Christmas Eve

If we were a 'normal' Slovak family (which we are not) on Christmas Eve we would most likely be feasting on wafers with honey, Carp, Spicy Sauerkraut soup with sausage, & Potato Salad, Lentil & Plumb soup, possibly some Fish soup, and a ton of sweets. All of this is after fasting all day, setting up the Christmas tree, and watching old fairy tales from the early days of Czechoslovak film making. If we were real traditional we would have bought the Carp live and had it swimming in the bath tub for a few days. Then we would throw nuts in the corners of the house, cut apples in half to determine who will have good health, and an assortment of other holiday superstitions... I meant 'traditions' :) One of the more interesting is putting scales from the Christmas Carp in ones wallet for financial success in the new year. Then come the presents. Then we would top off the day with a Holy Mass- which usually means standing outside an otherwise empty church in the snow at midnight.

But, we aren't a typical Slovak family. So our Christmas Eve was pretty peaceful. We had a brief visit with the Benova and Svarda families, unfortunately missed church (our brief visits to Betka never turn out to be brief... but that's ok :), then we went home. We did have a partial Slovak Christmas with a bowl of great Christmas Sauerkraut soup and wafers with honey. Part of Ivetka's childhood Christmas was that her father would put the sign of the cross with honey on the children's heads. This is supposed to make the kids be ‘sweet’ (behave) during the next year. So, we keep the tradition alive. Who knows... maybe it will work?! In short our time turned out to be a very peaceful time of reflecting upon Jesus and loving one another.

BTW - it snowed here, so we had a White Christmas!

Christmas Cookies (part II)

The last few days have been the Christmas Cookie Challenge as we bake every imaginable (or unimaginable) sweet thing known to man. Actually it's not that bad, but after all this baking we are a bit sick of sweets... and we haven't even got down to the serious eating part yet. Fortunately, we have a lot of friends who looooove sweets, so they we will be happy, we will be happy, and some time soon.... within the next 2 weeks (we hope) our house will be down to normal sugar levels. Here are some pics of the guys helping out. Enjoy!

Christmas Cookies (part I)

Pregnant with expectation?

Have you ever been pregnant with expectation? You get to that point where you are about to burst with excitement. The anticipation is reaching intolerable levels. And then it happens. Not the “It” you expected, but the other unwelcomed ‘it‘.... more tortuous waiting. That’s when you start questioning everything. Do dreams really take this long to be birthed? How much longer is this going to take?!

I suppose that this was how Mary felt in part. Childhood dreams of her ‘prince charming’ and a whirlwind romance shattered on the rocks by an intruding angel named Gabriel. Now she’s destined to a life of suspicious purity (1st century tabloid material) and in danger of a potential stoning of biblical proportions unless something happens. Yet somehow she is ‘most blessed amongst all women’. Strange. Then comes that night when “It” happens- the stable, the smells, the screaming, serenading angels, and disruptive shepherd’s... all a woman hopes for...right? But, HE is so beautiful. This baby is no longer “It,” but He, the Emmanuel, God-with-us. His name is Jesus. And it is somehow in an unexpected, magical way. . . good.

Mary wasn’t the only one pregnant with expectation. Her nation, her tribe, her family was on pins and needles. Imagine being “Gods-People” who had been promised that one day ‘It’ would happen. For 2,000 years you have been waiting for an illusive gift-wrapped surprise visit from God. Through prophets and mad-men hints of what this ‘It’ will be, do, and bring haunt their dreams and legends. Parents pass the stories down from generation to generation knowing that “It” will land in their children’s lap one day. Then one day Emmanuel shows up. God incognito. The Word made flesh and dwelt among us. And “It” doesn’t quite look like ‘it.’ This wasn’t the Advent we waited for. This Jesus doesn’t fit our imagination. He’s just a baby. He doesn’t look like a Hero. And we begin to question.... everything.

A Light shines in the darkness, but the darkness has not understood it.

