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it's been good. real good.

2005-07-14T16:54:00.000-05:00

PO last day
Originally uploaded by bencooper.

2. Korintským 13,14
"Milosť Pána Ježiša Krista a láska Božia a účastenstvo Ducha Svätého so všetkými vami! [Amen.]"

2 Corinthians 13:14
"May the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all."

It looks like this is it. The final post ever on this beautiful thing we have called "joshandben.blogspot.com." It has served as a great way to stay in touch with family and friends, and will be a wonderful reminder to look back on of the things we have learned this summer. Thank you all for being interested in what God is doing in the lives of young people in Slovakia! Although we don't return for another two weeks, we will have no Internet access while at the next camp in Serbia (which we leave for bright and early at 6am).

We had to say more goodbyes tonight, but I chose to say "see you later" instead. I figure that even if it's a while, I still hope to see them sometime. If I could characterize this summer, I would say that it was just plain good. Everything was good. Very good. Velmy Dobre. Never in my life would I have expected to come over here and make the friendships that I did. Never. And even though it's hard to leave, I have even greater friends back home that I am looking forward to seeing! So thank you again for checking up on us over here; it's been a pleasure to keep you updated. :) Stay the course and spend some time with the Lord today!

Ben

Ben and I are really thankful that you've taken time this summer to check out our blog. We have really enjoyed keeping you updated with the things we've been going through and the things God is doing here. We hope that these few posts have made you laugh, but more importantly we hope that they've made you think. Both of our perspectives have changed drastically since we've been over here, and we hope that maybe God used us to maybe help you see things through a different point of view.

If I could leave you with one thought, it'd be one that echoed Jeremiah Twenty-Nine:Eleven -- "For I know the plans I have for you', declares the LORD, 'plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future." --- I always want to know what the future will hold, but I am realizing that I simply don't know and God wants me to rest in the fact that He does. I don't know what tomorrow will bring, but I do know that God will work it for His glory no matter what. I hope that you will seek God in your days to come. He is the only one worth living for and the only one worth dying for.

Joshua

Ronald can't carry your burdens, but he makes a mean french fry.

2005-07-13T17:40:00.000-05:00

ronald
Originally uploaded by bencooper.

Ronald McDonald has a lot of great qualities. Here are a few you might not know:

-Ronald McDonald speaks more than 25 languages, including Cantonese, Portuguese, Hindi, Tagalog and Russian.

-Ronald McDonald is "Donald McDonald" in Japan because it makes pronunciation easier for the Japanese. In Singapore he's known as "Uncle McDonald."

-The shoe size of Ronald McDonald is 14 1/2 -- or, as Ronald likes to say, "extra long, by extra wide, by extra red."

If you already knew these things, then I'm sorry but you are the world's most boring human being.

Above you see him in Kosice, Slovakia at a two story McD's, which you actually get your food served to you at your table. This is inconsequential, but it is a nice feature. As wonderful as Ronald is, with his permanent smile and his silly big shoes, he can't bear your burdens with you.

Friends are a true gift from God. There is some supernatrual thing that happens when your friends share in your grief. Somehow God empowers people to literrally take burdens off of one another so that the load is lighter. There have been times in my life when all I needed was someone to be there with me while I cried. I didn't need a counseling word or advice. All I needed and wanted was someone to physically be there with me. And somehow that was more comforting than any words could come close to doing.

There was this guy named Paul who wrote a bunch of letters to different churches back in the 1st century. In one of his letters to a church in Galatia, which was located in Turkey, Paul tells the followers of Jesus to, "Carry each other's burdens...". This picture is amazing to me. There have been times when I could feel my grief lessen because there were people there grieving with me. This can't be explained outside of God.

A few years ago my friend Phil's dad passed away unexpectantly. A few of us went to his house that night to grieve with him, but a few days later a bunch of guys gathered to sing together and to get into the Word a little. It turned out to be a very emotional evening with about 20 high school guys laying their hands on Phil's back, crying and praying that God would bring peace that transcends understanding. In this way we carried Phil's pain for him. It's hard to explain and it's very, very real.

Ronald is nice with his big shoes and all, but he doesn't compare to the guys around me that hold me up when I'm hurting.

May God bless you with the same kind of friends that He has blessed me with.

*thelongbrake

as i journal

2005-07-12T18:49:00.000-05:00

as i journal
Originally uploaded by bencooper.

It's late, I'm tired, and I don't really know what I want to say. I'm really trying to see the the big picture in everything God is doing. For instance, why have I become so attached to these people if I'm not supposed to again work with them in the future? What is my purpose in coming over here, other than the short-term impact of teaching English at a camp? Why am I up so late if I have a 9:00AM faux-hawk trimming session at the barber's?

But for real, I'm anxious to see what God's plan is for all of this, to see how God is at work in Fort Wayne, Nashville and Kukova; why he has me in each place. I know that as I digest the things that have happened here and head back to school that God will bring more clarity to life. I wish I could see where I will be, who I will be with, what I will be doing in 1, 5, 10, 20 years down the road. But it doesn't work like that, and a lot of times our plans end up being completely different than what we ever planned on or expected. Three months ago I had no idea I would even be anywhere other than the good old Fort of Wayne this summer. So how can I confidently say anything about any details of my future? All I can control is whether or not I will choose to serve God or myself in each situation. My friend Chuck said,

"I am convinced that life is 10% what happens to me and 90% how I react to it."

So no matter what happens in the 10% we can always joyfully serve the Lord in the 90%. Two people can have the exact same 10% happen to them and lead completely different lives. So when things go not as we planned, how do we react? We see that it's exactly how it was meant to be. God is in control.

Ben (I appologize if I rambled)

Proverbs 16:9
"In his heart a man plans his course, but the LORD determines his steps."

Proverbs 20:24
"A man's steps are directed by the LORD. How then can anyone understand his own way?"

Jeremiah 29:11
"For I know the plans I have for you" declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future."

Romans 8:28
"And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose."

the goodbyes

2005-07-12T18:27:00.000-05:00

farewell coolkova
Originally uploaded by bencooper.

This is a picture from last night's farewells. There were a lot of tears shed, and it was hard to leave them all. It's strange, becuase to you guys they are just faces, but to me they are personalities. I wish all of my friends and family could just go plant a village right next to Kukova and I wouldn't have to miss anyone.

the summer is setting

2005-07-11T16:02:00.000-05:00

sun
Originally uploaded by bencooper.

Things are slowly coming to an end here for us. Ben and I are spending our last 3 days here in Slovakia and on Friday we leave for Serbia to do our final english camp. After that we spend 4 days in Budapest to rest and debrief the summer. It literally seems like a week ago that we arrived here.

It has been really good. It would be impossible to try and describe all of the things we've learned and the emotions we've felt. We've missed family and friends deeply and we've made deep friendships here. We've missed certain foods and we've aquired tastes for new ones. We've experienced pains at home and we've experienced pains on this side of the world. Tears have been shed there and tears have been shed here. With me and Coop, laughter is a given. We experience plenty of that wherever we happen to be. The point is, life is good wherever we are. And it's not good because we're in certain places, it's good because God intended it to be good. It doesn't matter where you are, be that in Zulu, Indiana or Prague, Czech Republic. Life is good, and I believe that it is good because God is good.

And the picture above is a picture of the sun, and we think that the sun is neat.

joshua

saturday night

2005-07-09T17:15:00.000-05:00

thuggin it kukova style
Originally uploaded by bencooper.

Mint tea. The drink of choice for me as I sit down to type. We're at a point in our journey where our "hello's" gradually begin to turn into "goodbye's." It's such a bittersweet feeling to leave here. One minute I'm wishing to just feed all of my clothes to my bag and board a plane for home, but the next I'm wishing I didn't have to go anywhere. Forget the place, it's the people. I just want all of you back home to come over here. Or for everyone here to fly back with me so we can all just sit and enjoy God together.

Tomorrow Lee Ann, Melissa and I (the three interns with Kukova) head to the village to spend three days following up with the students. And it wasn't until earlier today that I realized that it would be the last time I would see the people I have grown so close to in the community. And there are so many: Maruska (Marushka), the leader of their youth group, who is wise and mature beyond her years; Feri, her younger brother who was my translater last week at camp, and who I will be staying with these next few days; Dusan (Dushan), who so graciously and humbly has shown us what it means to serve others; Slovcy (Slouchy), Andy and Mato (Macho), who allowed me to join them in leading worship with them a few times; Zuzka and Mark (Marek), who always kept me laughing; Janka (Yanka), who spent numerous sleepless nights pouring God's love into girls at camp last week. And the list goes on. How can I ever say goodbye and do it justice? Or even record the things they have done and still feel the moment? I only wish you could experience them with us!

But then I remember that you will meet them sometime. These people know Christ, and it is obvious. I am so thankful that we will be with them agian in heaven, and that even if we are thousands of miles (or kilometers!) apart, we will still be working side by side for His kingdom. I hope you are as encouraged as I am by that!

