The Begers

Seminary Begins Again

2011-11-23T05:43:00.000-08:00

In September 2011, David officially began seminary again. The decision to work toward a second degree was a little difficult to make since finding spare time is already a problem. One reason we decided to move forward is that we would like our relationship with the seminary to be the first of many relationships they make with Polish students that follow after us.

The seminary courses are held at the European Bible Training Center (EBTC) in Berlin, Germany, which is about a four hours drive from Borne. Fortunately, Pastor Tomek is attending as well which helps keep travel costs lower. This is a satellite school which is affiliated with The Master's Seminary (TMS). We will drive once every other month to attend classes.

Look for more about this in our upcoming newsletter......

Family News Sept 2011

2011-09-19T04:53:00.000-07:00

First day of Preschool

Some have asked for a more personal update. Here are the newest happenings with Phoebe and Samuel!

Phoebe started preschool. The picture is from her first day. She has enjoyed it very much so far and the teachers say she understands quite a bit. When we ask Phoebe about having any problems with the language, she says, "No, I speak Polish." as if we are crazy for asking! Samuel seems to enjoy the time alone with mom and his toys without them being taken away by big sister but when she comes home he is all hugs and smiles for her. Please pray for her to continue to have a good experience with the school, teachers and language.

Wasp Bite

While Samuel is generally a happy boy he has recently had a run of tough times. In one week he had several bumps, bruises, mosquito bites (12 on his head alone), a run in with a poisonous plant causing blisters on his foot, a spider bite and lastly a wasp bite above his eye. Through it all he was a tough guy which was part of the problem. He never complained about a few of the issues so that we could take care of them right away! Both kids enjoy playing outside so much they wouldn't want to say anything that might end the fun.

This leads us to a prayer for the kids and parents alike. As we near the fall and winter season please keep us all in prayer during the long cold and dark days here inside the house. Praise God that we have a bigger apartment and will be able to share it with others! Pray that we would be a light to one another and others in sharing the love of Christ.

Officially a Church

2011-09-01T06:40:00.000-07:00

Pastor Tomek and I (David) recently attended an annual denominational conference. This conference was not much different than most annual denominational conferences except for one very important thing:

At this conference the Borne Church plant was officially being announced as a full-fledged church. That's right, we are official!

Pray for us as we are still making decisions about a building and putting together all of the church polity (yes, polity), such as by-laws and our official statement of faith.

Youth Conference 2011

2011-04-30T03:46:00.000-07:00

We just finished up hosting an annual youth conference. Every year a group from our region puts on this youth conference, but this year Borne Church was the host. We decided to take on the crucial topic of boy and girl relationships.

Jeremy Lundgren

This years keynote speaker was Jeremy Lundgren from Flagstaff Christian Fellowship in Flagstaff, Arizona, where Jeremy is a youth pastor. Thanks Jeremy!! Pastor Tomek Krazek (Pastor of Borne Baptist Church) translated for Mr. Lundgren. Both men spend much of their ministry time working with this age group.


Nicole Beger

Our very own Nicole Beger was the young ladies breakout session speaker. Nicole has worked officially with youth in kindergarten, middle school and high school in the education system. Now she mentors mostly high school and college age young ladies.

It was great to see Nicole in a public speaking role again. Since having Phoebe and Samuel, this has been her first time back! At the conference, she had a range of ages all dealing with different relationship issues. Her topics included singleness, dating and marriage.

Borne Church is Sending Out

2011-02-23T04:19:00.000-08:00

The Borne church has now sent out two of our own. Towards the end of January, 2011 Edzia and Syla were sent to work with children in the Philippines.

We never wanted to just be part of a church plant here in Poland. We wanted to help plant a sending and going church. This little church of 25-30 people is now reaching out to underprivileged children in the Philippines. Neither of these two would have guessed this direction for their lives. But God!...

Keep Edzia and Syla in prayer as they deal with radically different culture, food and languages than their own.

See more in our next newsletter...

New Year and New Apartment

2011-01-18T06:29:00.000-08:00

Another year has come and gone! With this new year dawning we have another new aspect of our life here.

Old Apartment

Many of you have been asking about our new living arrangements. Previously, all four of us were sleeping in one room. Wall to wall beds was not all that bad...a little cozy...a little noisy. It is actually a bit normal for many of the people we know here.

Writing Sermons at old Apt?

