concert in Lahti

Here are some images from our first annual Lahti Christmas Concert which was held in the Trio mall. We had an opportunity to meet many new people and even some old friends who currently reside in Lahti. It was a great way to introduce our church to the community.

Greater Grace Lahti!

more photos from Istanbul

a quick stop: Berlin, Poland

Here's some photos from a recent trip that I took to Berlin, Germany visiting our Greater Grace church there. We had a meeting with over ten teens and young adults and also a church service on Sunday morning. These photos are mostly from a quick missions trip that we took with a group from the church to Slubice, Poland, a city on the German border. Our church in Berlin is very important and a real beacon of light in a dark society.

back in Turkey

I decided to spend a few weeks with our church here in Istanbul, Turkey as we finish up the sixth semester of the intensive bible school. Last night we had a Thanksgiving celebration with Turks, Iranians, Azeris, Nigerians, Finns, and even some Americans in attendance. It was a special time thinking about all that God has done in our individual lives and also the work that He has done and continues to do in the Middle East. We are so thankful for our bible school here, our students, teachers, and the movement of the Spirit in the hearts of people.

pictures from Lahti

We had a limited time on the streets this Saturday in the nearby city of Lahti. We asked God to give us one person who was really seeking Him, and He led us to a young man in dire straits. He has spent most of his life in trouble and was already in a juvenile prison at the age of 9. He is now in his twenties and he is looking for a way out... Or should we say, the Way in.

open Lahti

I enjoyed seeing this phrase posted on a billboard outside the city where we have been ministering weekly over the past several months. I'm not sure whether it struck me more as an imperative or indicative statement. I like to think of it as both. We want God to "Open Lahti". Our hope is that His Word would run swiftly through this city, touching and impacting the lives of the precious souls residing within its borders. Just in the past few months we have seen that it is "Open Lahti". There has been many long conversations with people who seem hungry to hear more of this message of radical Grace and the Finished Work of Christ.

We are now in the process of looking for a place to have services. We already have a time and place set for our first annual Lahti Christmas concert. Let's pray that it will continue to be an "Open Lahti".

Lahti

Our team has been in Lahti almost every Saturday this fall. We have been amazed at the response of the people in this city. Every person we have approached has been willing to give us their time and listen to the words of Grace. It brings great joy to see how God is constantly preparing us for others, and others for us. We spent 15 minutes or so conversing with a young Finnish man, 23 years old, who gave us his number and is looking forward to spending more time with our team in the future. We had multiple connections during the day with other people who shared a similar openness to the gospel. We are continually praying and looking for a place where we can meet weekly. God is doing a great work in Lahti. Thanks for your prayers and support.

return

After spending over a month in the States, I have now returned to Finland to enjoy another season of mission-work here in this great country. I can't say I even consider it "work" though it does come with an expense of energy and time. It is a life that we have been graciously given by our Father: to do the will of Him who has sent us. What a privilege! We are in the way and the Lord is leading us. God is leading us specifically to people, people who need Christ and a new framework of thinking.

This semester we are looking forward to expansion in our Bible school here in Helsinki and the growth of our new work in Lahti. Pray that God would give us people there, broken people. The message of Grace will transform their lives and the fellowship of the community of Christ will give them a spiritual home here on earth.

small things

A couple weeks ago a group of us from Helsinki headed west to a small town in the countryside of Finland called Yläne. We have a man there from our church in Turku who conducts a Bible study in the local library every week. He invited us to bring a group of people to play soccer with them and have a few bible studies throughout the weekend. We had an amazing time and got to meet new people who showed up at our meetings. Small towns, small groups of people, but we are a part of God's Great Work. Thank you Lord!

The first two pictures shown here are of a group of young people whom we met during our time of evangelism in Yläne.

final days

Heading back to Finland on Friday, it's been an amazing time. The meetings have been powerful. Tonight we spoke on how Christ delivers us from a shallow, self-centered life and gives us depth in His love, people in exchange for our lives (Isa. 43:4) The room was full, very encouraging time. Of course we know that the devil hates this work and he loves to "flex his muscles". His attacks are very timely, subtle, and strange. Thank God, we have overcome him...let's live in that victory. Pray for Turkey.

in Istanbul

Three days ago in Helsinki, the idea of being in Turkey was very far from my mind. However, certain circumstances, along with the leading of God, have brought me here once again. God is really an unpredictable Shepherd. He constantly leads us and provides for us, but always in the most unusual ways. God's hand is on our lives, and His work is supernatural.
I will most likely be here in Istanbul for about a week. During this time it is so encouraging to be with our Bible College students and be apart of the team here. Keep this important work of God in your prayers.

May in July

We just concluded our annual Youth Camp here in Helsinki. We had a team of over 10 youth leaders and 30 teens from ages 13-18. It was an amazing time watching the Lord do a deep work in the hearts of the campers as well as the leaders. We heard great messages from our youth leaders and our guest speaker, Pastor Matt May from Baltimore, MD, USA. We expect to see great spiritual fruit born out of this weekend.

fisher of men

Here are some photos from this past week. We had Pastor Brian Lange (Head of Church Operations in Greater Grace Church in Baltimore) visiting us. He was our guest speaker in our annual Men's Seminar and he also spoke in other events we held in our church during the week. What an amazing man of God, his impact here will bear fruit for sure. Thank you Pastor Brian.

The guy on the left...

Converted