Location look-out in Turku

For the last two years, Calvary Chapel Turku has met in a rented room in an old school building. But that might change soon as the congregation is growing, the rent is being raised, and babies require better facilities.

"The Lord has added unto us several new attendants and for that we are grateful and wish to minister to them ever so faithfully," explains Pastor Bob Pecoraro, adding that growth is not the only reason for CC Turku to look for another location.

"At the old school house they have recently raised the rent, which makes it a natural time for us to look for a new place that accommodates us better anyway. Another issue is the children's ministry. The babies in our fellowship and those who watch over them during service times need a proper room to be in. This would also allow us to tend to the needs of other families that perhaps would want to join the fellowship in the future," says Bob Pecoraro.

As they now look for a new location, CC Turku would like to find a place which is their own and which they can have access to and "use whenever we want and for whatever we want," as Bob puts it.

"Would you all please pray for us as we look to the Lord for His unfailing wisdom. We truly need to be wise in this time and do not want to be hasty. Pray that the Lord would lead us to the right place and that we would clearly see His direction and hear His voice. Provision is another thing that you can all pray for. Moving to another place would cost more. So pray that the Lord would move upon all of our hearts in the fellowship at the perfect time so that we would have enough funds to continue and grow in His service at a new place," Bob asks.

"Thank you all so much for your love and support. We wish all of you a very warm and Jesus centered Christmas."

Merry Christmas from the Powers

American missionaries in Latvia, Brenten & Lena Powers and their two kids Caleb and Lily, send the following greeting to all those who are serving God in Scandinavia:

"Merry Christmas Scandinavia! We hope you have a Christ-centered Christmas this year, remembering how He has washed us white as snow, though our sins were as scarlet. We are actually taking a short break from the frozen North to visit our family and church back home in California. But we can't wait to get back to Latvia as we will start a new Bible study in January. Look forward to seeing you all next summer at the conference... if the Lord doesn't first come again!"

Merry Christmas from the Pratts

From Turku in Finland, Aaron & Sarah Pratt and little Emily send their Christmas greetings to everyone on the Scandinavian mission's field:

"We are so thankful for what the Lord has done this year and can only look forward to what more blessings are to come next year. Emily is such a joy that we couldn't even imagine! God is faithful in the good times and bad, and He is good to His children."

A Year to Remember

Pilgrims on the Scandinavian frontier look back on another year of God's faithfulness. The following Thanksgiving greetings have been sent in:

From Yuri & Lidia's home in Norway, Yuri Makassiouk writes:

"I am thankful most of all for my wonderful family which grows stronger and closer together by the year. Thankful that the Lord keeps us healthy and happy and in love. Another thing which I was blessed with this year is my eyes and heart being open to the power and the vastness of Christ's body here on Earth. There's no reason (and no time) for feeling weak and lonely. We are His hand in this world and it is not getting weaker or shorter. I'm thankful for being a part of it."


From the mission's field in Finland, Bob Pecoraro writes:

"We have many things to be thankful for, but obviously there are a few that stand out the most this year. The birth and healthy growth of our son Russell. God's provision over the last year, He has been so faithful! For the growth both in depth and width in both fellowships (in Turku and Helsinki)."


From Aarhus, Denmark Leah Molgaard writes:

"We are thankful for our blessed life together as a family, and the opportunity to live out our dreams in a peaceful society. We have never wanted for anything, never been threatened and never experienced illness to the extent that we had no hope."



From Mike & Sofia's temporary abode near London, Mike Ortiz writes:

"I am personally extremely thankful for my beautiful, strong, confident, supportive, loving and caring wife! There has been many amazing challenges and adventures that have brought me to newer heights with the Lord, and awesome relationships in Christ... including those made at CC Scandinavian Conferences. Thank you Lord!"


