Good morning from Romania!
I’ve been meaning to blog to you all and let you know what’s going on here in Craiova. Not only that, but my personal blog doesn’t seem to work overseas. So if you didn’t ask to be apart of this journey, I apologize but consider it a free gift. 🙂
I don’t know how else to explain my time here so far except this: I feel like I forgot how to run and the Lord has shown me again. I feel alive. I’m doing what I’m supposed to be doing. I’m running, not wondering, straight towards the goal: expanding the Gospel through love and hope.
As I’m writing this from a coffeeshop in Romania, I’m thinking about how much the Lord is moving here in this city.
Before I share what I’m learning during this time, let me share what we’ve been doing in the short full 4 l days we’ve been here.
First of all, my host goes by the name of Raul. He and his wife, Ana have three children and he is the pastor of a church called Hope Church Romania. I have such a soft spot in my heart for this family because they are a pastors family as well.
Raul is the most ambitious person I’ve ever met. He constantly thinks of a vision and it is our job, along with his team, to carry it out. Everything Raul touches turns to gold. The Lord is really prospering everything he is doing because it’s a very humble man with a yes in his spirit.
In the past couple days, we have been working with Raul’s assistant, Christina (she did the World Race back in 2017.)
The three things Hope Church Romania does for the Ukrainian refugees:
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Convoy trips to the Ukrainian border
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House short term Refugees (they stay in the ‘mission house’ with us.)
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House long term refugees (Raul has 4 houses that the long term refugees stay in and he is working on renting another house.)
Every day we go to the long term houses to check with the Ukrainians and see if they need anything. Usually we run and get them water, bread, and toilet paper. We are constantly using google translate to communicate with them.
On Saturday, Brit and I went to a food bank and stocked up vans for a trip to the border and for some of the people here. We met a man named Tony at the food bank. He kept pretending he didn’t know English when he spoke to us but the smile on his face told us otherwise.
We also went to Metro (like Costco) and got 4 HUGE cartfulls of oatmeal, cornmeal, flour, sugar, sunflower oil, and toilet paper to take to the Ukraines on the border and in Ukraine.
On Sunday, we had a church service and worshiped with the Romanians in their own language. I said this before but love and worship have no language. And these people love their God.
Later that day, we hosted a pizza party for the Ukrainians. It was absolutely beautiful because Raul gave a space for them to express their pain and sorrow. I heard young women, teenagers, mothers, and grandmas cry out in sobs due to what they saw before they left. I heard a 16 year old girl speak with so much passion about how she saw bombs explode her home town.
During this time, my friend Brit and I met a elderly 90 year old woman named Love. She was born in 1933 and experienced World War 2 as well as this current war. She kept saying over and over again “God bless you. Thank you thank you thank you for hearing us. Thank you for loving us. We love you. God is good to us because we met you.”
Her advice for me: “It’s good to get married to a rich man because you will live well.” I told her “I will pray for that.” Ha.
After the pizza party, we did inventory of all the food we got from the food bank. From there, we went to a mall to get even more food for the convoy to the border this week.
Raul would say “get five boxes of sugar” and the run to something else and it was so fun trying to keep up with him.
We started the day at 9am and we ended the day at 10:45pm making sandwiches for the Ukrainians that were leaving for Spain in the morning. I was tired. But man, so much joy filled my heart. I seemed to understand the meaning of Proverbs 31 where Solomon says “ SHe sets about her work vigorously; her arms are strong for her tasks. She sees that her trading is profitable, and her lamp does not go out at night.” (Proverbs 31:17-18.)
Finally, today at 6am, some team members are driving the ‘short term’ refugees to Budapest, Hungary and then they will take a train to Spain. Majority of these people are being sent to family members they know.
As for what I’m learning… I’ll make this short and sweet.
3 years ago, I was in Romania. Yet, I was full of sorrow because my brother had just been injured in combat and I just returned to the field, worried for the future.
3 years later, the Lord is redeeming Romania for me. I’m finding beauty in everything. For the first time in a while, I see the goodness of God.
If you could be praying as this saturday will be exactly 3 years since my family’s life was changed forever.
Prayer requests:
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To continue to be the hands and feet of Jesus to a people that are hurting so deeply.
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Boldness and safety (especially for these convoys to the border.)
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To build lifelong relationships while we are here
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For Raul to find time to Sabbath and relax even though there is so much to do.
Thank you all for your prayers.
Psalm 51 has been on my heart this week.
“Let me hear joy and gladness; let the bones you have crushed rejoice.” (Verse 8)
“My sacrifice, O God, is a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart you, God, will not despise.” (Verse 17)
Hi it’s me. Crying at 6:05 am sitting in the parking lot at work. I’m so glad I started my day reading this. Emjay I am so proud to be your friend! What a joy and a blessing to hear what the Lord is doing not only through you and Brit, but in your heart too. I’m so honored to have walked through the Race with you and our previous season in Romania, and to still be around to cheer you on from the sidelines as the Lord redeems so much hurt and hard feelings. I simply could not love you more.
Tell Babushka I said hi and thanks for the advice too.
Love always,
Mal
Hi it’s also me. Wow I’m so proud of you and your heart for the Lord! You’re following His call and it’s so inspiring to see and hear about. GET IT SIS
It’s the best thing ever to be doing exactly what we’re built for. God made and equipped us for doing good works and that’s precisely what you’re in the midst of. I’m very proud of you and will be praying for all the things going on there, in and through you. Much love to you!!
Wooo
LOVE YOU EMJAY!
-d, a, and baby j