Land of the Free, Home of the well traveled...

As of Friday night (Dec 21st) Slovakia and other V4 nations (Czech Republic, Hungary, & Poland) entered the EU's Schengen Zone. Think of it like an early Christmas present from our bigger EU brothers. What that basically means (practically speaking) for most Slovaks is that they no longer have border controls with neighboring EU nations. It's essentially like traveling from California to Nevada... but without the fruit inspection lines. This idea of open boarders between sovereign nations is an amazing concept. Imagine being able to travel from Mexico to Alaska without a passport! That people can move about freely in an area that once was isolated behind the Iron Curtin just a few short years ago is a radical shift in the right direction.

Of course with any change you also have the flip side. Time will tell how these open borders will shift the paths for drug trafficking and illegal immigrants making their way to Western Europe. Also, now that Slovakia occupies one of the EU's easternmost boarder with non-EU Eastern Europe (primarily the Ukraine), security concerns are of top priority to maintain the integrity of the EU. Just two weeks ago Slovak police caught a group of Hungarian/Ukrainian arms dealers trying to smuggle in uranium. Despite all of these concerns, the hope is that the benefits will outweigh the inescapable drawbacks.

If you would like to learn more about Schengen check out: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Schengen_Agreement

In the House this week

Christmas came early this year... at least some gifts did. For some reason we got talked into letting them open one gift from Grandparent's McKinney. So, the guys are here sporting their new PJ's and horse DVD's. BTW - did we mention that these guys, especially David, are horse fanatics? Anyways, good job McKinney's... and Thank You!



Well, the long waited 'Beauty' arrived... that is Black Beauty, the trusty steed that you see David riding here. This has been a long awaited Christmas gift from Grammie that came early. Normally we would have the guys wait until the 24th to rip into the presents, but this one helps us end WW3 in our home. What's the conflict? Well, Gabie has had for a year now his own faithful, audio equipped mount Dusty. And like any good, red-blooded cowboy, no one (and I mean no one) touches Dusty. Now, to be honest Gabie has been trying to share lately. The only problem is that David is now a pretty tough buccaneer and figures Dusty is his. This has started a few wild gun-slinging fights... so our home is shaping up to be a real Western, real quick. Thank you Grammie!

The boys are now sucked into to YouTube universe. They have been getting their American Christmas cartoon indoctrination with the likes of 'Charlie Brown's Christmas', Rudolf the Red-nosed Reindeer, and Frosty. Yet, I think Macko Usko still tops the charts...

Ivetka and David sow our first ever Christmas stockings! Ivetka did a great job on them!

A Message to Baba

Advent

Advent season is upon us and for many of us it's not a time of reflective meditation on Jesus. It is a mad scrabble pell-mell to live our busy lives on hyper drive with the added stress of finding the "perfect gift" (which really doesn't exist)! Do you know what I mean? or am I the only one wondering how does Santa do it? Without being cliché, I'd like to encourage all of us (especially myself) to slow down and remember the reason for the season.

Possibly you come from an evangelical background that didn't stress tradition - me too! So the idea of Advent is quite a new one for me. For some of us Christmas growing up was a couple of days packed with too much food, too many presents and an overdose of nativity plays and "Hark the Heralds Angles." It was an event, not a season. We "did" Christmas, we didn't anticipate it (other then the gifts). But Advent is a lot more then that. Advent is expectation. Advent is reflection. Advent is a focusing of ourselves on one thing...actually One person. It's all about Jesus - nothing more & nothing less.

Jesus was the ultimate minimalist. Less was more. God became a Man. He stripped away His divinity, His control over life, His supremacy of will. Why? So he could be born into this world as a weak, dependant, crying baby. He wasn't born into a rich family, or into position, or influence. No, he was born into a poor family and took up a common occupation in land under foreign occupation. But that God who became a Man, would end up a Hero.

