We have been back in Warsaw for about 3 hours now. We had a fantastic week in Sopron, Hungary for our annual Christian Associates staff conference. This was our first one since the summer of 2005, so we were very excited to get there this year. First, we had a terrific time driving down there. We stayed for one night in the mountains of southwestern Poland (to which I had never been) in a town called Ustron. While asking for directions, our family was invited to a "garden party" at a restaurant/pub. So after finding our hotel (driving halfway up a mountain) and settling in, we headed back down the mountain for some food. I sampled a bean stew called grochowka (gro-hoove-kuh). Absolutely fantastic! Renata said it was the best she ever had too. I like food.
The next day, after breakfast, we headed back down the mountain and into the Czech Republic (normally just called Czech over here. Sort of like saying "France" rather than "Republic of France"), then Slovakia, then Austria, then Hungary.
It was a really refreshing, rejuvenating, relaxing week (the three R's). It always feels great to be with people that are doing the same thing as you and are often dealing with many of the same life and ministry issues for that reason.
Greg Boyd really challenged us on the fundamentals of how we act towards the world around us and therefore how we do ministry. You can listen yourself to some of the talks we had by clicking here .
It was encouraging for us also in sharing with others what is going on in Warsaw. I told Renata that I was getting excited listening to myself talk about it all. I was thinking "wow! this is pretty cool stuff that's going on." We felt very affirmed by those we talked with.
It was a fantastic week for Kaleb in Kids Club. He was there 3 times a day on most days. A group of volunteers (mainly high school and college age) came over from Maryland to look after our kids while we were in sessions. They were terrific!! We never worried about whether he was having a good time or whether he was taken care of. We also knew that he was receiving a good dose of biblical learning. Each day had a different story and scripture they would work from (Good Samaritan, Samson, etc.).
So the week is over. We ended sessions on Friday night, packed up yesterday morning and headed for the Austrian border. We stayed in Ustron again last night and then finished the drive home this morning and afternoon. We are glad to be home although we already miss our friends. At least now our kids won't be waking up at 5:30am cuz they're sleeping in the same room. Separate rooms. Divide and conquer. maybe we can get a bit more rest now too.
