The World Coming to Us

As you know, one of things we most loved about ministry in Italy was the communal nature of the culture. We loved seeing the same people walking on the street every day and running into school friends almost everywhere in our neighborhood.

American culture is just totally different.  You walk from your door to your car to the door of the store you're going into.  There aren't common areas people gather.

Sharing the gospel in these relationships was so natural.  These people saw our lives.  We talked with them regularly.  We couldn't hide the impact Jesus has on our lives.

As we moved back, Cody and I have both prayed we would have very intentional eyes as to how to maintain a similar ministry mind frame.  How can we become more involved in the lives of our neighbors? How can we break culture to stop and visit with people we see regularly?

Our apartment complex has been a great first place to start.  It's full of kids!  And because it's completely gated, there is an increased sense of safety is letting kids go outside and play together  A lot of the kids are other families doing the same STINT program we are doing.  But there are many who are not.

One of the boys who Gavin has started playing with is a boy he called "Colin."  He is about Gavin's age, and every afternoon he is looking for a way to kill time outside of his apartment.  Sometimes their relationship has not been easy for Gavin.  Colin can tend to put on a certain amount of machismo.  The day he came to our house to play just he and Gavin though, we saw a kinder boy full of need to fill his time productively.

This weekend Colin's little brother and mother knocked on our door looking for "Haleem."  All along Gavin thought his name was Colin, when it was Haleem. :)  As it turns out, Haleem's family moved from Saudi Arabia only a year ago.  When his mom and brother knocked on our door, I could only see his mom's eyes.  She is a completely veiled Muslim woman.  I was shocked to see her because we were told Haleem's parents never leave their apartment.  He and his brother always come and go to the bus stop by themselves in the morning.  It is usually only his brother who comes looking for him.

Not only that, she asked my name and where I had gotten the skirt I was wearing (wouldn't you know, I was wearing my brand new Maxi-length skirt that day!).  We chatted for a bit before Cody came to the door, which promptly ended our conversation.  A really good introduction though!

I know this interaction seems like such a small thing.  But it was a really sweet answer to prayer for us.  We are committed to taking the gospel to the world.  In that regard, it was hard for us to leave a foreign assignment--even though we know our effectiveness will probably be tenfold doing what we're doing here.  It was the personal relationships we were most going to miss.  But as God is doing all over this country, He is bring the world to us.  He is bringing non-believers from literally all over the world to live alongside Americans, to drive by churches, to be given the opportunity to know someone who walks passionately with Jesus.

My new friend's name is Terah.  Would you pray for their family?  Pray our whole family would be a part of showing Haleem what it means to follow Jesus, as he is in our home.  Pray for more opportunities for me to get to know Terah.  Pray for the other believers in our apartment complex to have the same opportunities.

And since I'm feeling bold and impassioned today, can I challenge you to look for how God has brought the world to you?  Chances are, it's just around the corner.

Full Hearts

One of the things we have been praying ever since we found out we were moving back is that we would experience great closure with the friends we have made here.  We've prayed that for us and for the kids.  God has met us beautifully in that prayer.

Last week Hannah had her Goodbye Party, and it was everything she wanted it to be.  She had such a great time having her friends in her home.  They ate, giggled, danced, sang, made bracelets, took pictures and loved on each other.  It was such a sweet gift.  Here are some pictures:

When each girl left, Hannah gave them a necklace with a note sharing about the importance of her faith in her life.  The girls cherished them!  We are praying God will continue to use those gifts to soften their hearts to hearing the gospel.  And we are praying God will give them many opportunities to respond.  We could not have asked for a better good-bye.

God has also given Cody and I numerous opportunities to be with the friends we are going to dearly miss.  Our lives feel so crazy, and yet, He is giving us exactly what we most want.

AND!!! Our closest Italian friends have already booked tickets to come see us at Christmas!  We are so, so thankful for God's grace in allowing us to remain involved in the lives of these friends who have become so dear and who we long will one day experience faith in Christ.

Last, but not least, life continues to spin around us, despite all the chaos our move has added.  Yesterday, Gavin lost his second front tooth.  I always feel like that is THE marker that they are now "Big Kids."  They just don't look the same with adult teeth.  My precious little guy is really growing up.  He is such a joy with such a tender heart.

So I celebrate his precious life with his beautiful, toothless picture. :)

INCREDIBLE!

Who is this man, and why is his picture on our blog?  This is Charlie Duke, the 10th man ever to walk on the moon.  Charlie is follower of Jesus, and last week he came to Bologna to share about the role Jesus has had in his life.  (You can read more of Charlie's bio at http://www.fivestarspeakers.com/espeakers/5572/Charlie-Duke.html).

