Signs of Life in the City

Winter has finally ended here and spring has arrived! The leaves are budding on the trees, the grass grows greener every day, people are out in their yards planting and the city is strategically sweeping up all the gravel that got dumped on ice and snow during the long winter months.

It's nice to see people walking outside and fairly relaxed; moms with their little ones at the playgrounds and parks, people out strolling with their dogs, children riding their bicycles and scooters and skateboards.

The city hall has bistro-style tables and chairs peppering the square before it, two ping-pong tables, two large chess boards and a huge game board complete with box-sized dice and toddler-sized playing pieces. Yes, this town is showing signs of life in a way we haven't seen since our arrival.

Of course, people have always been around and we've seen them, but now we see them when we are outside, and they aren't just hurrying from the store to their car or their car to the next closest building. Just like the birds are socially chirping and singing their public songs, the people around us are more active and engaging. It's good to see them, really, and to meet some of them.

We are so glad to be regularly rubbing elbows with people, but also now to develop some kind of acquaintance with several. Dejan has been visiting the Serbian culture centre since January on a weekly basis for our oldest to go to a language class. Both during and after class time, he's been striking up conversations with several of the men there and has had a few very good spiritually open encounters with a couple of them. The "school" for language class ends in June, but if the centre carries on with other aspects during the summer, he will continue going alone for this purpose.

Julie has been taking the girls out weekly to a dance studio for the past six weeks or so, and all four of us ladies ride the bus and LRT, so we have met lots of people. Our excursion takes us right to the heart of the city. At the studio, all the parents pass the time in various ways. For the past month I am conversing each week with a mom who moved to Edmonton from Milan, Italy for her husband's oil industry job last July. Her two daughters are the same age as our first two and she is ready to practice her English, since she has all Italian friends who also moved for the same work. There are three more weeks of this class before it ends for the summer.

We met one of our neighbors across the street back in November who have a 7 year-old, and aside from a few encounters at the sledding hill, and brief conversations at their home or ours, plans are now afoot for some playing time together for the girls. The door seems to be opening more each time in our conversations as we become greater acquainted. They know we are Christians and why we are here, and this hasn't deterred them from continuing to offer relationship.

Please pray for and with us about all this. We desire in all things to be a blessing to the people around us, and to have the opportunity to not only discuss spiritual subjects, but as Paul the apostle said, to have boldness and "utterance" (what to say) in presenting the gospel and for their open-heartedness. Particularly with our events that will be ending in a few weeks, we desire prayer.

We don't take these opportunities for granted. It is amazing to watch how quickly a person can shut off their previous openness when we just try to converse in the natural realm about things of God without approaching it in prayer or from a spiritual base. And of course, even if their minds and hearts seem open, it is equally amazing to see how awry other things can get with our children when something spiritually good is going on. Our enemy knows well how to interfere, but our God is greater and stronger still. It is to Him that we appeal for help.

Lastly, the spring weather seems to have played a part in the hearts of some of the residents at the retirement home where Dejan teaches each week. A couple of them expressed the desire to come to our Saturday night services, too. However, since our main door is up a flight of about 13 stairs, this is an accessibility problem. We don't want anything to hinder anyone from coming for any reason, so we are wondering if we need to prayerfully consider moving our location at this time or not. We would appreciate prayer for direction.

We hope you are enjoying your springtime activities, and that the Lord also grants you opportunities to serve and bless others in your path!

Until next time...

Dejan and Julie <><

A Beachhead in the Lord's Army

Beachhead a temporary line created when a military unit reaches a beach by sea and begins to defend the area while other reinforcements help out until a unit large enough to begin advancing has arrived.

Today marks exactly six months since we crossed the border into Canada. Half a year. Wow. In some ways it seems like a long time, and in other ways it is of course, short. But so much has occurred in our lives, and our sense of time is a bit skewed.

We came here to plant a church, but looking back over these several months we see how we ourselves have been planted here. In that sense, part of our vision is accomplished; we have established a beachhead, spiritually speaking. We're here, and we're operational. It's truly amazing to us, when we pause to think about it. Six months ago we rolled into town, and now, six months later there's a weekly schedule of ministry happening.

None of this would be possible without all of the support we receive from our brothers and sisters who pray diligently for us and regularly support us. Without all of those parts of the body of Christ, we would absolutely not be able to be here. We would be without help. The mission would fail.

So, we gratefully thank God for all of you who are working hard at your jobs and fully involved in your own lives and ministries, that you take the time to pray and stay in touch and send in your support. You are being used by the LORD in all of the work of the ministry here by doing so.

We truly feel that we are just seeing the very beginning of the work that is in the heart of God for Edmonton with Calvary Chapel. We are excited for what He has in store in the coming weeks and months as we pray and serve and work during the warm months. And our heart's desire is to see more laborers being raised up and sent into the field here to join us in the work, so we can move from being a beachhead to a post, and one day, if God is gracious, a spiritual base from which other works can begin.

Gratefully,
Dejan and Julie <><