You often hear us say, that we're about 3 things here at Eagle: Discipleship, Missions and the Next Generation. As our team leaves for Bosnia this week and our student team is in the Dominican Republic, I've been thinking more about Missions and why it's so important to us.
There's the obvious answer that Jesus told us to care about missions and "make disciples of all nations" (Matthew 28:18). And if Jesus said something should be important, then by all means, we need to make sure it's prioritized! But how do we internalize that?
Let's put it in perspective a little. There are, currently, approximately 700 Christians in Bosnia. 700 people who know Jesus in a country with a population of 3.5 million—that's .02% of the population. At Eagle, on any given Sunday, we have about 700 people here infants through adult—1.1% of the population of just Boone County and we're certainly not the only church in Boone County!
Can you imagine? It's so hard for me to wrap my head around this reality.
This week we're sending a team to Bosnia to work with Petula Myers and they will have the opportunity to experience this reality in person. I, personally, am excited to hear about their time in Bosnia and to further have my heart broken for people who don't know Jesus. As Justin said on Sunday, missions isn't just about then and there it's about here and now.
So here and now, we're sending a team to Bosnia and that's exciting! The Bosnia team has put together a list of ways we can be praying for them each day. Would you pray for them with us?
Prayer list:
Thursday, July 5 - The families we're leaving behind. That their weeks will be smooth and all the children will stay healthy.
Friday, July 6 - Logistics of travel will be without complication. Sarah is not wanting to miss God’s voice during the logistic planning of the trip/camp.
Saturday, July 7 - We are spending the day prepping the camp. A great integration of us and others in Bosnia that will be helping with the camp. We can find our needed supplies in Bosnia.
Sunday, July 8 - We're able to adjust to the time change and work well as a team. We are visiting two Bosnian churches. Pray for more people in Bosnia to desire to know more about Jesus.
Monday, July 9 - The first day of camp. That we can cross the language barriers and reach the children. That we can adapt our schedule/ideas to have a fun camp for the kids.
Tuesday, July 10 - We can find a way to bless Petula and team while there. Pray that our prayer walks each morning are beneficial.
Wednesday, July 11 - We will be working in the evening at Izvor to help teach English to adults. Pray that we're able to connect to this group of people. John does this kind of work with refugees in the United States. He is waiting for God to show him next steps with this.
Thursday, July 12 - 2 weeks after we leave, another Alliance missions team is coming to lead a camp. Pray that we can be a good foundation for their camp.
Friday, July 13 - Today is Joy’s birthday. We hope to celebrate her and that each team member finds a different dimension of God this week.
Saturday, July 14 - We are sightseeing today. Anna is still learning so much right now. This is her first experience outside of North America. Pray that God uses this opportunity to show her how big and beautiful His creation is.
Sunday, July 15 - Returning home. Safe travels. Rest and smooth transition into our home lives this next week. Kerri has been blessing our Eagle Kids department. May she have new energy for this.
I am so excited for the Eagle team to arrive in Sarajevo! It has been several years since we’ve had a team from Eagle, so I’m thrilled for us to be renewing and rebuilding our partnership. We’ve already registered a full camp and the families are really excited to start their week of camp. This is always a great time for us to get to know families better and to meet new families that will attend our classes next year. I also hope that the team’s time here will give fresh wind to the Eagle/Bosnia partnership (going in to it’s 18th year!) and that in the coming years we will see many more trips and lots of interns joining us in our work. An extra special part of this trip is that my niece, Lilly, we also be here to work with the team. It's an amazing time to have my whole “family” working together in the country I’ve come to love so dearly! - Petula