Blessings through an unexpected hospital visit

    By now I'm sure a lot of people have heard about our illness in Poland. But I wanted to share some of the good things that came out of the sickness. Though it was not in our plan to get sick and to spend time in the hospital I believe it was always a part of God's plan for our trip. 7 from our team of 16 (me being one of them) ended up spending a few days in the hospital which at first was very tough for me to understand. I'm not proud to say this, but I kept thinking the first night I was there, why is it that we've been planning and praying for this trip for over 6 months and now half of us from the camp are sitting here in the hospital helpless when were here to serve, how is this your plan God? 
      It was a huge stretch for me because along with being away from home, understanding no polish with nurses that only understood polish, Elizabeth and I ended up in a separate hospital from the rest of the team. Mike came in one night and he said to me, "Alexis how big is your God, ministry happens everywhere. Look for God in this" So as we went on another day not knowing if/ when they were ever going to let us out I quickly realized this was an experience where God was all I had to lean on. Literally we had nothing with us not knowing how long we'd be staying there but also I had no one there that I would normally lean on to comfort me. God had to be my comforter and my peace. The night Mike came in and told us we would be signed out of the hospital the next day felt like the anticipation of Christmas eve and that's when I was really able to start seeing God in this.
     It started with a huge appreciation for my family and my friends. I also realized that God always has a plan and even when I don't see it or understand it, he knows the details. God's plan is so much better then mine, so he's someone worth putting all our trust in. It was nobody's plan to go to Poland and spend three days in the hospital. But because of it we were all stretched and out of our comfort zone. I learned so much just from being sick in a polish hospital.  
      Another blessing that came out of it was the polish students who were at the camp that ended up in the hospital had to be signed out by their parents in order to go back to camp, so Tyna who is continuing to run younglife in Poland throughout the school year, now knows a lot of the parents she otherwise might not have met. 
     It was totally God's timing when we got sick because we got sick in the middle of the week, so the polish kids had enough taste of camp that most of them wanted to come back even after being in the hospital. If we had gotten sick any earlier most of the kids probably would have went home, and if it was any later we wouldn't have gotten the chance to finish camp all together. 
      The last couple days at camp everyone had an overwhelming amount of love for one another. Both in our team and throughout the camp between the polish teens and leaders as well. We all were so happy to be safe and healthy, together. I learned the value of people this week and I also learned that even when I have doubts God is there, he cannot be put in our boxes of how big he is. I think I can speak for the team in saying it was a stretch for us all but nobody would change a thing that happened. 
-Alexis

I have come to the end of my second mission’s trip of the summer and just like the trip to Romania, this trip to Poland is full of memories, stories, and a new awareness of just how awesome our God really is.  Prior to this second trip I wrote briefly about how it would be significantly different than the first trip.  As I wrote that last entry I thought I was simply trying to prepare the folks at home that the blogs from this team would not be like those from the first team.  In hindsight what I was really saying was, “don’t be disappointed if something big doesn’t happen in Poland because God only works in situations like we had in Romania.  Kid’s lives could only be changed if they were living with host families, fully immersed in the culture, and working with the less fortunate.”  Once again I was putting my God in a small box, and once again He responded by saying “oh yeah, watch this!”

We serve a HUGE God.  As I look back over this trip it is simply amazing to see God’s timing and orchestration.  As a team we worked together from Friday to Wednesday to set up camp, teach English and sports clinics.  We also worked to build relationships with the Polish students – specifically the students we each were drawn to personally.  All of that changed with the introduction of the Noro virus and the Polish hospital.  As roughly half the camp found themselves in the hospital from Wednesday until Friday God proved again that He is bigger than my plans and worthy of my trust.  Our teens in the hospital built relationships with Polish teens in the hospital, while the team still at camp also had to connect with a different set of kids.  There was real bonding and community happening in both locations.  When all 60 of us were finally reunited at camp it was as if we were all family.  We now knew all of the campers and amazingly the Polish students from the hospital wanted to go back to camp rather than home. 

