Hello Rich,

Thanks so much for your prayers while in Poland. Words cannot describe our experience and all God did while we were there.

There were 21 ladies at the Pastor's Wives Conference and 33 at the Church Growth Conference. We had God ordained opportunities to minister to several women and also their husbands. The conferences went better than expected.

The buzz around the camp during the conferences was from the men saying things like, "Wow, it sounds like our women are getting really good things from the conference and I want to hear also." We witnessed a woman talking with another one to deal with some hurt from the past, another woman sharing she had enough material to share with the ladies in her church for six months, and others who said this conference was well worth the time to come.

They were surprised and excited to have some of the material already translated into polish since there is so few things out there for them to use. One woman who is considered by the denomination to be very godly and who also does translation work with a publishing company has agreed to translate the SALT material (Victorious Christian Living International) so the churches in Poland can use it.

They were overwhelmed with the gifts we brought them each time we shared a lesson. It was like Christmas for them every day and what fun it was to give to them and receive the smiles on their faces.

We met and talked at length with a pastor and his wife who live close to Prague. Their story is amazing. His name is Tomak and he was very impressed with what we were sharing with the ladies.

I also talked with Jacek (Presbyter of the Evangelical Christian Churches of Poland) and he said his wife was very excited and blessed personally by the material we were sharing.

We spent lots of time with a couple (Daniel and Edyta) from the Baltic Sea area. They are good friends with Kris and Agnes (Secretary of the Evangelical Christian Churches of Poland his wife, who is a school teacher and English teacher). We had the opportunity the second day we were there to sit at breakfast with Agnes and Edyta, hear their hearts and minister to them. That time started a life long relationship.

After the conference we spent many hours with Kris and Agnes that was absolutely wonderful. They are really hurting right now and God touched their hearts in special ways.

We also had the opportunity to attend a small, but very influential church in a village on Sunday. I (Laurie) spoke and sang two songs and Tammy shared her testimony. Kris preached the sermon. We cried most of the service as we felt very humbled by the Lord and the people who attended. They loved on us and we will have those memories etched in our minds forever.

The night before we left we had a significant conversation with Kris and Agnes about what the denomination is looking at for the future and what their needs are regarding personal discipleship and training. We shared with them some material we have and what we do to train leaders and laypeople in the church to mentor and counsel others.

They have asked if we would come back in a year and bring our husbands so they could teach the men and we could teach the women. Tammy and I didn't hesitate to say YES!!! Poland has stolen our hearts and we will be keeping in touch with our new friends, Agnes and Etyda on a regular basis.

We praise God for the connection He made with you so we could have this opportunity to be blessed beyond what we ever imagined.

God bless you,
Laurie Southwick
Calvary Community Church, Phoenix, Arizona