Romania Mission 2017

“If you pour yourself out for the hungry and satisfy the desire of the afflicted, then shall your light rise in the darkness and your gloom be like the noonday. And the Lord will guide you continually and satisfy your desire in scorched places and make your bones strong; and you shall be like a watered garden, like a spring of water, whose waters do not fail.” Isaiah 58:10-11. Today we saw watered gardens whose waters do not fail. Emilian was abandoned at birth and spent the first 7 years of his life languishing in a state institution where he was incorrectly labeled as mentally retarded. Now he is a treasured son and brother in his adoptive family. Emi attends the local high school in his village and is doing well in school. Two years ago he professed his faith in Jesus Christ, was baptized, and joined the church. Today we shared in his joy as he gave us a tour of his family’s farm. Dani was completely deaf and could not walk when he came to live in th

We all awoke at 8:00 for breakfast at 8:30.  Usually we wake up earlier than that, but it was decided to postpone the breakfast following a late previous night. We had a delightful breakfast spread, as usual, and departed to begin our visit of some of the Project Caring families. The goal of Project Caring is to provide support to make families self-sufficient again. Strengthening families in crisis can help prevent abandonment of at-risk children. Today we brought food packages to each of these families. The day began with a visit to a poor village outside of Arad. The family we visited was struggling to make ends meet, and we began to tour their small house. The yard contained a mix of children and animals, and the conditions were relatively poor for that family, however RCE remains committed to fostering a stable life. The second family lived in the same village and was a short distance away. This family was in a similar state and had 5 children. There were many ch

Scene #1: Above our heads, leafy vines full of ripening grapes give us shade. Around our feet, a kitten scurries by. The table holds homemade donuts and tall bottles of cold water. Walls are going up on the family’s new house. Block by block, the floor plan comes to life. Bedroom, bathroom, living room, dining room, kitchen. So much larger than the two rooms the family now has. Scene #2: Shovels. Concrete. More concrete. The constant sound of the cement mixer. Before, it was just dirt. Now there’s a foundation. And thankfulness. Scene #3: A swimming pool. Six lovable children from Darius House. Bathing suits. Sunscreen. Oh!...sunscreen! Who knew kids could get this excited about putting on sunscreen? They splashed and played. They laughed and were loved. Scene #4: A van. Sixteen Americans. One determined, quirky, beloved Romanian driver. Bumpy roads. A hike up the mountain after a day of hard work in the hot sun? Yes. A