Ben

PS - Janka's example reminds me of something I've recently been reading about in 2 Corinthians: Paul's endurance. It pumps me up to read this sort of stuff. If you get a chance, please, please, please read 2 Cor. 6:3-13 and 2 Cor. 11:16-33.

me and the curls

2005-07-09T16:51:00.000-05:00

me and the curls
Originally uploaded by bencooper.

Some of the funniest people I have ever met are Kukovites, and here are two of them. Zuzka is on the left, and Mark (Mah-rek) is on the right. Mark is actually a few inches taller than me, and he reminds me of Will Ferrell in Elf.

1.21 Gigawatts

2005-07-08T17:31:00.000-05:00

benjoshmiro
Originally uploaded by bencooper.

It's going to be really really hard to leave this country. It's odd how attached you can get to a place in such a short period of time. Many people have asked me which is better: America or Slovakia? I always say that you can't compare the two. One is definitely not better than the other. But there are pros and cons to both countries, and I have begun to realize that the things that are 'pros' about America aren't really that important to me. What I really miss about America are people, and what I really love about Slovakia are the people. One thing I love about the kids here is that there isn't really a social ladder in the schools. I've noticed that kids don't seem to size up other kids or hang out in certain cliques. The 'cool' kids hang out w/ the outcasts, and the jocks hang out w/ the intellectuals. I love that. The people here are so accepting of others. It's going to be terribly hard to leave.
I do love America and I am proud of my country. It's really hard for me to explain. Sometimes I find myself looking down on America because of it's wealth and such, but that's wrong of me. I am rich and I am guilty of not helping others with what God's given me. Lots of students here have told me that America is rich and Slovakia is poor. I proceed to tell them that Slovakia is incredibly rich and the Congo is quite poor. Money is a hard issue to deal with and I try to move on to other subjects when possible.
I know that this post doesn't have any flow or make much sense, but that's because the thoughts that have been running through my head are really confusing. I have no idea what God wants me to do in the future and it burdens my mind at times. I trust Him but there is a part of me that really wants to look through a portal or jump into The Dolorian and travel at exactly 85 mph w/ the Flux Capacitor going at full throttle to see what lies ahead, but unfortunately Marty McFly isn't in control. Trust is really tough. That may sound cliche and obvious, but I'd rather be truthful than try to type something that looks good on screen but is dishonest. Right now my head is spinning and it gets frustrating. But I trust that God is good and that He'll work things for His glory. I find rest and comfort in that.

Longbrake

camp was _________

2005-07-07T16:15:00.000-05:00

camp po guys
Originally uploaded by bencooper.

And that's where my words fail. Literally, the only word to describe it was that it was indescribable. It is incredible to see God at work and lives changing. Although the days were long, and nights short, we had a fantastic time and the people we met we were amazing. Really, that is what makes all the difference. So basically what I'm saying is that we just got home this afternoon, I'm tired (slept an hour and a half last night), and there is truly no way to tell you in three or four paragraphs everything that happend this last week. I need to let it all kind of digest and soak in. I've been trying to capture moments in my journal, but, unless you lived alongside us and saw the way God worked in this last week, it's hard to explain. Just know that everyone who had a part in interacting with the students (and seeing God moving their hearts) has been deeply impacted in their own walk with Christ. So let it be a reminder and an encouragement to you in case you have forgotten: HE IS ALIVE AND AT WORK!

Ben

english group

2005-07-07T16:03:00.000-05:00

ispeak group
Originally uploaded by bencooper.

This is a shot of the students Lizzy (in the blue and white hat) and I taught every morning. Here are some great people and personalities that I will never do justice describing.

george

2005-07-07T15:54:00.000-05:00

george
Originally uploaded by bencooper.

Let me tell you about my friend George. Our campsite was directly beside a hotel/retreat center at the base of the Tatras Mountains. On the second day of camp, I noticed a guy playing basketball that I hadn't seen before. When I introduced myself, I realized that his English was quite good, yet he had a completely different accent than all of the other students. It became clear when he told me he was staying at the hotel nextdoor with his mother, and that he was visiting from Hungary. Ah, George the Hungarian.

As we talked, I saw that it was no accident that he had made his way into our camp, that God had brought him here for a reason. I asked him what he was doing that night, and when all was said and done, George boarded the bus with us and set off for the evening program at a location 20 minutes away with all of the other camps. The next day I went over our camp policies, gave him an official camp wristband, and before long he was participating in my group's team-building activities. Then he came again to the evening program. And again the next night.

He told me that he's never been around people like us, and that he didn't know what he was going to do when we left. George is searching. Not only has he heard the Gospel, but more importantly, he has seen the Gospel clearly lived out before him. A seed has most surely, positively, definitely been planted in this man's heart, and for that I rejoice!

nature

2005-07-07T15:40:00.000-05:00

lotr tatras
Originally uploaded by bencooper.

Romans 1:20
"For since the creation of the world God's invisible qualities - His eternal power and divine nature - have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that men are without excuse."

camp

2005-06-28T04:04:00.000-05:00

lean2
Originally uploaded by bencooper.

So, my friends, we must part ways this day, as we head to camp to finalize everything before the kids come on Thursday. We will be back in 10 days (I think either Thursday or Friday), so please check back again then to see how camp went. I'm so excited for the opportunity to be with these guys for a whole week! But we seriously want to thank you guys for checking up on us so much. We probably wouldn't keep writing on this thing unless we knew people we reading it.

Since this is such a pivotal time with the students here, please pray that:
- our relationships with the students would deepen and grow
- God would open eyes and ears to his forgiveness
- the students would see Christ lived out in us; that we would be selfless
- we as interns would be spending quality time with the Lord, and that we would be quick to confess any sin
- we all would have energy, especially towards the end of the week; that we would finish strong

These are just a few things off the top of my head. I greatly anticipate what God is going to do this week! It's time to do some serious seed plantin'. Until next time...

Ben and Josh

Twenty-Two

2005-06-27T16:15:00.000-05:00

maja gift
Originally uploaded by bencooper.

June 28th is my birthday. In a few hours I'll turn 22 years old. I've never been 22 before, but I've heard good things about it.

Today I've been thinking about the major lessons I've learned during the course of my life. Here are the things that came to mind:

1- You cannot separate your life and your spiritual life. There is no 'spiritual life'. There is just life and all life is spiritual.
2- Friends, and people in general, are always more important than stuff I own.
3- Worshipping God is essential and wonderful.
4- Scripture, in some supernatural way, is alive and active. It convicts and penetrates my heart. It is poetic, beautiful, and timeless.
5- Any physical posession I own isn't really mine. God has allowed me to borrow some of His stuff and He expects me to use it well.
6- Helping people who are down and out on their luck is a good thing. Helping the poor, the starving, the widows and orphans is a really fullfilling and pleasing thing to God.
7- I really love Ben Cooper. He is a better friend than I could have ever asked for. I praise God that He orchestrated our lives to intersect.
8- Reading books has been extremely helpful in developing my mind. Reading christian books and secular books have helped me to form my own views and opinions on all sorts of matters. Plus I hear that TV rots your brain.
9- Rest is more than essential; it's Biblical. God was so big on rest that He told his people that if they didn't party on certain dates and at certain festivals that He'd kill them. I'd say that God is big on rest, and therefore I should be big on rest.
10- My father, mother, step-mother and sister are the most important people in my life. I have learned more from them than anyone else. I wish I would have learned earlier in life the real importance of family.

I know that this list is short and isn't even close to exaustive, but it's what's impressed on my heart. 22 years have gone by so quickly. I look forward to however many years God gives me in the future, be it one more day or 60 more years.

josh

i'm on the right with the apron

2005-06-26T16:45:00.000-05:00

you vant to dahns
Originally uploaded by bencooper.

These are the parents of the youth leader in Kukova. The people were celebrating some aspect of their history. I was told that as of 50 years ago, this was normal daily attire in the village. I must say, tradition never looked so good.

So, this is day 36 out of our 70 here. I can't believe how fast our time has gone already; it's like we have really long days, but short weeks. And these last couple of days have been pretty busy for us. We've been celebrating the end of school with different groups of students (eating loads of traditional sausages around campfires), then we've been participating in various activities with the Kukova youth group.

Last night I stayed by myself with a really nice family in the village. The parents spoke little English, so I communicated through their son, Andy, who is about my own age. All I know is that his mom has the gift of cooking, and the food was amazing. Up until last night I thought that Americans ate way more than Slovaks, but now I am unsure. This woman insisted that I eat EVERYTHING she set in front of me, even threatening with hand motions to punch me if I didn't (jokingly, I assure you). So last night after two big spekacky sausages at the campfire, a big plate of reheated leftovers as a pre-sleep snack, we encountered a problem: I was full, but she wasn't done feeding me. There was a plate of desserts, probably eight pastries in all, and a box of chocolates. (Cue country western showdown music.) There was no possible way I could eat more than one, and that one was strictly out of politeness. As I followed Andy upstairs to go to bed, he brought the desserts along, and, in all seriousness, assured me that I needed to eat all of them by the time morning came. I was like, "Man, I really don't want to offend anyone...but I also don't want to throw up all over their bathroom." Solution: Zip-loc bags. Thankfully, I packed my toiletries in a gallon-sized bag, and by morning, all sweets were neatly hidden in my backpack. Macguyver would have been proud. Even after dodging that, I woke up to a breakfast of three hot dogs, which is a traditional breakfast here. I wasn't ready to come back to a huge lunch, not even two hours after the hot dog extravaganza. My cover was blown. I waved the white flag and took a swift jab across the jaw. Ok, she didn't punch me, but I could tell she wasn't thrilled that I only ate half my plate. So other than participating in my first game of, "Let's See How Much He'll Eat Before He Gets Violent," my stay was quite pleasant. As I left their house his mom and I blew kisses to each other!