The only other full-time Campus Crusade staff in Bologna are a couple named Jesse and Tricia Marcos.  Charlie has been a supporter of the Marcos' ministry for years.  For the past year, we have been working to bring Charlie to Bologna.  God moved in the most amazing ways!  I've pasted Jesse's e-mail, giving us the update on all that had happened.  I know it's a little long, but the way God moved is worth reading every word.

"INCREDIBLE!!!  This morning we have no words to describe what just happened these last two days here in Bologna. I will let the words of the Brucato’s and others who have lived here speak for themselves. “Whave been here 23 years and never have we seen these kinds of crowds and never have we seen doors open like this.” If you recall we told you that when this all began, the university said; “No way he can mention God at all, nor can we mention Agape Italia.” So we had everyone praying that God would break through all of that. So the Lord KICKED DOWN those walls like none of us would have anticipated!! I want to let you know how it all went and at sometime we can fill you in on the more details.

Monday morning we had to have Charlie at the TV station for an interview on the regional morning show that covers all of Emilia-Romagna. The last question he was asked in the interview was, "What do you today?” So he could there launch into sharing that he speaks all over the world and shares the love of God. The man then closed by saying Charlie was speaking Monday at the U of Bologna. We were all horrified because that was wrong. When then they realized the mistake, they had to change it and announce it on the news--which was repeated several times in the day!! That mistake ended up being more air time to advertise it.

We then went to a press conference held at the hotel at 10AM. There the head of Astronomy at the University, who said there could be no mention about God, asked him in the interview, "What do you do now?"  Again he repeated what he was doing to share Christ around the world.

Next was the scientific high school where nothing Christian is ever let in the door. This is the school where a 15 yr old student shot himself right before Charlie came. He was able to share his story in detail. Part of their testimony is his wife was suicidal. He shared that, and the students were riveted to his every word and listened intently. After he was done with his testimony and closed, the principal came up and thanked Charlie for coming and reviewed the main points he made about his story!! WOW, never in our wildest dreams in a school where atheism is their god could we have imagined this to happen!!

We were able to give them postcards with Charlie’s picture on it and that also had Youth for Christ and Agape Italia websites.  We were introduced as well.

Monday night the outreach night for the community was standing room only!! Many non-Christians came, and many who are in the science community came. The exciting part was that night Charlie held nothing back. Both Charlie and his wife spoke, and wow that was POWERFUL. We had appetizers afterward and people stayed and shook his hand and talked with them.

Tuesday morning he spoke at a private high school, one of the top in the city. These students study Aeronautics and will all go to university. This school was not one we had planned on, but there was cancelation in the schedule. It happened that a connection was made two weeks ago which got us into the school. Once again standing room only!! Students heard about Youth for Christ and then heard about Agape Italia briefly. Once again in Q&A, he was asked what he does now. We were not sure how much we could say here. When asked, he took advantage of it and answered with a gospel presentation. The creativity he used was incredible but yet very clear.

Next was speaking at the U of Bologna in the Astronomy Dept and guess what. . .standing room only. The University of Bologna and everyone had told us if you have 100 – 150 that will be a GREAT success.

Everywhere he went they planned for those numbers and were shocked to see the interest. Over 120 students came, they were standing outside in the halls listening. This was set up by the university and specifically the man who said no God. After speaking, there was Q&A and the man who said no God asked Charlie to share about the challenges of life after reaching the pinnacle of his career at age 36. WOW!  He who said NO GOD knew what he would say!!! Then that night at dinner, he told Charlie again to make sure he talked about his personal life.

Tuesday evening we met for dinner with all the university officials who were responsible for the evening. His lecture was to begin at 9:00PM. It was 8:55 and we were just ordering our coffee. The professor said no problem, we were on Italian time!! So we left at 9:05 walked into a room that seats 300 and it was STANDING ROOM ONLY again. It was an estimated crowd of at least 400 so you can imagine it was PACKED OUT!!!! Charlie walked into the hall. I was behind him and had not seen the crowd yet. We then heard a HUGE loud applause and were overwhelmed, as were the school officials.

He opened his talk by thanking Agape Italia for bringing him to Bologna. He then talked about how he and his wife have known Tricia and I for years, which helped Agape build credibility.  The gospel went out clearly and wow, was it incredible again. We felt like we were with a ROCK STAR!! He was amazing and the crowd was not disappointed. We can promise you that crowd was all non-believers!!!!

THANKS FOR PRAYING!! Pray now for the followup of all of this and we can continue to build strong relationships with the university and these high schools!!!  Wish you could have been here for it, because the ground had to be prepared for this to all happen and you have been a part of preparing the soil for God to work!! Thanks and see you soon so you can enjoy being a part of the harvest God has used you to be a part of!!"

We have been telling everyone we meet how we feel like this is a unique time in Italy's history.  We really believe God is moving in unprecedented ways.  We could not be more excited to a part of what He is doing.  To God be the glory!!

