
We awoke around 8AM, still tired, but so glad to be here at last. Last night, we heard a choir of dogs who serenaded us right outside the window. They had a great time entertaining us with their howls! This morning, Peter and Keith drove us in two vans to visit the Romanian Evangelical Church at Remedea. When we arrived, there were about 20 people in the church singing Christian hymns. The sound was so beautiful on this lovely Sunday morning. How wonderful to hear the same songs we sing in America from this small village church!
We went into the church and sat amongst the members. Peter told us this was a small church and was fairly new; it is an offshoot of the local Hungarian church, which is bigger. Thus the believers need encouragement, which is why he brought us here. Though we did not notice at first, the men were on the left side and the women sat on the right. Peter talked to the church and told them we came from America to bring greetings to the Romanian people and to work in the mission this week. Mike introduced the team and brought greetings from Istrouma Baptist and Westminster Presbyterian in Baton Rouge.
Our team sang 3 songs, Shout to the Lord, In the Garden, and Amazing Grace; then Sue gave a wonderful testimony about how she as a wife and then widow had to call on God to get her through many rough times, especially during and after her husband died of cancer. Next, we sang I’ll Fly Away and Jesus Loves me. The congregation sang with us on the last song. When they sang many hymns from their hymnal, we sang along with them. The last song we sang was How Great Thou Art. The songs we sang to the church and those they sang to us were all so wonderful. My dream of bringing a team to Romania had finally come true. God blessed us all in the service.
Peter preached in Romanian and spoke to the team as well about the Good Samaritan. While he was encouraging the Romanian brothers and sisters in Christ, he was encouraging us as well. I know that God does have a plan for this seed being planted in the hearts of our team members; it seems that what we are doing is so small compared to what we can really do as Christian believers to support Peter and Ana and REMM. We are all so wealthy compared to these people; America is indeed rich in possessions, in education, in freedoms, in opportunity.
Buna Mary has been cooking wonderful meals for us. Today we had omelets for breakfast; lunch was a wonderful chicken noodle soup and fried chicken and mashed potatoes; supper was delicious cabbage rolls and bread.
We met with Peter and Ana to go over the week’s activities. We will be very busy. We have 2 days of medical clinics, 3 days of VBS activities, several agape runs planned, and projects for Mike and those who want to do physical work.
At 4:30 we headed to a small Romanian village on the outside of town, called Tarcaita. It is up in the edge of the mountains. There we attended a church service at the local evangelical church. We sang songs for the congregation, then Sue, Karen, and Keith gave a short testimony to the members. I told them how I had seen a TV special in 1990 in America on the hardships of the Romanian people and the many abandoned babies after the fall of Communism. I wanted to go to Romania, but could not, as I had a family and work obligations. These many years, I wanted to go, but my opportunity did not come until 2005, when we made a trip with Sammy Tippit Ministries for teaching Romanian pastors in Oradea. On that trip, we met Peter and Ana and visited House of Josef Orphanage. We determined at that time to come back to Romania with a mission team. God knows the desires of our hearts, and he wants us to have them, but sometimes we must wait upon the Lord for what we ask. Sometimes our prayers are answered with No, sometimes, Yes, and sometimes Wait. It is now 2007 and here we are worshiping with a Romanian Christian church and working with Ana and Peter in their ministry. I have been taught to “Wait upon the Lord” for my prayers to be answered.