All joking aside, these people we have met are some of the most generous and hospitable people I have ever encountered. This is something that's been on my heart as of late: God wants us to be faithful with the small things, so that we can be entrusted with the large (Matt. 25:14-30). In comparison to Americans, most families here don't have as much as we do. But in a lot of ways, I have seen greater generosity being lived out by those with less to give. So we are reminded, it's not the amount that matters:

Mark 12:41-44 - The Widow's Offering

"Jesus sat down opposite the place where the offerings were put and watched the crowd putting their money into the temple treasury. Many rich people threw in large amounts. But a poor widow came and put in two very small copper coins, worth only a fraction of a penny.

Calling his disciples to him, Jesus said, 'I tell you the truth, this poor widow has put more into the treasury than all the others. They all gave out of their wealth; but she, out of her poverty, put in everything -- all she had to live on.'"

Yeah. What He said.

Ben

God's Nationality

2005-06-25T15:40:00.000-05:00

whats that
Originally uploaded by bencooper.

For my whole life I kind of ignorantly figured that God was an American. I thought that since America is so (cough) successful (cough) that God must like it, and therefore, He probably took citizenship there. I mean He obviously favors Americans more than everyone else, righ? Why else would He "bless" us more than every other country in the world.

My time here has changed me a bit. I'm starting to understand my narrow mindedness a bit more. I don't know why I thought God liked America more. Maybe it was because I live there or because I have been taught by culture that for some reason we are better than others in the world. Lately, though, I've come to realize that God actually loves everyone. Who knew? I know you may think that I've come to this knowledge a little late in life, but there is a difference between knowing something and KNOWING something. I can hear facts all that I want to, but until I experience it I sometimes don't quite have a grasp on it.

On a lighter note, I tripped in public the other day.

*thelongbrake

mystery stank

2005-06-23T16:56:00.000-05:00

group fountain
Originally uploaded by bencooper.

I smell. It started probably a week and a half ago, when I realized that some of my shirts were starting to smell bad. I mean really bad. Like it wasn't just sweat or anything, but they smelled before I would even wear them in the morning. I would begin my day knowing that I was going to be a problem to other people's noses by noon. Since then, the stench has found a home in Mike's kitchen, most likely in his ceiling. The problem is that the ceilings are 12 feet high, and we have no way of accessing them to find the problem (most likely a dead animal of some sorts...or one of my missing t-shirts).

One of the worst days was a day where we had five classes to teach in a row at a local school. I was also wearing a new pair of shoes for the first time. It didn't take me long to realize that I hadn't really tried them on very well before I bought them; they were about two sizes too large. Add that to the fact that I have a stain on my good jeans from a bloody nose on the first day of the trip. And I was tired...and probably pitting out, considering how warm it was that day. So all in all, I gradually began to get more frustrated about dumb things like that. And then it hit me. I had been taking the blessings God had given me, and complaining about them in my mind, letting them almost become a curse to me. Instead of being thankful that I have shoes, a pair of jeans, a shirt, I began to complain about things I was unhappy with. It's a terrible blunder to mistake your wants for your needs. I don't deserve clean clothes, a pair of shoes that fit, or even a plate of food in front of me. It makes me remember what I truly deserve: death.

Rom. 6:23
"For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord."

Rom. 7:24-25
"What a wretched man I am! Who will rescue me from this body of death? Thanks be to God -- through Jesus Christ our Lord!"

Col. 1:13-14
"For he has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins."

I'm so thankful for His forgiveness! I've also been thinking more about the love thing. I know it starts with the small things, but I also know that it's easy to love those who I'm close to; it's easy to love those who are easy to love. (Profound, I know.) But Christ modeled an amazing concept:

Rom. 5:6-8
"You see, just at the right time, when we were still powerless, Christ died for the ungodly. Very rarely will anyone die for a righteous man, though for a good man someone might possibly dare to die. But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us."

THAT is profound. I'm praying that I will learn what it means to live this out.

Ben "What's that smell?" Cooper

waiting for the bus to come

2005-06-23T15:22:00.000-05:00

group bus stop
Originally uploaded by bencooper.

So here we all are, happy as can be. All of us laughing. Yep, there's Mike, Lee Ann, Dano...wait. Where's the Longbrake? READ BELOW.

"josh and velma lou," a poem by ben

2005-06-23T15:16:00.000-05:00

josh and velma lou
Originally uploaded by bencooper.

As he waits for the bus to come
A woman approaches, next to none

"What is your name?" he struggles to say
"Velma Lou, and this is your day."

As they chatted, they soon realized
Different buses each planned to ride

The time was short, the company sweet,
But soon enough each had to leave

Who's to say what may become
Of Josh and Velma Lou's short song?

No, seriously, guys. I'm weirded out. Let me know what to do.

Ben

giant silver toilet

2005-06-23T15:07:00.000-05:00

bus stop bathroom
Originally uploaded by bencooper.

Must I explain?

the world of tesco

2005-06-23T15:06:00.000-05:00

mike jany tesco
Originally uploaded by bencooper.

This is captain MIke with our friend Jany, who came in second place in the European Kickboxing Championships (only because the other guy illegally broke his nose during the match). So basically, he keeps us in line. Let me tell you a little about Tesco, the place he works. It's neat. It's real neat. It's the place to shop when you want some good food. Or some shoes. Or batteries. Or to see your friend Jany putting price stickers on Spiderman toys.

Joshoclese 2.0 :: Upside Down Kingdom

2005-06-22T17:29:00.000-05:00

joshsiedme
Originally uploaded by bencooper.

I've been reading through the teachings of Jesus since Ben and I came to Europe. It's been really fascinating rereading what I've read so many times in the past. But something is different this time. A concept is becoming a bit clearer. The concept has to do with Jesus and how upside down His teachings were. Allow me to explain.

Here are the three main ideas that I'm trying to wrap my head around:

Last is First. Humbled Is Exalted. Weak is Strong. I'll stumble through them briefly.

Last is First: [Mt. 19:30] Jesus was obsessed with serving and producing servants. In a society that was all about climbing the social ladder (oh how times have changed) Jesus came at the people with a completely new teaching. He called people to give up the best seat, to serve others first, to love sacrificially.

Humbled is Exalted: [Lk. 14:11] Jesus tells us to take the low seat. This is so practical for me. Take for instance today. Four of us needed to take a shower before dinner. I knew that unless I got to take one of the 1st three shower then I would not have any hot water. But then this passage came to mind. Take the low seat. I'm not building myself up here, because I've pretty much spent my entire life exalting myself (and there was still hot water left anyways). I'm just now realizing that I've had it wrong this whole time. Better late than never.

Weak is Strong: [2 Cor. 12:10] This is beautiful. I know this isn't exactly in the gospels, but it fits in so nicely. Jesus, through Paul, tells us that we are strongest when we are weakest. Relying on ourselves simply doesn't work. How much better is it to realize we are weak and rely on the strength of the Creator of the universe? "I'll take 'God's Strength Over Mine' for $5,000, Alex." But the concept goes far beyond this. It's realizing a mental weakness. It's lowering my pride to understand I can't do it. Ever. But He can and He wants to.

The Kingdom of God is an Upsidedown Kingdom. God is absolutely brilliant, if you ask me. I know this may seem obvious, but the more I read this stuff the more real that fact becomes. Jesus walked around earth saying things like, "You've heard it is this way,...but I tell you that it's this way..." He was ticking off so many people who thought they knew what was going on. Especially when he said stuff like the fact that prostitues would enter the kingdom of heaven before the Pharisees.

His teachings were completely upside down. I can't even come close to understanding it but I absolutely love it.

"someday they'll call me air jonah..."

2005-06-22T16:16:00.000-05:00

jonah focus
Originally uploaded by bencooper.

This is our fellow intern, Jonah, cutting paper handouts like his life depended on it.

assembling the books

2005-06-22T16:14:00.000-05:00

group assembly2
Originally uploaded by bencooper.

This is a shot from Mike's living room yesterday. We were assembling our notebooks for the camps. It has a bunch of resources like handouts, games, quotes, and more. Good times. Mrs. Brown, I'm posting this picture in response to your concerned e-mail. I chose this one because your son is in it. Don't worry, Tommy hasn't disappeared with all of his support money!

Ben

PS - Tommy, it may be a good idea to let your mom know where you are.

Learned Lessons/ Answer to Question #Four

2005-06-21T16:45:00.000-05:00

no ice cream
Originally uploaded by bencooper.