They're Here!

On Wednesday, 22 students from Texas and Louisiana arrived to work with us for the next five weeks. Here is the group enjoying some of their first Italian pizza:

This is a great group of students! We have spent the past several days getting them oriented to Bologna and the ministry and basic survival in Italy. They have asked such great questions and have really communicated a genuine desire to speak the gospel with boldness this summer. For many, committing five weeks to doing ministry in a different country is the biggest step of faith they've ever taken. It is huge! We can't wait to see how God blesses their faith and the fruit that comes from it.

The picture above is Cody talking to Luke, the leader of the group, and also a student. He was on the Project last year and developed such a heart for what was going on that he wanted to return again this summer. Secretly (or not so secretly), we're praying God would move his heart to come and work with us for a year or more after he graduates.

On Saturday, Cody led a time of evangelism training. One of the things we're really trying to emphasize is the power of God's Word. As we're processing through the gospel with Italian students, we want to be sharing as much of what God says in Scripture as we can. If we do that, then we feel we can be confident that seeds were planted, and we can leave the results to God. A study we saw recently said that Italy is one of the least Bible-literate countries in the world. As we bring everything back to what God says in His Word, it is refreshing to hear Italians awe at all God has spoken on.

Please pray for these American students. Pray they would experience God in a powerful way this summer. Pray He would increase their compassion for the people of Italy and that many would be moved to return and work with us in a longer capacity. Pray for the Italian students they will talk with over the next five weeks. Pray for ongoing relationships to be formed quickly. Pray for relationships that are focused on the gospel. Ultimately, pray they would see Italians put their faith in Christ.

An Easter Outreach

Last month, we had a team from Switzerland come to Bologna to help us with an outreach geared toward helping students develop better study habits and acheive their goals of graduating from university. The main speaker at our two night seminar has a Ph.D in engineering and has given this seminar all over the world. Yet, he remains on staff with Agape Europe (CCC in Europe) full-time and loves working with students. During one of our meals together, he asked if we were doing anything that allowed Italian students to see and be exposed to the community that we have as believers...something that allowed them to see Christ at work in our lives through our relationships.


That thought stayed with me (Cody) and our team for sometime. What could we host that we could invite our friends to that would let them experince Christ's love through community? We eventually landed on having a dinner or "apperitivi" during the week leading up to Easter and showing the Jesus Film. Our team all committed to being there regardless of who else came but also committed to inviting the students we work with to come and join us. We came together as a team to prepare a feast and be a family. It was great. We had a handful of students join us for dinner and stayed to watch the life of Jesus. From that stemmed a conversation that ran almost to midnight.

It was a real encouragement to all of us, as it allowed us to see that Christ is moving here in Bologna. The work here is slow, and every opportunity we have to talk about the gospel bolsters our faith and encourages us to continue on. The gospel of Christ is being proclaimed in this city! That is ultimately why we came, and we praise God for the hope He has given us to share.

Living the Gospel

There is not a day that goes by that I don't pray for our friends Fabio and Alyssia to put their faith in Christ. They have become so dear to us, and I want so much for them to understand how much God desires to have a personal relationship with them.

In the past month we haven't been able to hang out with them because of commitments Fabio had at work out of town. It's also been in the past month that Cody and I have been knee-deep in the hardest place we've ever been in personally. God is working so much out in our lives, but it's also just really, really hard.

This past week Cody has been fasting, and wouldn't you know they called to see if we could come to dinner. We said we'd have to hold off this time, but Hannah could come over to play with Alice. When Cody went to drop her off, Fabio was so concerned for him and for us. We had decided that we would share as openly as we were able with them, and use the opportunity to demonstrate to them how we're trusting God to provide true, lasting healing.

In what Cody shared, Fabio was really stunned at the depths of which Cody was going to hear from God. (Ironically, his words were, "You are such a good person for that doing this" . . . what a great opener to share how just the opposite is true, and that is why we so desperately need God!) The rest of the evening was filled with spiritual conversation and ended with Fabio wanting to read the Bible. He and Cody are going to get together this week to start talking about it. Praise God! We trust that God will speak mightily to him through His Word.

One of the central issues Fabio is struggling with is how the church (the Catholic Church) can know the motives of people's hearts, thus being able to declare them "good enough" for heaven or not. What a great question!

We also learned even more about the still continual influence of the Church. I had mentioned in a previous post about how they had just enrolled Alice in catechism. We were honestly shocked because we had never heard them talk about church before. We learned that parents feel "forced" to do catechism because of the ramifications for their kids when they grow up. For instance, one day if Alice wanted to get married in a religious service, she would have had to have gone through catechism.

Please continue to pray for this precious family! Please pray for the Holy Spirit to be working powerfully in their lives. Pray against the schemes of the enemy to distract them from pursuing God's truth. Pray for their eyes to be open to the God who wants to know them personally.