Why? What was the point? Sometimes we have to give to get. Jesus let go of everything to get one thing - YOU! You are His perfect Christmas gift (..hummm, so it does exist!) Let's reflect upon that this Advent season. As the world around us rushes head-over-heels in materialism, riding the wave of the next big fad, and fulfilling the lust of our eyes - STOP. Take time to smell the Christmas cookies. Pause. Breathe. Reflect. Consider- what was given that you might get? Remember, less is sometimes more.

Duel-et

Over the last few years we have had a migration of noisy 'gifts' sneak their way into our once peaceful home. I suspect this is my parent's and grandparents twisted method of 'pay-back'. Despite the added racket, some of these toys can be rather interesting... that is for our boys grown-up friends. And 'interesting' quickly shifts to 'challenging'... which of course calls for a competition. Betka and Rado discovered a few musical instruments, mainly two very low tech toy pianos. What started out as a Duet quickly transitioned into a Duel. It was hilarious!

vdaka-o-graphy

Here are some more pics from the Thanksgiving Party! Enjoy!

Lights, camera, action - Bratislava!

We are now officially part of the YouTube universe. Above is a video post of a short film "produced" (or should I say 'pirated') by our friend Andris Hajos. If you remember Andris was serving with us as an intern last January in Bratislava. He created this video as a promo for his fellow students at CCBCE. Anyways, check it out and you will hopefully get a taste of what Bratislava is like. Enjoy!

got Skype?

If you haven't signed up for Skype yet, do it today. Soon. Like, NOW! Skype is a great (free!) download that allows you to make free computer to computer calls with other Skype users and low cost calls to hard-lines and cell/mobile phones. Plus it has a lot of fun extra features. Find out all you need to know and sign up - NOW!

How? Click: http://www.skype.com/intl/en/welcomeback/

BTW / our skype address is: "patrick.ivetka"

Give us a call once you sign up!

Prayer & Praise

Hi, everyone! Could you be praying & rejoicing with us?

Prayer:
- God's favor during a very important meeting on Friday morning concerning some legal issues connected to our home. Pray for God's wisdom and favor in this.
- Wisdom concerning decisions about continuing my teaching job.
- Wisdom concerning our next steps in life & ministry in the New Year.
- Open doors to move to Bratislava.
- To be effective in the places God has placed us in.
- For believers here in Nitra as they seek how to reach this community for Jesus
- For our friend Andrea & family as they grieve the passing of her mother (who was a beautiful believer!)
- For the Sano family's desire to be in fellowship to be meet.
- God's presence to be felt strongly at the Nitra home fellowship this Thursday night.

Praise:
- A great Christmas outreach at the Krestanske Zbory church last Sunday
- Good health of my family
- It's almost Christmas!

Macko Usko - Co hovoria svetla?

Macko Usko:"What does the light say?"

Macko Usko

If you don't know 'Macko Usko' you are for sure out of touch... that is with anyone over 25 who survived at least part of their childhood under Communism in Central Europe. Macko Usko is the total children's pop icon of the Cold War era. In Slovakia if you start to sing it's catchy theme song you are sure to find someone in the room who can finish the song for you. Macko Usko is the symbol of a generation that grew up under the "system", broke out, and now are forming the new-Slovakia. Sounds a bit revolutionary? Well, it's not. It's actually a very wholesome little claymation cartoon about a loppy eared bear (and his friends) that teaches children basic life lessons. And by the way.. my boys love it! So, we are now YouTube-ing it in the evening for them. Traditionally, Macko Usko would be aired at 7:10pm every night as a pre-bed-time story. Macko Usko's last words are always - Dobru Noc! (good night!) ... such sweet words :)

Below are some pics of the boys mesmerized by Macko Usko. We will post some videos so you can get your own taste of Macko Usko.... Dobru Noc!

Matchmaker

Here is a pic of our little David & Hanna Metzger at the Cafe in Vajta. They are soooo cute. So, should we arrange the marriage now or what?