But, most people leave their homes to go to their office. Not so with me (David). The need for an office away from the distractions of playing kids was becoming more and more needed. It was more important to me than the cramped sleeping arrangements.

New Apartment

Well, we have moved! We no longer sleep in the same room as the kids. And they no longer play where Dad is preparing sermons. God supplied us with space to sleep and do the work more effectively. This will open up many more opportunities, and help us move forward in the projects currently needing attention.

Phoebe and Samuel

2010-09-01T03:43:00.000-07:00

Many have been asking for pictures of the kids since we don't often times post family photos. Wow, they get big quickly!

This is an old picture of Phoebe so you can see the changes.

Samuel is younger in this one, but you won't see much difference.

Here are some current shots of them together.

Charzykowy Family Camp 2010

2010-07-28T05:13:00.000-07:00

Another family camp has come and gone. This year we decided to be involved with a smaller camp so we could actually get to know people better. We still ended up with over 80 people! This year it was in Charzykowy which was a little closer to Borne.

Phoebe is now old enough to enjoy some of the camp activities. She made lots of new friends and helped us make them too! Samuel...well he enjoyed watching his sister.

The normal camp day includes bible reading, English class, conversation time, singing and an array of activities. Here we are working our way through different bible passages. Many of these people have never read the bible at all. What a great opportunity for God to expand the Kingdom...and He did!

Pray that those who started the walk will be strong as the environment here may be rough for them and their new direction with Christ.

Catching Up!

2010-07-06T00:52:00.000-07:00

We are way behind on touching base with all of you! With the delivery of a new baby, chasing a 2 year old around, travels and our transition back to Poland (just to name a few) our time seems to evaporate. So, here is a quick and very general update. We will catch you up on the specifics later.

- Samuel David Beger -- Samuel was born healthy (6lb 9oz). No problems in the delivery to mention. We were out of the hospital in 24 hours! Much better than the 2 weeks when Phoebe was born. Pictures for those of you who are asking to come...

- Transition -- We had a fairly uneventful trip back, which is never fully uneventful when you have a new baby, a 2 year old, 3 adults and a whole mess of luggage. We made it safely back and all of us have finally slept through the night. Each of us is still dealing with a number of physical issues, so keep that in prayer. More on this later too...

- Ministry -- We got back just in time for a baptism. David has preached once already. The summer's FIRST camp starts in a couple weeks...YIKES. Nothing like hitting the ground running. Nana Jo is here for just another week to help with the kids. After that, we are on our own. And of course...more on this to come also...

Cavu Concert

2010-05-04T10:58:00.000-07:00

CAVU COMES "HOME" TO FLAG!

Friday, May 21, 7:00-9:00
CAVU in concert - Acoustic, Eclectic, Original, Refreshing!

$5 Admission - Children 10 and under free

FLAGSTAFF CHRISTIAN FELLOWSHIP
123 S. Beaver St.
Flagstaff, AZ

CONCERT BENEFITING DAVE AND NICOLE BEGER, POLAND
With International Messenger

Show Low Mission Convention

2010-03-04T08:48:00.000-08:00

David just returned from a great missions convention in Show Low, AZ. The event was put on by Calvary Baptist Church and is an annual event. This year I was able to be one of the visiting missionaries. Each of us updated the audience on what is going on in our different countries.

Meanwhile, Nicole was at home hoping the baby would not show up early! Whew! Any day now, Phoebe will get to meet her long awaited baby brother.

Poland to Mexico

2010-01-09T12:19:00.000-08:00

David just got back to Flagstaff from a Mission trip to Mexico. Each year a group from our US church goes to Culiacan Mexico to distribute the gospel in over 300 indigenous languages..."indigenous" meaning non-Spanish. Since we are in the US right now, he was able to go on this Global Recording distribution trip.

What we do in Culiacan is figure out which of the 300+ languages the person speaks and get the gospel message into their hands in their very own heart language. We also show the Jesus Film and preach a gospel message during our nights in the camps.

These people travel long distances to work during growing seasons in order to make some money before returning to their homes. Many of them come from hard to reach places in canyons or mountains. The migrant worker camps they live in are not much more than tin sheds.

Meet Tomek

2009-12-21T13:10:00.000-08:00

Let's meet Tomek!

One of the most important parts of a church plant in Poland is the Polish pastor. Without that part of the puzzle it isn't a Polish church. The Polish couple dedicated to the Borne church plant is Tomek and Iwonka (Ivonka) Krazek. Tomek is the official pastor of the church and it would have never survived without their vital role.

