Fourteen years ago on a sweet, spring day in April, I landed in London and traveled to Oxford with my daughter BreAnna so that we could start work at a retreat house. It was the first stop on a journey of following the Lord to reach the lost in Europe. After a year in Oxford, we drove to Berlin where we started a ministry called, "To The Streets" and did many years of street evangelism.
Now, I am leaving and returning to my home-land which is bitter-sweet. The other day I walked through Alexander Platz and got a little choked up as I recalled the years of evangelism and wondered if I would ever return. Then I thought that I would write a blog and share some of the Highlights and some of the Hard times.
Upon our arrival in Berlin, (which was also in April) the Lord supernaturally arranged a meeting with a young man named Arnold Pust who was preaching the gospel every Friday night (mostly alone) at Potsdammer Platz. We joined his ministry and learned so much from Arnold. Our small team passed out hundreds of tracs and took turns proclaiming the gospel. We met Nari from Albania (who joined not long after we arrived). He had one leg, one arm and one eye but he never let his handicap stop him. He preached with us faithfully every Friday night and always drew a crowd. He was a great inspiration to me. We met Chuck & Della Magnet who faithfully came every Friday night with their four children in tow. Chuck went on to help start and lead the Burn 24-7 in Berlin which we also actively took part in. And we met another missionary, Rachel who was from our home state of Washington! She ended up moving in with Bre and I and we became life-long friends.
One hot summer night, after sharing the gospel at Potsdammer Platz, Rachel, Bre and I jumped on our bikes for the ride home. It had been sweltering hot that day and we had summer dresses on. As we peddled along, rain drops started to fall which quickly turned into buckets of rain along with lightning and thunder. BreAnna suddenly started singing opera at the top of her lungs! She said, "I always wanted to sing opera in the rain!" Who could resist? Rachel and I joined in, singing silly opera and laughing the whole way home. That section of Berlin we always rode through is beautiful at night with the street lights shinning down on white statues and how I loved gazing at the Berlin Cathedral which was especially magnificent at night. It is a Berlin memory I will never forget.
Some of our Potsdammer Platz crew from left to right:
BreAnna, Chuck, Arnold, Nari, Rachel and Viola
We also met Jeff Serio on those Friday nights at the Platz with Arnold. It was as if the Lord caused a perfect storm to converge with three American families ascending into Berlin at roughly the same time and each starting our own ministries. Jeff was like a father to BreAnna and I and took us under his wing. Once he started European Initiative, he began bringing teams from all over the United States to Berlin and our little cafe in Friedrichshain. Countless teams accompanied us to Boxhagener Park where we shared the love of Jesus to the drug-addicts and alcoholics who made the park their home. Jeff and Barb remain close friends to this day and we can't thank the Lord enough for sending them to Europe!
Meeting BreAnna's future husband and evangelist partner was a highlight. Thilo brought worship to our ministry and became one of our biggest cheer-leaders as we struggled on to reach the lost. I will never forget some of our wonderful worship nights in der Garten, our cafe. We sang with local Muslim children who came in; we worshiped with Christians all over Berlin and we welcomed the lost hoping that the music would draw them to Jesus.
Worship in der Garten (our cafe).
When the people who lived on the street where our cafe was located, had a festival to celebrate their years of Squatting, we decided to join the celebration. We moved all the furniture in our cafe out to the street (which was closed to traffic for the event) and we worshipped from morning to night, for two days, with different worshippers. I'll never forget when two men came walking to us from the festival and sat down to listen to our music. They had stunned looks on their faces and then came to me and said, "We see light here. We never felt anything like this! There is darkness down there (as they pointed down the street) and we feel as if we walked from darkness into light." And that was Berlin, a city of such deep darkness that the contrast of Jesus was often palplable.
Traveling though Europe for two years in our tiny motor home was a highlight. Not even thinking or planning which month to go out on the road - it was another APRIL when we left Berlin to travel around Europe. I feel a deep stirring in my soul when I think of all the little churches we ministered to, full of people with hungry hearts. We made friends all over Europe, people that truly became family. Luke 18:29 was a promise that became reality to us: "Jesus said, I assure you that everyone who has given up house or wife or brothers or parents or children, for the sake of the Kingdom of God, will be repaid many times over in this life, and will have eternal life in the world to come."
In Denmark we literally ran out of money. We went to a grocery store and spent the last we had on some milk and bread and when we came out of the store a clerk was hauling fresh fruits and vegetable out to carts for anyone to take because they were past the sale date. We had never seen anything like it, nor since! We loaded up with potatoes, broccoli, squash and apples! It was a Kings feast! And at the end of that month of not knowing where our next dime would come from a church gave us 1000 euros! We had not made our need known and that church was very small and no one was rich. It was our miracle from the Lord which humbled us and increased our faith exponentially.
And lastly our prophetic post-card ministry will always be a highlight to me. BreAnna pretty much came up with the idea which was to ask the Lord what we should put on each card and then paint a picture or scene to go along with the words. An example would be: "I AM the river of Life and no man who comes to Me will ever thirst again." We might paint a picture of water pouring down out of heaven and then write the words on top of the picture. We would then lay about 10 postcards face down on a table, each card different and hang a sign to draw people to the table such as, "Free Post-cards with a word from Jesus for you!" It was so successful - the drawing of people to our table - and the open doors that the cards created to share the gospel. God revealed Himself to so many that we went on with this ministry for many years. I praise the Lord for His amazing initiatives and creativity to share the gospel.
Prophetic postcard table in Denmark where it all began
Loneliness was one of the hardest battles I faced on the mission field. Sometimes darkness would overwhelm me and I would wonder what I was doing in Berlin and who did I think I was and I often felt so alone. It was hard being 50-something among a demographic of 20-30 year olds. But always and ever I pressed in to the Lord and He always encouraged and carried me when I couldn't walk. Later I would learn that when I was completely alone - He was most able to work through me and use me! When I was weak and alone, He somehow brought amazing evangelistic opportunities to me. What a great God! He uses everything in our lives to teach us.
Being misunderstood or even criticised by other Christians for doing street evangelism was hard. No one likes to evangelise. It is hard, but we believed (and believe) the biblical mandate is to be straight-forward and just share the gospel. We were seed-planters and planting is often hard as there is no visible reward (or glory) but it took awhile to realise that we deserve no glory and should not seek for glory - as that desire was hidden deeply in our flesh. Now, through His training we are happy for Jesus to receive ALL the Glory and to give that to Him who deserves it.
The death of my son in Berlin was the hardest struggle of all. He lost his battle with drugs and died from an accidental over-dose. The "What - if's" were the hardest. What if I had never gone to the mission field; what if I had done this or that differently? Yet, the years in Berlin were honestly the best and closest that Bre, Gabe and I ever had together. Oh, the wonderful adventures that we had! The beautiful songs Gabe & Bre wrote together and the deep, intimate sharing of our lives together was the best gift of all. Those Berlin days, together, will always remain in my heart.
So, now on to the next journey which is now similar to the last and remarkably, it will be another April! When BreAnna and I drove in our little car from England to Berlin we had no idea where we would live or what kind of ministry we would embark upon. And now as I sell all my furniture and pack up boxes to ship to my next stop which is North Carolina, I once again have no idea what kind of ministry I will have, what I will do in the long term and where I will live.
I don't know what the future holds but I do know WHO HOLDS THE FUTURE! And He says, "For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope." Jeremiah 29:11
