Interview about our trip to Croatia

We are back from Croatia and continue to praise God for the fruitful summer outreach there. Please pray for the 150 Roma kids who attended our Vacation Bible School and teen day camp that God’s Word would find good soil in their hearts and that many would embrace Christ. Pray especially that the Lord will use the Gospel of Luke and 50 chronological Bible stories which we distributed to the families in the Ludari language in the village of Capraske Poljane, and in the Bayash language in the village of Palanjak. Pray the kids and their parents will read these materials and listen to them in the online audio recordings, which we also told them about.

To watch Todd’s interview with The Master’s Community Church, reporting on our summer outreach, click https://youtu.be/8UG4Oz-3EeI?si=TC6NvUQxuGz38Fgs

After we got back from Croatia, our church in Kansas City held their VBS and Pam and I taught the missions segment for the five days of meetings. We had about 40 kids from pre-K to 5th grade and Pam did a great job challenging the kids with a missions vision and reading missionary stories to them. Ariela helped lead in actions for the VBS songs and performed in the daily VBS skit. See pictures below.

Pam has been working hard to sort through the things in her mom’s apartment after her mom’s passing. The lease on the apartment runs out at the end of September, so she and her sister have that as a deadline as they decide which things to give away, toss, or pass on to family or thrift stores.

I meet regularly online with the Roma Bible translators to check their translations. We recently completed our checks of Romans chapters 1-7, some of the richest chapters in the Bible and some of the most difficult to translate.

Last quarter, the translators and I checked 1,144 verses, including Ephesians, Philippians, and the first couple of chapters of Romans in the Arli, Chergash, and Gurbet languages. Over the last couple of weeks of this new quarter, we have checked 356 more verses, covering more of Romans in those three languages.

The Word for the World (TWFTW) Bible Translators has been growing and expanding with Bible translation projects in Albania, Montenegro, and Macedonia, in addition to the three languages we are doing in Croatia and Serbia. In order to meet the need to translate those additional languages as soon as possible, we need more Bible translation consultants to join the work. To help facilitate that, TWFTW has asked me, in addition to my work as a consultant, to train others to become consultants for these projects. With the blessing of Pioneers, I have accepted this added role as the Regional Consultant-in-Training Coordinator for TWFTW Europe. I covet your prayers for wisdom and growth as I add these new responsibilities. May the Lord work mightily, and may the remaining languages, which still lack a full Bible in their language, receive His Word as soon as possible!

Gratefully,

Todd & Pamala (Daniel, Ariela) Price

Days 14-15 in Croatia: visiting friends in Slavonski Brod, flying home

Thank you for your prayers for us. We are currently at Chicago O’Hare waiting for the last leg of our journey back to Kansas City.

We spent our last couple of days visiting with friends and our Pioneers colleagues in Slavonski Brod, where we used to live. They even took us across the border into Bosnia (where we lived for 14 years) to enjoy some good Bosnian food and shopping since the prices were much lower. Daniel helped them install a kitchen in the ministry house since they are preparing for a new family who are moving to Croatia in a couple of weeks to begin ministry.

Our flights were very early in the morning from Zagreb, Croatia, with connections in Munich, Germany, and Chicago.

On the flight from Munich, Daniel got an earbud tip lodged deep in his ear and was also suffering from a fever and a migraine; when we got to Chicago, he felt awful and was vomiting. We looked for medical attention at the airport, but the only available place was closed because it was the 4th of July. The airline would not let us fly until we got medical clearance, so we had to Uber to an urgent care clinic during our eight-hour Chicago layover. They were able to get the earbud tip out and cleared him to fly. He’s still not feeling well, so please continue to pray for him.

Thank you for your encouraging us through your prayers.

Day 9-13 of Croatia trip: teen camp, preaching, visits

Thank you for your continued prayers. We’re grateful for how well things have gone in Croatia. Last Thursday, we had the second day of our teen camp, with 13 Roma kids attending. We sang several lively songs in Croatian, our summer teamer, Josiah, preached on the temptation of Jesus from Luke 4:1-13, we played the audio of those verses and the simplified Bible story taken from those verses in the Ludari language, as the teens read along silently with the recording, played games, had lunch together, heard a testimony from our summer teamer, Julie, decorated hats as our craft, enjoyed watermelon and played soccer outside and board games inside.

On Friday, we took the summer team by train to Zagreb, the capital of Croatia, where we toured the city center, enjoyed great Croatian food, bought souvenirs, and enjoyed a debrief together.

The next morning, very early, the summer team caught their flights to return to Kansas City. After they left, we rented a car and after cleaning up and packing up the ministry house where we had all been staying in Sisak, Croatia, drove to the city where we used to live, Slavonski Brod, Croatia, and settled into the ministry house our Pioneers team has there in the Roma village.

