Węgrów week 4

Being ill in a foreign culture is a strange thing!
This week I have been fighting with a cold, sometimes winning, sometimes losing. It has made me thing about the way different cultures handle being ill.
At home in England I remember being given Paracetamol and being told "You'll feel much better when you are out in the fresh air". This was the cure for everything!
In Germany, I remember Teammates regularly getting Krankgeschrieben (being written off sick), a thoroughly new concept to me. This also seemed to be the cure for everything!
Here in Poland, it's a bit different! I can happily say,almost without any exaggeration that I have swallowed more tablets in the last week, than in my whole life (well, apart from the Paracetamol back home)!
What is the best way of dealing with colds? I'm still not sure, but I can say that I feel a whole lot better after taking a walk today... maybe I can find some Paracetamol somewhere too :o)

Węgrów week 3

This last week has been quite an exciting one:

• I started some pieces of ministry. I had my first English Club in the church with 4 kids! It was fun, although I had to change my plan in a very spontaneous manner! Then on Monday I was in a local school where I did 5 English clubs, 2 in the Kindergarten, 1 in the primary school and 2 in the junior school. They all went well apart from the the primary school one. There must have been about 40 kids and it was a classic case of no one really understanding anyone = CHAOS! But I survived and am now making up a cunning plan for next week!
• On Saturday I went to Warszawa, the capital with a friend. Warszawa is about 1 1/2 hours from here. The city was pretty much completely destroyed in the war but has now been rebuilt. This means that the "old town" although it looks ancient is only about 60 years old! We visited the royal castle, a museum about the Warsaw uprising and also the national museum. All in all it was a good and fun day! Unfortunately I forgot to take any photos :o(

Węgrów - Week 2

So this is what I experienced last week!

• Starting Monday morning with a highly motivated jog! Unfortunately in true Sally style I haven't been since!
• Went with Pastor's wife and the Nun who lives next door to buy some new carpet for the church. Learnt what a benefit it is to have taken "Sister" with us as the lady in the shop offered us a 10% discount!
• Help the Pastor do his english homework. It took us 1 hour only to lose it all as the internet cut out whilst submitting it to his teacher :o(
• Going for a walk to the nearby lake, getting lost and never finding it! I'm sure I was somewhere near!!
• Spent some time weeding and thinking about the parable of the sower.
• Learning how to cook polish style - yeah!
• Doing my first piece of ministry - helping out with the bible bus and having 5 classes of teenagers come and visit.
• Heard a funny joke told by my Pastor: There were 3 Sons, the son of a lutheran pastor, the son of a adventist pastor and the son of a pentecostal pastor. The son of the lutheran Pastor says " My father prepares of his sermon for 1 hour and then speaks 20 minutes". "That's funny" says the son of the adventist pastor. "My father prepares for 20 minutes and then speaks for 1 hour". "Well", say the son of the pentecostal pastor, "my father speaks for 20 minutes before he even knows what the topic of his sermon is"! So true and what made it funnier is that he was there, a pastor froma nearby adventist church and me!
• Celebrating the Pastor's (erm, I don' even know what it's called) becoming officially the Pastor of the parish. The service seemed very long and I didn't understand all that much!

Węgrów - Week 1

I've now been here in Wegrow since last Wednesday and have already experienced so much! Here are some of my highlights/first impressions:

• Singing crazy english songs about colours and body parts whilst dancing around the flat with my two host brothers, who call me "Auntie"!
• Visiting a place called "Owl mountain" which was no more than a bump!
• Almost visiting a nearby living museum but it was closed for the filming of a movie.
• Having to rely on the help of my 7 year old host brother when going to the post office... He is a treasure!
• Playing lots of UNO and learning to count and learning colours!
• Being completely bewildered whilst trying to find a shop to buy shampoo from!
• Going to my church the first time and having God speak to me eventhough the service was very different to what I'm used to!
• Men holding car doors open, and letting me go first (now I know where all the gentlemen have been hiding!).

Thank you for your prayers and messages!

S :o)

Quick update...

I'm sitting currently in Burnley,GB in the Pais Offices during their leadership conference. It has been a good few days on english soil and I've been enjoying as much english food as I can possibly fit in my belly!
Last week I was in Poland for a few days where I met the Pastor of the church I'll be based in. I'm really looking forward to moving in with his family. They seem great - friendly open and encouraging!
Check in for more news soon...

Packing and other fun stuff....

