232 days down and 5 to go

I guess it shouldn't come as a surprise that my [almost] 8 months of learning, traveling, serving, growing, laughing, crying, teaching, blessing, receiving, praying and meeting is quickly approaching its end. But somehow it still catches me off guard. Then I remind myself that none of that is ending, its simply going to take place in a different time zone, culture and continent. And that to me is beautiful.

Georgiana and her cake!! La Multi Ani!!

Its been a busy last few weeks. I've spent time laughing with my friends and learning from them. Traveling to other parts of the country to meet with the other fellow Kontaktmission missionaries [and seeing some beautiful colors of fall in the mountains along the way]. We also have grieved the loss of a 26 year old man from the community. It was heart breaking to see the family mourning. He leaves behind a wife and young child. But even in the midst of the heart break life some how goes on. We celebrated birthdays and new life. Oh, how delicate and lovely the gift of life is. Many days we so easily take it for granted, but even more importantly is the life after death that will be either more lovely than we could ever imagine or more horrifying than conceivable. But with that reality comes an assurance of a beautiful eternal life in Christ our savior.

Its late and I'm sick and I should rest so I can be healthy before my 48 hours of traveling. So I'll be brief and hold some stories for my return. So don't forget to ask me!

But I guess one thing I'd like to share about my time here in the little corner of Romania that I've been living life in is this. Prayer is a powerful weapon. I pray that each of you use it wisely, abundantly and with faith. God is faithful to us. But we also have to be faithful to him and have faith in him. He tells us to "Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you" [Matthew 7.7] and in Philippians 4.6 we are told "Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God". These are reassurances that God wants us to seek him for our needs, even our smallest worries. He wants us to have faith in him that he will come through for our needs. 


I've been working with a family of believers who take prayer seriously and are grounded in the knowledge that God works when they pray. I've seen very clearly the work that is done when we ask. Its been a blessing, its been eye opening and it is good. Because he is good. 


Speaking of prayer. I want to ask for your prayers right now.
1. Travel [I will begin my journey home late wednesday night and arrive home on friday afternoon] So pray that everything goes smoothly and for safety. (7 hours of it is by car) 
2. Health- pray that I recover from this cold quickly and preferably before I leave :) 
3. The relationships I've made here, that I can continue as best as I can to communicate with them and keep them in my heart and lift them up in prayer. 
4. For the communities I've worked in. That they would continue to make disciples here and grow and multiply.
5. For my reverse culture shock. As I enter back into America and the life that is very different from the past 8 months. Pray that I adjust well and quickly, and that I am able to process what I've learned and maintain a healthy spiritual life in the midst of adjusting back. 


I appreciate it :]


Also, another bit of news. I've begun training for a half marathon [13.1mi]. Its to raise money/awareness/research for Lymphoma and Leukemia. So I'm excited about it! 


I am also extremely excited about the holidays this year. Both Thanksgiving and Christmas!! It'll be a great time to catch up with loved ones and celebrate some truly amazing things!! 


I learned how to make 'Torte' this week [traditional Romanian]. Its like bread but its not baked its pan baked. soooo good. I cant wait to make it for you guys!!




As always. Heres some pictures from my life. 

Fall in Olanesti!!!

Simina and I in Olanesti

Simina, Symona and I at a birthday party for Georgiana

Making the Torte

Before its put into the pan and then the stack of finished Torte

Beautiful Things [love,grace,laughter,friendship,community,etc]

I'm not sure if its the realization that I will be home in less than a month or that I have been gone for over 200 days but I've been more aware of the [abundant] blessings in my life. But I think more than the proximity of my returning home its the lessons God has been teaching me, knowing more closely the lives of those in this village, speaking to my friends and family, and resting in the knowledge that I am saved by a God who wants to love me and know me more. 


Maybe its being away from the overstimulated American culture that I have in a sense become more aware of the simple pleasures in life. A walk with friends, a hug from a child, enjoying a coffee with a neighbor, reading a book, eating fresh food [no preservatives], hearing a friends voice from home on the phone, worshiping with brothers and sisters in Christ, cracking and eating fresh walnuts, sleep. This being said, I want to take a few of these back with me when I return home, I want to keep a piece of what my life has been like in my wanderings. I guess what I am trying to say is life is good because God has been faithful and plentiful with his blessings. I've been reading in Genesis and in the Gospels. At the creation God took enjoyment in what he created [mountains, flowers, oceans, animals, the moon and sun, etc], and when he formed man and woman it was from his image [man: his power, strength, sense of adventure, etc./woman: his love, gentleness, mercy, and beauty]. These are characteristics of him and he bestowed them upon us and more. Jesus took enjoyment in his life and with his disciples. He ate and drank with his friends, spent time with people, walked and talked with his close friends [disciples], and he too laughed and cried. 


