On Sunday, I ran from the village of Marathon to the city of Athens: the 29th running of the Athens Classic Marathon!  After 4 hours and 46 minutes battling the rain and cold, I finished my first marathon.  I was a sore for a couple of days… but I’m already looking for the next race!

Enjoy the pics…

Family shot at the wedding!

Youssef, Susie, and the wedding party.

Our teammates Christy (L) and Tasha (R) with our girls watching the runners

Staying warm, waiting for dad

4 hours 46 minutes later!

Happy _________ (choose your own event: Halloween, Harvest Festival, Reformation Day)!   Our latest newsletter can be downloaded HERE.  Enjoy!  If you don’t like pictures or .pdf files, you can find a text-only version of our update below.

We’re so thankful that you all are a part of our ministry!  We couldn’t be here without you.  We are so thankful for your prayers, support, encouragement, and so much more!

By God’s Grace -

Brett, Kristin, Sofia, and Emma

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The Shame of Man and the Glory of God

In the economic world, Greece is the shame of Europe. Debt, austerity measures, and protests dominate the world’s perception of this tiny nation.  However, we have an opportunity to see another side of Greece: disciples being made, lives being transformed, the future of nations being shaped. And all of this by the power of the gospel!  God’s grace is being revealed to the nations through what is happening here in Athens!

Isn’t that just like God?!  God is revealing His strength in a place that the world regards as weak.

Two weeks ago, a new Kurdish (Iraqi) brother was baptized.  Over the summer, we witnessed several Afghans and Iranians take this same step of faith.  Right now, refugees from Somalia, Pakistan, and Algeria have free and immediate access to the Bible in their own languages!

We’re seeing the gospel penetrate the hearts of refugees from nations where such explicit gospel proclamation is outlawed – often punishable with prison or even death. And this isn’t hypothetical.  This sort of persecution is really happening right now in each of the nations I mentioned above.

Our refugee friends come from nations that have set up high walls to keep the gospel out – no missionaries, no Bibles, no churches, no conversion.  And yet here in Greece, many refugees from “closed countries” are encountering the Jesus of scripture for the first time – and their lives are being changed by the gospel! 

Isn’t that just like God?!  God reveals His glory in the cross of Christ – which simultaneously evokes both worship and rioting!

As Paul said in this very city, God has determined where the nations should dwell, “that they should seek Him” (Acts 17:27).  Today, the nations are in Athens; and God is drawing them to Himself!

Thanks for your prayers, your support, and your love!

The Sanners

 

 Family News

We continue to thank God for His grace and provision in our lives. We’re excited to announce that Kristin is pregnant!  She is 12 weeks along, and everything is progressing well.  Baby Sanner is scheduled to arrive mid-May.  We’re excited to welcome him or her!

After spending the last two months on a waiting list, Sofia is scheduled to begin nursery school on Tuesday (Nov. 1).  Please pray for Sofia and for us during this new phase of life!  Emma will turn 2 in December.  She is talking more each day and loves to explore the world around her.

Kent N. Jorna, age 65, of Chicago Heights, IL, passed away Monday, June 20, 2011. Beloved husband of Myrna K. Jorna nee DeHaan. Loving father of Heather (Ed) George, Tracey (Bill) Haak and Kristin (Brett) Sanner. Dearest grandfather of Billy & Mikayla Haak and Sofia & Emma Sanner. Dear brother of Nancy Jorna and Mark (Barb) Jorna. Dearest son of the late Henry and Elizabeth Jorna. Visitation Thursday, June 23, 2011 from 3:00 – 9:00 p.m. Funeral service Friday, June 24, 2011 at 11:00 a.m. at the Smits Funeral Home 2121 Pleasant Springs Lane (Rt. 30 & Pleasant Springs Lane) Dyer, IN with Rev. Tom Archer officiating. Interment Oak Ridge Cemetery – Lansing, IL. Kent was a retired employee of Ford Motor Co. with 34 years of dedicated service. Memorial contributions to the Ministry of Brett & Kristin Sanner c/o International Teams (411 W. River Road Elgin, IL 60123) appreciated.

Thanks for your love, encouragement, and prayers.  Thanks especially for your prayers for Kristin’s dad, Kent. Kent’s lung collapsed “almost completely” on Friday. The doctors described this as a “catastrophic event” – which is in addition to a number of other complications. Kent is no longer alert or responsive. We pray that he would find rest and comfort in his final days, but our peace comes from knowing that Kent is already resting in the work of Christ and comforted by the grace of God.

We will be flying back to Chicago on Monday. Kristin and the girls will be in the US until July 11th (my ticket has a flexible return date). Please pray for our travel and our time with family. Also, please continue to pray for Myrna (Kristin’s mom) – for comfort and strength in the coming days… and months.

Thanks for your prayers.

By God’s Grace -

Brett, Kristin, Sofia, & Emma

1 – God redeems the broken; He rescues the lost; He saves sinners.  Celebrate with us: two Afghan brothers were baptized yesterday!  Praise God for His work in the lives of these brothers (check out their testimonies here and here).  However, for anyone from this background, choosing to following Jesus often means abandonment and persecution.  Please pray for their faith, courage, and perseverance.

2 – Our team leaves tomorrow for a weekend retreat.  Our annual spring retreat is focused on team building/equipping and refreshment.  Please pray for our team this weekend.  Pray that our hearts and minds are re-centered on Jesus (a re-orientation that we need daily!); pray that our team building time would equip us with the tools that we need to really love, serve, and understand one another… so that we can work together more effectively for His kingdom and glory.