Tomek will be in Flagstaff for a fews days in January. If you are in the Flagstaff area and want to meet with Tomek, let me know. He comes with a big heart and a big appetite!

We are having a boy

2009-12-03T05:14:00.000-08:00

Most of you know by now that we are heading home to deliver child number two. After our last ordeal while delivering Phoebe in Poland, we decided this one would be delivered in Flagstaff.

For many of you, this part will be the new news. This week was our last doctors appointment before making the long trip home. And...we are having a boy!!! Does Phoebe and her brother look alike?

Keep us in prayer for the flight. Our last trip home took over 45 hours to get from Borne to Flagstaff! This time Phoebe is bigger which has its traveling pros and cons. We hope to see some of you while we are back in The States, but we won't be traveling nearly as much as last time.

Also, keep the Borne ministry in prayer while we are gone. There is a great team here in Borne, but still pray for those who are remaining here to carry on the work.

New English Bible Study

2009-09-25T03:51:00.000-07:00

One difficult aspect of English camp is keeping in touch with the 200 people after the camp is over. They come from all over Poland, converge upon camp, then often times just disappear afterwards.

There is a bible study which will be in English to carry on what was started at camp. David (I) will be traveling to an hour and a half away to lead this study.

Read more about it in our upcoming newsletter....

Borne Baptism 2009

2009-09-01T02:25:00.000-07:00

We just had our third baptism since our coming to Borne. This was a big one! We almost had nine people get baptized, but two will wait until next year.

This time pastor Tomek did the dunking. We still brought in a guest speaker to give the sermon. Its nice to have visitors and guest speakers for special occasions like this one!

As you can see, we are out in the open. The people getting baptized make an extremely public declaration. Some of the crowd are from the church, while others are family. But, some of them are just people passing by who have stopped to see what is happening. They all heard the Gospel.

Some of the people getting baptized have angry family members. Getting baptized is a huge commitment to stand for Christ. To some people, when a family member gets baptized it is considered a direct attack on the family. Pray for them as they deal with problems that this simple act of love and obedience causes.

Kicked to the Curb

2009-08-22T03:14:00.000-07:00

As you know, we held a day camp in the small town of Łubowo a few weeks ago. It gave the kids something to do.

It was a great time. Some of the town reacted negatively to us being there, but they could live with it...it was only a week right?

After the day camp ended, Tomek and our youth group continued going to Łubowo to carry on a type of youth group there. It was not welcomed with excitement. In fact, every week things became more hostile.

This picture is a news reporter interviewing Tomek. I can't wait to see the spin she puts on her story.

The youth group was yelled at, cursed at and spit at. Crazy rumors started coming from the local priest's pulpit. To give you a brief idea of the rumors, I will tell you just one of them. It was announced that we started putting drugs into our cookies that we were feeding the kids. I would be more upset if it wasn't so ridiculous!

This is the same reporter interviewing the school's director. It turns out that the reporter is also the priest's sister.

"Pani Direktor" was the person who invited us to put on the program for the town's youth. They have very little hope in life and she saw the difference in our youth. She wants the best for her kids. But it has become a political nightmare for her and she asked that we no longer come.

Pray for the kids of Łubowo. They "kicked us to the curb," but many of the older teens still ride their bikes for an hour to get to our youth group and/or church.

Garczyn English Camp 2009

2009-08-11T04:25:00.000-07:00

From one camp to the next! This has been one busy summer, and it is not over yet. We just finished the BIG English camp, which is held about 2 hours North of us in a place called Garczyn. Can you find us in the picture?

If you could not find us...let me help you. Find us now?

There are a couple things that make this camp so different.

1) IT IS HUGE! - This year we had over 200 people. Finding space to sleep and eat are difficult enough. And of course, managing the different games with this many people is quite the task...it got crazy!

2) The workers - The main force behind this camp is a church larger than our own in Chojnice. This is (I think) Borne Church's third year working this camp with them. The American team is also extraordinary. They have been doing English camps for a decade. In fact they lead the camp and we fill in where we are needed.

Another one on the way

2009-07-28T23:38:00.000-07:00

Most of you have heard the news by now....

But Nicole is pregnant! We will not be having this one in Poland, and are not sure what our schedule will be yet.

Keep this in your prayers as we start our planning. Also, we are heading to another camp in a couple days.

