Niš, Southern Serbia
Vlada and I (Sonja) live in Niš in Southern Serbia. It’s a city of almost 300,000 people, with only about 100 or so born again believers, so it’s a huge mission field. I moved to Serbia in 1996 with no plan B after knowing God’s call to the former Yugoslavia. Vlada and I soon met, and he was true confirmation I was in the right place; by 1998 we were married. It was a bit of a roller coaster as Vlada had to do his national service in the army for a year just a few months after getting married. Our daughter was born during the NATO bombing of Serbia in 1999, while Vlada was still in the army, so when the news reached him from England, Iva got a Kalashnikov salute off the side of a mountain! We also have a son, Miloš, who came along on Iva’s third birthday.
In our journey of life in an ex-communist country, we’ve known God’s leading, provision, comfort and strength and much more, and had lots of fun along the way. He has proved His faithfulness over and again. It’s a privilege to be in Serbia and see how a handful of people have now become a church with a voice in the community. We’re looking to plant a church in a nearby town, and our ministries are growing, so we are always facing the challenge of finding mission-minded people who will respond to the challenge and join us.
We love being part of Lighthouse Community as it’s made up of like-minded people in similar situations. We can share our joy and pain with people who understand. It’s also great to be able to see what God is doing in other nations and in a small way be a part of that.