On Sunday, Todd preached at the Baptist Church in Slavonski Brod, where we used to attend, and we spent the afternoon visiting with the pastor, his wife and kids, and the six Roma children they are fostering. We also visited the Roma with whom we had worked previously to translate Luke and 50 chronological Bible stories in the Ludari language. On Monday, we drove a three-hour round trip to the city of Vukovar, Croatia, where we had lunch with and visited the Roma Bible translators who live there.

Back in Slavonski Brod, we’ve enjoyed driving around and seeing our old house, frequenting the places we used to shop, stocking up on special foods, gifts, and souvenirs from Croatia, and enjoying more Croatian food and coffee.

We have a couple more days of visits left with friends and our Pioneers teammates here in Slavonski Brod before getting up in the middle of the night to drive to the capital for our return flights to the US on Thursday, July 4.

Thank you for your faithful prayers. Please pray that the believers here will be encouraged through our visits, preaching, and prayers together. Please continue to pray that God’s Word will bear much fruit among the Roma in Croatia and that the seeds that have been sown will land on good soil and bear much fruit for God’s glory.

Below are pictures from the teen day camp activities, our tourism day together with the summer team, and Todd preaching in the church.

Our daily prayer calendar for July 2024

To download this prayer list formatted for printing out, click “download” below:

Price-prayer-letter-for-07-2024-page-2Download

July 1 Pray we will be a blessing to our Roma Bible translators as we visit them in Vukovar, Croatia, today

July 2 Pray for spiritual growth for the Baptist Church in Slavonski Brod, Croatia & for the salvation of more people in this city

July 3 Pray we will be a blessing to our Pioneers teammates as we visit them in Slavonski Brod, Croatia, today

July 4 Pray as we fly from Croatia to the US very early this morning for safety & good flight connections

July 5 Pray for us to recover from jet lag & adjust quickly back to the US time zone, & stay healthy

July 6 Pray for wisdom for Pam preparing to teach the missions segment of our church’s VBS this week

July 7 Pray for us as we lead the missions segment of VBS this week at our church, CrossWay Bible Church

July 8 Pray for successful physical therapy & healing for Todd’s frozen shoulder

July 9 Pray for Todd & the Arli Bible translators for wisdom as they translate Romans in the Arli language

July 10 Pray for Todd & the Gurbet Bible translators for wisdom as they translate Romans in the Gurbet language

July 11 Pray for the Davies family moving to Croatia today to begin long-term ministry with Pioneers among the Roma

July 12 Pray for the Gospel to spread & bear fruit through our church’s block party today

July 13 Pray Todd will be a blessing to his mom, Geri Price, as he visits her this weekend in Oklahoma City

July 14 Pray for visas, housing & vehicle for the Davies family who just arrived in Croatia to begin Roma ministry

July 15 Pray for Todd as he checks the translations of Romans in the Arli, Chergash & Gurbet languages

July 16 Pray for wisdom for Todd & the other elders of our church to lead & serve God’s flock (meeting this evening)

July 17 Pray that many Roma will read & listen to the Scriptures we have translated into their various languages

July 18 Pray for Todd & the Chergash Bible translators for wisdom as they translate Romans in Chergash

July 19 Pray for comfort for Pam and her sisters in the recent death of their mom, Barbie Hughes

July 20 Pray for Pam as she clears out her mom’s apartment following her death, for wisdom on what to keep, give, or toss

July 21 Pray for Todd teaching Equip Hour at our church on the theme of embracing God’s love

July 22 Pray for effective reading & study time for Todd preparing for Bible translation consulting, teaching & writing

July 23 Pray for Todd for growth into additional responsibilities to train others as Bible translation consultants

July 24 Pray God will raise up mother tongue translators to translate the rest of the Bible in the Ludari language

July 25 Praise God for providing the funds needed for us & our team to do summer outreach in Croatia

July 26 Pray God will raise up mother tongue translators to translate the rest of the Bible in the Bayash language

July 27 Pray for God to raise up more Bible translation consultants for the various languages in Europe that still need the Bible

July 28 Pray for rest & spiritual refreshment, for a light yoke, for the joy of the Lord & for his presence to be very real in us

July 29 Pray that God will raise up full-time long-term missionaries to plant a church among the Roma near Sisak, Croatia

July 30 Pray for salvation, spiritual growth & faithful service for Christ in each of our children

July 31 Pray for the Lord to continue to provide our monthly financial support for our missionary work

Day 7-8: VBS, book distribution, teen day camp

Thank you for your continued prayers. Yesterday morning, we returned to the smaller Roma village (where the Bayash language is spoken) and had even more kids in attendance. It is hard to count bodies in motion, but there seemed to be about 60 kids and over a dozen older teens and adults. The kids loved singing the lively Croatian songs and really got into the actions. The theme of the day was “Jesus has all power,” based on Luke 4:31-44, which speaks of Jesus’ early ministry in Nazareth and Capernaum. Jesus showed his power by preaching God’s Word and declaring that He is the fulfillment of Isaiah’s prophecy, walking through the hostile crowd who tried to kill him in response, casting out demons, teaching with authority and power, and healing Peter’s mother-in-law as well as many others who were blind, deaf and lame.

