, when I could not bend my finger into my palm or straighten it fully, did I realize what a mess he had made of my hand.

So, anyway, three weeks ago I went to a plastic surgeon to have the finger repaired. After nearly falling out of his chair with laughter, he assured me that he could certainly improve the use of my right hand. He laughed even harder when he recognized the name of the previous surgeon. Fortunately, once again there would be no out of pocket expenses because of the system here. My finger is now healing well. I can straighten it fully once again. I have been regularly seeing a technician for rehabilitation therapy and the wound is healing nicely.  God bless you and thanks for praying

Missionary emphasis month

     The month of March will be our first full month emphasizing the blessing and responsibility of every Christian to give to support mission work in other countries. We have seen people learning to trust the Lord in small ways, learning to walk by faith. We see people taking baby steps and are asking the Lord to increase their faith. We have instituted a program we are calling “save a crown, save a soul”. The concept is to seek the Lord to lead them to bargains on items they normally purchase and then give the savings to the work of missions. Our desire is for people to seek the Lord throughout the day. Pray for the little things, as well as the large things. What people in our churches need is often to draw closer to the Lord through daily interaction. They need to “see” Jesus in a very real way. For without faith it is impossible to please God. Lord, help us all to live out our faith in real-life concrete situations.

Continued prayer for Michal

I ask you to continue praying for Michal. I have been working with him about his salvation for several months now. We finally completed the salvation Bible study series this past Sunday afternoon. Michal told me that he understands that he is lost, but thinks he is not able to get saved. A few months back Debra spoke with him about getting saved and he told her that he is too evil to be saved. Imagine a 14-year-old boy thinking that he is too wicked to be saved? He explained that he frequently disobeys his parents, does not do his school work on time and is lazy. Pray for him to believe the Scriptures. I clearly explained that he will never be good enough to be saved. Jesus came not to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance. He is greatly confused. Pray for his parents as well, Janek and Anna. We have counseled them many times against being too harsh with their boys. If the young man does not feel acceptance as he is from his parents, how can he put his trust in God to accept him?       

Senate approves anti-smoking bill

The Senate has approved a bill that should introduce a broad ban on smoking in pubs and restaurants. The vote was preceded by a five-hour long heated debate in the upper house, with numerous efforts to modify the ban. According to Health Minister Miloslav Ludvík, the bill is a vital step in protecting public health and particularly that of the young generation which frequently tops the European ladder in tobacco and alcohol abuse. If the draft bill is signed by the president it should come into force in May this year.

 

                

Love, the first commandment

Mark 12:30  And thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind, and with all thy strength: this is the first commandment.💕

Praising the Lord for our health

The third calendar week of this year has seen a general increase of influenza cases as well as local outbreaks across the Czech Republic. The highest increase has been reported in Prague, as well as the Karlovy Vary and Central Bohemia regions. In Prague alone, the week from January 15 – 21 has seen 972 cases for 100,000 inhabitants.  Within this same period, the number of acute respiratory infection cases has risen by 15%. These acute respiratory diseases include the flu as well as other seasonal diseases of viral origin. In fact, the amount of influenza-like cases has increased by almost 82%. Further, an increase has been detected in the number of confirmed cases of the Influenza A (H1N1) subtype virus.

2017 plans

My desire for the coming year is to greatly increase the number of people to which we can communicate the gospel message. We are using direct distribution on the streets, distribution to homes and apartments, Facebook ads, confrontational evangelism, along with offers to teach English and parenting classes. We have seen a great deal of traffic to our web site due to the ads on Facebook. As the Lord provides, we will increase our advertising outreach as well as the preparation and printing of new tracts. The day of the Lord draweth nigh. Let us not grow weary in well doing, for in due season we shall reap, if we faint not. It is our sincere desire to bring glory to our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, and be witnesses unto Him until the day of His return. May He richly bless your ministries in the coming year.

Holiday Outreach

One of the holidays the Czech people observe is Mikulash day. It falls on the 6^th of December. St Mikulash goes from house to house along with a demon and an angel. If the children sing for this trio, they can receive a small gift. If they have been disobedient, they get coal. So you see it falls somewhat in line with the Santa Clause story some people observe in America. We had some tracts printed specifically for this holiday and handed them out that day, along with an invitation to church. We gave some of the tracts to young Maty Mazgut, who in the 2^nd grade. He intended on handing them out at school. He boldly went to all his classmates and attempted to give out the tracts but not one child was willing to take the material. Every one of them said that they don’t believe the legend about the existence of God. We praise the Lord that he was courageous enough to take the tracts and try to hand them out.

We had been praying that our personal outreach, tract distribution, along with the Facebook ads would bring out a larger group of people on Christmas day, however, we did have two returning visitors which had not attended in a long time. The children performed a puppet play. I preached on the virgin birth and then we had a wonderful meal prepared by my incredible wife.

Grateful hearts

We look forward to the new year with joy unspeakable. God has done such great things for us. It is an honor and privilege to serve Him here in the Czech Republic. I want to begin by expressing our sincere gratefulness for the prayer and financial support this past year. We are humbled by the sacrifices the Lord’s people make so that we can continue to reach out to the Czech people. The special offerings and Christmas gifts make such a difference. It is hard to describe the joy a MK feels as he/she opens birthday cards and receives gifts from our supporting churches. It is our desire and greatest prayer request for Christ to work in hardened hearts, drawing them to Himself.

Happy New Year

Šťastný Nový Rok 2017