Stacy gets Credit

Some of you may not know that Bosnia, for the most part, is still mainly a cash society. Very few people have ATM cards or credit cards. Knowing this Stacy and I always try to keep some cash on us. Last week, when Stacy went out to buy some stuff for the kitchen she found herself without any cash when she got to the cash register. She asked the clerk if she could pay with a bank card or credit card. The lady looked at her and said, "oh, you come in here often enough. I'll just write it down and you come pay later." The owner was also standing there and nodded approvingly. Stacy got store credit à la the General Store from Little House on the Prairie! The funny thing, Stacy said, is that she has only been to that store like 5 times in the last year. I guess you could say we're succeeding in being accepted in our community.

His Grace is Sufficient

I frequently ask myself, "is ministry in Bosnia really so difficult or am I simply not intended for this kind of work. Perhaps I lack some skill as a church planter". Sometimes I feel that I'm not stubborn enough to stay in BiH until revival comes, and I often conjecture that burn-out will come first.

I was given a sense of vindication when discussing ministry in Bosnia with two ladies from Romania who came to help us for a week in August. After one of our park clean-ups they were surprised at how the community fell numb to our act of kindness. These ladies were perplexed at the hardness and general lack of curiosity the Bosnians exhibited to what we were doing there. Rebecca, from Romania, explained that they had done a similar outreach involving a park clean-up in their home town and many people were eager to know what they were doing, and the believers had many chances to share. She described the Bosnians as hard and resistant to anything new.

I don't know what it was about Rebecca's comments about the Bosnian people that gave me hope. Perhaps it was merely an revelation that God has given me an extra portion of grace to work among these people, though I find my perseverance running short by the day. I don't know how long the Lord has us here in BiH, but I can only pray for a filling of His grace in my life on a daily basis.