“When I prayed, I felt something real; I felt God’s presence,” “Jason” told Luke as tears streamed down his face.

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They stood in the middle of Pol’and’Rock, one of Europe’s wildest festivals, filled with shamanism, spiritual seeking, and diverse mystical practices. Moments earlier, Jason had told Steiger missionary Luke that God was nothing more than “an energy connecting all atoms.”

“If you’re such a complex, amazing being, then the God who made you must be far greater than energy—you can know Him,” replied Luke.

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When Luke prayed for him, Jason began to cry. Immediately afterward, he called his girlfriend to tell her he had just felt God’s presence for the first time.

For 15 years, Steiger has been present at Pol’and’Rock. This year we came with a team of over 120 people, boldly sharing Jesus with thousands. Each day, small teams went out starting deep conversations, offering prayer, and leading people to Jesus.

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“Spending time with people in places like this always gives us more of God’s broken heart for people,” shared Luke. “Hearing their stories, feeling their pain, and realizing they don’t know where to turn to find answers.”

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Luke’s band, The Unrest, also played unofficial concerts on the festival grounds that drew hundreds. At the end of one set, Luke shared about how Jesus came not to be served but to serve, kneeling to wash His disciples’ feet. As he knelt to illustrate this, half the crowd spontaneously dropped to their knees too. Right there, Luke led them in a prayer to receive Jesus, while Steiger’s team spread out to speak and pray with people.

Luke also met “Damian” at Pol’and’Rock, who was covered in satanic symbols. Expecting hostility, he was surprised to know that Damian was eager to talk. When he identified himself as a satanist, Luke responded, “I don’t know if you’ve read much about Satan, but he wants to destroy you. God loves you and wants to protect you. He wants you to have life.” Damian let Luke pray for him—and afterward, gave him a big hug.

Also during the festival, a young girl, “Sofia,” approached Steiger missionary Ania and asked, “‘Hey, which tribe are you from? Because I’m from a tribe in Warsaw. Tell me, what defines your tribe?”

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That simple question sparked a profound conversation.

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As Sofia and Ania spoke late into the night, Sofia opened up, courageously sharing the pain in her family and life. At that moment, she met Jesus and decided to give her life to Him.

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The next day, she returned to continue their discussion and grow in her faith. Ania shared, “Today we are still in contact, and I believe she will keep growing, becoming part not of a shamanistic tribe, but of the tribe of Jesus.”

Hubert is the guitarist of the band Junon Kyanon, and met the Steiger team many years ago. His band plays at the festival, and Steiger team members have built strong discipleship relationships with him and his band over time.

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“You have open hearts for everyone, you welcome others as they are, and at the same time you carry God’s love. And this is something I want to be a part of,” he told the team this year. Like so many others at the festival, Hubert and his band have been deeply impacted by the Steiger way of life: a life of caring for one another, pursuing purity, and demonstrating God’s love through words and actions.

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In the midst of the noise, rebellion, and darkness of Polish Woodstock, the light of Jesus kept breaking through. Again and again, Luke, Ania, and the Steiger team witnessed people who once mocked faith encounter the living God in the most unexpected place.

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Check out this recap video!