Totzke Prayer Communique

Sent: Friday, June 27, 2003 3:02 PM
Subject: Totzke Prayer Communique


Dear Praying Friends,

In the last few weeks we have gotten to know the many facets
of Prague: the metro, shopping, changing money, buying
postage stamps, ordering food in restaurants, finding our
way to the sightseeing venues. We’ve also taken trips by
bus and train to the communities surrounding Prague where we
distributed fliers about the Jesus film. Now we will see if
we’ve learned enough when the big test begins on Saturday.
That is when the 15 member team from Ashland Grace Brethren
Church arrives and we put into practice what we have
learned. Over 30 Czechs will be coming to the camps, ranging
in age from 15 to 70. On Tuesday we went over the schedule
of events George prepared to fine tune it and to wrap up
loose ends.

The team arrives at 11 AM on Saturday. On Monday the English
Camp begins. Each day the schedule will be
• 9 AM Team worship
• 10-12:30 English camp and literature distribution in the
surrounding communities-- We will accompany the literature
distribution team since we’ve been to several of the
communities and have done a partial distribution there.
• Lunch – sandwiches at the Swains
• Afternoon activity with the Czechs who can stay: sports,
sightseeing, crafts
• Dinner as a team at restaurants in Prague
Each Thursday there will be a sightseeing trip outside of
Prague for the Americans and those Czechs who have the time
to go. The goal is not only to see some interesting sight,
but also to develop relationships between the Americans and
the Czechs.

When this team departs on July 12th, the Wooster GBC team
arrives the same day for two weeks and we will follow the
same schedule. Since the Wooster team is smaller, there
won’t be any literature distribution; we will probably be
involved in teaching English.

You won’t hear from us via email the next few weeks
because there will be little internet time. So we do want to
tell you that we are doing well, and feeling productive in
what we are doing here. God has been answering pray.
• We feel very much a part of the missionary team that is
comprised of the Swains and Plates.
• We’ve had safety in our travels.
• The cultural barriers have been minimal. We feel
comfortable around the Czech people we encounter. Smiles and
warm handshakes go along way. We do wish that we could speak
to them one-on-one, but we can’t except through an
interpreter.
• One of Sylvia’s big pluses here is that the place we
are staying has beautiful gardens and we get to enjoy them
each morning as we eat breakfast out there. She doesn’t
miss our garden as much. There is even a grape vine here and
we are watching the grapes grow waiting for them to ripen.

As for Sylvia’s sister, she is at home now. Sylvia gets to
talk with her regularly on the cell phone. Lin has a great
attitude that will help her recover. Here’s what Lin wants
to say to all of you:
• She wants to thank everyone for praying for her. She
knows that it’s helped in her recovery.
• She is becoming more mobile. On Tuesday she started
taking walks in the neighborhood. She said that it took 30
minutes to walk six blocks, but she’s making progress.
• Please continue to pray! There is still fluid in her
lungs that is puzzling and concerning the doctors. They are
still divided on what to do with it – wait for the fluid
to dissipate or drain it. She still has pain that they say
she shouldn’t still have and maybe the fluid is
contributing to that.

In summary, the summer is going pretty much as we had
expected it to, but the main reason for our coming is just
about to begin. Please pray that Jesus will have a major
impact on the lives of the Czechs who attend the English
camps. Pray also that the lives of the Americans who come
will be changed as a result of this experience. Thanks so
much for your partnership with us.

Larry and Sylvia