Back

September 24, 2014

Re-Jesus: Pavel’s Story

I’ve always been glad that Jesus told stories to illustrate his teaching.

When he talks about seeds or birds, missing coins or lost sons, it makes more sense, even today, than if he’d used complicated abstract theories to teach us his truth.

He knew we needed it simple in order to understand.

Times haven’t changed. We still learn and are impacted by the stories Jesus told.

As we’re here at Josiah Venture’s fall training conference 2014, focusing on Jesus and how he did ministry, it has helped to have similar illustrations to understand his principles for reaching the lost and discipling them to maturity.

Dave Patty spoke yesterday from John, chapter one, about the five phases of Jesus’ ministry. He illustrated them by using a young man who trusted Christ in Dave’s early days as a missionary in the Czech Republic.

Come and See (Phase One)

Pavel was a student in Dave’s high school English class in the city of Havirov twenty years ago. As he got to know Pavel and spend time with him, Dave was open about God and initiated conversation about him.

“Pavel, do you think this all happened by chance?” he asked as they hiked in the High Tatra mountains of Slovakia one winter night.

Later, Dave told Pavel he was praying for him and that he felt God was calling him. He challenged him to read the Bible and find out for himself who God is.

Pavel shared, “Those conversations helped me realize this was something relevant to me, that I could talk to God for myself. Dave told me God was interested in me and that he was calling me. That knocked me out of bounds! I never thought there was a God. I was amazed to hear he was interested in me.”

Repent and Believe (Phase Two)

Pavel started coming to the youth group Dave led and bought a Bible to start reading on his own.

After a time, Dave sensed from the Holy Spirit that he was to share the plan of salvation with Pavel. He invited him over to his house and at the kitchen table, with a paper and pen, drew the bridge illustration.

Showing man on one side, God on the other, and a cross in between to represent Jesus’s sacrifice in order for us to have forgiveness from sin to be in relationship with him, Dave asked Pavel where he stood on the bridge.

Pavel pointed to God’s side.

Though at first Dave didn’t think Pavel understood, he finally explained that just days before, while reading in the book of John, he saw, “Whoever has the Son has eternal life.” He made the decision to ask Jesus to be his savior that day.

He had repented and believed.

Follow Me (Phase Three)

Pavel began to devour the Word of God, reading until 2 and 3 in the morning instead of doing homework.

Two weeks later, Pavel’s mom called Dave to say, “I’m worried about my son. He’s not doing any of his homework. He’s ignoring his schoolwork. I’m afraid he’ll drop out. He’s been so irresponsible lately.”

When Dave asked Pavel what was going on he sheepishly replied, “I’m addicted to the Bible. It’s talking to me. There are so many pages and I never have enough time to finish it. Plus, when I look at my Bible on my desk I think it’s eternal and I can’t help but read it. And my homework? Well, it’s not.”

He also shared how God was drawing him into prayer in those early days as a believer. “I knelt and prayed for an hour or two every day so I could connect with God. It was new, it was bringing me life, and it was totally cool!”

He was following Jesus.

Follow Me and Fish for Men (Phase Four)

In those early days, Pavel was part of the youth group and ministry team, learning and growing in his faith. He was also active in reaching out to others, including his brother with whom he shared Christ.

He, too, put his faith in Jesus.

Through his college years, Pavel continued to be active in youth group, serving on a ministry team there and sharing his faith with others.

I Am Sending You (Phase Five)

After college, Pavel had an opportunity to study in the States for his Master’s Degree and then to go to work for General Electric in Prague.

Dave challenged him to be fruitful wherever God placed him and Pavel took that to heart, openly sharing his faith as a missionary sent to the business world.

Then two years ago, God sent Pavel somewhere else.

He joined the ministry of Josiah Venture and serves on the International Team to help increase the capacity of the organization, focusing on key projects that will take the ministry forward.