Łubowo

2009-07-10T02:45:00.000-07:00

We just finished up our youth camp in a small village about 10 minutes from where we live. Most of these kids come from messed up homes, alcoholic fathers and abusive situations. Here are some pictures of our outreach to this town.

Look for our upcoming newsletter for more info on this..................

Baseball

2009-05-13T02:14:00.000-07:00

Hitting home-runs at the Borne Sulinowo airport? Well, baseball might not be a Polish pastime (yet), but the youth group got their hands on some softball equipment and Nicole played with the best of them. OK, so the equipment was a mix of baseball, softball and even tee ball, but no one seemed to mind.

Nicole gets left out of events sometimes if I need to go and they conflict with Phoebe's naps, food, or whatever. So, this time Dad stayed home while Phoebe slept and Mom played some ball!

Read more about this in the upcoming news letter...

New Car

2009-04-09T01:29:00.000-07:00

Many of you have been asking about our quest for a new car. If we lived in a city, we would not need a car at all, but out here, ministry is greatly hindered by not having one.

Our original car has been deemed illegal on the roads of Poland. I guess they think all the holes in the floor and the inch of water accumulation isn't a good thing! Also, we can no longer haul people in the back seat since the wheel-wells rub the tire. What good is the thing?!

A huge thanks to those of you who helped in the process of getting this car. It was financially an impossibility to get the car we needed. But, God supplied through you. In fact, he supplied enough for a car that suits our needs and we decided to use some of the money to help with a pastor's car as well. THANKS!

Here is our car. It is a 2003 and is a cross between a mini-van and a station-wagon. It will carry either 7 people or 5 people and luggage. It isn't a bus, but it gives us the extra seats we are always needing.

What's a Placówka?

2009-03-07T05:00:00.000-08:00

What is this fuzzy picture doing here?! This is the kind of picture that make photographers and artistic natured people cringe. Well, maybe it was taken with artistic license in mind...

This fuzzy little snap shot is actually a big step in the Borne church's current history.

Up until now we were considered a meeting of Christians, not a church. Biblically a church of course, since we are a functioning body of Believers, but not officially a church by Polish regulations. We have now become an offical "placówka." Isn't that exciting?

Oh, what's a "placówka?" Well litterally it means "outlet" or "outpost." We exist legally in Poland as a small churchling...The fuzzy picture is from the church that is sponsoring us. They are about an hours drive from us. The next step is to grow from churchling to church.

Youth Winter Retreat

2009-02-03T01:14:00.000-08:00

One week after being back in Poland and it was time to take another trip. David and Tomek traveled 16 hours on three trains and a bus with 21 of our youth group. It wouldn't have been that bad if we actually had a place to sit!

The theme was "Contending for the Faith." We had seven teaching sessions on a range of topics that all fell under that major theme. We also had some activities such as skiing/boarding, kick boxing, and a whole bunch of games. Read more in our upcoming newsletter...

Back in Poland

2009-01-14T01:03:00.000-08:00

We made it back to Borne Sulinowo, Poland! I wish I could say the trip was easy, boring and uneventful. Unfortunately the trip was just as bad as our trip getting back to the USA. The airlines seem to enjoy messing up the flights of people traveling with new baby girls! But, God is good. We are here safe and all our luggage made it.

We enjoyed seeing those of you we saw while in the States. Those of you that we were not able to connect with will just need to come visit us! We only wish we could have seen all of you.

This is a big turning point here in Borne. We are the last Americans on the Borne team. Now it is time to look at what the future holds. We are excited for the future since we work with two wonderful Polish families. Pray for them and their families and the future of the church in Borne Sulinowo.

Another Month of Travel

2008-11-20T07:00:00.000-08:00

We just got back from another month on the road. Being home is not at all a relaxing event! We had more training, debriefing, churches and family, family, family!

We spent time at Mission Training International's DAR program that involves debriefing from our term and training in some related areas. It was great and comes highly recommended. This picture is Phoebe with her classmates and a teacher.

On this round Phoebe met many of her grandparents and great-grandparents. The following are some of them.

Back in the USA

2008-10-14T13:42:00.000-07:00

Trip home...
Thanks for praying for Phoebe's passport. The Consular actually delivered it to the airport just before our flight left. The trip home was interesting...car, plane, plane, plane, car and 45 hours later we arrived in Flagstaff. Yup, 45 hours! The airline had some issues getting us home, but it worked out in the end.

