Girls Week

Dobřy Den!  (Hello)

            We have been with Johnny and Annette Johnson and Miriam Grady, MTW full time missionaries, in the city of Zlin for almost a week now. Zlin is in the province of Moravia on the eastern side of the Czech Republic. I have loved getting settled into this energetic city! Throughout the week, we have also had the opportunity to see the beautiful villages in the countryside while out running errands or visiting church members.  Almost every morning, we meet with Johnny for Czech lessons in which we learn about language, culture, and history. These sessions have been eye opening to the reasons for the country’s deep resistance to the gospel.  

            In addition to meeting people and being learners of Czech culture, we have also been using the last few days to prepare for Girls Week. Starting next Monday, we will be hosting an overnight “camp” for some of the teenage girls from the church. This will basically be an extended sleepover at Miriam’s apartment, where we will focus on building relationships, teaching cooking, making crafts, and learning about God’s love for us. I met most of these girls last week at church. They are amazing! God used our love of horses as a common thread to make an instant connection despite the language barrier. Praise God for using all of our gifts and experiences for His glory J

            Please please pray for Girls Week. Pray that when we teach Bible lessons, God’s words would come out of our mouths and not our own. Pray that God grips these girls’ hearts in powerful ways, confronting them with His love, truth, and beauty. Pray that we would be able to connect with the girls and build meaningful relationships. And please pray for unity, that this week would help the girls grow closer to each other as sisters in Christ in a place where there are so few other Christians. Please pray that the translation would be clear and that God would work across languages to communicate His love.

            We serve an awesome God who has all the power in the heavens and the earth. He is capable of doing far more than we can imagine.

In Christ,

Jinae

“But we have this treasure in jars of clay, to show that the surpassing power belongs to God, and not to us.” 2 Corinthians 4: 7 

A Personal Perspective on History

A dilemma

            “What was it like to adjust from communism?” Kathryn asked one of the women in the Czech church in Zlin. The tall, graceful woman furrowed her brow and thought for a while. She answered that it was very complicated. In 1989, when the Velvet Revolution overturned communism in Czechoslovakia, she was a teenager living in Slavačin, a small village in Moravia, the eastern region of Czechoslovakia. She said that before the Revolution, people were afraid to speak about politics. The state controlled all information, using the threat of jail to intimidate teachers, singers, film-makers, and others in the public eye. Because the national borders were closed, the people were “protected” from anything in the outside world, good or bad. You could only buy bananas on the week before Christmas, and even then it was only the state-mandated amount per family. When she was young, she had only one doll. But she loved and cared for this doll, keeping it clean and safe even until she was an adult.

            When communism ended, the world around her changed drastically. Today, her children have twenty dolls, and these are scattered in various conditions all around the house. She says that the children don’t play with their toys, and that if one breaks, they can just buy a new one at the store. Suddenly, everything is instantly available- both material and information, both good and bad. She said that you could never find pornography in communist Czechoslovakia. Now, it is everywhere.

            She said that people have freedom now and that is a good thing. But people do not choose to use that freedom wisely. Under communism, there was no fear of God but there was an intense fear of the government. Now, in a modern, increasingly Westernized society, there is nothing left- no fear of God and no moral repercussions. She said that most Czechs do not believe that there is any kind of God and so freedom for them becomes a different kind of oppression. 

Kingdom Everywhere

Hello friends! 

First full day in the Czech Republic. Experiencing some amazing history around the city of Prague, we visited a Jewish synagogue and a memorial to Czech Jews who died during WWII. We also explored Bethlehem Chapel, the church where Protestant reformer Jan Hus preached. It is now a Czech national monument. 

In the afternoon, we attended an English-speaking church that met at one of Prague's train stations. It was incredible to worship God with other believers in another country. The church was full! The energy was high. From what I could gather, the congregation was mostly made of international students (American or otherwise) and mixed American/ Czech families. 

