Saturday, October 20, 2012

A Weekend in Warsaw [First College-Age Conference in Poland]

Last weekend, I had the privilege to attend the first ever College-Age Conference in Warsaw, Poland, with 5 other dear university students from the UK. It was an awesome time of enjoying the Lord, being blended, and being built!

We began our trip Friday morning by gathering together at Stratford station in London. Our Ryanair flight was a brisk 2-hour flight that was followed by another 4-hour trek along the streets of Poland. We were squeezed unto a shuttle, got a rucksack (the British term for "backpack") strap stuck in the train, exited through emergency exits on the underground, and given a massage in the bus. Then, we got greeted by two Polish university students, Mira and Michael, who came out to meet us at the bus stop. Praise the Lord! One thing I've realized through this adventurous journey through Poland is that whatever the situation and the environment, it's so good to be able to spend it with saints and to see the saints!

The conference began that same night we arrived in Poland. The messages, of course, were given in Polish. I was impressed that the ones who were doing the translations were university students (Bartek and Lukas) who were close to our age. They did an excellent job as we felt that we weren't left out of the burden that was being shared throughout the conference. By the way, the subject of the conference was "Being a University Student in Truth, Life, Church and Gospel."

Along with attending the conference, we were allotted one hour to share concerning the campus work in London this past semester. It was so good to be able to overflow from our experiences of the Lord blessing us this past week and pass on the burden to the Polish students. Here's a highlight of some of our sharing: (1) A history of the student work in London (students rising up to take care of the campus work), (2) relying on the members of the Body in the matter of our burdens, (3) a personal experience of picking up a burden for contacts, (4) praying before every event, activity, or work, (5) coming together to pray and coordinate with one another to receive the Lord's blessing and (6) realizing that we are not merely tools, but vessels in God's economy and that our primary function is to be filled with Christ as life and that all our work is simply an overflow of this life.

So, there were 24 total student attendees this weekend (18 Polish and 6 UK). What I was most impressed was that these students were ready to pick up the burden right away. All they really needed was a gentle nudge that, yes, they can pick up the burden for their own campuses. Many of them were church kids who have been stored up with a rich deposit of truth and life. The few that were recently saved are burning for the Lord and have already had some experiences of bringing others to Christ. I was also impressed how eager the serving ones were longing to pass the driver's seat to the students in the matters of the campus work. We are witnessing a strong beginning amongst the university students in Poland!

Okay, so that was a brief recap of the trip, and for the other parts of the trip, I'll let the pictures tell the story. Enjoy:

Part of our 4-hour trek through Poland. Underground station.

Priceless.

The following day, we took a beautiful hike through the woods in Warsaw.

Hard to find such beauty in the busy streets of London.

Polish students coordinating our post-conference Warsaw tour. How cherishing!

The UK 6. Left to right: Raymond, myself, Tim, Aurora, Ela, Kennedy.

Old Town, Warsaw trip. Walking along the wall.

There's no such thing as a tour without a group picture! Blocking half of the archway so that we can preserve the sweet memories with the Polish students!

Another picture along the wall.

The cherry on top of the conference. Stopped at a chocolate shop in Old Town, Warsaw.
See more pictures on facebook!

Year 7-13 Conference Recap

Hello y'all, you are lucky today -- you will be getting a double-header. Two weeks ago there was a conference for the young people around the UK at Bower House. I'll just give a brief recap of the burden that was shared that weekend. Next post (which will also come out) is about the first College-Age Conference held in Warsaw, Poland. Stay tuned.

The subject of this last Year 7-13 Conference was on a Normal Fruit-Bearing Life. The main line of burden was that we, as young people in this age, would realize who we are. To begin with, we are man created in God's image for the purpose of containing Him. But we are more than just man. We are also believers, and when we believed, we received God's life into us. As believers we are three things -- salt, light, and branches.

Matt 5:13-14 says that "You are the salt of the earth..." and that "You are the light of the world..." What does it mean to be salt and light? Salt has two unique functions: (1) it kills germs, and (2) it preserves. A good picture of this is fish. Once you kill a fish, it automatically begins to stink due to the decaying germs. Thus, many fishermen put salt with fish. This kills all the germs on the fish and preserves the fish so that it can later be fresh for food. This decaying fish is like the world around us -- stinking and decaying. We as believers in the world serve this kind of function as salt, of killing and of preserving. However, there is a danger. The danger of salt is that it can lose its salting function. As salt, we have to be careful not to lose our saltiness. How can we preserve our salting function? Lot's wife became a pillar of salt (and lost its salting function) because she looked back. Lot and his wife were probably somewhere in between Sodom and safety (maybe halfway?), but happened to turn around. The reason why she looked back was because her heart was still towards Sodom. She was not a 100%, absolute Christian but a halfway Christian. We must make sure that if we want to fulfill God's purpose we have to be absolute Christians, a full one-hundred percent. For this, we need to have a fresh love towards the Lord.

As light of the world, our function is to bring light to this darkened world. This world is full of darkness and chaos -- no one is clear of his direction. However, as light of the world, there is a danger as well. The danger is not that we lose our light. As believers our salting and shining function is not anything of our own. It is a natural capacity that issues from the divine life that we have received from God. However, there is a danger that we can cover this light, and hide it under a bushel. A bushel is a unit of measurement and it typifies the worries and anxieties of our life. When we are bound by the same worries that unbelievers faced, we can cover our light. As young people in this world, we are faced with many anxieties in life. Following the latest fashion. Getting the newest shoes. Etc... All these anxieties and worries in life make us no different from the unbelievers and covers our light under a bushel. For this, we need to talk to the Lord. We need to let the Lord know all our thoughts. Phil. 4:6 says "In nothing be anxious, but in everything, by prayer and petition with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God." We should let the Lord know everything, even of our worldly woes.

I'm realizing that this post is getting longer than I thought it'll be, so I'll save the branches for a later time. The conference was an exhausting but exhilarating time nonetheless. I thoroughly enjoyed enjoying the Lord with my dear young people, and hope that these ones will be the ones to join our generation in bringing the Lord back. Amen, Lord, come quickly!


Four dear Year 7 brothers who were baptized at the conference. From left to right: Jordan, Ryan, Daniel, and Joseph.