First Loop...
Our first loop of travel after getting home included Montana, Idaho and Washington (and even North Carolina way over there!). Thanks to all of you who took such good care of us. We were able to see friends we have not seen in years. We met up with people in Libby, The Yaak, Boise and others.

Schedule...
We will be gone again from Oct 20 to Nov 17. This loop includes Colorado, Kansas, Missouri, Iowa, Oklahoma and Texas. Pray for this long road trip.

Some of you are waiting for a schedule of when we are in Flagstaff. We should be here Nov 18 to Nov 26 and Dec 6 to Jan 2. Here are some other scheduled items in the AZ region. Let us know if you need info on any of these.

Oct 18 - Present Beaver Creek Church
Nov 21 - Present in Prescott
Dec 7 - Present at Flagstaff Christian Fellowship
Dec ?? - Sometime in Dec we will be having an open house for anyone who would like to see us before we leave for Poland in January.

Borne Baptism 2008

2008-09-01T08:27:00.000-07:00

We had the privilege of another baptism in Borne. This is the second we have been a part of. Three of our youth were baptized on Saturday, August 30th in our lake.

This was a special day for us and for the three girls. Sometimes the youth here are not allowed to be baptized. Their parents tell them they must wait until after they are 18. So, they wait. Even after waiting, it might cause family problems. The waiting has now ended...these girls have now made their public commitment to Christ. What a great day it was.

We had quite a turn out of spectators. A local hotel owner (who is not a part of our church...yet) asked all his guests to come watch the event. A little unusual, but the more the better!

We had a special guest this time. A friend and pastor of a church in a larger city was present. Pastor Hendryk from the Chojnice church did the baptisms and gave the message.

Kayaks

2008-08-27T02:32:00.000-07:00

Over the last 2 days I (David) have been on a kayak with 25 other people in 12 other kayaks. That's right...kayaks. The youth at the Borne church, led by expert navigator Tomek Krazek, forged the mighty Pilawa river! Well, "mighty" may not be the right word, but it was fun nonetheless.

The excruciating 10 or so hours of ducking under bridges, squeezing through rocky mounds, and gimping over downed trees was complete only with a meal of boiled pierogi and kielbasa roasted over a fire...oh, and marshmallows of course!

The nights were cold, but we survived. The youth were able to meet new youth, or get to know each other better. We also sang praise songs by the fire at night. God was good to us. It never rained, although it threatened a couple times. A couple kayaks tipped, but all in all, we only got a mildly wet!

English Camp 2008

2008-08-11T03:54:00.000-07:00

We have recuperated some from the hospital...at least enough to go to English camp. It was a little more trying to do English camp 2 weeks after the hospital ordeal, but we had fun.

We taught English, had Bible studies, Bible conversation, a banquet, and a trillion games. Phoebe even caught her first camp cold. If you are wondering about the crazy outfits...the theme was Hawaii.

We had a wonderful team this year from the USA. Rich from Flagstaff was her again as well. Thanks for coming team! (Scott, I used some of your pics...thanks much)

It's a Girl

2008-06-27T00:33:00.001-07:00

Oh, you knew that part!

Phoebe Nicole Beger is just like her father...on time and precise. The due date was June 27 and that's when she came. Phoebe was born at 2:00am (exactly) and weighs about 6.5 lbs.

More to come later!

Prep for the Baby

2008-05-27T02:00:00.000-07:00

About a month left until our new baby girl arrives and we are preparing for both the hospital and at home.

Here are a few things we need to bring to the hospital:
1. Water - that's right! We need to bring our own bottled water.
2. Eating utensils - We think they will supply plates and food, but the silverware is up to us.
3. Pillows - They are kind enough to give Nicole one flat pillow, but they realize she will need more than that to be comfortable.

We are actually very blessed. We have a hospital. Some friends in India don't have that much. We toured the hospital a few weeks ago. Requesting such a thing is abnormal here, but they entertained us anyway.

We don't need to worry about all those pesky decisions you do in the States... like whether to use pain medicine or not. The option of pain meds is non-existent. Likewise with any "breathing" classes.

On the home front we are getting the "nursery" prepared. The "nursery" is the corner of our 9x15ft bedroom. We found a used crib that needed some repairs. But nothing a little glue and screws can't fix.

On a related note...a Polish friend decided to throw an American baby shower. They don't have baby showers here, so this is first in Borne that we know of.

Finally, thanks to all of you who sent baby shower items as well. Having a baby shower from afar, really helped out.

