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AIM Rocks: AIM at What?
By Scott and Suzi McGarvey
January 10, 2005

(Editor’s Note: This is the first of a six part series on working overseas for a season of your life.)

The house lights dim again. It’s the fifth act of the VOX04 Christian Music fest. The stage glows blue and green as Vesela Zubata rips into their first set of the evening. Guitars howl along with the lead vocal; drums and bass pound. In the swirl created by the fog machine, lyrics of praise, hope, and humor reverberate in the hall; and the crowd goes… silent.

And so it goes when playing to a Czech audience.

Even after the lead singer entreats the audience to get on their feet, the vast majority sits with their arms crossed, beer or water bottles in their laps, passive expressions of disinterested art observers. At the end of the set, the younger generation reclaims their seats or heads for the bar/snack stand in the back. Oddly, the seated audience applauds long and loudly.

Beer on the front row. Jesus in the lyrics. A concert audience full of quiet, non-committal observation. And, with the exception of the German group that speaks English, it’s all in Czech. These are the strange paradoxes in which we find ourselves as Associates in Missions (AIM) in Eastern Europe.

Strangers in a Strange Land
Since the Iron Curtain was ripped away 15 years ago, Christianity in all forms and flavors has flowed through this area. The United Pentecostal Church International (UPCI) took up residence here nine years ago. How can the fundamental, Apostolic message of purity and separation exist in this bohemian society where alcohol is more prevalent than water (you can buy beer at KFC)? How do you preach to, much less reach out to, people who have a natural distrust of anything considered absolute? How do you convey love and joy to people who, by nature, show little emotion?

Europe is a pioneering battleground for Apostolic missions. This is not Africa or South America. There are no 500-soul revivals. Revival is accomplished one hard-fought soul at a time.

We’ve spent six months on the field, based in Prague, Czech Republic. Alongside Roger and Becky Buckland, the resident missionaries, we are trying to find the right combination of outreach and teaching to touch the lives of the Czechs around us. How can a work that’s nine years old still be considered pioneer? To begin with, take the fact that over 50 percent of the population considers themselves atheist. We have to start with the barest of ideas—God really exists. And not only that, He is truly concerned about you.

We didn’t get here by accident, nor did we “ask” to come to Prague. Several years ago, we made a conscious decision to give a season of our lives to the Kingdom’s work. We put promising careers on hold in order to do what God asked of us. We decided to take God up on the promise that He would direct our paths if we put our trust in Him. Since then, we’ve added experiences to our resume that we never could have dreamed of on our own. While today we don’t see missions work as a long-term vocation, that is what is so powerful about the AIM program. It’s the opportunity to give a time of your life to the Kingdom in a way you might not have considered before.

More on Prague
For more background on working here, read Dana Vannoy’s take on ministry in Prague.

ninetyandnine.com

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Suzi’s parents emigrated from the Czech Republic in 1969, but most of her family still lives there. While in Prague, Scott and Suzi McGarvey live in the same apartment building her dad grew up in, right next door to her teenage niece and nephew.