Pastors' Conference In Siegen, Germany January 18-22

Calvary Chapel pastors from all over Europe met at this three day conference. This is one of the side rooms at Calvary Chapel Siegen.

In June 1990 Joanie and I started being missionaries in Siegen. Holly was born there. After we left for England in 1997, the pastors' conferences held there were a good way to stay in touch with our friends and with the church.

Four years ago we changed up the pattern by going to the Missions Conference in Southern California, then up to Seattle after that. It worked out great, but the side effect meant not going to Siegen, at least not in January. This was our first visit in four years.

One aspect of visiting Seattle is the Rip Van Winkle phenomenon: the changes one sees after a year's absence stand out in strong contrast. It was weird to experience that this time in Germany. We could see the changes in the Siegen city center. We could see it in our friends. I'm sure they could see it in us.

Thank God it is only a cosmetic difference. After all these years we still believe in Jesus, and that we are still thankful for our friendship. That is especially true of the pastors at the conference. We had great fellowship with one another, extended times of prayer and encouraging teaching.

After the conference ended we got on our way to the Düsseldorf airport with a short stop at Köln (Cologne). We visited the Dom (cathedral) and showed the girls some places we used to go when we would come out on a day off. One fun treat was buying them our favorite German cheesecake at the Metternich Bakery. Just as creamy and rich as ever. It's nice to know some things don't change at all.