Young and in love. With each other and with Jesus. That's how I think of our two friends in an ancient land in modern times. They are striving to reach out to old and new alike in a country that heard the gospel from St. Paul himself. And yet the country of Macedonia has forgotten what the words mean. They have so many Christian terms in their everyday lives but as our friends speak to them about the true gospel message they don't understand. They light candles and give money to "Christian Saints" without any clue as to who they were; they strive to "be good" to be sure of getting into heaven without any idea that God's Only Son has already paid that price and we could never be able to do so; they greet each other at Christmas with "Jesus is born", "truly he is born" and yet have no idea why Jesus came to earth; and so our friends do what they do best - welcome others into their home, run a type of coffee shop, and try to take every opportunity they can to share the wonder of scripture, the joy of salvation and the truth of forgiveness. Pray for Brian and Mandy (and their soon-to-be-born first child) today. And they would want us to pray for their unsaved friends and neighbors - Ivan, Slavitsa, Igor, Irena, Kosta, Kate, and many others. Praise for those who have accepted the gospel message and the beautiful baptismal services in the river. Praise for the health of the baby and the good response by the community to the coffee house (after a brief window smashing!). Praise for these young people who could be home earning lots of money and accumulating wordly wealth who have chosen instead to lay up treasures in heaven!
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