From Sweden's capitol of Stockholm, Joel Wickström writes:

"We have a lot of things to be thankful for here in Stockholm. The Lord has provided such a neat place for us to have the Scandinavian conference next year. We are also thankful that the Lord has sustained our fellowship after Mike and Sofia left for England. We still have a couple of people that are both committed to stay and believing that God wants to build something lasting in and through us. It is very encouraging I found. We are also thankful for the provision of the facility that we can use every Sunday night. It's normally an expensive place, but we rent it for free, which is quite amazing if you think about it."


From Hillerod, Denmark Daniel Jacobsen writes:

"In the past year, a tumor was found in my leg, and I'm thankful that the doctors were able to remove it and that my leg seems to be fine and that I'm able to exercise again. Also I'm thankful that the Lord has blessed our Bible Study and that we see people mature in the Lord. There is so much to be thankful for. Praise His name."


Click on the "comments" link below this message to add more Thanksgiving greetings. Happy Thanksgiving!

Stockholm to Host Next Scandinavian Conference

Bring out your calendars! For the first time ever, the annual Scandinavian Calvary Chapel conference will be held in the Stockholm area.

Known by many for its meatballs, IKEA, and "fika", Sweden is now back in the role of hosting a Scandinavian conference for the first time since 2005. This time, it's the capitol of Stockholm which will have the honors of putting on the 2009 Calvary Chapel conference for the first time ever, thus giving next year's conference the most northern location so far in the history of the Scandinavian conferences.

"We had several reasons for choosing Stockholm as the 2009 location," says co-planner and Stockholmer Joel Wickström.

"We've talked a lot about rotating the host nations from year to year, and I'm very excited that God has allowed us to place the next conference near Stockholm. Although the Danes will have to drive a bit further than they've been used to in the past three years, it will give more people from Finland and Stockholm a chance to attend. For our Norwegian guests and all those flying in from afar, Stockholm is just as accessible as Eastern Denmark. Finally, we've also seen from previous years in Denmark that having a Calvary Chapel conference in your area can actually bless the local ministries as new people discover the blessing of thorough Bible teaching," says Joel.

The conference will be held at Ekebyholm outside Stockholm (see photos). The location is a former royal castle from the 1700's, which holds up to 100 guests and includes separate rooms for families and married couples - plus lots of facilities for indoor and outdoor activities. Specific directions will be provided later, but there is a direct and cheap bus connection from the central train station in Stockholm. It has yet to be determined if a shuttle service will be arranged directly from the airport.

The 2009 conference starts on August 5 (Wednesday evening) and ends on August 9 (Sunday noon), so make sure you book your calendars! It is not possible to sign up yet, but more information will be sent out as soon as possible. Until then, further questions can be sent to conf@calvarychapel.dk.

Get Ready, Ladies

Back by popular demand, it’s time for another Scandinavian Women’s Retreat. Here’s what you need to know about the event.

From May 1st to May 3rd (Friday to Sunday), women from various corners of Scandinavia will gather to spend a few days seeking God together and getting refreshed by His Word. The event is only the second Calvary Chapel Women’s Retreat in Scandinavia, following the successful gathering of 12 women in the spring of 2008.

”We really enjoyed the retreat last spring, and we’ve been encouraged to repeat the success in 2009. The theme will be Makeover 09, and Inga-Lil Guzik will come and teach from Ezekiel about God taking our heart of stone and giving us a heart of flesh and giving life to our dry bones. I’m sure many women across the Scandinavian region could do with some of that, so we’re hoping to see as many ladies show up as possible,” says Sofia Ortiz, who is the main organizer of the retreat.

Makeover 09 will be held at a small and cozy conference center in the scenic surroundings of Vaxholm about 45 minutes outside Stockholm (see picture). You can check out more pictures of the location by visiting the website: www.bogesundsslottsvandrarhem.se.

The attendance fee for the entire weekend retreat is 550 SEK (please exchange to Swedish currency), and payment can be made upon arrival.