So, My time in Neumünster is slowly coming to an end, accompanied by mixed feelings. On one hand I am very excited about the adventure that awaits and on the other I'm sad to be leaving. Many people say that Neumünster is an ugly town but it has won my heart and become my home.
The apprehension is setting in... but God has been speaking to me through the story of Abraham and his faith. God told him to leave his home and he did! Fully trusting God's Plan for him...

The next few weeks are going to be busy... very busy! Next week is my last week in schools.
And here is an overview of the next few:
7th-9th July - Conference in Dzięgielów, Poland where I will be meeting with the Pastor of the Church in Wegrow and generally doing Pais::Poland promotion
9th-12th July - End seminar in Freiburg, Germany. Then I'm flying to Freiburg to join Pais Germany for the last few days of the last Pais::Germany conference of the year.
13th-18th July - Resonate, Pais Leadership training in Burnley, England.
19th-31st July - HOLIDAY in UK. So let me know if you would like a Sally visit!
3rd-4th August - Foundational training Prep in Neumünster, Germany.
5th- 22nd August - Foundational training fo Pais year 09/10 in Neumünster, Germany.
23rd August (ish) - Flight to Warsaw and then on to Wegrow.... Pais::Poland begins!

Thank you for your support.... :o)

Where is Węgrów?

Newsletter June 2009

You haven't heard from me in a while... sorry... But I have some very exciting news!
As many of you know Eastern Europe has been on my heart for a long time now, roughly since I was 18. I have now been serving God here in Germany with the Pais project for 3 years. It has been 3 years of up and downs, of challenges and blessings. This time has now come to an end... God has used this time to shape me, to grow me and to prepare me for the next step.
After the summer holidays I'll be moving on. The opportunity has arisen to lead a pioneering Pais team in Poland and I jumped at the chance to be involved! The adventure goes on...
Pais will be partnering with a polish organisation, the centre of Mission and Evangelism of the Lutheran Church (CME). They organise a yearly evangelism conference and support local churches in their missions and evangelism work.



Facts about Poland:
Based on the “N” formula (a bit uncertain of what that actually is!) Poland is 10,000 time more needy than Papua New Guinea and over 200 times more than Mexico.
There are cities in other countries with more missionaries in than there are in the WHOLE of Poland.
As a % of the population there are 4 times less evangelical christians living in Poland than in Saudi Arabia.
There are nearly 1 million people per church planting unit in Poland.



I will be living in a small town called Węgrów (pronounced Vrengruf), near Warsaw. It is a small town with roughly 12,000 inhabitants. The Pais team will be based in the evangelical church, which is also small but has a Pastor who loves mission! The team will be going in to the local schools and running various programmes, helping to start up a youth group in the church and helping in a youth club in the town.
For more information you can check out http://www.paisproject.com/ or my Pais::Poland facebook group.

Praise God for:
CME: CME has a great vision that is similar to mine. Praise God that we are able to work together.
Time in Germany: His blessings during my time here in Germany, for amazing friends, a great church and many many experiences with Him.

Prayer points:
Team: I am hoping to head out to Poland with 1-2 other people. Please pray for good applicants who have a real passion for young people and a desire to serve in Poland.
Money: Although the church will provide food and accomodation for me I need to raise my own spending money. My goal is to raise £40 a month. As Pais Poland is a pioneering project, going where no one has gone before, we are also in need of donations. I know that God is my provider and I'm trusting him in this area! However if you would like to be used by him, whether through a one off or regular donation for Pais or for me personally please let me know and I will send you details of how you can do this!
Schools: Please pray for the schools in Węgrów, that they would be open for our work. It is common in Poland for anything which is not catholic to be regarded as a sect so please pray that we would find favour in the schools and the town.
Church: Please pray that we as a team would be able to serve and bless the local church and that the church would quickly become our polish family!
Personal: I am well aware that this is a big step for me. It means a lot more responsibilityfor me. Please pray that my relationship with God would carry me and that he would give me the wisdom that I need. Please pray that I meet and make friends in Węgrów easily and that I manage to learn polish quickly!

Thank you for your support through out my time in Germany and I look forward to sending you regular updates of what God will be doing in Węgrów.



Love and blessings,
Sally :o)

The adventure continues.. in blog form!

So, although I already have facebook, myspace and studivz I thought I would set up a blog that I will try and update regularly to keep you guys updated on Sally's adventures in Poland!
The first proper post will be coming soon...
Sal :o)