Angles, Tricksters, Santa?

Christmas comes a little early here in Slovakia. December 6th. Well, not exactly Christmas, but Father Christmas. To be more exact - Mikkulas: a kind of a slimmer, more priestly, Gandolf-ish Santa. And if that wasn't enough Mikkulas comes with too assistants: the lovely Angel and the devilishly mischievous 'Chert'. So, if you have been naughty and thought you had a few weeks to reform your ways... well, you are too late. Fortunately Mikkulas grades on a curve. Actually, his only standard for assessing proper behavior over the last year is if your boots are clean or not. Clean shoes are filled with sweets and mandarins. Dirty shoes are usually filled with coal or sticks. My kids could use both!

Anyways, Mikkulas day is a really fun day here in Slovakia. It's a day that people are exchanging small sweet gifts and generally enjoying each others company. If you are a real extrovert you might get decked out in a white dress and sport some angel wings (girls). However, the horned and coal smeared face of Chert is for sure the more popular. Gabie had a visit from Mikkulas and his friends at school. He loved it. His only comment was - "where were the reindeers?"

Bookworms

Spreken...what?

Last Sunday we had an opportunity to drive down to Calvary Chapel Vienna (2 hrs away). Our intention was to go there and just sit down and be fed on the Word. It didn't turn out that way - I ended up teaching the message! Anyways, it is always a cool opportunity to serve with these guys. They are such a loving & 'real' group of believers. They don't just love Jesus, they love one another and it shows. I don't know if I blessed them much with the message (I wasn't as prepared as I would have liked, plus short on time), but I was blessed to be a part of their service.

Lord willing we will be attending CC Vienna more in the future. Our desire would be to going there as our local "home church" once we more back to Bratislava (Lord willing?) Please keep that potential move in your prayers as we are seeking an affordable place and the finances to cover it.

Check out CC Vienna at: http://www3.calvarychapel.com/vienna/english.htm

Vajta

Vajta was a cool time of fellowship, good teachings, and a bit of relax from the daily grind of Bratislava and Nitra. For us the best part tends to be the fellowship. It's so nice to be able to meet with others from all over Europe who have similar experiences as us. You leave with the assurance that you are not alone. Over the years many of the faces have become familiar and it's alwlays a joy to meet our brothers & sisters after a long time. One very blessed visit was with the Larson family. Especially for Gabie as he hung out with his buddy Peter John. Get Gabie, Peter John and throw in a few other little guys and you have a wild little gang. Yet, they are a blast to watch... as long as they aren't killing each other with any found object that could be in some vague way interpreted as a weapon. Here are some pics from our time there. Take special note: every boy has a stick... which is of course "much, much, more then a stick." Enjoy!

SoulFood Review: Thanksgiving

Well, it's about 2 weeks since we had our Thanksgiving dinner. We just finished eating that bird a few days ago! Now I know why Thanksgiving happens only once a year... who wants to eat turkey again for at least 6 months? Anyways, the celebration was a hit. Most of our Slovak friends hadn't ever seen (or tasted) a 'real' Thanksgiving meal. So, it was a bit 'exotic' for most and apparently enjoyed by all.

You may have noticed the heading "SoulFood: Thanksgiving" Basically, we put this dinner together as part of a series of meals called SoulFood that we want to host. This first one was essentially for those who are a part of the Nitra fellowship with the simple aim of hanging out together. Future SoulFood culinary adventures will be opened to others. The basic idea is that we want to really try out this idea of opening up our lives as followers of Christ and just invite people into that life. That goes way beyond dragging someone into a church. We figure everyone likes to eat and possibly they may have other hungers as well - for friendship, spiritual nourishment, creative cooking ideas... whatever. So, we will try this experiment out and see what happens. Next on the menu is Jewish cuisine... in celebration of Hanukah! 7 wild and crazy nights! (condensed into 1 in our case :)

Enjoy the pics....