God knew what he was doing.  Had we gotten sick earlier in the week, I think the relationships would not have been as strong or diverse and I believe camp would have been canceled.  Had we gotten sick later in the week, the Polish students would have simply been picked up at the hospital and camp would have ended.  Instead the Polish students pressed their parents to allow them to go back to camp; they wanted to finish out the week even after three days in the hospital.  The timing of God was incredible. 

It was such a blessing working with this team.  Hearing the way’s that God impacted them this week was nothing short of amazing.  To hear our kids share that they learned things like “when I am weak God is strong – He was with me even when I was scared,” or to hear them speak about gratitude, and compassion just proved to me that I have no reason to ever doubt that God can work in any situation. 

Over the past five weeks I have spent 28 days in Europe on teen mission trips.  It has been an incredibly impactful stretch of time for me.  I have learned so much about myself, my teens, and my God.  I believe it’s going to take at least another 28 days to truly process all that I have experienced, but one thing is for sure, I serve a big God, who, despite how often I try, does not allow me to put Him into a box.  I love that my God continues to say “oh yeah?  Watch this!”

  Pastor Mike

Snapshots

Honna and Jackie teaching English class.

Lynn and Alison in English class

Pearce girls at the lake for a time of morning devotions and prayer.

Reunions!

Bonding God’s Way

             People typically like to acknowledge that God is in control, and that His will is accomplished despite us and the circumstances we find ourselves in. But, on the other hand, I often wonder if they believe such a concrete statement that demands so much faith. Take, for example, the recent events during our Polish Young Life Camp. Roughly half the camp, including half the American teams contracted, to the best of our and doctor’s knowledge, the noro virus and ended up in the hospital. Yet, this experience produced a rapid bond between the camp leaders, Americans and Polish teens. Now, what is actually important to stress as to why this happened is not the drastic nature of the illness, that some people threw up anywhere from one to nine times. Neither is the fact that many were exhausted from being ill and going to the hospital, where they had very little sleep in an unfamiliar setting. Also of little actual importance is how tired many left at camp were from being up all night, transporting people back and forth from camp to hospital, and translating for and visiting those ill. Certainly, for those at camp, where I was, the day after the virus struck was quite a downer, as people were running on little energy and appetites were slim. Furthermore, it must have been extremely difficult for those in the hospital, while receiving multiple IV’s, sharing rooms with strangers and being given little information about when they would be released or what sickness they were infected with.

            Ultimately, what was so disheartening, yet of utmost importance, was the separation. The separation produced bonding that was evident and heartwarming. The members of the American team who were left behind were also able to take more of an upfront collaborative role in camp activities and planning, instead of just supporting the Poland Young Life leadership team, which was the original intention of our mission trip. Regardless, we all came together: with Kristy and her daughter Audrey, whose husband Dave, the camp speaker, was in the hospital; Marta, who was tireless in her efforts to be at the hospital with those sick!; Marietta; Michael; Jack; Jackie and Lynn—they all helped make camp as normal as possible. English classes even resumed, the day after the virus struck, with some changes of course; but, was still very successful also. I, especially, formed new relationships with people I had not taken the time to meet properly.

Ironically, I only came to realize this bond and the importance of the separation when those at the hospital started returning. Everyone was so glad to see normality return in the form of a familiar face, someone they’d actually only known for three or four days at best. It was like a reunion, as if we had left Poland for a year and returned the next to help out again at the 2^nd annual Polish Young Life camp and were reuniting with old friends. Groups ran to greet returnees and hearty embraces were exchanged. We heard stories of how supportive those at the hospital were towards each other, Polish and Americans, who were in the same room, or not, and how they bonded together from their common predicament. They did not feel so isolated, because they knew they were not alone.

