This site contains editorials translated into English. Some of the editorials are quite impassioned and beautifully written.

http://globalvoicesonline.org/2012/01/25/romania-i-the-citizen/

And this site includes footage from the Bucharest protests.

Romanian Revolution 2012

The official at the immigration office indicated that we were granted one-year visas rather than the three-year visas because our rental contract is only for one year. If we owned a home or had signed a five-year rental agreement, we would have been granted a longer visa. Please pray for us as we continue to serve, trust, and learn how to serve the Lord here in Romania. We are happy to be here legally now.

Well, at least four of us our happy to be here. We’re not quite sure what to make of Athan’s expression. It just seems to be begging a laugh.  Caption suggestions are welcome.

Michelle: So do you really like living in Romania?

Me: Yes, we really do. We love the Romanian people and all their smiles. We love the work we do at the church, and your country and your city are so beautiful. We love living here.

Michelle: I do not understand. Yes, it is beautiful, but America is better and more beautiful. I know other missionaries. I ask them why they here, and they say, “Because in America we are nobody. Here we are stars.”

Now perhaps these other missionaries (not anyone we know) actually said this. I don’t know. I think it’s a bit more likely that something they said was a bit discombobulated by the language barrier. But regardless of whether they said it or not. The idea of self-aggrandizement as a motive for ministry is what Michelle has taken away from her relationship with them.

Oh, may this never be the impression we pass on to the Romanians or to people anywhere. And may this never be a secret motive of ours.

1. Please pray with us that that the Lord will make us into His servant-leaders.
2. And even more please pray that He will continually refine us internally making us heart-bondslaves  of Christ.
3. Pray that when we are around others that they see not us, but what Christ is doing in and through us. May our lives so radiate Christ that we are lost in His brilliance.
4. Pray that we can be perceptive of cultural differences and wise with our words and actions so not to give impressions we never intend.
5. Pray for my (Laurel’s) relationship with Michelle. I see her once a week for several hours. I do not know yet exactly what she believes, but I do know that she is very burdened for her teenage daughters who are making choices that she sees as morally dangerous.I was able to give her some Romanian Bible studies to look at and suggested she do them with her daughter. She seemed very grateful. Please pray for much wisdom and help in communicating. We communicate with her speaking broken English and my speaking mostly English but trying very hard to use the Romanian I do know.

As always this is not her actual name. We change names and minor details to obey European privacy laws.

Joan’s story began a few years ago when Joan’s mother began regularly attending church services. She came faithfully and brought her children, but it didn’t take long for her ulterior motives to surface, and when she discovered that although the church does it’s best to help with physical needs, it does that by helping its members secure work not by perpetually providing handouts. When she realized that she wasn’t going to get the regular handouts she was hoping for, she stopped attending.

In the mean time, however, Joan had gone to a summer Christian camp and had embraced the gospel as her own. Even though her mother had stopped coming to church, she allowed Joan to continue to attend regularly. And Joan did. She came to everything and was especially faithful to attend the youth discipleship time (designed to teach older children and teens how to study the Bible for themselves). Recently at one of the meetings she expressed a desire to study the bible more and to share the gospel more and wistfully wondered out loud how much more time she’d have for such eternal activities if she just didn’t have to go to school and do her homework!

Over the last month, Joan has not been able to come. At first her mother would sporadically and seemingly on a whim forbid her, but recently her mother has grown increasingly antagonistic, and Joan hasn’t been able to come at all. Our formerly perpetually happy Joan has grown increasingly distressed and confused.

Please pray for Joan.

• Pray that she will experience an unusual peace and joy, knowing that this time of testing is limited and that the kingdom of heaven is hers. Matthew 5:10  “Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.”

• Pray that she will be supernaturally obedient and respectful to her mother that her mother might be won by her conduct. Ephesians 6:1 Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right. And by principal 1 Pet. 3:1-2  Likewise, wives, be subject to your own husbands, so that even if some do not obey the word, they may be won without a word by the conduct of their wives, when they see your respectful and pure conduct.

