Here's Zivko & Stephanie:
North Point Ministries helped to buy the property and build the building you see in the photo. The church was one of North Point's very first Partner Churches around the world. The building sits on a rise on the banks of the Nretva River and is a bright spot in the city. "Nono", the Assistant Pastor, keeps the grounds so beautifully and the setting is very calming even in the midst of the bombed out building next door and the graffiti filled wall across the street. Last year's October team told us that the bombed building has been torn down since me and three of my team members were there in April 2009. A church is not the property or the building, The Church is the people who use the building and I can't wait to get there to see them all and hug them and to dig in and serve them.
Next Weekend we will have our team retreat and we will Skype with Pastor Bernard and his wife Nada. We'll discuss some of what the Lord has laid upon their hearts for us to do while we are there. To date we really have not talked much about what is expected of us and that is perfectly fine with everyone on the team. At this point the plan is to go with open hearts and open minds to serve however God leads us. Personally, I'm very excited that we don't yet have an agenda and all five of us are just open to whatever the Lord has in store!
Our Team Leader, Jill was our leader last year but this time she's handed much of the leadership responsibility to the capable hands of Deb who has led several other GlobalX trips to different countries around the World. I have not been on a trip with Deb before but I have really enjoyed getting to know her over the last year. Deb along with her sister Bonnie head up a new "Friends of Bosnia" Ministry to serve the people of the Evangelical Church in Capljina. Our other two team members are B.J. who served as co-leader of the October team and Jamie who has been to Capljina several times and is the only man on the team. Pastor Bernard baptized Jamie in the river during one of the GlobalX trips he served on.
All five of us are so excited to see what the Lord will do while we are there; our tickets have been purchased and we'll hit the air in less than 4 weeks time! As of the last dollar count we have a little over half the money we need to raise. We know we'll raise everything just in time; in His time! If you want to help, online giving instructions are here:
To give online go to: www.GOglobalX.org, click on “give” on the top right side of the page, fill in your contact info. Under global Trip Information: Select – Bosnia 1 in the “Country” drop down, type the name of the person you are supporting in the “individual” field, fill in your credit card info and then click “Review Donation Information” and finalize your transaction. A confirmation email will be sent to you and will serve as your receipt for tax purposes.
We need prayer more than any monetary support and we all five hope that you will join in praying for us now through our safe return on May 16th. We will try to keep you posted throughout. Thank you so much for any support you give! What a Mighty God we Serve!
In His Grip, Tracy Anne