To sign up for Makeover 09, please email Sofia Ortiz (Sofiaortiz33@yahoo.com) or Allison Broegger (allisonbroegger@gmail.com). They will also be able to give you information about how to get to the retreat location.

On Fire for Finland

Austrian-based Daniel Ornelas (here seen with his wife, Petra) recently visited the Calvary Chapel team in Finland. After two weeks of fellowship on the Finnish front-lines, he left with a calling to return.

The ministry of Calvary Chapel Finland is currently carried out by Pastor Bob Pecoraro and his wife (see photo). Last month, they were pleased to welcome Daniel Ornelas, who left Austria (his current country of residence) to spend two weeks with the team in Finland.

"The trip to Turku and Helsinki was like returning home. I am blessed by the love shared to us by Bobby and the team there. Thank you for housing us and allowing us to be a part of the ministry there to the Fins," says Daniel Ornelas.

"Our two weeks went by so fast we could hardly believe it. Parting was difficult. The Lord has given us a like-minded heart and mind for the people over there. The Lord blessed us with so many rich times of fellowship, it was rewarding. Teaching at the fellowship in Turku and at the Bible Study in Helsinki brought back so many sweet memories. The privilege of sitting there and watching these saints appreciate God's word being taught to them in our way is something that makes your hair stand. Our Finnish brothers and sisters there are so appreciative. You can really see the joy in their eyes as you're sharing," Daniel reports.

For Daniel, this was his second trip to Finland after having visited the country a few years back. And it may very well not be his last. In fact, he and Petra are now praying about moving there to support the ministry full-time.

"The last I remember about the spiritual state in Helsinki was that is was strongly influenced by hyper Pentecostal churches, "word faith", and dead traditionalism. Although those still exist, we now witnessed many Fins having grown tired of the false promises, false experiences and the pain that is attached with those denominations. They are now desiring a more stabile way in their faith. This development brought smiles to our faces. I left with such a burning to help Bobby and those along side him, Aron Pratt and Kyle Bentz (see photo) that I am moving forward in prayer about returning on a regular basis. Perhaps once this winter. And quarterly until our family moves permanently over there. We will wait and see how the Lord directs."

To read more about the ministry in Finland, go to http://www.calvarychapel.fi/

Blessed and Challenged by Growth in Hillerod

Since the Scandinavian conference in early August, the Bible Study in Hillerod, Denmark has doubled in size, leaving Daniel Jacobsen's ministry team with some fresh challenges.

On an average Tuesday evening in the Danish town of Hillerod - a suburb north of Copenhagen - 10 to 15 people cram together in Daniel Jacobsen's apartment for a weekly Bible Study. In only two months, the home group has doubled in size, with a few brand new believers having joined the group. Even a few non-believers are beginning to attend the studies.

"Since the summer break, we've been going through the Gospel of Matthew verse by verse, and it's been an exciting time," says Daniel Jacobsen, who teaches and hosts the Hillerod Bible studies.

The Hillerod Bible Study has existed for a year and half now, and with the recent growth, Daniel and his team of ministry leaders have a new kind of challenge on their hands.

"We would really covet your prayers for this group to remain one in the Lord and to become like-minded in our vision for this ministry. With the new additions to our group, we have new situations to deal with, such as making sure we keep the unity in our group," Daniel explains.

Leading the Bible Study on the side of his full-time job as an accountant, Daniel also asks you all to pray that he will have enough time and grace to prepare thoroughly for each week's study.

Do you, atheist, take this gospel...

Officiating a wedding for the first time in Finland, Bob Pecoraro got a rare chance to preach the Gospel to a group of guests with several atheists among them. The response was promising.

In late August, Pastor Bob Pecoraro from Calvary Chapel Turku in Finland was asked to officiate the wedding of a couple in his congregation. Knowing there would be several atheist guests at the wedding ceremony, the bride and groom specifically asked Bob to lay out the Gospel in its full glory - no holding back, no toning down. You don't need to tell Bob Pecoraro that twice, and thus the Gospel was preached with as much ferver as the subsequent "I do's" from the newlyweds.