Our God is good. 


I guess I am saying all this because I am thankful. For too many things to list here. But I am thankful for the love and faithfulness of God, the food and shelter he provides for me, the friends and family he has given me, laughter, technology, support from you all {its so nice to get emails and comments hearing from you}, my wealth (and at the same time I'm not sure I should be thankful for my wealth, rather I should be thankful that I can use it correctly and actually do so)  [although you may be thinking we aren't wealthy.. trust me we are extremely wealthy by the standards of most outside the U.S], Jesus' sacrifice on the cross, and so much more.


P.S. I wanted to share some pictures of the little people I spend most of my day with. They are pretty great [even though sometimes they are wild and drive me nuts]. I've started teaching them English!! I feel like a real teacher.. scary thought (mom, grandpa, aunt pam, etc.. dont get too excited)

Building a town

This is what Madalin does when I tell him to smile

Diana eating some of the fall fruits salad they made

Mouth full of fruit for Teo

Finished product

We learned about the fall fruits last week so on friday we made fruit salad!! Pears, apples, walnuts, grapes and some  fruit I've never had.. like a mix between apple and pear...but tart..

Marian chopping fruit

Love this!

Big smiles from Victor

Friends and Fall

I just wanted to share a few pictures of some of my friends here in Romania!! And later there are some pictures of the kids in the kindergarten!! We made noodle necklaces!! They made a mess painting them but it was good for them to practice motor skills like painting, and then threading the noodles!!

Me with Madalina and Simina [it was Madalina's birthday]

Maurios and Simina [the couple I live with]

me and the birthday girl

Beautiful Timea, with her aunt Simona and mother Madalina

she loves me and the camera

cuute

So those are the people I hang out with the most!! We had a fun day in the park and we meet regularly for coffee, we worship together at church, have bible studies and prayer together, I even get to exercise with Simina and Madalina when they are available!! 

Cute Mimi!!!

The boys working hard!!

Simina helping Maria with the necklace

Diana and I showing off our goods
 {Diana always wants to play with me and tries so hard to communicate with me!!}

I want to ask for your prayers for the rest of my time here. Pray for the kindergarten, keep the kids healthy (lots of runny noses last week because it is getting very cool here), for Simina and I to teach them well and have energy with the kids. 

For me as I spend my last month and a half here, that I don't start to shut down and only focus on getting home, but that i really invest the rest of my time here and continue to bless whenever possible.

   Along with that- spiritual and mental strength to get through this busy time, the weeks are full of events and people are asking us for things. Help me to take time to rest and spend in prayer and worship to feed my growth. 

And for good communication all around. Here in Romania and back at home.

Love you guys and miss you. Thanks for sharing in this with me =)

Blessing and Being Blessed

The community and culture I am living in right now is very unique. The culture is rich and full of giving, loving, laughter and life but fiscally the people are very poor. The village I live in is small and most of the families live off of their land [milk from cows, eggs, vegetables from their garden, etc] although some have jobs in the city very few have cars or a way into the city. Some make money by doing odd jobs like cutting wood for the winter, etc. Even in those living in the city the income is minimal.

Yet despite this lack of financial wealth, I see the life here as rich and full. At least in the church community, but even outside the church fence the people are generous and giving. Neighbors bring grapes, fresh bread, tomatoes, eggs, milk and other prepared dishes for us, friends invite us in and share their coffee and goodies.

This weekend I was able to see this givingness in full. [yes I made up the word givingness] The Romanians celebrate Thanksgiving, they have somehow adapted our holiday into a version of their own. Their thanksgiving may be 2 months earlier than ours and not of course for the same reason, it still involves food and being thankful. Although the tradition is drastically different. The church brings in food, but not to stuff themselves to the point of pain {like so many Americans, often including myself, do} but they place it on a table and then the church distributes the flour, oil, sugar, vegetables, pasta, etc to the needy and the less fortunate. When I saw this, it was like a slap in the face. Look at this table and tell me who has the better Thanksgiving.

[and this table was double in size and I'm pretty sure there was stuff stacked behind it]

So. In saying all this, I am not trying to guilt trip anyone, or make us feel bad. I am simply laying down the facts. It is just amazing to see people who make less money, live in smaller houses, etc are giving to those who a less fortunate. But you know what, its not even about the money. Because even for Americans times are rough. Its about sharing the blessings that we have been given from our Lord. Instead of taking, spending, and consuming we need to be giving, sharing, and loving. But at the same time thanking God for blessing us immensely with life, shelter, food and most of all a saviour.