One Year in Poland

2008-04-12T01:18:00.000-07:00

As of this month we have been in Poland for 1 year and 2 months. February is the anniversary of our move. In the previous news we mentioned going to Croatia for a conference. There was another reason for the trip as well...some decisions needed to be made.

We needed to remove ourselves from Poland for a time. We needed to pray, discuss and think about the future of the ministry here and our part in it. Here are some major changes that we needed to consider.

- Our internship is ending. So, do we stay in Borne, move to another town in Poland, change ministry directions, or go home...what is our direction after the internship?

- The other interns are undecided on their direction. They may stay in Poland, they may leave.

- The Defevers, whom we have been interning under, are leaving. They are heading back to school.

So, things here are changing fast. On Sunday, we made the announcement of our decision. Our current plan is to stay in Borne, Poland. We will continue to become a part of the lives of people here as they become a part of our family. May God get the glory for all He is doing here!

Please keep these changes in prayer.

Croatia

2008-03-27T04:13:00.000-07:00

That's right...Croatia. Croatia is in the southeastern part of Europe called the Balkans. If you are not familiar with the area, it is near Bosnia, Serbia and Kosovo. Don't worry, we were over 100 miles away from the current conflicts. The actual city was Dubrovnik.

There was a conference in Croatia for women about women. Some of the sessions included characteristics of God and holy living. Some of the breakout sessions covered topics like making your home an oasis, dealing with depression on the field, and more. What a wonderful time for Nicole to learn more about women's ministry and also be ministered to. There were women there from all over the world. It was incredible.

David could not attend all of this wonderful training since...well, it was for women. But there were other husbands around. All planning, analyzing and talking ministry. And David was able to spend some time with the locals, something Nicole could not do. What a blessing to finish off our first year overseas like this.

Wisła

2008-01-23T01:53:00.000-08:00

Nicole and I were invited to go south to Wisła last week by some people from a larger church in Chojnice. So we packed a bag, loaded a few cars with Chojnice folk (and us) and off we went!

The city of Wisła is near the borders of both the Czech Republic and Slovakia. It took over 8 hours to drive. But it was well worth the trip.

We visited a Church in Wisła twice. Wisła is known for being the only city in Poland that is primarily Evangelical.

Nicole and I were able to share our testimonies with our group of people. We had a wonderful time of ministry, fellowship, language practice, worship, discussion and David was even able to ski while we were there.

Our First Christmas

2007-12-28T02:02:00.000-08:00

Our first Christmas in Poland was wonderful. David preached the Christmas sermon and we had an outreach of handing out food boxes.

Christmas Eve is the big day here. It is the day for family and Christmas Day is for friends. It was a wonderful honor to be invited to families houses on Christmas Eve. It is a dress up occasion too. And there is fish, fish and more fish.

On Christmas Day and the day after, we made our rounds to other's houses and then had some people over to our place. This is the time for dessert!

This last picture was taken by Piotr Łoza. It is how Borne looked for the last few days...frozen and beautiful.

Mushroom, mushrooms and more mushrooms

2007-12-07T03:23:00.000-08:00

Just before the snow started falling, we had the opportunity to partake in one of Poland's most treasured pastimes...collecting mushrooms!

Yes, for most of us picking mushrooms may seem dangerous and maybe even gross. But here, people start at an early age. People have fond memories of collecting mushrooms as kids with their parents.

In one day, our mushrooms were picked, cleaned, sorted, cooked and eaten. Don't worry, we didn't eat the red one. As pretty as it is...it is very poisonous.

Expecting!

2007-11-20T04:18:00.000-08:00

In Poland, babies are said to come from storks and cabbage patches. Of course we know that each child is actually a gift from God.

For those of you who have been praying for a little, bouncing, baby Beger....the time has arrived! We wanted to wait a couple more weeks to let people know, but hiding Nicole's morning sickness and tiredness was getting difficult.

So the news is out. Nicole is pregnant and we have already seen the babies heartbeat. He/she is too young to know the gender, but feel free to guess anyway! Oh, and.... no, we are not coming home for the pregnancy. You will have to wait until October 2008 when we do come home for a visit. The baby will arrive in late June.

Thirty-Something Bible Study

2007-11-07T07:30:00.000-08:00

"Thirty-something" not because there are 30 people...we wish there were. We now have a Bible study for those of us who are 30-something years old. So far there are 7 of us. This small group now gets together for studying God's word, prayer and spending time with each other. Keep us in prayer as we inch our way through the gospel of John.

