Estera Pogačnik is the lead translator and coordinator of a team currently working on a contemporary Slovenian version of the Bible. After LittWorld in Singapore, she spent two years writing and publishing a compilation of testimonies by Slovenian Christians titled Look What God Is Doing. She shares her journey and snapshots of God’s miraculous work in her life so far.
A new life in Christ
When I was 14, I didn’t want to follow Christ anymore. I stopped going to church and reading the Bible. I spent some years without God…I believed Satan’s lie that I would be happy if I did what I wanted. I wasn’t aware that I was doing what Satan wanted, not what I wanted.
When I was 20, one of my school friends had an accident. She fell and died, and I thought, “What would happen to me if I was in her place?” It made me think. This is why I started to read the Bible again and talk to God. Several people prayed for me. I was so rebellious.
When I started reading the Bible, God started talking to me in my heart. The Word of God became so real to me, I decided to follow Christ and surrender my life to Him when I was 23.
For 3 years I was thinking and reading to decide. When I did, I thought, “I really want to live for Christ, I want to enjoy His presence and do whatever He wants me to do.”
Thousands of books and the gospel in Slovenia
I read many Christian books at the time—I bought so many books and shared them with others, I wanted everyone to read Christian books and hear the gospel. I spent a lot of money on books. When I married, my husband joked I had 6 tons of books, of all the languages I know!
One of my big passions is sharing the gospel with others. I took on a role with Eastern European Mission (EEM). Our team of translators and editors translated Christian books, and I helped distribute many free books in Slovenia. We still distribute in libraries, churches (including Catholic and Orthodox churches), as well as other Christian organizations and individuals.
I share books everywhere! Several people have contacted me with their stories about the Christian books they found in public libraries or elsewhere, telling me, “I read this book, I’m so excited and I’d like to know more.”
Short stories that proclaim God’s work
The Lord put the idea of Look What God Is Doing in my heart years ago. When I was at the MAI conference in Singapore in 2018, I got the confirmation that this is exactly what God wants me to do. When I came back, I asked people, “Will you be willing to share your testimony—not just conversion, but also how He helped, how He provided?”
I also wrote my story. I wrote about when my daughter was little, we were playing with a ball in our living room. The ball accidentally hit the light and it fell from the ceiling with my daughter standing directly below it! The light broke into pieces on her head and shoulders, but she wasn’t cut at all, even though the floor was cut and there were pieces of glass everywhere—the Lord put a supernatural protection on her body.
I asked people at church, outside of church, everyone I knew. I also asked about those they knew. I helped give people ideas about what they might share about—how they got free of addictions, how they recovered from abuse, how the Lord healed, how the Lord taught them how to deal with money, how the Lord supernaturally intervened during ‘accidents.’
Some wrote, some had parts missing, some recorded their testimony, some were illiterate. I had a lot of building material. I needed to build it into stories then into an attractive book. The book is accepted very, very well because they’re short stories, one to five pages for each. Each testimony includes Bible verses.
One person shared how he had been mowing grass alone in a large field when he was swarmed by wasps. He felt excruciating pain all over his body from their bites. He trusted the Lord, fighting in prayer. He praised the Lord and shouted, singing to the Lord—and he was healed! When he got home, his mum couldn’t believe what had happened because there was not a trace of injury on his body.
My goal was not only to share the gospel and the stories but to make the Bible real to them. To make them interested in the Bible and Jesus. There were so many people who said, “That’s so good!” They liked that the stories were short and that they didn’t need the read them in order. They could read the titles and read whatever they found interesting in that moment.
The Lord is doing such great things. The Bible tells us to proclaim His works. That’s why the title is Look What God Is Doing. With every testimony we exalt the Lord, His glory, power and goodness.
It’s so attractive for non-Christians. They’ll read the Bible too and see how God’s Word is connected with life—it’s not just an old book, or an interesting book, but a book of life that is very relevant today.
I worked for free for two years on this, and I believe the Lord has been repaying and blessing me. The book was published by EEM for free. This is how many people were able to read it.
Writing in the future
I have pieces of books on my computer. I have rhymes for kids, poetry, stories for kids and stories for adults. One of my stories is of the prodigal son in today’s time: a person who hit the bottom whom the Lord helped.
I have many ideas. I get so many ideas at MAI events too, such as Bulgaria (2023), and Montenegro (2024). At those events I wrote the titles and the topics, that the Lord was giving me. If only I had time I would write a lot!
I believe after this first part of the Bible translation into contemporary Slovenian is finished, I’ll continue writing. This is something I would really love to do. I feel the Lord gave me this gift, passion and ability to write, and I would like to use it for spreading God’s kingdom.
Opportunities for Christian publishing in Slovenia
People want to read the Bible. Our team is currently translating the Bible into contemporary Slovenian to be published in partnership between EEM and Biblica, and have been working on this since 2022. Our goal is that the translation would be as theologically correct and understandable as possible. We’re currently working on the New Testament, Psalms and Proverbs. If the budget is approved, we’ll continue to translate the rest of the Old Testament and provide a free online version and printed Bibles of the whole translation.
We also need books for children, evangelistic books, songs and poetry. I believe it is important for kids to learn about the truth of the gospel early. It’s so important that children hear good things in the confusion of this world. When bad things are shown as good, it’s so important that there is good Christian literature that is appealing for children: interesting, attractive and includes biblical truth.
How you can pray
Pray for unity and support within the church here regarding the translation project, so that the Word of God can be accessible to the general public as well as the church in Slovenia. Pray for the Lord’s protection. Our team members have experienced health issues, attacks on our children, attacks on our marriages… It’s sometimes really difficult. We really need to persevere and go on—be bold and take strength and wisdom from the Lord and go on.
Sometimes some of our team weren’t able to work for a few months, so I’ve tried to fill in the gap. I believe it’s worth it. It’s so important. So many more people will be interested in reading the Bible since they will understand it better. We still have a lot of work to do. Join us in prayer, so that the translation of every word and every sentence would be led by the Holy Spirit, and that the whole translation would be Spirit-inspired.
Related resources
- How to Write Biographies of Local Heroes of Faith – an MAI webinar with Jojie Wong
- Christian Books for Kids and Teens: Why Bother? – an MAI webinar with Janet Wilson
- What are the Elements of a Successful Children’s Book? – an MAI webinar with Carl Laferton
- How to Write Your Personal Faith Journey – an MAI webinar with Janina Marie Rivera