We used games to teach the children to memorize Luke 4:36 in Croatian, played the audio of Luke 4:31-44 in the Bayash language for them to listen to, played the Bible story based on that passage in the Bayash, played “Simon Says” to illustrate the idea of doing what God says and gave a short object lesson on forgiveness.

Then, we handed out copies of the 50 chronological Bible stories with pictures, printed in Croatian on one side of each page and in their Bayash language in the facing column. We also handed out these stories without pictures, formatted for adults, printed in a small book along with the Gospel of Luke in the Bayash language.

After lunch, we practiced the new skit and prepared to return to the bigger village, where the Ludari language is spoken, for day three of their club. Rain was threatening all day, so we were unsure exactly when to head out to the village to set up.

We arrived in the village under the threat of rain and quickly set up the equipment. About 60 kids attended, as well as over a dozen older teens and adults. Our theme was “Follow Jesus,” based on Luke 5:1-11. We acted out the Bible story based on this passage until it began to rain, and we had to stop and put all the props and books under tarps. The kids and their parents ran off, but only to the other side of the field, where they took shelter under a tree. The rain eventually stopped, and the kids were still there and eager for the rest of the club, so we did the rest of the club (without the craft since we couldn’t sit down on the wet tarps or grass and do a paper craft). The kids did well, singing the songs, listening to the object lesson on following Jesus in Croatian, and the audio recording of Luke 5:1-11 in the Ludari language. At the end, we gave each family a copy of the book of 50 chronological Bible stories with pictures printed in Croatian on one side of each page and in their Ludari language on the facing column. We also gave each child a small bag of candy from America.

The Roma kids loved hanging around and playing with our summer teamers, either playing soccer with the guys or on the playground with the girls.

As I mentioned, it was difficult to get an accurate count since we had the program outside, where kids came and went, but according to our count, we had 140 kids in all, counting both villages, ranging in age from babies to teenagers.

Today, we transported 17 of the older teenagers to the ministry house where we are staying and had day 1 of our day camp. We sang some lively songs in Croatian, listened to the audio of Luke 3:1-22 in their Ludari language, had a sermon by Louis on that passage (spoken in English and translated into Croatian), played games outside (like ultimate Frisbee), ate a hot dog lunch together, sang more Croatian songs, and heard a testimony by Vivian (spoken in English and translated into Croatian).

We showed them how to access the written and audio formats of the Gospel of Luke and the 50 chronological Bible stories in their Ludari language on our website and YouTube. Then we played the Ludari version of the story from Luke 3:1-22 as they followed along in the printed storybooks.

Afterward, they did crafts of decorating t-shirts and making key chains, had a watermelon snack, and played more games inside and outside.

Below are some pictures of the events of the last two days. Please pray that the Lord would have mercy on the Bayash and Ludari in these two villages, that His kindness would lead them to repentance, and that He would raise up many disciples who will follow Jesus and grow deep spiritual roots in Him through His Word.

Day 6 of Croatia trip: VBS in two villages

Thank you for your faithful prayers for us.

This morning we went to the smaller of the two villages, where the Bayash language is spoken. We received a very warm welcome with about 50 excited kids attending, and 15 or so interested teenagers and parents watching also. We repeated the same program which we had done in the bigger village the day before, with the theme of “Jesus is God’s Beloved Son” and Bible verses and a story based on Jesus’ baptism and temptation. We held the club in the Croatian language, but also played the audio in Bayash of the passages we had translated from Luke’s Gospel, and showed the pictures and played the audio in Bayash of the Bible stories we have translated.

After some grocery shopping and a very filling lunch of burek (the other famous Bosnian fast food), we prepared for the second day in the bigger village and practiced the new Bible story skit.

In the evening we went out to the big village, where the Ludari language is spoken. Our theme was “Jesus has all power.” We sang several songs in Croatian, acted out in Croatian the story of the beginning of Jesus’ ministry from Luke 4:31-44, played a game to memorize Luke 4:36 in Croatia, listened to the same passage Luke 4:31-44 in the Ludari language, listened to the Bible story of Jesus early ministry which we also have translated into the Ludari language, had a message on forgiveness and played “Simon Says”, to emphasize the importance of doing only what God says to do.

Below are pictures from both clubs. Please continue to pray for lasting fruit for God’s kingdom among the people of these two Roma villages, for the glory of our great God.

