Hello, Everyone!

Thanks to my parents we spent a week on a vacation in Croatia. My sister and her husband were there too and we had great time with our family. The kids were enjoying the grandparents who were enjoying their grandchildren and we enjoyed the fact that all of them are enjoying themselves. We had time to relax and we couldn’t wait to get an email regarding our visa. We got it on Friday, the last day of our vacation.

Our petition for work visa was declined. After everyone fell asleep, I sat outside on the terrace and cried and shouted to God trying to be heard through the sound of the Adriatic Sea. I was reading from the book of Psalms and I could totally relate to the songs of David. I even wrote my own psalm later that night. On our way home on Saturday, I was trying to make sense of it all, but all I had left in my mind was a tornado, hurricane and earthquake at once. It felt like all our plans and dreams and visions and every promise of God just fell apart. We always knew this could happen but you cannot ever make yourself ready to hear such news and it will always shake you. I felt pain in my stomach on Sunday morning because I was supposed to stand in from of the whole congregation only to inform that our visa request was rejected. I was under pressure.

A brother in Christ came up to me after the church service and told me not to give up saying that even Lazarus was dead for three days. He said, that even if something seems to be over from our point of view, God is in control. Another sister came up to me and told me to rejoice, because God has everything under control. As I listened to her, I couldn’t really understand how I could possible rejoice in a situation like this. On Sunday afternoon I visited a brother who was in the hospital and on my way there I suddenly realized that I have always prayed to have an adventurous life. I am that kind of person who enjoys those moments when I have no other choice left than to shout out to God. I realized that I am in a situation like that and it is amazing. My feelings however were changing in waves at that time. First there are waves representing thoughts of how great it is that God is drawing me closer to himself and another set of waves bringing lots of practical questions about where are we going to live, what school should our children attend, where should I be working and what are we actually supposed to do. I went to the hospital to bring some encouragement to my brother in Christ and I left the hospital encouraged myself. I had a smile on my face and I was assured that God knows best.

In the evening another person told me that they prayed for us and felt very strongly that we need lodge an appeal and that we would get our visa. A new hope arose in our hearts. I knew that I need to pray and fast the upcoming days in order to find out which way to go. I head a phone meeting scheduled with the principal to discuss further steps.

A little different thought crossed my mind too. What if we created a buzz in the US media since the immigration law is a very big topic in the US these day. After having talked to a few friends and experts I decided not to do it. I talked to the principal and we agreed that we will try the appeal. He suggested to try the missionary visa again and be supported by the church. I explained that it would start a new process which could take a really long time and require further resources. I told him that we invested a lot of time and money into this process and that we were not giving up that easy. He actually liked the idea about the appeal. Due to an American national holiday (4th of July) the tribe is closed and we will have the chance to speak to them again on Thursday. I spent the whole Monday talking to different people about how and what can be done and it felt like we push a snowball downhill and it's becoming bigger and bigger. I was pretty optimistic. As the day was about to end, I started to have my first doubts as new issues arose regarding the appeal.

I sat down and prayed. During these days I kept singing and listening to a worship song in which the lyrics say that no matter what happens in life, I want to have my eyes fixed on God. On Monday evening, I realized that I shouldn’t be looking at all the obstacles and the things that don’t work and that I should be looking at God.

It is easier to say than to do, because we live in a flesh and we need to take a lots of practical steps. I woke up Thursday morning filled with joy that God is drawing me closer to himself. Every time I started to think about the next practical steps, I started to pray.

On my way to a lunch with a very good friend of mine I realized how happy I am to be in a situation like this. I have always thought that I can only live a boring life in Slovakia since I have my family here, I speak the language and I know how things work. Everything is pretty much predictable and it is easy to rely on the things that I know. Tuesday morning I realized that even though I live in Slovakia, I am still living the adventurous life full of human insecurity in the presence of God. I started to rejoice over all that God has in store for us. You might think I am crazy to feel secure in a time like this when all that felt “secure” has failed. It is indeed true that all our human certainties are gone but that creates a place for God to do his work. I know that my life and the life of my family is in the hands of God and that is the best place to be. I wouldn’t want it in any other way. I have no idea how things are going to look like in a three weeks, but I know that if I stay in the presence of God, it will only be the best things for me.
We will lodge an appeal within the next three weeks and we will definitely inform you more often about the current situation.

We would also like to tell you, that our vision and plans we have for Lower Brule remain in our hearts and we believe that if it is God’s will, we will return to Lower Brule in the right time. Our calling to be missionaries remains. The next few weeks, before we get an answer regarding our appeal we will be intensely working on the MAS mission project that we have started together with our friends Sisa and Mato Mrva and other people from the Hawran ministry team over a year ago. We have been working on the project since we came back to Slovakia, but not as intensely.

What exactly is MAS about?
MAS (Mission and Service) is a missionary movement that came to life because we saw that people would like to know more about missions and they would like to become missionaries, but they don't know how. We are building a webpage that would connect Slovak missionaries and those that are interested in mission work. Slovakia had not yet sent many missionaries to the ends of the world. Even about those that have already been sent we know too little. We find people filled with interest for this kind of ministry in different Christian denominations. Barca and me had the privilege to visit and minister in different congregations across denominations and we love to cooperate with these brothers and sisters. We believe that God is making a way for us in this area in Slovakia as well and we would like to take this opportunity and see a new generation of missionaries arise in Slovakia. Last year, Sisa and Mato Mrva started a series of regular prayer meetings every Tuesday night in their atelier in Bratislava. Also I have met with a lot of people from all over Slovakia from different churches and denominations in order to learn from them and get inspired. We do not want to create a competition for the already existing missionary projects. Instead, we want to connect them. We would like to pray for them and inspire people who feel the calling of God to take an active part in the mission. It is our desire to see many more Christians discover what God is calling them to do and see them enter the will of God.

I am also thankful to God that the work on my book has started again. One person offered me help and I am very happy. I prayed for a while now and asked God for help in this area. I also plan to continue working part time jobs. 

We have tried to be completely open and honest with you throughout all these years in the mission field whether it was easy or not. If any of you has a problem with our current situation and you feel like you should not support us any more, please let us know. We are very thankful for you all for all the years you have supported us. For those who still see an anointing and calling upon our lives and want to continue to support us financially despite the circumstances, we want you to know, that your support will serve as my salary under Bratislava City Church. Usually we don't use resources from mission account while we stay in Slovakia.

I am excited to see what God has in store and thank you for being a part of it.

Roman