"It was a great honor to be asked to perform this wedding. There were 120 people present on the day, and I felt God using the occasion to reach people who don't normally come into a church, let alone listen to a pastor teach from the Bible," Bob Pecoraro says.

After the ceremony, the bride and groom were approached by several non-Christian guests - including some confessing atheists - who explained to them that the Gospel had "touched them" in ways they hadn't felt before.

"Please pray for these people and their souls. God wants to save them, and I believe they're just now starting to feel His hand knocking at the door of their hearts," says Bob.

Click here to see pictures from the wedding ceremony.

Witnessing God Work on the Streets of Stockholm

Just when they thought it would be just another ordinary night of street witnessing, Joel Wickström and the people of the Stockholm Bible Study became witnesses of a miraculous work of God's Spirit.

Every Wednesday night, the Calvary Chapel Bible Study group in Stockholm takes the gospel to the streets of the Swedish capitol in a weekly effort to spread the Word of God to random Stockholmers. Up until last week, a usual night would consist of handing out several dozen cards with Scriptures on them - no invitation, no advertising for certain churches, just handing out the Word of God, knowing it won't return void.

"We were out there handing out Scripture cards like any other night. As we were getting ready to call it a night, suddenly one guy came back to us and asked us straight up "How can I start my spiritual journey?". We talked with him, and he shared how he had felt a conviction of his sin for a while and how he felt somehow that he needed to be forgiven. After sharing the gospel with him, he ended up praying to receive Christ as his Savior," Joel Wickström explains.

"What an encouragement to see God's Spirit work like that in someone's heart! It was so easy for me to lead this man to Christ, because God had already done all the work. It was so incredible," Joel says.

This new addition to God's Kingdom has indicated that he wants to come to the Stockholm Bible Study group next week, but already now God has used him to bless the workers of that Bible Study.

"Although we do trust that God can use the simple verses we hand out in the lives of those who take the cards with them, I was maybe beginning to doubt a little bit whether we were making any difference by doing this every week. We were, in a sense, ready to give up. Praise God that He showed us not to give up - it does make a difference."

Recommended Input on Marriage

Think you know all there is to know about marriage? Most likely not... To upgrade your insight on this, check out the teaching series recommended by Mike and Sofia Ortiz from Stockholm, Sweden:

"Hey to all of you couples from Mike and Sofia. We were really blessed to be part of the 2008 Scandinavian CC Conference and just wanted to send our love. We also wanted to encourage you all with a link to an awesome teaching series on marriage that will strengthen and stretch your relationships. We want to see God fortifying our marriages and blessing them with His protection, and at the same time doing all we can to learn how to be a better husband and wife..."

"Sofia and I go through this series once a year (every year since before we were married) and talk about some seriously tough stuff. But at the same time, God does an unbelievable work that only He can do in and through us. We are blessed like crazy every time we sit down and listen for God's direction and counsel. So we hope you guys will be too!"

"Click here to go to the website containing the teaching series. It is an 8 part series with Pastor Bob Coy from CC Fort Lauderdale at the helm, so be ready for some action! No joke! Be encouraged. Mike 'n' Sofia Ortiz."

An Open Door in Norway

Christian and Autumn Nagy have been given an opportunity to host a weekly Bible Study for high school students in Kvitsund, Norway. The first study kicks off this week.

The administrator of the Christian High School that Christian and Autumn Nagy work for in Kvitsund recently approached them to see if they would host one of the Thursday night Bible studies for the students that are hosted by a few staff families.

"We were so excited about it," says Autumn Nagy, "so we said yes!"

"Please pray for Christian and I as we take on this Bible study for the students starting already this week!!! Pray for wisdom on what to say to these students and that some students would actually come!!!," Autumn Nagy says.

