Last weekend, we had the chance to join Rocco and his family at an all church day near Schweinfurt, Germany. During their 30+ years in ministry here, Rocco and his wife Karoline have planted three churches. This church in Schweinfurt is one of these churches from before their time in Jena. Each year, they hold this all-church day at a retreat center, and they always invite the Panepintos to come back and join them. So, this time, we got to come along too! It was a great chance to practice some German (there's something about meeting a whole new group of people that gives you a little more boldness to try it out, I think). But mostly it was great to see a bit of the legacy of Rocco and Karoline. They started this church in Schweinfurt from the ground up, and now, it's a vibrant, relatively large for Germany standards, community of believers. In fact, the reason the Panepintos left is because the church got to the point where it could support itself, and they moved on to another area that was in huge need. During part of the day, Rocco shared what has been going on in Jena the last year, and Elyse and I actually sang a song! We had already sung together once for the English/German service last Sunday, but we didn't know they were going to ask us to sing there too until just before we went on! I wanted to share two stories from this trip that really hit home to me once again, why we're doing what we're doing. Maybe they can help give you a better picture of the situation here too.
First, a short story about a conversation that Elyse and I had with one of the church members. Rocco had already told us some about the church and about how great it was to see these people grow up. So many of them were teenagers when they started the church. They grew up, and Rocco married them, and was there when their babies were born, and now he comes back to see these people's kids as teenagers! While we were talking to one of the ladies from the church, she was asking us what our plans were for the future. When we told her we wanted to come back to Germany and help start churches some day, she was so excited. Of course I'm excited about people from the US deciding to come to Germany, she said, look at all these families who's lives have been dramatically changed because of Rocco's decision to come, including my own! I've heard a few times, that Germans - even some German Christians - don't like the idea that people come to their country as missionaries. Maybe they feel like those who come are condescending or that they come because they think the Christians in Germany aren't good enough. Well, that's not the case at all, and this lady was a great reminder to me of why we are doing what we're doing.
Second, I story that Rocco told about something that happened in Jena - There was a man Rocco met one time who had been a total atheist, during the time of the communist GDR in the East. This man was diagnosed with brain cancer, and the doctors gave him no hope of recovery. As a last ditch effort, they said they could try to do surgery to remove the tumor, but there was almost zero chance that he would even survive the operation, and it was almost guaranteed that even if he did happen to live, he would be in a coma and never come out. In despair and in the face of the end of his life, this man turned to God. At least, he wanted to, but he didn't know anything about God. All he could think to do was to go to a church - maybe God would hear him in there. He asked God to help him - to heal him, or to bring him safely through this operation. The day came, the tumor was removed, and the man lived! His face was disfigured and he lost one eye, but he lived to have a normal life. He believed God had saved him and was always thankful, but for him it was thanks to an "unknown God." This story was much more dramatic when Rocco was telling it in person :) , but that's OK because as amazing as that is, the real point is this: One day, 20 or 30 years after this event, this man happened to run into Rocco in the town center with his book table. Seeing some of the signs and the books that Rocco had out, the man ran up to him and asked urgently, "do you believe in God!?" Of course Rocco said yes, and he explained to him that he was a Christian. The man told him the story about how he miraculously survived the cancer, and was so thankful to be able to talk to Rocco. For his entire life, he had been thanking this God that he knew had saved him, but he had NEVER met anyone else who believed in God and could actually explain more about Him. That day, his faith was able to go from faith in a mystery god to faith in the God of the Universe.
I hope these stories help give a better picture of the situation here in Germany. There are definitely bright spots, and God is working and changing lives. The fact still is though, that overall, it is a dark place. Especially here in the east, atheism is the default mindset, and people of any kind of faith are the exception to the rule. Please continue to pray for us as we learn what it's like to minister here, and for Rocco and the church as they reach out to this city. Speaking of the church, I promised some news, so even though this is a lost post already, here it is! - After two years of searching and trying, the Hausgemeinde am Jenzig has finally found some rooms they can rent to use as a church building! This will be a huge blessing to them, as they've totally outgrown the space in the Panepintos' home. We are excited to be here to help them as they get set up and settled in!