Day 5: Bible club (VBS), first day

Thank you for your faithful prayers. Today we attended worship services at a nearby Croatian Baptist Church in the morning, enjoyed čevapi (a special, Bosnian fast food) for lunch, and then in the early afternoon we practiced and rehearsed the program for our first day of VBS.

In the early evening we headed to the big village (Ludari language), praying that God would hold off the rain. He did (!) and the cloud cover kept it much cooler than the previous day.

We had about 60 Roma children for VBS and about 20 more teens and adults who also came to the program. The theme was “Jesus is God’s Beloved Son”. We sang several lively Bible songs in Croatian, acted out a skit of Jesus’ baptism and temptation in Croatian, played the audio of Luke 3:21-22 and 4:1-13 (about Jesus’ baptism and temptation) in the Ludari language, played a game to memorize Luke 3:22 in Croatian, made a craft of a visor, listened to the audio in Ludari along with pictures of the stories of Jesus’ baptism and temptation, played a charades, prayed and had a short lesson on God’s love for us.

Please pray that the truths of the Gospel which were proclaimed will find good soil and bear much fruit for God’s glory. Please pray for tomorrow as we do the same program in a smaller Bayash village, and also do our second day at this bigger Ludari village, and that again it will not rain.

Below are pictures from the camp, which is held outside in a field in the Roma village.

Day 3-4: Preparation for VBS in Croatia

Thank you for your continued prayers. Tomorrow, we will begin our Bible clubs (Vacation Bible School) with the Roma children. Yesterday and today, we have been meeting together as a team for worship and devotions, and Pam and I and the Pioneers missionaries have been sharing with the summer team our testimonies and calls to mission work, as well as information about the Roma culture and ministry methods in working with the Roma. We also did a lot of grocery shopping, gathering what we would need to make our own meals for the week.

Then, we visited the two Roma villages where we will hold the Bible clubs to tell the kids and their parents that we will be holding the clubs on Sunday, Monday, and Tuesday.

  1. Praise God for answering your prayers: the Bible storybooks and Gospel of Luke we printed were delivered to us yesterday!
  2. Please pray for good attendance at the club, strength and good health for our team, good weather since we meet outside, and for the Lord to open hearts for the gospel.

Below are pictures of our preparation meetings, the books, and Pam with some of the Roma kids in one of the villages.

Day 1-2: Travel to Croatia

Thank you for your prayers for our trip. All eight of us arrived safe and sound at our destination in Croatia, where we were met by the Pioneers team of four, who live and work in Croatia with the Roma.

We are grateful for God’s mercy that all our luggage arrived with us, and the entire trip was smooth and uneventful. None of us got enough sleep on the flights or during layovers, and our bodies are seven hours behind, so please pray that we will all sleep well tonight and adjust quickly to Croatian time. Thank you for praying for Ariela. Though she still has a cough, she is feeling much better. We’d appreciate continued prayers for her complete healing.

The Croatian printer who promised to complete the books on time has not yet done so. These are illustrated storybooks in color with 50 chronological Bible stories in the Ludari and Bayash languages and the Gospel of Luke in Bayash that we will be distributing at the Vacation Bible School and teen day camp. Please pray the books arrive as soon as possible.

Tomorrow’s schedule includes devotions as a team, grocery shopping for the food for this week, visiting various shops in the town of Sisak, preparing team meals, and listening to our Croatia teammates, Andy, Lim, Sergej, and Željka share their testimonies so the summer teamers can get to know them better.

Below are a few pictures of our travels and our orientation this afternoon (Croatian time), which covered the schedule for the week and the logistics of living at the ministry house.

Thanks for your prayers.

Todd & Pamala

Leaving for Croatia tomorrow morning

Above: our team practicing Bible skits and songs. Below: Ariela and her cousin packing candy to give out at Vacation Bible School; Pam packing suitcases including VBS supplies

Tomorrow morning, we leave for our 15-day trip to Croatia. Please join us in prayer for the following:

1. Pray for good health and for us to quickly adjust to the time difference (7 hours ahead of our US time). Todd, Pamala, Daniel, Ariela, and four young adults from our church (Josiah, Julie, Louis, and Vivian) will fly tomorrow from Kansas City-Chicago-Frankfurt-Zagreb, Croatia.

2. Pray for good weather so that we can hold all five sessions of Vacation Bible School outdoors in the two Roma villages as well as the two days of day camp for teens, and for good attendance at all the meetings.

3. Pray that the message of Christ will be clear to the Roma children, teens, and adults who hear it and that God will open their hearts to turn to Him.

4. Pray for Ariela, who has an upper respiratory infection and cough, to heal quickly.

5. Pray for Pamala as she finishes packing.

6. Pray for Todd to finalize logistics and prepare a sermon and several devotional talks.