Marian and Maria
Marian
As the oldest of two children, I grew up in an average family in Aschaffenburg, Germany. After school and before I began my training to become a wholesale and foreign trade salesman, both of my parents died. This prompted me to ask some serious questions about life. At the time I could not imagine a loving God and doubted His existence . After meeting a missionary who challenged me to rethink my picture of God, I began to do so. , My thoughts were revolutionized by the fact of Christ's substitutionary death on the cross for me, and I invited Jesus Christ to come into my life in 1989. Since then, I have had a growing desire to know God better and to serve Him. I attended the Baptisten Gemeinde in Aschaffenburg and used my gift and talents in the church. From 1996-1999 I attended the Brake Bible School for an education in theology so I could become a full-time missionary. During my internship in Lithuania, God laid the people there on my heart. With a burden to serve in that country, I completed my training at Brake. While at Bible college I met my wife, Maria. In my spare time I enjoy reading, playing soccer, working on the computer and spending time with Maria and the kids.
Maria
As the fourth of five children, I spent my childhood and most of my teenage
years in Kasachstan. I was 17 when we moved to Germany,
and especially at first I experienced culture shock, for instance
when I saw the full shelves in the stores. God began working in
me during this time, and I wondered about the goal and purpose of my life.
Some friends invited me to an evangelistic meeting one day, where a
well-known evangelist invited people to accept Jesus Christ personally. I took
this step of faith and became a child of God that day. During this time
I finished my training as a retail saleswoman in a
building supply center in Wolfsburg. I attended the Lutheran Brethren
Church there, where I was active in the children's ministry. The
Lord burdened me to begin Bible school, where I could learn more
about God and His Word. During my internship in Perm, Russia,
God spoke to me about becoming a missionary. Thereafter I knew I would one
day serve the Lord in a foreign country.
My hobbies are: crafts, decorating, flowers, and anything that is fun.
When we became friends, we both had the same goal: missions, however
we were looking at different countries. Marian was excited about
Lithuania, while I felt the only possilbe country for my mission
service was Russia. After much prayer,
some counseling and visits to Lithuania, God led us to go to
Lithuania. Our home church agreed with us. We then applied to and were
accepted by the Kontaktmission.
We have lived in Lithuania now for a good four years. The first three years we lived in Kaunas, where we learned the culture and language. During that time we used our talents and gifts in the Free Christian Church there. Since the birth of our third daughter in September 2006, we have lived in Alytus, where with God's help we plan to plant a church.