The first study takes place this Thursday at 8pm. You can read more about the ministry of Christian and Autumn Nagy at their ministry website (although it has not yet been updated after their recent move from England to Norway).

Retreated and re-charged

This year, the Danish-American couple Morten & Leah Molgaard from Aarhus, Denmark attended their second Scandinavian conference in a row with their son Max. And the second one was just as sweet and refreshing as the first one, they say:

"We had a wonderful time visiting with old friends and making new ones, as well as hearing some great teaching from the Bible. We can definetely recommend the camp and look forward to it every year now as a well-needed retreat."

You can stay updated on the daily life of the Molgaards in Aarhus by visiting their family blog at www.maxmoelgaard.blogspot.com

Guys, Get Your Skype on!

Encouragement. Motivation. Accountability. Those are some of the benefitial attributes of the men's online prayer meetings, which take place once a month via Skype.

Originally started as a conference call among those who were planning the Scandinavian conferences, the monthly skype sessions have now become an open prayer time for all guys who are somehow connected to Calvary Chapel ministry in Scandinavia. Organizer Joel Wickström extends the following invitation:

"We want to encourage all of you guys to join our monthly prayer meeting. After two years of regular prayer time, our fellowship across the national borders has grown and become so much sweeter and closer than before. These online prayer sessions have helped keep us all connected throughout the year - instead of only hearing from each other at the conferences once a year. We've seen that praying with like-minded believers is a great encouragement as well as a medicine against isolation, which is very present at this part of the world. Lastly, the prayer times have given us a better idea of what the Lord is doing in different parts of Scandinavia and what to pray for more specifically. We would love for you to come and join our prayer time on Saturday mornings once a month."

So get out your calendars, guys - the Fall Prayer Schedule is as follows (all dates are Saturdays):

September 6th at 10am

October 4th at 10am

November 1st at 10am

November 29th at 10am

December 13th at 10am

If you would like to take part in some of these calls, please email your Skype username to joelwickstrom@hotmail.com. He will then call you on Skype at the above mentioned times.

iTune in to Finland's Finest

As announced at this summer's conference, you can now download the weekly teachings by Pastor Bob Pecoraro in Calvary Chapel Finland directly to your iPod.

If you would like to subscribe to one of Calvary Chapel Finland's three podcasts, you can go to www.calvarychapel.fi and click on the link on the front page. From there, you can find links to all three podcasts which should automatically open your iTunes and bring you to our iTunes Store page where you can subscribe to the podcast and start downloading.

You can also find the podcast by searching in your iTunes Store for "Calvary Chapel Finland". Alternatively, you can find all the teachings on the audio page of Calvary Chapel Finland's website; but the podcast simply provides an easy and automatic way to get the teachings directly to your iTunes, iPod or mp3 player. Enjoy!

Relishing the Scandinavian Buzz

Pastor Kevin Fitzgerald from Crosspoint Dublin debuted as guest teacher at this year's Scandinavian conference. Before going back to Ireland, he asked the Scandinavian congregation to pray for his church's upcoming Family Week conference. As Pastor Kevin shares in this short greeting, those prayers were answered:

"Man, we're still 'buzzing' about the conference over there in Denmark! What a fantastic time we had! We're just back from our church retreat here, and... I really don't know where to begin! God was so faithful, and His hand was ALL OVER this retreat... And, given some of the things our church has been through in the past several months, it was such a timely event for us! It was simply an amazing time, and we are so grateful to all who prayed for us," he says and adds that the teachings given and received at the Scandinavian conference from Book of Daniel also left their mark of inspiration for the conference in Ireland:

"We had a guest speaker in the evenings, and myself and Barry led morning devotions all week... primarily from the Book of Daniel... (hmmm, I wonder why?)."