Stinky, the Gospel and a Car

We are leaving for vacation on Thursday, so we thought we'd post an extra blog this week since we won't be able to post one again until August. We'd love your prayers for our time away. . .

BIG week this week! In the middle of the summer, when students are blissfully away enjoying their summer vacation, we saw God remind us almost daily of the incredible ministry He has built for us here through some other means. We lived some great stories this week of the awesome and sometimes maddening Italian culture, the incredible generosity of Italians friends, the realities of the snares of a broken world and God's constant provision for every one of our needs. The ministry we are living is incredible!

For a couple of months now, we have felt the Lord leading us to finally buy a car. As we looked at it logically, we just didn't think the summer was the best time, since many places close down for weeks at a time in the summer, and the ever-constant issue of the exchange rate has been on the higher side since May. We pursued a couple of options to buy cars from American servicemen returning to the States, but none worked out. We didn't feel in a big rush, but we also felt like the Lord was continuing to say, "It's OK, I'll provide for you now." So we asked more questions and looked at a few websites that were recommended to us. We saw a few possibilities, but all required driving at least an hour outside of Bologna.

Some of our best Italian friends are a couple named Fabio and Alyssia. They are the parents of one of the girls in Hannah's class. We have gotten to know them well over the past months and enjoy them so much. Fabio speaks a little English, which makes our time together a perfect setting for language development. More than anything though, they have just become quite dear to us.

So last Thursday, Fabio offered to take Cody out to look at cars. The car we felt like was the best deal all around was also the closest. They drove the hour up to Modena and saw the car. Car buying is totally different here than in the States. All dealerships must offer a one-year warrenty on the used cars they sell since the practice of turning back odometers is almost universal. Since you have some assurance as to the reliability of the car, you don't really "check it out" like you do in the States. He didn't even test drive it. But it really was everything we've been looking for (and an automatic, as a cherry on top). Cody felt like we should get it. Mission accomplished, so he and Fabio went to get some lunch.

As they went in to a trattoria, Fabio said, "Have you ever had stincho (stink-oh)?" To which Cody said, "No, no I haven't." "Oh, you must try it. It is the ankle of a pig." Always the meat lover, Cody thought he'd give it a try. Fabio ordered for both of them, and in Italian, he ordered "due stinchi (pronounced stinky)." Cody could not help busting out laughing, as he explained to Fabio what it sounded like in English. When the stinchi arrived, it was much like a turkey drumstick--see the picture below. Cody is now a new stinchi fan. :)

Over their lunch, the Lord led their conversation to really significant things. Cody has been very intentional about going deeper with Fabio, taking many opportunities to share about his relationship with Christ. On this day, he was able to clearly share the entire gospel. Coming to faith is usually a very long process for an Italian. This was a great entry into what we pray are many more conversations about what it means to be a follower of Christ. We hope so much that the Lord would open the eyes of this entire family. We pray earnestly that He would allow us to see them all eventually put their faith in Christ. Again, they have become so dear to us, we want nothing more than to share with them the joy of trusting God as they manuever life as a growing family. We would really value your prayers for them. Pray we would continue to have bountiful opportunities to talk about what having a relationship with Jesus has meant in our lives.

So after lunch, they headed back to Bologna, and we gathered ALL the necessary paperwork needed to buy a car here. On Friday we made the trek back to Modena, filled out all the forms to transfer the car into our name and personally went to the auto agency to make it all official. With keys in hand, we then discovered our method of payment wasn't going to work. We had asked about it before we made the trip, and they gave us the OK. But to make a long story short, we ended back in Bologna that night without a car. We have to admit, we're beginning to get used to having to attempt something several times before it's accomplished. . . sometimes still maddening, but the blows are becoming less and less traumatic.

We are thrilled to report that our third trip to Modena proved to be a charm, and we are now, once again, car owners. It's perfect for us. We are still a little in shock, but we are so, so thankful. Again, we rejoice in God's provision for us and hope it enables us to be an even further blessing to those around us.

As we have seen God so evidently at work around us in these fun stories, we also have seen Him at work in the life of a friend who is in great struggle. We have been called to meet him in a very different place than our other friends here. With him, we have been called to walk through the darkness--to offer some light in territory surrounded by the enemy. It has been a privilege, though one not without cost and not without much grieving of our spirits. We know God has him securely, and we are praying for a prodigal to return home soon and receive great healing. Though we can't offer many details, we ask you again to intercede on his behalf. A mighty war is being fought for this soul.

The next six weeks are going to fly by, and then September 1 will arrive, and we will celebrate with great thanksgiving our first year in Italy. What a time it has been! The past week has been a great confirmation of God's continued plans for us here. It is good.