SLOVAKIA!!

This is our team that went to Slovakia for the last two weeks! We had such a great time with each other, the slovak team, and the slovak campers....we trust the Lord is doing amazing things that only He can do!!

okay, so this describes the 36 hours of traveling to get to Preshov, Slovakia! I don't know if you can tell too well, but my feet would barely fit in my shoes. We traveled two hours by bus, one hour by plane, then 9 1/2 hours by plane, then two train rides about 1 hour each, then a five hour train ride....then another hour and half bus ride the next day to reach the camp! Exhausting:-)
Yes, this is a living mouse the slovak girls caught in their room and brought to us for laughs!

There's no way to put all the beautiful pictures I took on the blog....this is just a random one....the old architecture was the most beautiful to me....If you look closely you can see an old castle on top of a mountain....

This is at the camp we helped lead...it was much like an American camp....loud music, dancing, games, sports. For two hours in the morning we, the Americans, would teach English. This is a picture of my English class. This was one of my favorite parts of the camp. The class really opened the door for many discussions about the Lord. It was amazing how the Lord would just lead our class time right into talking about personal relationships with Him.
Our class won the sports for the week:-) Every time we would win a game, we would yell "Roll Tide Roll!" :-) The first day I showed them pictures of my family and things we enjoyed to do....they were amazed at the pictures of the Alabama football games:-)
Denisa and I!!! This is a girl from the Slovak leadership team! I miss you, Denisa!
Dancing:-)
The very cool Band :-)
Donno and I....
The Winners of Funny Bone!!!
Laughs....everyone thought it was hilarious Tomas was picking a pregnant girl up for the picture...

He didn't actually eat the lizard, I promise!!

Some girls in my class.....Myshka and Stanka.
One day at camp we got to go to a little town and tour some museums and such...Barika, Micheal, and I.....
My girls....
Tina and I

Tomas

This is the night after camp....Becca and I stayed with two of the girls from the Slovak leadership team...Anka and Ja Ja. It made me laugh b/c it was such a girl's night....I guess that's the same everywhere....
coke, chips, candy, and a movie:-)

This is the town of Preshov...all of the campers are from this area...or at least close by....I stayed just down the street from this "downtown" picture...

At the bus stop after a very very long walk!!!!
Ken, Mike, and I. Ken is the youth pastor from our church....Mike is the American Missionary...I think Mike's tummy even beats mine:-)! hahah! We are on the top of a mountain....then on top of a castle ruin! It was beautiful!
Veronica and I!
I thought these would be pretty cool maternity photos!

We spent one day in Vienna...the architecture was astounding......


Thank you guys for all the prayers!

It is so wonderful to see the Slovak young people get so excited about what the Lord is doing in their lives, towns, and in their country. I know the Lord is really using the Slovak leadership team in so many ways. I will be praying for you guys as you continue to follow God's desires for your lives. You all are such an encouragement to me!

The Lord taught us all so much while we were there in Slovakia. Personally He taught me things about myself...things about Himself...and things about others. The Lord laid several things on my heart while I was there and since I have been home, but one thing I would like to share is how much opportunity we have as His children. Slovakia was a wonderful opportunity to go and share Christ's love with Slovak teens. But the opportunities don't stop there. There's so many opportunities for me right here in Alabama and in the states to share Christ's love. People down the street, kids across from the church...all over the place. It was great to travel 36 hours to share God's love, but we can all just walk down the street and share that exact same love. God is such an amazing God to serve. With Him, the opportunities are endless. The possibilities are endless. His love is endless. What the Slovaks need is the very same thing our people in America need- Christ. You could see it in the eyes and faces of the people there...and you can see it in the eyes and faces of the people here....they're reaching, searching for something....

There was a young girl on a bus one night in Austria, Vienna who looked like she was an addict of some sort. She was losing her hair, very skinny, a little shriveled, dark eyes, and some sort of cigarette behind her left ear. As I saw her I began to look around at the other people on the bus....it was such a picture of Satan's desire for mankind. Satan is out to destroy lives. The difference in the lives of the Slovak Christians and in the lives of others were undeniable. Christ wants to set us free. Satan wants to destroy. Christ wants to give us hope. Satan tries to take it away. The sacrifices and lives lived for Christ is worth every moment. As "Pops" said Sunday at church...it costs more to not follow Christ than it does to follow Him.

** To see more photos and read a bit of what Mike, the American missionary, has to say about the trip go to : http://www.pray4mike.com/ then click on blog on the top of the page. Scroll down and you'll see a couple of pics of our team......