While some would say he’s completed the five phases of Jesus’ ministry, Pavel will tell you he’s still learning and growing. Deeply desirous of being sent into the world with the Good News of Jesus, he is active in his local church and community, inviting others to “come and see”, just as Dave did with him twenty years ago.

More stories to come, but until then, check out our social media hashtag (#JVFall14) to follow live pictures and updates on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.

Dave Patty President

Related Posts

Read Story

Events, News, Spotlight

Like Jesus

In a world of endless possibilities, how do you decide what is most important? The battle for your attention is relentless. Every day AI and social media invent more sophisticated methods of force-feeding you information. No wonder you and I feel overwhelmed, since experts tell us that over 90% of the data in the world was created in just the last two years! As the Josiah Venture team has been seeking God’s vision for the next four years, we have narrowed our gaze to ancient truths rather than chasing the latest trends. Our “2030 Vision” brings focused attention to just one priority in the sea of endless possibilities—the simple goal of becoming more like Jesus. Our “Like Jesus” vision has three specific objectives. How can we become more like Jesus in making disciples who make disciples? Paul expressed this priority in his letter to Timothy when he said, “and the things you have heard me say in the presence of many witnesses entrust to reliable people, who will also be qualified to teach others” (2 Tim 2:2). Timothy was an outstanding disciple of Christ, but Paul wanted him to go further and become a disciple-maker, who equipped others to do the same. Disciple-making moves from addition to multiplication when we can see it reaching the fourth generation, as reflected in Paul’s challenge to Timothy. Our first “Like Jesus” focus is to see this fourth-generation disciple-making taking place through all of the 375 members of the JV team. The second “Like Jesus” objective relates to the local youth ministries we are serving. Right now, the JV team is actively partnering with over 650 churches to build disciple-making youth ministries that reach the lost, build believers rooted in Christ, and equip young people to disciple their friends. We do this through training, coaching, events, and powerful outreach tools throughout 16 countries of Central and Eastern Europe. Our vision is to double this number by 2030, walking alongside 1300 churches to build disciplemaking youth ministries that reach many thousands with the gospel. With less than 1% evangelical believers in the countries we serve, we truly believe that reaching the next generation can spiritually transform this region of the world. Local churches are the key. Jesus promised to build his church and called the local church his body and his bride. Our third “Like Jesus” objective is to love the church like Jesus did and measure the outcome of our efforts by how we make his bride more radiant and fruitful. After a year of prayer, planning, and preparation, September marks the launch of our 2030 “Like Jesus” vision, which will focus our energy and direction in the months and years ahead. Thank you in advance for your part in making this vision a reality. Dave Patty President, Josiah Venture
Read Story