____________________________________________________________

On a lighter but similar note

I just want to preface this. God is amazing. Enough said.
But expanding on that let me just say how blessed I am by Him and through most of you. The support for this trip has been a blessing. For starters I have had plenty to make my budget and live off of for all these months. God provides and he is still providing. Canoe Creek Christian Church gave a special gift before I left and I have saved most of it. Now I am able to bless this community because of them.

The church that I am most involved in, is also my place of residence and work. There is a kindergarten [like Pre-K, see post below] that the church provides for the community. It is independently funded but the church for this village. The property that the church sits on is a nice size and is fenced in. The fence was never properly painted or sealed so over the years rain and snow has taken its toll. So I have used a portion of the money to help buy paint and supplies for painting the fence and repairing the parts that needed it, as well as some other odds and ends to help fix up the property. We collected an offering also to go towards this. Then the church family came out to repair and help paint!! Its been quite eventful around here this last week. We've had lost of mouths to cook for and plenty coffee to serve to those helping! Here are some pictures of the painters!!

Maria aka Machika smiling for the camera

Mom and son painting together

Madalina painting like a pro

You can see the difference in the paint quality
here in the picture with Simona's pretty smile!

Thats me!!

First day of school!!

So I just wanted to share a picture of my first day in the kindergarten!! It went well, we met the parents on Monday and had coffee with them while the kids played and then on Tuesday it really started!! Some of the kids are slow to adjust but I think it'll be a great group!! They are slightly nervous about me, mostly because I dont speak Romanian!! But I'm trying to learn!!

Here are some pictures of the kids!! They are working on puzzle type activities!!

Appreciation of Harvest

So tonight I was visiting a family from the church in the village I live in, Sendreni, and they were in the middle of shucking corn for animal feed from the corn stocks. So Simina and I (Simina is the woman I live with and work with), started to help them! The piles were huge!! We worked and worked pulling the ears from the stocks and  stacking the empty stocks. I probably only worked for 30 minutes because it was getting dark and goodness it was a lot of work!! They do all this by hand!! Crazy!! In return they gave us a beautiful pumpkin!! I'm so excited to carve it, bake the seeds and make pumpkin bread, cookies and other pumpkiny things from it!!! I love fall and I am glad I get to experience it in this village!! Needless to say I am grateful for the generosity and hard work of those who harvest their crops. I'm also in appreciation of the provision God gives us. All the varieties of fruit and vegetables that he provides us with. It really is amazing. I have been reading in Genesis lately and I read the creation story and this just puts it into perspective even more. I am so grateful we have a loving God who provides for us. He is the almighty.

[ps I will post pictures of my pumpkin creations]

Culture/Couture/Cover

So I've been warned from classes, conferences, books, organizations, you name it about cultural differences on the missionfield, denominational differences in other countries, etc. But its always an adjustment!

The churches that I'm serving with in Romania are Pentecostal. The team of people I'm working with who are affiliates of Kontaktmission have planted 5 churches in neighboring villages and there is a kindergarten in  Șendreni, the village I am living in.  The team are all Romanian, and consists of 3 couples and a single woman. The churches are ran differently here [as in most countries outside of the states]. There isnt a set paid pastor, instead the leaders take turns teaching. There is however a head pastor..  in the translation they call him bishop, but i think its just pastor/minister.

It had been interesting these last few weeks as I worship with these churches. I've observed and of course participated. Below are some interesting differneces from the churches most of us are familiar with: Because of the conservativeness of the villages the women always wear skirts to their knees or below. They also cover their heads, with a scarf or simialr material, becuase of a passage in the Bible. They spend more time in prayer and worship than actual teaching (its about 1/4 teaching and 3/4 prayer and worship). They have meetings on the week nights just for prayer and worship, in Sendreni alone they meet twice: tuesday for about 1.5 hours and then on friday for 3. Prayer is a very big part of their worship. Also they pray primarily on their knees. The majority of the scripture they read from and use in their teaching is from Psalms and Proverbs.

[I rock Vera Bradley for my head covering]

Of course I can't understand the majority of what they are saying [unless someone is translating], although I must say my Romanian is coming along quite nicely, so there is no way for me to know what they are teaching or how they teach it. But it is still interesting to note the differences, of course there are the other characteristicly pentacostal traditions like praying in a very loud voice, repititon, etc. I encountered such when I was serving in Costa Rica.  They also believe very strongly in the work of the Spirit, prayers of healing and such.