We've learned a lot while we've been here. We've learned about the language, the people, the culture, and the religious systems. But the biggest lesson we've learned is that you never, ever, by any means or under any circumstance take your gun AND your ice cream into this convenience store.

Now for Question Number Four, brought to us by Will.

Will asks, "What music has been most appropriate/most inspiring/the best to interpretive dance to in the morning?"

Will, we thank you for your question. And as a fellow bearded boy, I tip my hat to you.

Ben and I have found the new Coldplay album, entitled "X&Y", quite pleasing. Typically as we're around the flat we have music playing in the background, and the foreground for that matter. Ben bought the album a few weeks ago and we've been playing it pretty much non-stop since he got it. We were both worried that the album would sound too similar to the previous albums, but we were not disappointed. It is quite creative and well written. It's got some different sounds and lyrically it's very memorable. We think it's neat.

As to the latter question, we like to do interpretive dances in the morning to Simon and Garfunkel, Cooper, and ringtone #14 (Latin Remix) on our mobile phone.

they call him "little nicotine"

2005-06-20T18:30:00.000-05:00

nicotine child
Originally uploaded by bencooper.

coincidence? i think not.

2005-06-20T18:29:00.000-05:00

creat_adam1b
Originally uploaded by bencooper.

Question #3 - Love

2005-06-20T18:28:00.000-05:00

nicotine child zoomed
Originally uploaded by bencooper.

Love is sharing a lit cigarette with your 12 year old friend. Personally, I didn't really know how to react other than to take a picture of this while we were at the castle last week. I find it ironic how much it resembles the picture of God reaching down to Adam on the Sistine Chapel ceiling!

No, but for real, question three (actually a few questions) were given to us via e-mail from our good friend Laurie Doden. In her set of "light questions" were: What is love? What good is love? And What is good love?

This is by no means a comprehensive list of Scriptures having to do with love, but it's just a handful that I rounded up to answer these. If you'd like to look them up, they are in parentheses following the answer.

A. What is love?
- Christ dying for us, giving us life (1 Jn. 3:16, 1 Jn. 4:10, Jn. 3:16, Rom. 5:8, Eph. 5:1-2)
- God is love (1 Jn. 4:16)
- A fruit of the Spirit (Gal. 5:22)
- Patient, kind, does not envy, etc. (read 1 Cor. 13:4-7)
- Obeying the Father (2 Jn. 1:6) and obeying Jesus (Jn. 14:21)
- Us sacrificing for others as Christ sacrificed for us (1 Jn. 3:16, Rom. 12:10)

B. What good is love?
- The love of neighbor sums up the entire law (Gal. 5:14, Rom. 13:8-10)
- It indicates that we belong to Christ (1 Jn. 3:10, 1 Jn. 3:14, 1 Jn. 4:7, Jn. 13:34-35)
- Keeps us from sin (1 Jn. 2:15-17)
- Covers a multitude of wrongs (Prov. 10:12, 1 Pet. 4:8)
- Gives us confidence on the day of judgment (1 Jn. 3:17)
- Drives out fear (1 Jn. 3:18)
- Builds up (1 Cor. 8:1)
- Binds virtues together in perfect unity (Col. 3:12-14)
- If we love one another, God's love is made complete in us (1 Jn. 4:12)
- Takes us from death to life (1 Jn. 3:14)
- True love spurs us to action in truth (1 Jn. 3:17-18)
- Gives meaning to our actions and good works (1 Cor. 13:1-3)
- If we love God, He works for our own good (Rom. 8:28)
- Is a way to impact our enemies for good (Matt. 5:43-48)
- Fills us to the measure of all the fullness of God (Eph. 3:19)

C. What is good love?
- Sincere (Rom. 12:9)
- Selfless (1 Jn. 3:16, Rom. 12:10)
- Is in obedience to the commands of the Father (2 Jn. 1:6) and the Son (Jn. 14:21), in which we are called to:
- - - Love one another (Jn. 13:34-35, Rom. 13:8, 1 Pet. 1:22, 1 Jn. 3:11, many more)
- - - Do everything in love (1 Cor. 16:14)
- - - Lay down our lives like Christ did for others (1 Jn. 3:16, Eph. 5:1-2)
- - - Love our enemies (Matt. 5:43-48)
- - - Express our faith through love (Gal. 5:6)
- - - Spur one another on toward love and good deeds (Heb. 10:24)
- - - Avoid the love of money (1 Tim. 6:10)
- - - Read Romans 12:9-21
- - - And I believe that good love is anything that accomplishes what was mentioned in Part B

Here are some comforts I found while looking at Scripture:
- His love endures forever (Ps. 136)
- Nothing can separate us from the love of Christ (Rom. 8:35-39)
- God works for the good of those who love him (Rom. 8:28)
- It is difficult to grasp how wide, long, high and deep Christ's love for us is (Eph. 3:18)
- Christ's love surpasses knowledge (Eph. 3:19)

I hope that some of these passages have been an encouragement to you; they definitely have been to me. I'm learning more every day of what it means to lay down your life for someone else, and I will tell you this: it starts with the small things. It's easy to love in the obvious situations, when everyone's watching, and it would be awkward not to show love. I'm talking about the hard times, when no one notices but you and God. Those are the times where I'm trying to learn what it means to love.

Ben

1 Thess. 3:12
"May the Lord make your love increase and overflow for each other and for everyone else, just as ours does for you."

An Ode To Our Fathers

2005-06-19T15:48:00.000-05:00

fathersday
Originally uploaded by bencooper.

In this post we would like to pay tribute to the two men who have shaped our lives more than anyone else.

Gary Cooper (on the right, kind of) is a startling 6'3" and bench presses an astonishing 845 lbs. He started lifting weights when he was in the womb.

Steve Longbrake is also 6'3" and he bench presses small countries. He just started lifting weights about 4 and a half days ago.

In all seriousness, Ben and I love our dads far more than words could express. They have guided us and shaped us into God-fearing young men. We respect them and love them very much and we thank God for blessing us with such incredible fathers. They teach us how to be good husbands as well as how to raise a family that honors the Lord. Most importantly they have taught us about the True Father and what life is really about.

Happy Father's Day. We love you both very much.

Question #2, brought to you by...

2005-06-18T18:24:00.000-05:00

jb falls
Originally uploaded by bencooper.

Alright, I know last night Josh said we'd answer a couple of questions, but we're both plain tuckered out. It's been a long day beginning with a 6 hour youth conference in the village of Kukova, then some basketball, and we finished out with a two and a half hour planning meeting for the English camp. Part of what made it feel like a long day was that the conference and the meeting both consisted of about 95% Slovak and 3% English. (The other 2% represents the brief pauses after a period.) But it was definitely good times, and the people in Kukova, like we said before, are amazing. It's really something when you find yourself surrounded by hearts that are truly joyful.

But now to the real business...question #2. And it is brought to us by none other than my "Humble Cousin" Jon Cooper out of Knoxville, TN. He writes:

What part of your trip took you by surprise the most - that is, what did you least expect?

It's interesting, because I feel like I really tried to come into this trip with an open mind and open heart. But in all reality, there are always going to be things that we carry with us. Alright, in no specific order:

1. I'm surprised at how easily they pick us out, without even hearing us speak. On the other hand, I've never seen another beard like Longbrake's here yet (or in the US, for that matter).

2. Their assumptions about us for being Americans. Some just ask "which" moviestars we know, not even "if" we know any. Others assume that we all drive brand new expensive cars, live in mansions, are fat, lazy, and could care less about any other country, specifically one called Slovakia on the other side of the world. But most, in one way or another, have gotten their perceptions of us from Hollywood. All women in America must be beautiful, because all the ones they've ever seen in the movies are. It's also interesting to hear them talk about September 11. Lucas pointed out that if the same amount of people were killed in one day by terrorists here in Slovakia, it may be big news for a few weeks, but we probably wouldn't still be talking about it today. I guess it makes sense, considering that we hail from the country that finds its 5% of the world population worthy of using 40% of the world's resources.

3. There are very few black people here. Apparently they were never forced into slavery in this part of the world.

4. I'm surprised, and very thankful that we have so much access to the World Wide Web, especially that we're able to keep you guys posted on what's going on here, what we're learning, etc.

5. The cost of living. I didn't realize that the US dollar was going to go so far. Example: full dinners cost $3 or $4, my haircut was $3 (no jokes about me overpaying), and so on. Food is the main thing that is really cheap. We love our breakfasts: one cup of fantastic yogurt, a small baggett, a piece of butter/cheese/spread/stuff, and some juice. Oh, and the teas over here are great too.

6. I forgot how free advertisers are with their billboards to use sex to sell. It's really interesting to see how the country has come out of communism and has almost been trying to "find itself." You will see every type of fashion, whether it be from the 60's, 70's, or 80's, all of them are in style, because they never really got to experience them during their booms.

7. I didn't realize how beautiful and historic the buildings were going to be. In fact, in the morning, we're going to a church that was built in the 14th century (that means it's a few hundred years older than our infant of a country). Just to give you an idea, Mike's apartment where we're living is about 20 steps from this church. And if you look way back into the older posts, you'll find a picture of a bunch of colorful old buildings in a row...yep, that's right outside our door.