Find out more about the ministry of Crosspoint Dublin at www.crosspoint.ie

Grimes Blessed by Son's Baptism

Still counting the blessings from their first ever Scandinavian Calvary Chapel conference, Barry & Lorna Grimes found God adding to the pile as their youngest son Jack was baptized at CrossPoint Dublin's family conference this week:

"We have just returned from our Crosspoint family week at a retreat centre outside Dublin. Although the weather was not as nice as in Denmark, the Lord gave us a very good day with hardly any rain last Saturday - while a few kilometres down the road there was the highest ever recorded rainfall for Ireland in August (76mm). We had a great week with our church family, and for Lorna and I the highlight was when our youngest son Jack was baptized on Sunday morning with 6 others," says Barry, who serves as an elder at Crosspoint Dublin alongside Pastor Kevin Fitzgerald, whom he and his wife Lorna accompanied to the Scandinavian conference last week.

"Lorna and I were very blessed to be at the Scandinavian conference. We did not really know what to expect, but it greatly exceeded our expectations. The teaching was excellent and the fellowship was very special. It was great to be with God's people in Scandinavia and to see what He is doing there," he says.

"The Blessing was Mutual," says Siegen Team

Toward the end of the 2008 conference, parents and conference planners alike were lining up to thank God for the incredible work that Sabine, Wendy, and Katharina from Siegen, Germany did with the Children's Ministry during the 5 days of the conference. Managing to teach and entertain kids of many different languages and ages, the work of the Siegen girls allowed many parents to concentrate and focus on the Word of God during the adult teaching sessions. Sabine returns the gratitude:

"We had a hard time going back, not just because of all the traffic, also because we didn´t want to leave Denmark. It was a really great time, and we are just so thankful that God used us as a blessing for the kids and the parents. It was totally Him who gave us the ideas and made everything work - we could see and feel that! God bless you and all what you are doing up there in Scandinavia!"

Pastors Felt the Viking Love

A new feature at the 2008 conference was the Viking Games, which saw one international team and teams from Denmark, Sweden, Norway, and Finland battle it out against each other in various fun disciplines. One of the disciplines that left a mark was the highly popular "Shoot the Pastor", where each team got a chance to shoot water balloons at their pastor of choice, who was left fighting for his dryness on a moving swing.

Each team was awarded points for a hit, while points were deducted if any shots hit the pastor's head. In a final twist of fate, the Viking Games ended with a reversal of roles as the pastors had a last chance to deduct points from the teams by taking shots at the team captains. Pastor Stan Block describes the feelings he went through while trying to dodge the incoming water balloons:

"Frightened, terrorized, heart racing! I now understand the feelings of villagers as they would see the boats in the distance with no place to run or hide. I was grateful for the moments when my three partners [pastors Kevin Fitzgerald, Glen Nudd, and Brenten Powers] were called on to take their place in the line of fire instead of me! As to the opportunity for revenge, I regret that our aim was off so much of the time, to have left them all with no points would have been perfect but it was some consellation to drive the Swedes back to Stockholm in disgrace. May the Games live on in the coming years and may other foreigners experience the same Viking hospitality shown to us! All said, I felt sad to say goodbye and that speaks to the depth of relationships that were built in the four days."

Canadian Pastors Savor Scandinavian Fellowship

Pastors Glen Nudd and Stan Block from Rocky Mountain Calvary Chapel have arrived safely back in Calgary, Canada after attending this summer's Scandinavian conference (see photo). Pastor Glen sends the following message:

"We made it back safe and sound with great memories of the 2008 conference. The Lord reminded me of how precious and life-giving fellowship is. Our hearts were ministered to deeply by the desire by so many to not only attend the conference this year, but to squeeze every drop of encouragement and teaching out of our time spent together. It was a true example of “…not forsaking the assembling of yourselves together, as is the manner of some, but exhorting one another, and so much the more as you see the Day approaching” (Hebrews 10:25). Thank you all for a great conference."