New Old Car

2007-10-23T03:12:00.001-07:00

As you know we live in a small town about 20 minutes drive from our nearest big city. By public transit, it becomes a half day trip...at least. And ministry opportunities in surrounding areas are nonexistent without a way to get there.

So we broke down and purchased this new old car. I use the phrase "broke down" purposefully. We like the car because it looks nice from a distance. If you look carefully, you can see Nicole smiling in the front seat. Here is how our first trip in the car went:

We had four of us and luggage packed in. But every time we hit a bump the tires rubbed the wheel well. Not good. It was an awful sound. We almost didn't make it and ended up passing off our passengers to another car. Before we did, we noticed another problem. It was raining that day, and the back floor had accumulated an inch of water. Even the trunk took on water and everything we had in the car was wet. Our car stunk for a while...

Military Bunkers

2007-10-16T03:54:00.000-07:00

The area around us has a line of old military bunkers. They protected the German-Polish borders at one time. The entryways have mostly been demolished, but the actual tunnels that connected them are somewhat still intact.

We took some of the youth group boys to the bunkers to explore. Sorry the pictures are so bad. These are a part of the history and the secrets of the area which surrounds us. The boys enjoyed checking out these creepy, human made caves. Many of the guys grew up in the area and have never been to the bunkers.

Amercan Visitor From Poland

2007-10-06T04:53:00.000-07:00

We had an American visitor from Poland! Sounds strange, but Ashley is an American, who lives in a different part of Poland. She stopped by Borne to check things out.

We know Ashley from our language acquisition training in the States as well as our time at language school in Lublin.

The picture was taken at the Baltic Sea. As you can see, winter is upon us here!

Staff Conference Fall 2007

2007-09-16T08:05:00.000-07:00

We just got back from our first staff conference as IM staff. This time it was held in Slovakia. We had a wonderful time connecting with friends we hadn't seen for years and meeting new ones.

Represented were workers from throughout Eastern Europe, and other parts of the world including Nepal. The best part for us was that worship was in our native language!

Girls Youth Group

2007-08-28T23:43:00.000-07:00

This past weekend the Borne church got all the youth group girls together to have some fun and discuss Christian purity issues.

Nicole was the main speaker for the teaching time. Then the girls had a time of putting makeup on each other....while blindfolded!

Visitor from Home

2007-08-19T00:35:00.000-07:00

We had our first visitor from home! Rich was here for the Family English Camp and followed us home to Borne. We were greeted by a whole bunch of military mess. Don't worry...this happens every year.

Rich was able to see some of our friends and ministries. He said goodbye in Warsaw with a nice small bowl of ice cream. Before...and after! Rich looks a little glazed over in the after picture if you ask me. Thanks Rich!

English Camp

2007-08-09T03:12:00.000-07:00

English Family Camp has come and gone! Wow, what a busy and crazy week. We taught English, had skit night, conversation, shared the gospel, had a talent night, and much more.

There are Christians and non-Christians who all leave with a better understanding of the bible. Keep us in prayer as we follow-up on these students and their spiritual lives.

Language School !!

2007-07-21T22:48:00.000-07:00

We have returned from 2 weeks of insane Polish language and culture school. Classes were all day long!!! The university is in Lublin, Poland. We met some great people and learned much of the history of the area.

One of the pictures here is an old castle near Lublin. The other is a Jewish memorial. during the Nazi reign, these headstones were taken from the cemetery and used to pave roads. These were later removed from the roads and brought back here to the cemetery. No one knows which cemetery or graves they might belong to, so they became part of this monument.

First Baptism

2007-07-01T05:58:00.001-07:00

The church here in Borne Sulinowo, Poland has had its very first baptism. There were four people baptized. Public proclamation here is much different than in the States. This baptism was not in a building, but was outside where all could see. And of course, most of the onlookers would not be sympathetic to the baptists.

Plane Crash

2007-07-01T00:40:00.001-07:00

A friend of ours, named Wieslaw, is a pilot here in Borne. David flew with him not long ago. Soon after David's flight above the small town of Borne, Wieslaw's plane went down. The engine died and it free fell from the sky. Wieslaw knows it is a miracle that he lived. People don't free fall in their little plane and survive. He now seeks to know why God has spared his life. Wieslaw is on the left. See if you can find his seat in the picture on the right.