Before service started, I started talking with a girl named Lucy, who looked like she was probably my age. She told me  that she grew up in a village outside of Prague, but is moving to the city in August. She is going to be a cook in a restaurant called I Love Mama. She explained that this was her first time in a church. She came because she knows the pastor, Justin, because he is a frequent customer of the restaurant where she works. Justin invited her and she decided to try something new and check it out. She said that most Czechs are atheist and so she was surprised to see so many people there. We talked a little bit after the service also and she said that she really enjoyed it. She had tried to convince her boyfriend to come today, but he was skeptical. She said she hopes that he will come next time now that she has scoped it out first. 

It was amazing to talk to Lucy. She was so cheerful and fun. I'm so glad that God brought us both to His house on this Sunday. God is building His kingdom everywhere, constantly drawing people to Himself. Please pray for Lucy and for this church in Prague. 

In Christ, 

Love, 

Jinae 

"I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I live in the body, I live by faith, in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me." Galatians 2:20  

We're Here!

We're here in Prague! We arrived this morning and had an amazing time meeting MTW full-time missionaries Johnny and Annette Johnson and Miriam Grady and her young son Evan (who is so cute it's not even funny!).

Not feeling jet-lagged yet. We spent the day getting to know each other, walking around the city, and learning a little about Czech culture and history.

So overwhelmingly blessed to be here! God is so great.

Was meditating on 2 Timothy chapters 2 and 3 on the plane over here. We are privileged to labor for the gospel. We know who we serve. And we are not ashamed. We are not afraid. Because He chose us, not because of any works that we could do, but because of His grace showed to us in Christ Jesus, who gives us eternal life.

These chapters of 2 Timothy lay out the gospel and our vision in taking it to our neighbors and to the nations. Take a look. It blows my mind. God has allowed me to really live in those words today. So thankful that He speaks to us in the Bible, which is living and active.

Thanks for all the prayers! Ya'll rock.

In Christ,
Love,
Nae

Almost There!

I cannot believe that we are flying out for the Czech Republic TOMORROW!!!! As we make final preparations, all I can think about is God's grace. God's grace in sending His Son to save the world. God's grace in calling us His children. God's grace in giving us His Holy Spirit. God's grace in calling me- in all my weakness and brokenness- to love others as He has loved me. God's grace in this opportunity to travel to a different part of the world and learn more about His love. Wow. In every detail of this trip, I have seen God's hand.

Please pray for Kathryn and I as we begin the next part of this journey tomorrow. Pray for humility, love, energy, and flexibility.

Thank you so much to all of you for the financial and prayer support! I am amazed by your generosity and love.

We serve an awesome God.

With joy,
In Christ,

Jinae


"What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare his own Son but gave him up for us all, how will he not also with him graciously give us all things?" Romans 8:31-32

Where?

Here is a map! :) 

Zlin is in the eastern part of the country. 

Preparing

Hello friends! :) 

I can't believe that we are almost ready to leave for the Czech Republic! I will be leaving on Friday for a five week internship through a missions organization called Mission to the World. We will be working in the city of Zlin, in the eastern part of the country, with MTW full-time missionaries, Johnny and Annette Johnson, and Miriam Grady. We will be learning about Czech culture and about God's amazing vision for this part of the world. We will have the opportunity to build relationships with some of the teenage girls in the church there and encourage them to hold on to their faith in a secular culture. I can't wait to meet these girls!  

We will be holding a "Girls Week," a time of hanging out, getting to know each other, looking into God's word, and doing life together. Kathryn, the other intern, and I will also have the opportunity to work in some English camps that the church is doing. 

Kathryn and I are using this week to prepare, spiritually and physically, for the field. I'm both nervous and excited. I don't really know what to expect. But I am so excited to be vulnerable and to rely on God's grace, provision, and powerful plans! I want to be humble and flexible as we go forward, leaning entirely on God and not on our own understanding! 

Thank you so much for all of your prayers and support! We serve an awesome God. His love endures forever and has no bounds. 

I will post updates as I have them. 

Lots of love, 

In Christ, 

Beth Jinae 

"Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but made himself nothing, taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men.  And being found in human form, He humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.  Therefore God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow." <--- THIS is the God we serve. Wut…. Truly crazy love. 

(Philippians 2:5-11)