We’re about to enter week 4 here in Craiova, Romania! Life here has been sweet and gratifying in so many ways. The Lord has given me an indescribable sense of peace and comfort here even in the midst of being in a completely new, unknown country with 26 people I just met a few months ago.
Here in Craiova, we have been partnering with Hope Church Romania. Each day here looks a little bit different but with the same mission: To love + show Jesus’ love to the people in Romania. As I’m looking back in my journal to tell you all what sorts of things God’s been doing here, I’m inspired to not let a day pass where I don’t reflect on the way He’s moving. It’s been pretty cool to look back on, so I wanted to share some of my favorite parts of this ministry and this month.
One of my favorite ways that we’ve been able to serve here with Hope Church is by ministering to the Roma community. Roma communities are among the least reached in the country and we have been able to go and spread Jesus’ love to these people. Hope Church partners with 5 local Roma communities around Craiova to help meet their physical and spiritual needs. My teammates, Nancy and Karlie, and I got to go to 2 of these communities and help run a kids ministry for the kids in these villages. Our days here were filled with lots of Jesus, smiles, high-fives, dance moves, and laughs but also the realization of the discrimination and deprivation this community of God’s children live in. Despite some of the sadness we saw and felt, these kids still had joy. These days made me realize it’s okay to be joyful and sad at the same time. In my journal, I wrote: “Today was a good day because I got to walk in the love and joy of Jesus. Today was a sad day day because I saw a small portion of how much God’s heart breaks for His hurting people.”
Another one of my favorite days was this past Tuesday. Our pastor was invited to attend the funeral of a man who was a believer who had passed away. I didn’t necessary feel the desire to go, as I was still battling some sickness that day and felt pretty exhausted. But I said yes and we drove over 2 hours to the funeral where we stood outside in 40 degree weather in the backyard of a Romanian family we knew nothing about and listening to a funeral service being spoken in a language we didn’t know. All of a sudden, the man’s wife began to speak and before soon she was weeping. I stood there, cold and confused, but intrigued to know what she was saying. Our pastor interpreted what she was saying, which was that she was so grateful that we were here. We learned that her husbands request before passing was to be surrounded by true believers at his funeral. The rest of the backyard was filled mostly with nonbelievers who were weeping and probably filled with a sense of hopelessness, despair, and desperation. Just by us being there, we were able to fill this intimate space with the Holy Spirit, providing joy and hope amidst the circumstances. From the outside looking in, we didn’t necessarily “get a lot done” this day. But our presence, being believers, meant the world to this woman. And after a day that felt and maybe looked fruitless, this turned out to be one of my favorite days here.
Ministry in Romania has been jam packed with a lot of exciting moments, but these have been just a few of my favorites so far. We have 2 more weeks here in Romania before we head to our next country, and I’m excited to watch God continue to move in the big and small moments.
