Turkey '06

Dear Friends and Family,

Thank you so much for being a part of our trip to Turkey! It was incredible to experience the hospitality and openness of the Turkish people and to worship with and encourage the small but growing Turkish church. Two members of our team, Beth and Beverly, put on a small medical clinic at the Istanbul Protestant Church, where Timur and Heather Topuz, are leaders. The event ran for four days and was opened up to several churches in Istanbul. It was a great success, as many brought friends and family to receive free vision and hearing screenings and to seek advice for medical problems. The church leadership was encouraged by the progress that was made in establishing a presence in the community.
The rest of us spent most of our time going out into the city and talking to people. Every morning we spent a while praying for the city of Istanbul and that the Lord would guide us to the correct people. Each of us connected with a few Turkish women and we were able to share about our lives and faith as well as learn about their experiences as Turkish women. Julia Horvath and I were paired up for street evangelism and were getting a bit discouraged when we decided to approach a group of three college-aged girls. We asked them how to get to a particular tourist spot and ended up chatting for three hours about culture, religion, and politics, among other things. The girls invited us to visit Buyukada, an island in the Marmara Sea by Istanbul, with them and we readily accepted. We spent a lovely day sightseeing and exchanged e-mail addresses. Please pray that the Lord would work in their hearts through continued communication!
Over the weekend while we were in Turkey, we were able to travel to the smaller city of Eskishehir, to visit the young church plant there. We spent a few days in wonderful fellowship with the two missionary couples and the handful of believers. Our group more than doubled the congregation on Sunday! Please pray for encouragement and protection for the missionaries and believers and for courage for seekers.
The trip was personally very valuable because I was able to see first-hand an example of what ministry among Muslims is like and to make connections with several missionaries. I was encouraged by how the Lord equipped me to face the challenges of a new culture, the language barrier and street evangelism. He used us to bless the faithful workers God has planted there and we came home with a clearer picture of cross-cultural ministry and how we fit into His plan for making His name known in every tribe, tongue, people and nation. We hope to share stories and pictures with you all at a gathering in the near future. I’ll keep you posted!
The day after I returned from Turkey I started my internship with the Muslim ministry at Wyoming Avenue Baptist Church in Philadelphia. I’ve visited the neighborhood mosque several times now to meet Muslim women. I ask for your prayers for wisdom and guidance as I seek to form relationships with these women in the Feltonville community and as I make plans for long-term ministry. I’d love to talk to you about my vision and how I believe the Lord is leading me to serve. I thank you again for making it possible for me to serve Muslims in the name of the one true God.

In Christ,
Melissa

Goodbyes

Today's my last day at the Oasis and it's bittersweet. I'm sad to leave all the friends I've made here and the ministry I've enjoyed so much, but I'm excited about the future. When I get home, I'm planning to expand my Russian vocabulary beyond the 5 or 10 words I picked up here, learn some Farsi, and read everything I can about the cultures I encountered here. I can't say exactly where God is leading me, but I definitely feel this internship has confirmed that He has called and equipped me for long-term cross-cultural ministry. It looks like that will probably involve people from a Muslim background. I've learned and grown in the past 6 weeks, but I'm sure God will also continue to use this time to shape me and my vision for ministry. Thank you so much for your prayers, and please continue to pray for me as I take the next steps.

News

Sad to say, I only have 11 days left here. Some exciting thing have been happening at the Oasis recently, though! Remember Aminat, the Chechen lady I've been helping with German? She's been coming to Coffee Bar for a couple months now, but has always refused to watch the Jesus film because she's a strong Muslim. Last night a few new teenage girls from Chechnya were thrilled to hear that we had a movie in their language and convinced Ami to watch it with them! Please pray that the Lord will continue to work in her heart as she thinks about what she saw. Also, a friend of mine from Pakistan has chosen to follow the Lord Jesus! My team leader, Tom, carefully explained to him the cost of leaving Islam and confirmed that he was willing to pay that cost. His family and friends will likely shun him as an infidel and may even try to kill him. Please pray for him to grow in his faith and to stay strong in opposition. A third friend, a young man from Chechnya, has been hanging around the Oasis for a while now and has watched both the Jesus film in Chechen and The Passion in Russian a dozen times. He keeps bringing new friends to watch the films and seems pretty eager to spend time with the team. Please pray that his interest will turn into genuine faith. God is moving!

