NORFOLK – Rev. Robert Droppa, who grew up in Norfolk while his father Rev. Ernest Droppa was pastor of the First United Methodist Church of Norfolk, is returning to celebrate the faith he learned to love as a boy.

On Sept. 18 at 11 a.m. the church in which he experienced the beginnings of relationship with God is extending an open invitation to all who are seeking deeper spiritual life: come back to church.

At the invitation of Rev. Harold Wheat and other church leaders, Rev. Droppa will be speaking and leading worship with the goal of empowering believers to have confidence in what God’s love can accomplish in our lives.

When Bob felt the Spirit of God moving his heart to care for people who are hungry for faith in foreign lands, he traveled to China where it is illegal to practice Christianity.

As a chef instructor with a division of the United States Department of Agriculture, Bob taught "American Baking" in Thailand, Singapore, Taiwan, Hong Kong and many parts of Mainland China.

During the day, he wears his tall, starched white chef's hat and at night he preaches in underground churches in China.

Bob and his wife Kathy recently returned from eight months on the edge of the Gobi Desert in Inner Mongolia, China.

There, Bob was a consultant in 52 bakeries and four restaurants.

On Sundays, they taught English as a 2nd language on a 2nd floor of one of the bakeries. The government allowed them to use the Bible as their textbook. Through faith they have dramatically impacted the lives of people here and abroad.