March 20: Croatia MLO Final Day - Back Home!

Hello Folks,

What an awe inspiring Mission Learning Opportunity this has been and so much has happened I can't remember all that did! Just on this last day alone there have been so many touching moments and blessings that have been showered on us, as well as opportunities opened that I am dizzy from the experience! 

Early in the morning I got three of the members off to the airport at dark:30. Where is Sis when I need her?! Sis is my right hand person and handles so much of the behind the scene things. She and I trade off on doing those airport runs in the summer! 

Upon returning back to HiS HOUSE I got out in the garage and went through our mini shipment, around 1000 pounds we received on Wednesday. I had taken some of the gear to Hungary with us when we went on Thursday to give to Terry, the missionary in Budapest who is doing baseball ministry! I also had to separate the football gear that was part of it, so I could take it to Slovenia when we went to visit the Mustang American Football Club. 

 

Also on Thursday night I had received an email from Damir, the leader of the Croatian Little League movement, asking for gear to help the teams who will be playing this spring. They are in need of gloves so I put together a package to get them started that included gloves balls pants belts and jerseys. I still can't get over the fact that our dream of Little League is finally coming a reality! So excited to be a part of this historical event! 

Around 8:30 we were on the road again, this time heading to the northern most city in Croatia, on the Hungarian and Slovenian border to visit Vlado, the missionary who we have come to know and support this past year! He is a pastor of a small church and leader of a theater group that travels around the region, sharing the gospel through its productions. His wife Maraina is also President of the foster agency that reaches into the gypsy community and places unwanted children with caring Christian families. We were blessed to have met 4 of their own adopted children as the youngest of them, Emma, blessed our hearts with her youthful energy and spirit led prayers! She would be so demanding of us, telling us that we were walking to slow or that we weren't doing what she wanted at the right time or not clapping when she performed! Which all this was complicated with her shouting at us in Croatian and Vlado not telling us exactly what she was saying. Then when she prayed a peace and settling spirit would come across her voice and her soothing spirit led words would fill the space all around us. The peace she would share were felt, although not in our language, but in spirit! I never felt such peace in the prayer of one so young and her attention to detail was so assuring! What a blessing!

After leaving Vlado's we headed across the Slovenian border to go to Ljubljana to visit with Viki and the American Football Club the Mustangs she started 4 months ago! She actually got the team name from a visit to HiS HOUSE to pick up some gear I had in the garage! When she got there, Elvis my equipment guru, told her to go through the bags I said she could to see if there was anything else she would need. The first bag she opened were jersey's from Friendswood High School who happen to be the Mustangs! Her love for horses and the name gave her the inspiration to call themselves the Mustangs!  We met up with Viki and Yuri and they showed us around the beautiful Capital City Ljubljana! Great time and even greater time with them walking the streets, hearing their story and why they were starting the football team and going to practice to watch the team in the gym. We actually played a pick up game with them and these old men had a ball playing against them! After the practice we went to eat at a traditional Slovenian restaurant and the food was excellent but the spiritual conversation afterward was the best desert ever served. Viki and Yuri actually turned the conversation spiritual with asking many questions about faith and Jesus! Viki said that she had found and felt in us something different than she had ever felt before and her view on God was now different and she looked forward to more of those conversations! Blessed time by all of us!

Drove back home late through the southern Alps and that was an experience all of it's own, but won't go into detail here! Made it back safely however, got packed up and took a little one hour nap before loading back up in the van and heading to the airport for the flight home! Everyone made it back safely with no problems and we appreciate each and everyone of you and your prayer and financial support of this ministry! God is using sport and relationship building to tear down walls and further His Kingdom! I am just thrilled to be hanging onto Jesus' robe knowing He is going to take us places we never dreamed of or thought possible!

Remember Jesus loves you and so do I!

HE DID IT!

Let's Do IT!

Mossman