Refugee Life

Although the refugees who make it to Austria might have escaped political or religious persecution, they face a pretty tough situation here. Life in the camp is bleak. All they can do is sit and wait- first for their initial interview, then for an answer or a second interview, then for a positive or negative decision from the government, which can take months or even years. They have a place to live, food to eat and a small allowance each month, but the Austrian people for the most part are quite hostile toward the refugees. Anyone who looks foreign is marked as a troublemaker, or even a criminal. The other day a group of police officers stood at the train station here in Traiskirchen all day long demanding to see tickets of passengers getting off the train, imposing 60 Euro fines for not having a ticket. They didn't even try to hide the fact that they were targeting foreigners, particularly African refugees, and also demanded each person's government identification card. I've heard several stories of refugees being arrested and imprisioned for months without trial and without a bit of evidence. Many refugees arrive here hopeful and positive, believing they've reached some kind of promised land where they are safe and can start a new life, but as the weeks go by you see the smiles fade and weariness and disappointment set in. It's wonderful to see their faces light up when we offer them a cup of tea and our company.
Being able to speak German has opened up a lot of opportunities for me. Thursday at Coffee Bar, where refugees come to play games and just hang out, and have the opportunity to watch the Jesus Film in their language, my Chechan friend, Ami, whom I'm helping to learn German, brought a few new friends along. I played checkers and chatted with the 17-year-old Chechan girl who spoke German (and she let me win checkers). She told me that her family had been in Austria one week and had their first interview and were told to come back Monday morning for a second interview. She's afraid of being denied asylum and sent back to Poland, where they were in a refugee camp for 4 or 5 months before they came here, and she said thatif they are sent back to Poland the Russians her family is running from will almost certainly track them down and kill them, like others she knew. Please pray for this family.
I had a very nice time last night visiting with an Armenian/Iranian couple who were forced to leave their lives in Iran because of their faith. I'm learning a bit of Persian (Farsi) and a lot about life as believers in the Middle East.
On another note, the other short termers have left, which makes my living situation a bit lonely. Also, my dad was in a bad car accident a few days ago. He's going to be ok other than a broken bone or two, but it's hard to be away from home right now. Please keep these things in mind as you pray for me. Your prayers are much appreciated!

Kid's Club

This afternoon we had a special event at the Oasis! Rob, another short termer here who's from Saskachewan, Canada, and I had the opportunity to plan a Kids' Program since the usual Kids' Club has been suspended while the team member who normally runs it is away on furlough. We chose the parables of the lost coin and the lost sheep from Luke 15 and the topic "You are precious to God." We didn't expect too many kids since there hadn't been very many around at the other programs, but three little girls came, 2 sisters from Azerbaijan and a 4-year old from Bosnia whose parents are both deaf/mute and they loved it! A few of us acted out the stories while I translated to German, since all three of the girls speak German. They found it especially funny when the Shepherd (Rob) found the lost sheep (team member David)! They made sheep hand puppets and searched for lost coins (edible of course!)The girls and their parents had a fun time out of the refugee camp and hopefully brought something away with them!
Yesterday I visited one of the Chechan refugee families who has been transferred to a nearby town. Christiana, an American team member, and I taught the mom how to make apple pie and she shared a yummy Chechan meal with us. I understand very little Russian, but Christiana is learning it and we got by just fine. I'm learning so much about different cultures and languages, but more importantly I'm learning how to show Christ's love though actions since our verbal communication with the refugees is often so limited.
Thank you so much for your prayers! I'm now tutoring 3 women in German and I'd appreciate prayer for understanding and patience. Please also keep the other short-termers John, Pam and Rob in mind as they finish up their time here next week and apply what they learned to their lives and church communities in Australia and Canada.

A Joyful Noise

This past Sunday I joined the Fellowship of Christian refugees for their worship service, which was an experience I won't easily forget. Their enthusiastic worship and hunger for God reminded me of the precious hope that we all can have in Christ. Despite their circumstances- almost all of the Christian refugees are Nigerians faced with near-hopeless asylum cases in a hostile country- they know that "God is good, all the time." We so quickly forget that the Gospel really has little to do with our physical provision, comfort or even safety. The Lord promises to take our burdens from us, but we are often called to suffer for the Cross. Our hope is in knowing that Christ has conquered sin and death, as I was reminded on Easter weekend as I watched the film "The Passion of the Christ" with this same group. Please pray that other refugees would experience the same hunger for truth in their longing for hope, and that they find their way to the Oasis. Much of what we do here is simply showing love and hospitality to sow seeds in the hearts of these people who have been falsely accused, cheated and neglected. Please also pray for me this Thursday as I travel to a nearby town with Christiana, a long-term team member, to spend time with some Chechan refugee women who were recently transferred from the camp in Traiskirchen, and as I begin helping Ami, a Chechan lady who is still in the camp, learn German. Thank you so much for your prayers- the Lord is working in so many ways and I'll hopefully get to tell you about them soon!

New friends!

After a few days of getting to know my new team and the area I'll be living and working in for the next several weeks, things are starting to pick up! A Nigerian girl about my age, whom I will call Jenny, who is a young believer invited me over to her "pension," a converted hotel the government is using to house the refugees. There I met her Austrian friend Katharina, who has been discipling her, along with Jenny's friend from Afghanistan. Let's call her Fatima. We talked about our families and languages and had a great time that ended with prayer. It's pretty cool to pray with a Muslim for the first time! She seems curious and open, so please pray for more opportunities to share Christ with her. I also went to a local church with Jenny and Katharina for the college-age youth group and tried out my German on some Austrians, who told me I speak with a Germany-German accent instead of the Viennese accent they prefer! Today I met several new refugees from Nigeria, Russia and Palestine at computer cafe. I'll write more later since I have to grab some lunch and get back to the computer cafe! Thanks for your prayers- I can see God working already and I can't wait to see what He has in store!