Saturday, July 17, 2010

PROCLAIM TEAM IN UKRAINE -- END-OF-TOUR CHALLENGES



July 17: Our team with THE OUTLANDERS band was delayed most of Friday night at the border from Poland to Ukraine with issues regarding the equipment paperwork.  Bob McIntyre gave us a complete account of the border episode. Please pray for challenging weekend ahead:


It involved more than translating the carnet. The result was a whole new extensive document approved at higher levels and signed by us. The process required the full attention of 2 officials working their whole shift.


Besides the paperwork, they directed us to unload/unpack all vans and photograph each piece.  After opening the door of the larger van packed to the full - we only unloaded 5 pieces in the parking lot and the officials pronounced it "Enough!"


Through all this some of our team took turns waiting in the hallway of the office crowded with truckers while the others waited in hot vans wedged between large semis.  At 2:00 am the guy we most connected with showed mercy.  He said one passenger van could go on to L'Viv and the other two would stay in the process.  It was tempting!


We considered releasing one van, but in the end decided we all stay together.  It proved the right decision.  At the end of the 7-hour process  our final Ukrainian carnet was presented for the signature of Peter (B-house) who had signed the original carnet in Germany.  B-house had only decided at the last minute to join this tour, and he would have been in the van that was released 2 hours earlier had we decided to separate.


We had three very heroic but tired van drivers through the last lonely leg of the trip as most passengers crashed into silence and sleep from the stress and long wait.


A little after 4 am, as we approached L'viv, a large black SUV overtook us and waved us to the side of the road.  It was not the mafia, but rather Pastor Valerie who had been alerted of our arrival. His assistant had insisted that we text-message him upon our release from the border. The pastor personally led us to the hotel.


Back to reality - we begin set-up in the center of L'Viv at 2:30 this afternoon for a 7:30 concert tonight followed by two services on Sunday and an evening concert at church planting site 70 kilometers away.  Please continue to pray - this is not over yet!  Now the work and ministry begins for two intensive days.
AND - we must recross the border to Poland on Monday in order to make our flight connections in Krakow on Tuesday. A matter for continued PRAYER!


Russ Speiser's follow up
Recrossing of the border at the end of tour
Coming back through the Ukraine border God smiled upon us and we found that the same young official who had spent his whole shift doing the paperwork for us was again on duty.  Of course he remembered us, and we gave him a CD and some publicity for the concert, and he in turn not only waved us through after immediately signing our carnet, but radioed ahead to the other border guards which resulted in us getting VIP treatment right into Poland and on the road home.