3 – Please continue to pray for Kristin’s dad (Kent) and the entire family.  Stabilizing his blood pressure is still a battle.  In fact, he was put back into the ICU this week, after being moved to a specialty hospital (focused on getting him off the ventilator) over the weekend.  Pray for his faith, strength, and courage.  Pray for the Kristin’s mom and family, who are pouring themselves out (physical and emotional energy) to help him.  In this time of giving, please pray that they would be filled with the presence of Jesus and the power of His grace!

First, please continue to pray for Kristin’s father (Kent), who is recovering from a stroke. It’s a long, hard road to recovery. Kent is very uncomfortable and very frustrated. Please pray for Kent and the family. Kristin was able to return to the US to visit her dad and help family. She’ll be flying back to Greece on Sunday.

Secondly, please pray for the situation here in Greece. It’s been an incredibly hard week here for our refugee friends. An extremist group has used the recent murder of a Greek (allegedly by immigrants) to justify attacking immigrants and other minorities at random. Needless to say, it has been chaos on the streets. Please pray. Read a more in-depth report below (from teammates Scott and Themis).

We’re grateful for your partnership.

Brett

———- from teammate Scott McCracken ———-

Dear Praying Friends,

Two things are currently happening in an intense way here in Athens:

1. Anti-foreigner violence is on the rise, with groups of Greeks hunting for dark-skinned foreigners to beat with baseball bats. A few have already been killed. Some foreigners killed a Greek man a few days ago, and now the violence against foreigners is increasing even more.

2. Police are stepping up arrests of refugees/immigrants.

The reasons this is a problem, other than the obvious, is that refugees are afraid to come out on the streets (i.e., to our ministry center). Bible studies are being canceled, ministry events are not being well-attended, and even when they are our friends are facing problems when they come and go (see photo below, taken right across the street from our center after a ministry program–2 of those refugees had just left our place, and one of those guys is due to be baptized on Wednesday).

Here is a great update written by our teammate Themis Sirinides (includes some news article summaries):

http://timsir57.wordpress.com/

There was tension in the Athens air today. Sofokleous St. and the surrounding blocks are usually busy (something like a flea-market) with refugees crowding the streets; but not today. Last night a mob from an extreme rightist group came into the neighborhood with clubs and knives, attacking all foreigners and taking revenge for the killing of a Greek man the day before. The news reports one refugee death, but people on the street say three foreigners were killed.

Today our ministry center was truly a place of refuge. Around mid-day, all local shops closed their shutters and police were everywhere. You could sense the tension in the air, like dynamite ready to explode. The rumors flew that this far right group was coming again, causing an Afghan woman to run into our center with two children seeking shelter. One of the men with his head wrapped in a bloody bandage from last night’s battle sat peacefully in a room filled with Christian Persian music. What a contrast from what was going on outside.

It is sad to see a great city like Athens in such spiritual oppression-hatred showing its ugliest face. In this immense spiritual darkness,what an opportunity for the light of Christ to shine! Thanks for praying with and for us. Below is an article from a Greek newspaper.

Violent anti-immigrant riot in Athens after fatal stabbing

A violent anti-migrant riot broke out in the Patission district in Athens centre on Tuesday afternoon (10/5) when some 200 people including members of the extreme-right group “Chryssi Avgi” held a protest rally hours after the death by stabbing of a Greek 44-year-old man for his video camera blamed on foreigners. The 44-year-old was attacked as he was taking out his car to take his pregnant wife to hospital to give birth to their second child. According to information gathered by the police, the perpetrators- still to be arrested- were three dark-skinned men, possibly foreign nationals.

The protest soon turned into a violent anti-immigrant pogrom as hooded persons smashed apartment buildings and stores, shouting “Foreigners leave Greece”. Riot police intervened when groups of people carrying broken bottles and clubs, began chasing and clashing with immigrants. During the whole night single attacks on bypassing migrants were reported in different Athens neighbourhoods while according to blogs, a young man from Pakistan was brutally beaten up and had to be rushed to hospital. Moreover, three Molotov cocktails were thrown at the house of 3 Pakistanis in the area of Renti. The attacks continued also on Wednesday (11/5) while more than 24 people were detained. Further rallies are also to take place today (12/5). (12 May)

You can also read more in this article from the San Francisco Chronicle.

Thanks for standing with us through your prayers! Grateful, Scott and Vicki

Asylum-seekers in Athens detained randomly

1 – Please pray for Kristin’s parents.  Kristin’s dad (Kent) is in the ICU at St. Margaret Mercy Hospital (Dyer, IN) with what is likely a stroke.  They are running tests to confirm what’s happening, but he is still having problems keeping stable without the aid of a breathing machine.  Please pray for Kent, Myrna (Kristin’s mom) and the entire family – including Kristin (it’s very tough to be away from family right now).

2 – Praise God for the legacy of Godly men and mentors.  This week one of my beloved seminary professors passed away.  Dr. Bob Lowery was an excellent teacher, a passionate preacher, and a mentor to many students.  He has been a fixture at Lincoln Christian Seminary for nearly 35 years.  He was my professor for several classes on New Testament exegesis.  I am indebted to his love of the Word.  Praise God for his life of leadership and legacy among generations of students.  You can read the announcement from LCU here.

3 – Pray for “Z” – our friend from Afghanistan.  We’ve shared many stories over the last year about “Z” – a single mother of four from Afghanistan.  She is at a crossroads – when it comes to faith, when it comes to her children, when it comes to life!  I don’t know exactly why, but I feel that this will be a consequential week in her life… please pray that it would be a week that resonates with the glory of God and echoes praises of our savior Jesus.  Pray that she would choose Life this week!