When a friend is in need, sometimes the best thing to do is how up, roll up your sleeves, and offer to help. Two missionary families teamed up to do just this in Bosnia and Herzegovina, which was devastated by war in the 1990s.

Amid the country’s recovery, the Bosnian national church remains a small movement in need of encouragement. Missionaries Chris and Katie Sasser and Sara Hobbs set out to serve the 12 churches and roughly 500 believers in Bosnia and Herzegovina in any way needed. Pastors responded with surprise and relief. “Our pastors have been stretched thin,” explains Chris, “and they were astounded that our primary purpose was simply to help them and their church.”

Shortly after the Sasser’s arrival, immigrants and refugees started coming into Bosnia and Herzegovina due to the tightening of its border with Croatia. This influx opened doors for ministry but also had the potential to strain the thinly stretched Christian community. Even so, national church and parachurch ministries banded together to help, and the AGWM missionaries jumped in to assist.

Katie organized a weekly coffee event and has been able to build relationships and share the gospel with several immigrant women. Even though immigrant populations are frequently transient, the Sassers have developed enduring relationships with families from places like Afghanistan.

For the Hobbs and Sasser familes, serving in Bosnia and Herzegovina has meant simply pitching in wherever help is needed, letting people know the Assemblies of God is committed to investing in them. In the future both families hope to start a business to engage the local community, provide jobs, and offer space for a church plant. They will continue to show up, roll up their sleeves, and serve people as an inroad to sharing the gospel.