            I believe the deepest longing of our hearts is to be in relationship, and the relationships we form with people around us reflect our need for relationship with our Heavenly Father. We are not alone when we have each other, and more importantly when we acknowledge that God is always near us. Then, to suggest that God is in control in the midst of seemingly chaotic situations is not such a stretch. He is the Creator, and He is creative, beyond our imaginations. Therefore, when things do not go as planned, we must acknowledge that God knew the course our lives would take and had a creative plan for us—for our betterment, for unity, for our bonds and relationships that point back to Him.

David Shewan

Going Out On a Limb

Wow, what an experience it has been so far! And I can honestly say that with a big smile on my face. I cannot begin to describe the joy and wonder that has come from this week. We have all built strong relationships with leaders and children alike, and I for one cannot wait to come back to Poland for another Young Life camp!!

And while there has been much joy to be had in the days that we have been here, it was also quite apparent that we would be stretched here as well. But being stretched is not always a bad thing. In fact, what once caused apprehension and even fear for me now is a source of the joy that I have experienced. Earlier in the week, Mike had told the group that whenever he went out on a limb for the Lord, he was greeted with lifelong experiences and memories, all while helping to further the kingdom. In these past few days, especially with our recent trip to the hospital, I have really taken it more to heart. In truth, this entire trip has been a gamble. This summer camp is Young Life's first attempt at creating a base in Poland. All of us who are from Pearce, don't know Polish, and so any form of communication, especially without a translator, is an even bigger gamble. But with great risks come great rewards. I have made so many wonderful memories here, all by taking those chances. And the more chances I take the more rewards I seem to reap. In many ways, we may be some of the first tangible examples of a Christ driven life, leading by example.

So it comes without fear when we are faced with different and difficult decisions, because we are reminded that God is in control, and as long as we continue to follow Him, He will make our paths straight. Earlier today, Mike and I snuck out of the hospital to go to the McDonalds across the way, in order to buy milkshakes for everyone in the hospital. I won't forget any of the faces that I saw as we handed them out, but especially the face of young Eva, the youngest girl at 10 in the camp. Her eyes lit up and she was grinning from ear to ear, and I knew that the risk had been worth it. This was why I was supposed to come to Poland. To get sick and go to the hospital, to buy milkshakes to hand out to the children. To show them love in as simple a gesture as that. 

As we wait to hear word for our release, and the latest rumors on when that could be, I think back to the very first night in the hospital. I can honestly only remember despair, and I mean that in the fullest sense of the word. No longer having hope, lying next to two men who only spoke Polish, and nurses who couldn't even pronounce my own name. Just this utter sorrow of being confined here for an unknown amount of time. But looking back now, it's nice to know that those moments were fleeting, and I have experienced much joy since then. Tonight, as we have all been reunited with our own team, as well as all of the Polish teens, we are having a festive banquet to celebrate. Until next time friends and family!!!!

In Christ,

Sean Hardy

Prayers Answered

Just a quick post this morning.  The Poland Team will blog sometime today but thought you would all want to know that the Pearce Team is all back together this morning at camp.  Thank you for your prayers.- Karen

A note from Allan

To everyone reading this back home, note that most of us are feeling much better today and we are going forward with the camp even though some of us are still in the hospital. The whole situation is a terrible and unfortunate thing but we cannot lose sight on what the Lord has planned for the kids at camp and the plans he has for each person on the team. When we were hit with the virus we were all sad because we thought that we would lose the momentum and excitement of camp and in a way we did lose some of it. It reminded me of John 10:10,

 “The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.”

 The enemy was certainly trying to steal our joy and trying to kill any motivation we had coming into camp and destroy any kind of spiritual relationships that were built during this week. What I love about God the most though is he takes bad situations and turns them into something wonderful. When I was at the hospital I got a chance to spend even more time with the teens that I had been spending the week with and I was able to spend even more time with other members of the team that I didn’t even know that well.

I praise God for the opportunities he has given me this week and all the other team members to show God’s love to the polish teens. We may not save any lives while we are here but we can certainly plant the seeds and let God continue to work in their hearts and continue to work in our own.

Allan