BBC Sweden Project: 2016

Today we ventured to the limits of the Stockholm subway system, visiting the New Life Church in Hässelby, and also we were challenged by the local bus service, when we traveled to the home of Jim and Lynn Jarman for dinner and prayer. We left early in the morning for the New Life Church in Hässelby, which is about 12 miles west of central Stockholm. We were invited to participate in a work project at the church. The church is relatively new (started a couple years ago), but the church building is very old, built in 1906. So, the church leaders are working to make sure the building and the property are maintained properly. Today, our team worked with church leaders: to improve the look of the grounds at the entrance to the church (weeding, pruning, trimming, mowing); to clean and organize a closet in the main level of the church; and to clean and organize the balcony of the worship space, which is currently a staging area for some construction projects taking place at the church, so it is full of tools, building materials, and hardware. The church leaders we met and prayed with included: Rui (originally from Angola, grew up in Portugal); Elin (native Swede); Brian (from Kenya); and Tyra (from the U.K.). David and Laura Moench from Fridhemskyrka (see May 27 post) also joined us for the cleaning and prayer time. Specific prayer requests for the Hässelby Church include: pray that an upcoming family outreach event would go well, as the church works to connect with the people in the neighborhoods near the church; pray for the growth of the church; pray for Brian and his wife, Andrea (who leads worship on Sundays) as they are expecting a baby in September; pray for the construction ongoing at the church (part of which is to create an apartment for Tyra and her husband to live in, in the attic of the church building); pray for the leadership team, for stamina and for guidance, and for clear direction in building this church family.

The exterior of the Hässelby New Life Church

The entrance area of the church; looks a bit weedy...

Pastor Rui and our team in the worship space at the church (yes, they sit at tables during worship)

Elin and Tyra, church leaders at New Life Hässelby (with Kristi in the center)

Karen improving the area near the entrance to the church with her pruning shears.

Weeding takes a lot of effort, as you can see from this picture of Caroline and Karin near the church entrance

In the evening, we traveled by bus and subway (after our preferred bus never came) to the home of Jim and Lynn Jarman, who now live in the Liljeholmen area of Stockholm and are working to support missionaries and church planters in Sweden. We shared a meal (Friday is Taco Night in Sweden, if you can believe it) and had some good time for conversation and prayer. Specific prayer requests for the Jarmans include: good health, as they have found that the first few months of living in Sweden have included frequent illness; pray for the effectiveness of their ministry; pray that they would know what to focus on (as they get many requests to support church leaders in the area); pray against the spiritual warfare that is common in Sweden, as many here are opposed to Christianity; pray for identification of new locations to plant churches in cities and near universities; pray for awakening and revival in Sweden.

Jim Jarman providing us with an overview of the status of the church in Sweden, and the work they are doing to support missionaries and church planters. Karin is to his left.

Paul Lindberg and Lynn Jarman listening to Jim present on the church in Sweden

We were treated to a spectacular post-sunset sky when we left the Jarman's apartment in the Liljeholmen area of Stockholm (photo taken at 10:15 PM…!).

Today we met with the Agape Sverige (Cru in Sweden) staff from Uppsala and Stockholm. Aaron and Kristen Hughes, Michael and Maryann Mettetal, and Whitney Tunnell have all been working in Uppsala ministering to students at the university there in recent years. Now, Michael and Maryann are planning to move to Stockholm to start working with students at the Royal Institute of Technology (abbreviated KTH in Swedish) and the University of Stockholm. Aaron and Kristen and Whitney are continuing with their work in Uppsala with university students. We were able to spend a whole afternoon with the team, hearing about the many prayers answered from last year’s meeting in Uppsala, hearing new prayer requests, spending time praying for these things, and also just connecting with them again. We also took time to prayer-walk through the KTH campus, in the Östermalm area of Stockholm.

Specific prayer requests from the Uppsala/Stockholm team: prayers of praise for Kristen and Aaron, as they have found new housing in Uppsala, their visas were renewed in March, and Kristin has received a “person number”, which is kind of like a social security number in Sweden; once you have one of these numbers, then you are able to participate more fully in the Swedish system (language education, healthcare, working, …); pray for Michael and Maryann to find housing in Stockholm, which is very challenging because of low vacancy rates, high rents, and a complex system of applying for housing in Sweden; also, pray that the transition from Uppsala to Stockholm goes smoothly (they are expecting a baby in August, so they have additional planning to do); pray for a group of young women that Kristen is discipling and meeting with regularly in Uppsala; for Whitney, pray for summer volleyball camps she is working at and sharing the Gospel with young people; also for Whitney, as she will be in the U.S. for four weeks this summer raising support for further work in Sweden; overall, pray that this team would avoid the complacency that can creep in while working and living in Sweden; the people and society are so well cared for and supplied with every physical need that it can become easy to forget the absolute need that we have for God and Jesus Christ.