September 24, 2008
Hello, PC(USA) Friends !
We are thinking of so many of you today as we begin our work in Poland. We’ve had PC(USA) orientation, have set up our home in Lodz (pronounced “Woodge”), and already had emails from some churches who are interested in learning more about our new call to work in Poland. Ours is a joint sending. We are mission co-workers representing the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) and Common Global Ministries, a combined witness of the Christian Church / Disciples of Christ and the United Church of Christ.
In the weeks to come, we are beginning to discern with our partners in Poland how we can develop bilateral relationships between our churches in the United States and the Evangelical Reformed Churches in Poland.
This is the beginning of a new ministry, to walk with and support those of the Reformed tradition as they seek to become a missional and servant church. In the post-communist period, the church had to concentrate its efforts towards just hanging on and surviving. Now it is wanting to grow and to reach out. These are heady days, the honeymoon period, when we are initiating relationships in eleven churches, becoming a part of a new church planting in Wroclaw (pronounced "Vrotswahv"), learning our way around Lodz, and beginning a rigorous five months of intensive Polish language study.
This is also a time when we need your prayers. In the next few months, we will be discerning with churches in Poland how best to use our time and talents as we walk alongside them. As we start this new ministry, we are writing with two requests of you:
Could you include us in your prayers and in the prayer requests in your worship bulletins? Perhaps someone on your church, synod, or presbytery mission committee could help remember to include us when people express their joys and concerns.
Could you encourage people who would like more frequent informal communications to write us and ask to be on our email communications list? Perhaps there are people who have a special heart for Poland or ministry in Central Europe with a minority church.
Here are some of our "joys and concerns" as we move forward in ministry:
- Our joy is that we daily feel an affirmation of our call to be working with the Evangelical Reformed Church in Poland. It's a great “fit” giftswise and temperamentally and in almost every other way. We are happy, too, in our new home in Lodz (even though it's not exactly the garden spot of Poland).
- Personal challenges we face include being away from our son, Mick (15), who is in school in Michigan, and also away from Liz's mom (77), who now lives in Voorheesville, New York. Our daughter Mackenzie (20) graduates from college in the spring, and we’re concerned about her next steps.
- Ministry challenges are many. Our partner church has never related to a missionary before, so we are testing new ground. We are seen as an answer to prayer, yet we are not miracle workers. Change and growth in the church is always slow and subtle. Historically, the Evangelical Reformed Church has depended upon pastors to do nearly everything that has to do with church—the building, the ministry, worship services—all of it. Lay leadership inside the church, or initiating ministries that reach out beyond the church door—these are new ideas for most in the pews.
- Please ask your churches to lift us up in prayer with frequency and intention, won't you? This is a way of being in relationship with churches here in Poland. Soon, we will be working on projects and programs that some may wish to hear more about or get involved with in some way. For the moment, however, our request is for weekly and intentional prayer, and new communications with people who want to hear from us and write to us.
We hope you'll be able to participate in a concert of prayer for Polish Protestants and for our ministry as we discern how we can support them. The bilateral part of this is that churches in Poland will be praying for the congregations and ministries of the PC(USA) churches you serve, as well.
Thanks for supporting us as we begin to walk with the Evangelical Reformed Church in Poland.
And keep those prayers rising!
Doug and Liz |