Baptized at the Conference

17 year-old Emil Broegger was baptized on Saturday morning at this year's Scandinavian conference.

A few hours after sunrise, Emil Broegger opened his Bible in front of a small crowd of people who had come down to the waterfront to see him make one of the most important public statements so far in his life; to be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ. He shared with his fellow conference attendees what God has done in his life, after which he and Pastor David Guzik walked out into the morning waters. A few moments later, Emil returned to the applauding audience on the shore with a big smile on his face.

"I have been wanting to get baptized for a long time in order to show God and the world that I desire to live 100 pct. for Him. The conference was a great occasion for this, since I preferred to be baptized among like-minded believers from a ministry that I feel connected to. Although it was early morning temperatures, it felt awesome to be immersed in the water," Emil says.

The baptism of Emil Broegger was the second baptism in the history of the Scandinavian conferences - as Emil's older brother Samuel had the pleasure of being baptized at the conference in 2006.

From Latvia with Love

American missionaries Brenten and Lena Powers were able to come to the Scandinavian conference for the first time this year with their kids, Caleb and Lilly. Now back in Latvia, here's what they have to say about their time at the conference:

"We were greatly encouraged and refreshed by the fellowship with our brothers and sisters from Denmark, Finland, Sweden, Norway, Ireland and Canada. Although Latvia is technically not a Scandinavian country, we found that many of the issues we face in the Baltics are similar to the rest of Northern Europe, and we found ourselves received and knit to this group of believers. Overall, we were all really blessed with the Acts 2:42 environment; 'continuing steadfastly in the teaching, fellowship, breaking of bread and prayers'."

You can read much more about the Powers' ministry in Latvia by visiting their blog.

The 2008 Conference in Pictures

Click on the photo below to view or download pictures from the 2008 conference in full size:

Scandinavian Calvary Chapel Conference 2008

Download the 2008 Conference Teachings

You can download all the teachings from this year's conference by clicking the following links:

Daniel 1 - Joel Wickström
Daniel 2 - David Guzik
Daniel 3 - Stan Block
Daniel 4 - Daniel Jacobsen
Daniel 5 - Theis Broegger
Daniel 6 - Kevin Fitzgerald
Daniel 7 - David Guzik
Daniel 8 - Aaron Pratt
Daniel 9 - David Guzik
Daniel 10 - Kevin Fitzgerald
Daniel 11-12 - Glen Nudd

Record-breaking Attendance at Scandinavia's 10th Calvary Chapel Conference

With more than 70 adults and 15 kids involved from 10 different nations, this year's Scandinavian conference broke all previous attendance records. At the center of it all was God's Word, which was powerfully and passionately taught by a long line of guest speakers.

The work of bringing sound and thorough Bible teaching to the Scandinavian people received another encouraging morale boost at the 10th consecutive annual gathering of believers who are either active in ministry or in prayer on behalf of the nations of Sweden, Denmark, Norway, and Finland. Hosted at a remote campsite near the Danish town of Roskilde, this year's conference took its attendees through a 5-day journey of The Book of Daniel as guest pastors such as David Guzik (Siegen), Kevin Fitzgerald (Dublin), Glen Nudd and Stan Block (both Calgary) taught alongside local ministry leaders.

The conference stretched from Wednesday evening (a day earlier than normal, since this year's conference had been expanded with one more day) to Sunday at noon. Because of the high attendance, some of the attendees had to sleep in tents, since all the rooms and indoor beds were full.

"This is the first year we've ever had this problem - but what a great problem to have. We may have to start looking for bigger locations for next year's conference," says Daniel Jacobsen, who was one of the four people that helped plan and stage this year's conference in Denmark.

"It was an incredible blessing to see so many people uniting around the King's business here in Scandinavia and seeing them all be blessed by the teaching and the fellowship at this conference. I'm sure many new friendships and ministry connections were made," he says.

For more info about this year's conference, go to http://www.calvarychapel.dk/