I can't really think of any more at the moment. All I know is that these last four weeks have been a huge learning experience, and I know that in the next six we will learn even more. I feel like I typed a lot. I did good, I did real good, Coach. Take me out. It's time for me to go to bed...

Ben

PS - This picture is of us at an amazing river/waterfall yesterday afternoon in the Tatras Mountains.

foosball frenzy!

2005-06-18T17:51:00.000-05:00

foosball
Originally uploaded by bencooper.

One night last week we played at least 10 games of foosball with these guys, and to be honest, they absolutely kicked our rears.

Answer to Question #1

2005-06-17T16:36:00.000-05:00

air jordan
Originally uploaded by bencooper.

Here is the first of the five best (in our humble opinions) questions we've received. You may disagree, but we don't care because it's not your website. It's ours. It's our website and we'll cry if we want to, cry if we want to, cry if we want to.

Sorry. Moving on.

Question #1 comes from "xanthippe". We have no idea who "xanthippe" is, but we still salute you. Xanthippe's question is, "Why is there air?"

A very valid question and we're honored to answer it. One would think that the purpose of air is to sustain life to every creature with breath on the earth. You might also think that the purpose of air is to sustain the Water Cycle, which we were so eloquently taught about in 8th grade science by Joel Guthrie. If you thought these things, then you are wrong. Air exists to provide Michael Jordan something to fly through. If there were no air, then there would be no Air Jordan. Air is there for His Airness. If you disagree, then again, you're wrong. We salute you Michael. Because of you, my friend, we have air.

Check back tomorrow for answers to questions #2 and #3.

great day for biking

2005-06-16T18:04:00.000-05:00

sigord with guys
Originally uploaded by bencooper.

Yesterday was a busy day: castle visiting, a 20k round trip bikeride, and thankfully, resting. (Can resting be a part of a busy day?) Well, these are the guys that we've really connected with over the past few weeks here. They're all 17 years old, and have one more year of high school left. On the left is Dusan, then Josh, Lucas, Miro, and me. God's really allowed us to be able to spend some good amounts of time with them, and conversations are gradually and naturally becoming about more important things...life things. Please pray that they would be passionate about taking the next step in their faith, wherever they may be in their spiritual journey. These are some special guys, and they've really just taken us into their tight circle of friendship. I've really been encouraged thus far and I believe that God has a lot in store for them...

anyone seen dragonheart?

2005-06-16T17:56:00.000-05:00

castletop
Originally uploaded by bencooper.

Yesterday we went to Spiske Castle (spelling way, way off) and took this photo on top of the highest point. Mike told us that this castle was used in the movie Dragonheart starring some famous actor. It makes sense, because this castle is the biggest in Middle and Eastern Europe. (It's Josh, Melissa, LeeAnn, Mike, and myself - the American interns.)

lance longbrake

2005-06-16T17:52:00.000-05:00

jb speedrider
Originally uploaded by bencooper.

I've never seen anyone pedal so hard for second place...plus, holding a camera is so un-aerodynamic.

belated, but never forgotten

2005-06-16T16:52:00.000-05:00

tonyo bday
Originally uploaded by bencooper.

Alright, we could make excuses like the Slovak calendar is four days behind America's, or that I'm suffering from some hereditary memory loss (that one's for you, Laurie!), but we have no excuse...other than that we're in a foreign country and we're kept pretty busy. But we wanted to make it known to the entire world that we want to wish Mr. Tony Opliger a fantastic 29th birthday. And for this occasion, we have written you a little haiku...

Tony is super
Tony likes to wear visors
Tony is two-nine

Thank you. Please...hold your applause. You really don't want to know how long it took us to think that up though. Well, we have definitely enjoyed reading all of your questions, and they are currently being reviewed by the panel. Please keep sending them to us, as we will begin answering a couple of them each day, and will hopefully be able to shed some light onto some questions that have boggled your minds for some time. (Please keep the questions semi-simple, as we would hate to get embarrassed. Simple addition and subtraction are ok, but please steer clear of multiplication and division.) So enjoy your day, and spend some time with the Lord!

Ben

1 Thessalonians 2:12

"May the Lord direct your hearts into God's love and Christ's perseverance."

Psalm 37:37 (great chapter)

"Consider the blameless, observe the upright; there is a future for the man of peace."

Q&A -- we're in the hot seat

2005-06-14T16:28:00.000-05:00

jb qna
Originally uploaded by bencooper.

Oh yes. It's Q&A time.

We know what you're thinking. We can see right through you. "Who are the guys behind the website?" you ask yourself with an inquisitive expression on your face. Well here is your chance to find out anything you want. We want you, all 6 of you that view this site, to either leave a question in the "comments" section or email us (via Ben's email address: audionash@mac.com) any question at all. Ask us personal questions. Ask us about the '86 Mets. Ask us about what to get your brother-in-law for Arbor day. We'll choose the Top 5 questions, giving much deserved credit and respect to the questioner, and answer them in great detail in the next few posts. You're chock full of questions. We're chock full of nuts.

enter the european look

2005-06-14T10:23:00.000-05:00

benhairside
Originally uploaded by bencooper.

Alright, so this morning we were at the hair place, and the lady got all the way done with giving me a normal haircut. She made some joke in Slovak like she wanted to give me a "punk" haircut, and of course I didn't know what she said so I just did my normal thing of smiling and nodding (actually Mike translated). And I said to myself, "Benny-boy, you're in Europe..what better time to become a poser?" I also decided not to stop with just the haircut, but to pierce both ears and get a tattoo on my back. I just didn't have time to take a picture of those yet. No, but seriously folks, this is the real deal fro-hawk you are looking at to your right. So Mom, Brittany, and any other special lady in my life, I hope you enjoy it!

presov panoramic

2005-06-13T17:22:00.000-05:00

PO panoramic
Originally uploaded by bencooper.

Alright, so first things first, this picture is really tiny unless you click on it once, and then a second time. Even if you can't expand it for some reason, it's still a little glimpse of what our city looks like here. So I thought I'd just update you on what the rest of the summer looks like schedule-wise.

As you know we began with a week in Zilina at the Kompas Cafe, spent the next 6 days with Mike in his apartment in Presov, 2 more in the village of Kukova, and last week we were at Josiah Venture summer intern training in Czech Republic. So now we're back at "home" (Mike's place) for the next two and a half weeks. It's interesting how your definition of home can change. When we were on our long journey back from Prague after the van incident, "home" was the retreat center we were staying at. But even more, we wanted to get "home" which was back here to Presov. And right now I'm beginning to more and more miss "home" which is mainly Indiana, but for 9 months out of the year my "home" is in Nashville. But in all honesty, I desperately just want to get Home, if you know what I mean.

So yeah, these next 16 days or so are purely relationship building, so please pray specifically that God would allow us to begin planting seeds in the lives of students here. There has been a group of four guys who are really hungry to spend time with me and Josh, and their names are Dusan (Du-shan), Miro, Peter, and Lucas. We spent some time with them tonight, and are meeting up with them at a cafe again tomorrow night. They are really neat guys and it's great to see how God's allowed us to already bond with them. I don't know if I said anything before, but a couple of them took me up to a mountain on a sweet bike ride right before we left for training. I'm really pumped about getting to know them!

Then after these two weeks we spend ten days at camp, the first 3 or 4 preparing the American teams that come over just to help out with the camps, then 6 or 7 days for the actual camp. We have a week of follow-up with the students back here in Presov, then we head to do another camp, the first camp of its kind, in Serbia. You guys probably remember all the stuff that happened late 90's with Kosovo and the UN bombings and such. So we're not really sure how deep we can go, but I know God will still do his work. This is major foundational stuff to pave the way for future camps to happen. Then we round out the summer with four days of debriefing/resting in Budapest, Hungary. I really feel like now that we're in the swing of things, time is going to fly by. And on one hand, I'm beginning to miss being with you all, but on the other hand, I really, really don't want to miss out on the things God is doing here. Thank you guys so much for keeping up with this and caring about us!

Cen Booper

In other news, I'm going to experience my first Slovak haircut with Mike in the morning. If you don't see any pictures of me in the next few weeks, just assume it didn't go well.

some serious wind action

2005-06-13T17:07:00.000-05:00

jb out train
Originally uploaded by bencooper.

This was the same night as the beautiful sunset. If you look closely, you'll see that Josh actually inhaled 14 bugs during this shot.

me on trusty old orange

2005-06-13T17:05:00.000-05:00

me on trusty old orange
Originally uploaded by bencooper.

TonyO, this is not what you would consider safe, especially considering I didn't even ask if I could sit on it!

come on, train

2005-06-13T17:03:00.000-05:00

bmmj station
Originally uploaded by bencooper.

Me, Maja, Melissa, and Josh while we were waiting for a train Saturday morning.

bearded philosophy

2005-06-12T18:23:00.000-05:00

joshbeard
Originally uploaded by bencooper.