Discipleship, Evangelism, Missionary Kids

A Family Matters

How does a young man with no believing relatives come to faith in Christ? “Family on mission” is a phrase you will often hear on the Josiah Venture team. We teach our staff that a missionary call involves all members of their family, children included. Serving together with different gifts reflects the family cooperation we see in the Trinity and the early church. Lauren first met Ondra when he showed up for Fusion practice at her local church in Frydlant, Czech Republic. For over 12 years Lauren has faithfully reached out to High school students through this innovative JV ministry called Fusion, which uses the context of a rock/gospel choir to build community and introduce young people to Christ. Several years ago, the ministry went through a drop in numbers and was primarily attracting girls. Then, Lauren’s son Toby, who had just entered high school, began recruiting his friends. Toby’s confidence and enthusiasm were contagious and soon Fusion was full of energetic boys. Since Ondra was Toby’s best friend, he was one of the first to join. Toby openly shared his faith with his friend, but Ondra was cautious and not particularly interested. However, another influence began to soften his heart. Lauren teaches English part-time at Toby and Ondra’s high school in Frydlant, and was asked to be a part of a team to build student life at the school. One of their activities is a student-led retreat called “Catch It,” where the believing students have an opportunity to share their faith in God with their non-believing friends. In the past there have often been only 20-30 students at this event, but this year over 120 signed up. Ondra heard testimonies from his friends, but, more importantly, he could observe the change that faith in Jesus had made in their lives. His heart began to soften. Toby’s dad, Petr, leads the construction of our Malenovice training center in Czech, and also serves as an elder in the local Frydlant church. The elders encouraged one of the younger leaders to start a Bible study for seekers and invited Ondra. Trust had been built through all the family connections, and Ondra began attending. Since the study was on Sunday morning before church, it was only natural to stay for the service. At this point, Ondra still hadn’t put his faith in Christ. The final step of spiritual rebirth happened at the evangelistic camp JV led with the Frydlant church in July. The night the gospel was shared, Ondra went through the labyrinth, an experiential opportunity for students to respond to the claims of Christ, and, at the end, prayed with a counselor to put his faith in Jesus. Two days later, Ondra gave personal testimony of his repentance and faith in front of the entire church. When I asked Ondra about the impact his best friend had on his life, he responded by exclaiming, “Toby rocks his faith. He really puts it out there. At just 16, he led our discussion group—by himself. He is such an inspiration to me—how 100 percent sure he is. There is nothing that could change his mind.” “Family on mission.” A mom who is leading Fusion and organizing gospel events at their local high school. A dad who is serving as an elder and building the facilities where these outreach events are held. A son who “rocks his faith” and is not afraid to let his friends know. The Holy Spirit used all of these influences to draw a young man to himself. Thanks for making it possible for the Josiah Venture team to be family on Mission. Now you can look forward to meeting Ondra in heaven. Dave Patty President, Josiah Venture
Read Story

Evangelism, Help Ukraine

Longer than WW1

How do you manage a somber milestone? On June 11, 2026, the full-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine officially surpassed the duration of World War 1. The ongoing conflict in Ukraine has now outlasted the Great War, which ended after 1,568 days. For our team of 30 full-time staff serving in Ukraine in the midst of aggression, nightly bombings and the sound of drones overhead have become a daily reality. Yet, most of their attention is focused on a different battle, the fight for the hearts and souls of young people. Vitalii has a special heart for reaching boys whose fathers are absent or conscripted into the military. These vulnerable young men are growing up without a strong male influence in their lives, at a time when they need one the most. Since most boys enjoy activity and challenge, Vitalii teaches men in the church to father groups of boys in Wise Carpenter clubs. They build projects together and learn from Jesus, the great wise carpenter. Despite the pressures of war and the difficulty of travel, Vitalii has launched 45 of these clubs in churches across Ukraine, reaching over 500 boys each week. One of the recent clubs they started was in a Baptist church that was targeted and destroyed in April by a Russian-guided missile. During the explosion, one man was killed, and several were hospitalized. There is no safe place in a war of missiles and drones, even for Wise Carpenter clubs. In June, Vitalii gathered many of the boys for a Wise Carpenter camp featuring creative projects, fun events, and a clear proclamation of the gospel of Jesus Christ. Many put their faith in Christ and experienced an environment of love and personal care that was medicine to their souls. While the somber war milestone was being passed in June, Vitalii was taking young people past a different milestone, the dividing line from spiritual death to life. Lee and Katie are originally from California, yet they have chosen to remain in Ukraine with their two young children in the midst of war. Many nights are spent sleeping in the basement of their apartment building, which doubles as a bomb shelter. But rather than shrinking back, they are actively expanding the summer camps our JV team leads and will host 43 evangelistic camps in July and August. Each of these camps is in partnership with a local church and will make it possible to share the gospel with nearly 3,000 Ukrainian young people this summer. One battle front seems locked in place, but this battle is pressing forward rapidly into enemy territory, rescuing young lives from the power of sin and darkness. I’m so proud of the faith and courage of our Josiah Venture team. Thanks for making God’s milestones possible through your gifts and prayers. Dave Patty President, Josiah Venture