My main role in the next two months will be working with the kindergarten and I hope to act as a support to the team here, helping them when they make house visits and meet with people for prayer, things they need help with for meetings, etc. And of course living in community with them and the village to find out what life is like here.
School starts on the 12th and we have been preparing for this. Cleaning the rooms and gathering paperwork that needs to be completed. As well as visiting the homes of the children who will be attending.
For the past few weeks I've also had time to play with the kids and hang out with the youth. Two girls came to visit me one day when I was living in the other village and we went for a walk and then played cards outside. They barely spoke any English, but we still had a really good time!!

Rebecca and Magda playing cards with me

Playing outside

This is the family that helped me adjust
[lived with them while the water was out at my place]
Liviu- is one of the team members of Kontaktmission

Being silly

Check out this sunflower!! One of the main crops in this region
{and yes we ate those seeds}

Daily occurrence- they put their cows out in the pastures for the day
and then bring them home each night 

Remote Romania

Well. Saturday I landed in Bucharest, Romania at 5:30 and I had a 7 hour car ride to a little town outside of Isai, (pronounce yash) called Cotu Morii. There I was greeted by Livia and Gabi, two girls from the church to help me settle in. I was tired.. so there wasnt much settling :)

Then we woke up for church. The services are a little different here in the small villages then in America. The service was about 3.5 hours.. the men and women sat on separate sides of the church. Of course I didn't understand any of it! But then we had a nice relaxing afternoon.

On Monday morning we left for camp in a really nice mountainous area. It was about a 3 hour drive from where I'm staying. The first day everyone kind of looked at me like I had 3 heads, but then by Tuesday some of the youth who had some English started to talk! It was nice!! They warmed up to me and we played games. I taught them how to play Spoons. Now if you know how Spoons go.. it gets a little violent and crazy... and they were no different!! Jumping across tables and grabbing from each  other.. haha. I was able to meet the team of workers here in Romania and start to get to know the people I will work with. I also learned a little bit more about what I will be doing here and about some of the ministries that they do here.

I will update again soon with pictures!! I don't have internet where I am staying but I have access nearby!! Thanks for your prayers!!!
Rache

Packing, Saying Bye, and Flying to a New Place Once Again

Its hard to believe my two months here in Portugal is over. It seems like I just arrived a few days ago but then when I think about all I've done and the experiences I've had it seems crazy that I have only been here for two months. I guess that's the beauty life.

I've once again made close friendships with the people I've met here, worked with and just lived life with. Once again I am finding it hard to say good bye. This past Sunday was my last at church because I fly out for Romania on Saturday morning, and I got teary eyed as I said goodbye to my friends and the kids I worked with over the summer. Even though I was here to serve them, they've imprinted themselves on me and made an impact. That is beautiful to me.

Youth from church+sponsors

I've had a great summer. I've laughed, lived, swam, ran, played, listened, learned, hugged, kissed, ate, drank, smiled, cried, made, rested, talked, read, watched and so much more. I've experienced culture, I've also experienced culture stress. I learned from it and kept moving. I've missed my family, my friends, my home, my comforts and my boyfriend. I've been out of the country for over 130 days.  That is over 1/3 of a year. I've passed the halfway point and its been hard at times. But the good has far outweighed the rough times. When Jesus commanded us to go out and make disciples of all nations in Matthew 28:18-20 he didn't say it would be easy. It may not be easy to wake up every day and know that I am 4,000 miles from home, but I've been commanded by my Saviour to reach all nations and if that means me being where I am right now then I will rest in Him and he will provide my strength. That is the wonderful part about our Lord, if we are faithful he is faithful and he is always there loving us and cheering us on even when we don't notice.

So I am finishing out my last week in Portugal. I spent Friday night with the youth at the church, we had a lock in. Then Saturday I went to Belem with my host family, in Belem there is a monument to the Portuguese discoveries! They discovered many places, and some that were very far away!! I also got to try some Pasteis de Belem- which are a traditional pastry from the area.. very good and creamy!

And of course the dreaded packing began this week as well. My least favorite part of this trip!!

Here are some picture from my weekend!! Keep me in your prayers as I travel on Saturday, my flight leaves at 6:55am.. so that is around 2am your time.. So say a quick prayer before bed. When I arrive in Romania I will pretty much be thrown right into action. There is a youth camp they want me involved in that first week so I should get into the culture very quickly. Pray that I adjust quickly and I fit into the team that I will be working with. The workers there are all Romanians so pray that we have clear communication and that I can connect with them!

Gil and I

Monument of Discoveries

Me in front of the monument

Monastery in Belem

Amphitheater in Merida, Spain

Add caption

In front of the Theater