My beard makes me think that I am a philosopher. I like to think that Aristotle and I could sit down for a talk and that he actually might like me. He'd talk about things that are very philosophical and deep and I would nod my head as though I understood, and then I would talk and say things as if they were original thoughts to me. He would look at me with eyes that made him look as though he were actually interested in what I had to say as he sipped on his beverage of choice. We would have a wonderful time, at least that's how I see it happening.

And now some thoughts from the self-proclaimed philosopher Joshoclese:

I've been wondering lately why I get mad at the things I shouldn't get mad at and why I don't get mad at things I should get mad at. For instance, I find myself getting frustrated when I'm driving behind someone who is driving 5 mph under the speed limit, but I don't get mad at things like world poverty or injustices like the Rwanda genocide. Now I know that some of you might think that there isn't anything that I can do about those topics, but I disagree. Consider the following:
America makes up about 5 or 6 percent of the world's population, yet we consume around 40 percent of it's rescources. What I don't understand is why the "haves" have more and the "have nots" continue to have less. I don't think God likes this fact either. For example, take a look at the Year of Jubilee in the Old Testament. Every 50 years all debts between men were cancelled in Judaic culture. This prevented the gap of rich and poor from widening further than it already was. But I don't think that I can personally change this gap....or can I.

So let's say that instead of going to a thrift store every other week or so I save that money that I would normally spend on a few "new" t-shirts. Then I take that money and I feed a child in Africa or Asia or Fort Wayne. The thought boggles my mind that I can acutally FEED A CHILD. By me "sacrificing" buying another t-shirt I can literally give somebody food so they can live for another week.

None of these are new thoughts, but they inspire me to actually do something. So when I get back to the States I think I'm going to start sponsering a child. I only say this publically on here so that you can keep my accountable by asking me when you see me. I'm not saying this to look good, because if you're reading this then you probably know me, and if you know me then I'm sure you know plenty of my faults and shortcomings. But I really want to help change lives in whatever way I can, whether it's through music in the church or feeding a child I've never met.

Sorry if I rambled. I think I hear Aristotle telling me to go to bed.

as the train arrives

2005-06-12T07:53:00.000-05:00

trainclock
Originally uploaded by joshandben.

I took this yesterday as we were about to get on our second train out of three to get back to Presov. In a lot of ways I've felt like I'm a train. I'm on a journey from one place to another, picking up things along the way and ridding myself of things that hinder my travel. And I feel like in this last week I arrived at a major train station, re-evaluated my course, and set of again on a fresh new path. Now more than ever I feel equipped to accomplish the things God has set out for me to do; like I have a whole new understanding of where I've been and where I'm going. And it's really no "new" information, but I think God has allowed me to have a better understanding of Him and His purposes, and for that I am thankful. I'm going to leave you with a Psalm that Amy Ellenwood shared with us Friday at our intern training. Please pray for unity in our team, open ears and hearts to hear and accept the gospel, and that we would be sensitive to the Spirit's leading. Thank you guys so much for your support and prayers. Josh and I appreciate them more than we can express to you!

Psalm 15

LORD, who may dwell in your sanctuary?
Who may live on your holy hill?

He whose walk is blameless
and who does what is righteous,
who speaks the truth from his heart
and has no slander on his tongue,
who does his neighbor no wrong
and casts no slur on his fellowman,
who despises a vile man
but honors those who fear the LORD,
who keeps his oath
even when it hurts,
who lends his money without usury
and does not accept a bribe against
the innocent.

He who does these things
will never be shaken.

on our way again

2005-06-12T07:34:00.000-05:00

trainsun
Originally uploaded by joshandben.

I snapped this after our van accident Thursday. We rode three trains back to Malenovice that night, and we were blessed with an amazing sunset to enjoy on the way.

our team

2005-06-12T07:31:00.000-05:00

MAL teambuilding
Originally uploaded by joshandben.

This was during a team-building exercise at our intern training last week. Our team has naturally bonded fantastically, but please pray that we would have continued unity on our team as it's a huge target for the enemy.

towers in prague

2005-06-12T07:28:00.000-05:00

praguetowers
Originally uploaded by joshandben.

This is only a glimpse of the amazing history preserved in the buildings in that city.

the bridge

2005-06-12T07:27:00.000-05:00

benprague
Originally uploaded by joshandben.

Me on the beautiful bridge...my mom said she wanted to see some more pictures of Prague, so this one's for you, Mom!

The sun behind the Son

2005-06-12T07:25:00.000-05:00

crucifixionstatue
Originally uploaded by joshandben.

One of around 25 amazing statues that lined the sides of the bridge in Prague.

Faith and a VW van

2005-06-10T20:33:00.000-05:00

praguestrawberry
Originally uploaded by joshandben.

Prague is neat. Yesterday Coop and I traveled to the Czech captial with about 16 friends for the day. But the day ended up being about much more than a short trip to Prague. It ended up being a day filled with mystery and protection. Please, allow me to explain

We rented a red VW van to take half of our group from Malenovice to Prague. It's about a 4 hour trip, and about 2 hours into it we started to hear a slight rattle in the front end of our well constructed VW. (If the CEO of Volkswagon is reading this, then let me just say that, even though the events I will describe don't look good in respect to your auto company, I personally still think your vehicles are super swank.) Since the van was a rental and since we wanted to see Prague quite badly, we pressed on hoping that the van would hold together.

We made it to Prague safely and spent a lovely afternoon in the city. We saw buildings older than the United States and we saw
churches that were unbelievable. We also saw a walking strawberry (see picture above). We walked around, saw the sites, ate the food, and then piled back into our vans to head home in the late afternoon.

We were pretty exausted so most of us fell asleep listening to various audio pleasures on our iPods. Let me just say that the new
Coldplay is a delight. Anyways, we all fell asleep. Then suddenly about 2 hours into the trip we all woke up suddenly at the same time,
and then we proceeded to see our front left tire pass our van, change lanes without signalling, and hit the median about 100 meters down the road. Somehow Mike, our team leader, was able to brake slowly and
steer us onto the shoulder. All of us, I believe by the power of God, remained very calm and peaceful. We ended up piling into the other van (all 18 of us) and we went to the next train station and caught a train back to Malenovice. I believe that there was a supernatural hand
on our van during the accident. I don't see how one could maneuver a 3-wheel van without it tipping over on it's side. Did I mention that we were travelling about 70 mph? Mike did a wonderful job of staying
calm and leading the situation. God did a great job of protecting us.

These are the Cliffs Notes of the day, but I believe you get the picture. Today I have been praising God for doing whatever He did, even though I don't know exactly what that was. So what have we learned?
a.) Prague is neat.
b.) VW vans are still swank, even when they only have 3 wheels.
c.) Driving on 3 wheels is possible, but not recommended.
d.) Ben and I are very, very attractive.

Tomorrow we go back to Presov, Slovakia. If we see any more walking fruit or writing utensils, we'll be sure to let you know.

*thelongbrake

jbprague

2005-06-10T20:30:00.001-05:00

jbprague
Originally uploaded by joshandben.

sparks

2005-06-10T20:30:00.000-05:00

no tire
Originally uploaded by joshandben.

manypeoplecar

2005-06-10T20:29:00.000-05:00

manypeoplecar
Originally uploaded by joshandben.

no words

2005-06-08T15:50:00.000-05:00

dumb and dumber
Originally uploaded by joshandben.

Alright, so I know Josh already posted today, but I couldn't let another day pass before showing you guys this masterpiece. I don't even know what to say..hopefully you'll laugh as hard as we did. Maybe this was the face Josh was making when he made two #1's on the Prague/Fort Wayne list (please refer to the post below). Who said people from Fort Wayne aren't smart? Oh, yeah, Men's Health (I think).

Well, if you can't tell already, we're having way too much fun over here making faces and comparing cities. But more importantly, I'm learning more about God and His Word than I ever have before.

Gotta get up early to go to Prog.

benben

never feed us nachos

2005-06-08T15:43:00.000-05:00

group nachos crazy
Originally uploaded by joshandben.

keep it in your mouth, amy

Bowling and Fort Wayne Kicks Prague's Butt

2005-06-08T10:13:00.000-05:00

bowlingqueen
Originally uploaded by joshandben.

So my friends and I went bowling last night, and it was my friend Dano's first time ever bowling...and he beat us all. Shame covers our American faces.

And now for something completely different. (Hooray for Monty Python references)

Tomorrow we go to Prague. I've heard that it is quite a beautiful city and apparently one of the best in the world to visit. I highly doubt that it compares to Fort Fun, Indiana. Let's make some comparisons, shall we?
1.) Prague has dozens of cultural and social events.
Fort Wayne has the Johnny Appleseed Festival.

1.) Prague has a population of 1,186,855.
Fort Wayne has a population of 37.

2.) Prague has the Old Jewish Cemetary, which is the largest Jewish cemetary in the world.
Fort Wayne has that little cemetary outside St. Peter's Lutheran church, where soccer balls regularly get sent flying into during Blackhawk soccer games.

3.) Prague's timezone is Central European Time (CET)
Fort Wayne's timezone is Confused

4.) Prauge was NOT considered one of the dumbest cities in America.
Fort Wayne was.

