Update from The Evangelical Theological Seminary in Osijek

 Just a quick update: The fall semester has just begun at the seminary and Jeremy has the pleasure of having 15 students in the classroom studying the New Testament! 

Croatia, Serbia and Bosnia and Herzegovina are all represented. But there are also several Roma students, a student from Nepal and two Croats who grew up in Germany but decided to come back to Croatia to study theology. 

Historically the Evangelical Theological Seminary in Osijek has been a hub for students throughout central Europe to be equipped to pastor, teach and serve in various capacities in the local church. This year is an exciting continuation of that tradition.

Camps, God and Neighbor

Petra here. On the last day of Family Camp, one participant said that camp was like a small picture of heaven. The coment made me smile because I've had that same thought myself many times. I often hear statements like 'Why can't the camp last longer?' or 'Why can't it be the way it is at home?' A student once asked me if it's possible to live like this all the time because it seems too perfect? I told her that I think this is a small foretaste of something even better.

For 50 years, those of us who serve and participate in camps, along with numerous who came before us, have been able to taste that small part of what awaits us in eternity. There are certainly many different factors that cause camps to leave such a strong impression: praising God together through songs, serving in the city, studying the Word, going for walks, the sincere joy of swimming in the lake, encouraging conversations, changed lives, homecooked food, etc. 

But I would say that there is something else - our neighbor. Camps give us a unique opportunity for our large world to shrink a bit for at least one week while our understanding of our neighbor expands. Through all these years, campers in Orahovica have had the opportunity to be with people from different cities and countries, different world views, different social status. Some children have had the opportunity to befriend a person with Down syndrome for the first time at the camp. Others made friends with Roma children for the first time or met children who live in a foster family. 

Last year, in just one month, we had people from Italy, Brazil, USA and Korea at the camp! This summer we had people from 5 to 76 years old at the children's camp! In Orahovica, God teaches us that His picture of our neighbors is much deeper and wider than ours, and so our neighbor becomes a little girl with intellectual disabilities with whom we share a room or an elderly lady who sings to us in Korean while preparing kimchi.

God calls us to love our neighbor as ourselves. In order to be able to obey this command as best as possible, our idea of our neighbor should constantly expand. Sometimes for that we need to visit new places, experience new cultures and get out of our context. But to begin with, it is enough to look around and see that even in a small Slavonian town, God is working to expand those horizons. What a privilege and honor!

Partners for the Gospel

I am so grateful for the two men of God that flank me in the picture below. Tom (my right) is making his biannual trip to Europe and preached in Đakovo yesterday. Danijel (my left) pastors the local church in Đakovo.

I've written about both of them before so I'll limit this post to what I experienced yesterday. 

• The local church in Đakovo is growing. Danijel and his wife Tijana moved here 17 years ago and took over a church of fewer than 10 people - most of whom were older that 60 years old. This is a typical scenerio in eastern Croatia. Today, the church in Đakovo is teeming with children running around and babies being held during the service. It's truly beautiful to see the ways in which the Lord has blessed Danijel and Tijana's "long obedience in the same direction".
  
• Tom preached from Luke 8 and reminded the congregation about the importance of trusting the Lord in the midst of difficult times. He emphasized "marvel" and contemplation during times of busyness in order to remember how great God is. It was a needed reminder in the midst of the preparations for camp - the reason why we are in eastern Croatia in the first place. 

These two men come from two different countries, have vastly different backgrounds, and face very different challenges. But they have both been a huge encouragement to me over the last decade. 

If you're interested in supporting Danijel and Tijana in their ministry in Đakovo, please send us an email indicating that you would like to partner with them at jeremy.bohalll@gmail.com.

Two Significant Sundays

It's not my responsibility to make disciples of Jesus Christ. Rather, it's my responsibility to join the Church in her efforts to make disciples of Jesus Christ. In other words, it was never Jesus' intention that we would make disciples by ourselves. The original commission on the hill in Galilee was to all eleven gathered in front of Jesus. 

This is one of the reasons why your partnership with us is so important to what we do in Zagreb. It may go without saying, but Petra and I would not be able to devote full-time work to the local church, camps and the seminary if we had other jobs. Unlike the situation at many similar institutions in the U.S., the local church and seminary are still not in a position to pay us. This is simply the way things are in a country where evangelical denominations make up less than 1% of the population.

Another reason why I emphasize the role of the whole Church in making disciples though is because over the last two Sundays, we witnessed significant events in the lives of two young men who have become close friends. 

I met Tomislav in 2017 as a young Christian when a mutual friend asked me if I could mentor him. Tomislav didn't yet have a church home but soon after our friendship began he started attending Stijena spasenja (Rock of Salvation), the local church where Petra and I serve. Tomislav got plugged in immediately, eventually leading our youth and just last Sunday being ordained as a deacon. 

Tomislav becomes a deacon at Stijena Spasenja on June 9th

Tomislav has grown into a mature disciple whom God has used to mentor others. Our relationship has turned into a deep friendship. 

Jeremy together with his mentor Tom and Tomislav on a hike in Hungary 

Last fall, Tomislav asked if I'd be willing to mentor a young college student named Luka. He had been coming to our church off and on for more than a year but had recently become more serious about his faith. He's dedicated himself to the Lord and wanted to get baptized and become of member of Rock of Salvation. 