5.) Prague has dozens of cultural and exquisite restaurants.
Fort Wayne has Junk Food Alley (but for only 3 weeks of the year.)

6.) Prague has Prague Castle, built in the 10th century.
Fort Wayne has Junk Food Alley.

So as you can see, going to Prague is just like going back home. Be sure to check back tomorrow for some pictures and some thoughts from Prague.

xoxo,
*thelongbrake

josh, melissa, dano, amy

2005-06-08T07:16:00.000-05:00

jmda dinner
Originally uploaded by joshandben.

beautiful day for rain

2005-06-06T17:02:00.000-05:00

MALraincoming
Originally uploaded by joshandben.

Greetings from Malenovice! We're staying at a beautiful retreat center in the mountains of Czech Republic, and the scenery is only half as good as the company. We weren't sure if we would have Internet access, but it ends up we have ethernet right in our rooms, so it works out very nice. I wanted to post tonight for two reasons: one, to share a little bit about what I've been learning in the last couple of weeks, and two, to find out who exactly is reading these crazy things we're writing. Please just leave us a comment, or shoot us an e-mail...we'd love to know!

Now to the meat. To sum up the last couple of weeks, I've really been learning that this whole thing (life itself) is God's movement, and not my own. He works in His time, with whoever He chooses. One cool thing that God is teaching me is how to effectively share my faith. So here are some of the Scriptures I've been chewing on lately.

Ecc. 3:11 - "He has made everything beautiful in its time. He has also set eternity in the hearts of men; yet they cannot fathom what God has done from beginning to end."

Titus 2:11 - "For the grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men."

Col. 1:23b - "This is the gospel that you heard and that has been proclaimed to every creature under heaven, and of which I, Paul, have become a servant."

Rom. 1:20 - "For since the creation of the world God's invisible qualities -- his eternal power and divine nature -- have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that no men are without excuse."

Alright, so long story short, I've been talking to a few people on our team over the past week about a few of these verses, then a guy named Dave Patty threw out the Romans passage in his teaching tonight. It was one of those moments where I really knew that it was the next step in what God was teaching me...and that's an encouraging feeling to have! Then Dave talked for a while about Romans 1-2, how creation, our consciences, and the law all serve as witnesses for Him to unbelievers. All we have to do is point to them and God does the rest. Like in 1 Cor. 3 where Paul says that we can plant and water the seeds in people's lives, but God is the one that grows them. It's God's movement, not our own.

I really felt a big burden lifted off my chest tonight as I talked to Dave afterwards. For some reason I think deep down I felt like I didn't really know how to share my faith. I felt like I had to DO something, like I had to really try hard to convince someone to believe in Christ rather than just point to the amazing creation and work God has already done in our own lives. He has programmed these witnesses into our hearts, and all we have to do is humbly point to them and say, "Isn't God incredible?!"

Ben

PS - I'm still learning as much as I can about all of this, so if you have a verse or something that goes along with this, please let me know!

quite the dining experience

2005-06-06T16:37:00.000-05:00

MALdining
Originally uploaded by joshandben.

Kukova

2005-06-04T16:11:00.000-05:00

jboverkukova
Originally uploaded by joshandben.

This is Kukova, which I mentioned in the post below. We were there for 2 days staying in two different homes. Both Ben and I grew to love this town in a matter of minutes. It is a beautiful place with very loving people. I hope that this was not the last time we get to visit there.

Tomorrow we go to Czech Republic for a week of training from Josiah Venture. We hear that it is very refreshing and spiritually fulfilling. I don't know if we'll have any internet access so this may be our last post for a week, but if we do get a chance we'll be sure to add a witty, entertaining and attractive entry with a visually stunning picture of the two of us.

Ok. Bye.

servanthood personified

2005-06-04T16:05:00.000-05:00

jbdusanhouse
Originally uploaded by joshandben.

This is Dushan (Doo-shawn). Spending time with Dushan taught me more than any sermon or teaching could ever teach me. He lives in the village of Kukova, which is just outside of Presov. To the naked eye one would think that there is nothing special about Kukova and that nothing ever happens there, but that naked eye would be wrong. Plus, someone should probably tell the eye that it's naked. Pressing onward...

Kukova is special because of Dushan. Ben and I stayed at Dushan's house for two days, and during those short two days I was taught a life lesson that I will never forget. Dushan served us like I've never been served before. Not because of anything particular that he did, but rather how he did it. I could tell that in no way was Dushan serving us to look a certain way or to make us think certain thoughts about him or about Slovaks in general. Rather, Dushan served us so humbly that I felt so convicted about myself. I've never seen such selflessness in my life, and I will never forget it. It really made me think about a few things. I thought about the fact that there are villages all over the world with people just like Dushan that serve out of purity and kindness; not like I serve,....which is to be noticed and admired. Secondly, it made me wonder where God's favorite people in the world are. And to be honest, I really don't think that they are in America. I think they are in remote places. I think they're in places that haven't been corrupted by certain things, where people actually care about other people more than they care about themselves.

I saw Jesus in Dushan. I've never seen Jesus in another human being in the same way in my entire life. In all my days in and out of different churches and christian communities, never have I witnessed such love. I would be lucky if I were to become half the servant that Dushan is.

truck in the field

2005-06-03T17:51:00.000-05:00

KU truckfield
Originally uploaded by joshandben.

I took this picture as the sun was going down last night. I don't know, I thought you might enjoy seeing it. I like how the sun comes through the windshield...and also how my camera somehow managed to cause the side mirrors to float. :)

welcome to kukova

2005-06-03T17:48:00.000-05:00

KU youth guys
Originally uploaded by joshandben.

Where to start? These last couple of days have been amazing...one of those experiences that I'm going to look back on for a long time and appreciate, and I know Josh would agree. The people in the village of around 700 were some of the most hospitable people we've ever met. From offering their homes to us, to feeding us out of our minds, to giving me a birthday party to remember, there was no way that "thank you" would say it all.

One of my favorite moments was watching the sun set, then joining a soccer game already in progress. It was us Americans, around 15 Slovak students, and a few Gypsie kids all together on the small field that had probably seen hundreds of pick-up games in its day. When we returned to the home we were staying in, there was an array of traditional snacks and teas waiting for us. It was amazing how at home these people made us feel, especially in an environment that we had never been in. This was the real Slovakia. These are the real people that we have come to meet, and I look forward to nothing more than to get to know these students' hearts in a more intimate way.

I really feel like God has allowed me to understand our role here on a deeper level. 1 Cor. 3 definitely lays out how we plant the seeds, others water them, and God makes them grow. To be honest, a lot of times I naturally want to take credit when it comes to guys wanting to hang out or talk. I want to take the credit for planting seeds in these guys' lives. But Christ is the ONLY foundation! Read it and let me know what you think...

In Christ,
Ben

PS - In the photo, it's Marushka, Marek, Slouchy, me, Feri, Dushan, and above us all is Melissa.

youth birthday party!

2005-06-03T17:26:00.000-05:00

KU youth party
Originally uploaded by joshandben.

soccer in the sunset

2005-06-03T17:25:00.000-05:00

KU soccersunset
Originally uploaded by joshandben.

ricardo on feri's shoulders

2005-06-03T17:24:00.000-05:00

KU feriricardo
Originally uploaded by joshandben.

oh, sunset

2005-06-03T17:23:00.000-05:00

KU sunset
Originally uploaded by joshandben.

_honesty

2005-06-01T15:15:00.000-05:00

jboverlookPO
Originally uploaded by joshandben.

Sometimes Ben and I would rather be optimistic than truthful. Being truthful isn't always fun, but lately it's been quite healing. We were talking the other day about how good it is to be here and how much we feel God has blessed us so far, but then what we really got down to was the fact that both of us miss home quite a bit. We hadn't spoken of it previously. Maybe we were trying to hide what we thought was weakness.

I think the point when it hit us the hardest was when we talked about the fact that we've only been here for 10 days and we have 60 more days to go, and these 10 days have been extremely eventful and very tiring. We both miss our families, friends, and our girlfriends (Hello Brittany,....and Brittany). It may sound sappy but it's the truth. But, despite all of these emotions, we really do feel that God is going to use us and humble us while we are here. These next two months will be hard and they will be good; they will be peaceful and they will be stressful. But we know that we're here because God wants us to be here, and that's really all the reason we need.

Does Jesus use Verizon?

2005-06-01T15:04:00.000-05:00

Jesustoiletcellphone
Originally uploaded by joshandben.

And apparently he also uses a seashell toilet.

relationships and pictures

2005-05-31T11:35:00.000-05:00

guyspatio
Originally uploaded by joshandben.

Alright, so as you can see, we just posted a good amount of pictures from the last few days here. It's been an exhausting but rewarding time promoting camps in the schools here in Presov. Today we spent five, one-hour periods talking with different groups of youth. It's a very well thought out plan to build relationships with these kids.

First of all, the same kids that are leaders in the youth groups we met with this last weekend attend the schools that we are promoting in. That way they already are or can become friends with anyone from their school that ends up coming to the camp. The whole goal is to build up the local churches and youth groups that are going to be represented in the English "extravaganzas". While we're at the schools, we have plenty of time with the students and are completely able to talk about our camp...it's like a 45 minute window to give them a glimpse into what our week long time together could be like. Sometimes there is an immediate interest in spending time with us, even before the camps. Thankfully, we've been given European cell phones so that we can call and text message kids to aid in building relationships. I've exchanged numbers with six guys and forty-seven girls in the last two days (ok, Brittany, the guys part is true, the girls I stay away from. We split up in the classrooms guys with guy interns and girls with girl interns.). While we're in the classes, we also tell them that we will be in a certain cafe after school, and that they can come and hang out or talk about the camp some more. I love how strategic all of this is. The camps are filling up quickly, and we still have three weeks to do nothing but spend time with these kids and their friends!

It's so exciting that they're putting such great emphasis on the relationships...it's really what it's all about. So here in this picture on the right are a few guys that Dano and I talked to at school yesterday, and they came back today. It's Miro on the left, then Dusan and Peter on the right. I can just see it in their eyes that they want Jesus in their lives...what an encouragement! These picture posts conclude with a walking pencil that we just saw about an hour ago on the way back to the flat we're staying in. Enjoy!

Ben

2005-05-31T11:12:00.000-05:00

kompasinterns
Originally uploaded by joshandben.

2005-05-31T11:11:00.001-05:00

internsdancedress
Originally uploaded by joshandben.

2005-05-31T11:11:00.000-05:00

traininterns
Originally uploaded by joshandben.

2005-05-31T11:10:00.000-05:00

churchandlights
Originally uploaded by joshandben.

2005-05-31T11:09:00.000-05:00

POstreetcolor
Originally uploaded by joshandben.

2005-05-31T11:08:00.000-05:00

churchsunet
Originally uploaded by joshandben.

2005-05-31T11:07:00.000-05:00

jbbench
Originally uploaded by joshandben.

2005-05-31T11:03:00.000-05:00

walking pencil
Originally uploaded by joshandben.

the team

2005-05-29T16:11:00.000-05:00

presovkukova5-29
Originally uploaded by joshandben.

Here is our team of interns that we will be serving along side of for the next 6 or 7 weeks in Presov (prey-shoff) and Kukova (think-about-it). From left to right on top, it's me, Josh, our leader Mike, and Dano (Dah-noh, a national). On the bottom from the left it's Amy (also on staff with Josiah Venture), Lee Ann, Melissa, and Maja (My-ah). It's such a great group of people, and all of us have definitely recognized that God has hand-picked us to work together as a group. Please pray for continued unity in our hearts and minds as that's the last thing the enemy wants.

What a weekend! We spent the last two days in Zilina with youth groups from the various cities that will be represented at the English camps we will be teaching in. It was amazing to be able to meet some students and get a feel for what this summer holds. For the next four weeks leading up to the camps, we will be promoting at the schools that the students from these youth groups attend, but primarily, we're just going to build relationships with students that will be at our camps.

One thing God's shown me in these last two days is that the language barrier is not as detrimental to getting to know someone as I previously thought. Sure, I may not be able to talk to them about any serious life topic, but I can still impact them. It was great to see how I could still be friends with a few of the guys in my group, even though our conversations usually never went past "hello" and a smile. The smile pretty much said, "I'd love to talk to you more and learn about your family and what you love to do, but heck, I don't speak your language...let's still be friends." This is the verse that I'm clinging to in light of that:

1 Corinthians 2:4-5

"My message and my preaching were not with wise and persuasive words, but with a demonstration of the Spirit's power, so that your faith might not rest on men's wisdom, but on God's power."

Thank you, Lord, for working even when I can't speak their language!

Ben

perspective

2005-05-27T17:22:00.000-05:00

jb balcony
Originally uploaded by joshandben.

Tonight was beautiful. Ben and I went to a Slovak worship service that brought me to tears. As we sang songs to God, both in English and Slovak at the same time, I was reminded that Jesus is not partial to nationality or tongue, but rather that He is deeply in love with His children and that He longs for unity. I sang songs from my heart and I really believe that I meant them, which I cannot say everytime I attend a worship service. I like to think that God was smiling and maybe even singing along with us about Himself in His own language.

I love it here. I believe that God is going to move through this country and revolutionize it using these teens that we are going to be in contact with this summer. Not because of us, but completely because of Him. He will increase as we decrease.

If you think to, pray that Ben and i will have ears to hear. Neither of us want to miss one thing God is trying to say to us during our days here.

joshua

kompas cafe

2005-05-26T15:38:00.000-05:00

kompas cafe
Originally uploaded by joshandben.

As we continue our tour, let us take a look at Exhibit "A" to our right. This, my friends, is what we call the Kompas Cafe, and for this week, we also call it home. It's a beautiful place, and including the attic, it boasts five floors of living space. The first floor is the cafe, and the top 3 or 4 serve as living and working space for Josiah Venture staff. This whole week is focused on building unity among the summer workers, and God is definitely at work in all of us. We all feel like old friends already..I mean, just this afternoon I noticed Josh having a nice conversation over tea with another intern. They were having the most pleasant time. No, but seriously folks, we had a 3 or 4 hour meeting this afternoon to plan some activities for some of the camps we'll be putting on, and most of the time consisted of laughter...the kind the makes your face turn red and your sides hurt. Josh has been giving me a hard time about taking so many pictures (even to the point of calling me Ansel Adams), but hey, you only live once, and after Sunday we'll be out of this town. It's getting late, and I'm going to try to call my girlfriend over Skype...Mom, Dad, if you're reading this, don't worry..you're not far behind!

Benanny - (a nick-name I received today after admitting that my summer job last year was nannying)

zilina - lower square

2005-05-25T10:11:00.000-05:00

zilina lowersquare
Originally uploaded by joshandben.

Alright, so we finally have arrived and are beginning to adjust to the time change...along with all of the other changes. We actually slept for thirteen hours the first night! It's strange to think that we're about to head to dinner here (just after 5pm), while most of you back home haven't even thought about lunch yet. What are you guys doing for lunch? Just curious...you know that you guys can leave us messages if you want. We always love to hear word from the Fort. We've been in meetings most of the day just getting familiar with what the summer holds in store for us. We got to talk with Danny Jones for 3 hours this morning, which was fantastic to just soak in the wisdom he poured out on us (he oversees everything we're doing here). He spoke on Philippians 2 (Tony, if you're reading this, I'm giving you a high five), which is about us imitating Christ's humility. I definitely recommend you reading and applying it ASAP. Well, we're about to head out to eat, but I have a quick favor to ask all of you. I don't really have an accumulative list of people's e-mails that I would like to inform about this blog page, so if you run into anyone that you think would be interested in how we're doing over here in Slovakia, let them know. We want 1,000,000 hits by the end of time we're here. Pay attention to the counter on the right side of the screen! I know this goal seems lofty, but WE CAN ACHEIVE IT!!! We hope you all are well, and we send our best wishes.

RimBENdin

PS - read Philippians 2:1-11

day of travel

2005-05-23T10:52:00.000-05:00

jbchicagoairport5-22
Originally uploaded by joshandben.

This might have been one of the longer days in human history for my friend Benjamin Garret Cooper. Let me explain why:
First of all, Ben had a nice older gentleman sit next to him on the 7 hour flight from Philly to Frankfurt, Germany. As it turns out, this nice older gentleman decided that it would be better to be drunk during the trip than to be sober. So he proceeded to drink a few beers, some whiskey from the flight attendant, and he pulled out of his carry-on a flask containing something of the alcoholic aroma.
Secondly, Ben has had about 5 nose bleeds today, one of which occured on the airplane. I simply told him to stop picking his nose.
Thirdly, as Ben was trying to recover from what seemed to be an unstoppable force that is his right nostrel, an ink pen decided to break in his pocket, which dispersed ink on Ben's hands, shirt, pants, and pillow case.
And fourthly, when we finally arrived at our finale destination, when Ben sat down on his bed that he will be snuggling in for the week, his bed broke and Ben fell to the floor.

At this point I began to laugh until I almost wet my pants.

But we're here, we're safe, and we're hungry. Off to the local pizzaria.

*thelongbrake

location-slovakia

2005-05-22T03:33:00.000-05:00

location-slovakia
Originally uploaded by joshandben.

Greetings! We are set to fly out here in a few hours, but we just wanted to give you guys a better idea of where exactly we'll be in Europe. We'll be spending most of our time in Presov, a city in Slovakia. As you can see on the map we have provided you with, it lies right in the middle of Eastern Europe. We'll let you know what our mailing address is as soon as we find out...we are currently accepting all packages, especially those containing love. So until we get a chance to post again once in Euro-land, I guess this is a farewell to the great Fort of Wayne. PS - if you want to e-mail either Josh or myself, there is a link on the right side of the page. God Bless!

laugh at us

2005-05-18T00:07:00.000-05:00

joshandben
Originally uploaded by joshandben.

This is the first entry of what we hope to be many over the course of the summer. Ben and I will be in eastern Europe sipping tea and talking to people about Jesus. We welcome you to journey with us by checking back at this site often. We will be posting updates and pictures regularly.

enjoy.