Over the last 6 months or so Luka and I have been meeting regularly, going through Sinclair Ferguson's The Christian Life: A Doctrinal Introduction which has been translated into Croatian. Luka's also been attending worship services, youth group meetings and Intervarsity events. Several of his close friends have been instrumental to his maturity in the Lord. It's beautiful to witness the way the whole church is involved in the disciple making process. Luka was baptized the Sunday before Tomislav became a deacon. 

So, whether it's through prayer, financial contributions, sending an encouraging email or simply your friendship, we are so thankful for your partnership. You are indeed part of building the Kingdom of God in Croatia. 

Jesus' Disciple Making Method

What influenced Jesus' disciple making method? It's clear from the Gospels that the Old Testament played a key role in the content of Jesus' teaching. But what about his method? Is it possible that Greek pedagogical methods also played a role in how Jesus went about making disciples? 

I gave a talk on this topic in Zagreb in April. It's not a topic I plan to get into much further. But the research I did scratched an itch I've had for a little while. You can view the presentation below. 

An Exciting Transition

Here's a look at our new church sanctuary minutes before the first worship service on February 4th. 

A Big Step Towards a Fulfilled Vision in Zagreb

We are both grateful and excited to share the following news with you! Through conversations or a visit with us, you have likely heard of our vision to open a Center for Faith, Ethics and Culture. The first step to this was purchasing a building. To make a long story short, this past June, Pastor Ratko signed the papers and our church has become owners of a property on the most well-known street in Zagreb! 

Ilica, the most well-known street in Croatia. Our new facility is the white building on the left.

Over the last several years, the Lord has planted a vision in the hearts and minds of the leadership of Stijena Spasenja (Rock of Salvation). In thinking and praying for our local church and our city, we have often been inspired by Timothy Keller. His words: "Christians should seek to live in the city, not to use the city to build great churches, but to use the church’s resources to seek a great, flourishing city" helped articulate a vision for how our church relates to our location in the largest city in Croatia, right in the heart of the country. 

We're excited to grow into a place that serves the city through education, public discourse and various cultural events. Although we are currently planning on using one floor of our new building for our local church needs, we hope to one day expand throughout all four floors of the facility and open the doors of the Center to serve the city of Zagreb. 

One of the possible arrangements for the new sanctuary

We are so grateful and humbled by the fact that we have come this far and were able to make this purchase. However, the need is still great. Although we had the money from our savings and a loan to be able to purchase the building, we are now raising funds to help with renovations such as lighting, sound, furniture, flooring etc. Would you prayerfully consider joining our efforts? Your gift goes towards a sanctuary that will serve the dual purpose of offering the local church a distinguished space to worship the Lord and the community a reputable hall for public lectures, round-table discussions and concerts. 

We realize that there are so many projects to give to. With that in mind, our desire is that you would catch a glimpse of the vision, share our joy for this project and join us in expressing God's love for the city of Zagreb. You can partner with us financially by sending donations to NEW EUROPE VISION, PO BOX 9000, Peabody, MA 01961 (indicate that your contribution is for Stijena Spasenja). 

Now for a bit longer explanation of where we've been and how the Lord sowed this vision in the hearts of the leaders of our church. Stijena spasenja church has been renting a space since we were first founded in 2009. 

Celebrating the Stijena Spasenja's 10th anniversary in 2019

In 2020, we were forced to move out of the building we were renting. Since then we have been using a space only available to us on Sunday mornings. Unfortunately, this has not been not adequate to meet many of our practical needs like a nursery, children's ministry and space to hold weekly prayer meetings and other gatherings. Although we are always grateful to be able to meet in any capacity, we have long known that in order to be able to continue to flourish as a local church with a vision for serving our city, we would need a 'home'. 

In 2019, as a congregation we decided to start putting away money specifically with the goal of one day purchasing property instead of continuing to rent. One large donation towards that goal gave us the push to start looking at land and properties more seriously. The building we purchased in June cost more than what we had saved. But with a lot of prayer and many advisors in the process, we decided to ask for a loan for the amount that we were unable to pay from our savings. One of the amazing components in all of this is that our loan request was granted. 

The process of renevoating the space we would use for a sanctuary began this fall

The size of the building means that there are currently three different businesses renting out various floors. Their rent will pay off our monthly loans and we still have plenty of space for a church sanctuary and additional rooms for Sunday school classes and offices. We are so grateful to the Lord for all the advisers He has provided along this journey to help us ensure we were being wise throughout the whole process. 

The floor of the building that will be used by our church needs to be renovated and made into a proper sanctuary. The other rooms need to be updated to serve their various purposes. Again, we are working to build a high-quality and long-lasting sanctuary that we will be able to offer the community around us an up-to-date facility for public lectures, round table discussions and concerts. Building the sanctuary is the first step in our long term vision. We hope to move in by Christmas 2023! We are anxious to be in our own space and continue to grow while offering more ministry opportunities. 

One of the possible designs of the foyer/cafe area outside the sanctuary

Your prayers and support are greatly appreciated! Feel free to forward this to people who might share this vision with us. 

We would love to hear from you and are more than happy to tell you more about this project and our future plans. Please let us know if you would like any additional information.