• Pray that she will rest in the sufficient grace of Jesus and experientially learn 2 Corinthians 12:9-10. “‘But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.’ Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me. For the sake of Christ, then, I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and calamities. For when I am weak, then I am strong.”

• Pray that Joan would know in a new way how loved and chosen she is of God.     John 15:18-20 “If the world hates you, know that it has hated me before it hated you. If you were of the world, the world would love you as its own; but because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, therefore the world hates you. Remember the word that I said to you: ‘A servant is not greater than his master.’ If they persecuted me, they will also persecute you.”

• Pray that the other members of our church and especially the other children will be encouraged and challenged by Joan’s faithful testimony.  1 Thessalonians 3:7    “for this reason, brothers, in all our distress and affliction we have been comforted about you through your faith.”

• Pray with us Paul’s prayer as we pray it for Joan, “as we pray most earnestly night and day that we may see you face to face and supply what is lacking in your faith? 1 Thessalonians 3:10 and pray that we are faithful in our praying for her.

*Because of European privacy laws, we have changed names and small details in this story.

Promised help
But as all of this had been hitting us and beating us down externally, the Comforter was and continues to patiently work and faithfully minister to us internally.  Scripture passages have been flooding our minds.

Jeremiah 12:5 —”If you have raced with men on foot, and they have wearied you, how will you compete with horses? — really put into perspective our light trials. Sure, the week had been exhausting and perhaps we hadn’t been treated in the most ethical way, but Christians through the ages and all over the world have endured and are enduring much, much worse for Jesus’ sake. The Holy Spirit has and is enabling them to complete with horses. We are merely in the foot race and yes, we are wearied, but He is there to help us and to grow us until we are strong enough to contend with the chariots. May that day come.

Matthew 9:37-38 —”Then he said to his disciples, ‘The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few; therefore pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest’”—reminded us that there’s a reason Jesus called his servants laborers. There’s a whole lot of exhausting and rather thankless work that must be done, and there truly aren’t enough people doing it. But the labor is worth the sweat and the tears. The harvest is a promise!

Palms 126:5 – 6 —”Those who sow in tears shall reap with shouts of joy! He who goes out weeping, bearing the seed for sowing, shall come home with shouts of joy, bringing his sheaves with him.” There have been tears. And there will be many more, but the contrast of the memory of those tears will only intensify the euphoria of those certain shouts of joy when we parade home with our golden and eternal sheaves.

Intercession of the Saints
So at our lowest point so far the Holy Spirit has buoyed our spirits and strengthened our resolve. He has also used fellow Christians to encourage and reinvigorate us. Two families wrote this week to tell us that we are regularly in their prayers. They try to pray for us daily. The knowledge of their labor on our behalf has been like finding an oasis in the middle of the desert. We often feel so alone here. But we are not alone. The Comforter is with us and the prayers of the saints are strengthening us carrying us forward when our human strength fails us. Praise the Lord with us.  And please keep praying. We are counting on you.

As I wait I can’t help but think of the demoniac of the Gerasenes in Mark 5. This man like Mr. F was held prisoner by something much greater than himself. And like Mr. F, no one could keep him from cutting himself. No one knew what to do with the demonic of the Gerasenes, and we don’t know how to help our Mr. F. But we do know that the same person who helped the demoniac can help Mr. F. Our prayer is that Mr. F. will do what the demoniac did and that is run to Jesus and fall down before him. Please pray with us that Mr. F like the demoniac will be a trophy of Jesus’ grace and that he will be able to proclaim in Lugoj how much Jesus has done for him and that the people of Lugoj will marvel just as those of the Decapolis did.

After our introductory meeting with her this week, we picked up some items somewhere else in Timișoara before stopping in the town’s center for lunch. The town center is the birthplace of the Romania’s revolution. This building still bears the scars of bullets fired during the outbreak of violence. Ironically, there is a McDonalds located on the ground floor today.

Back in Lugoj, we have found Athan a preschool to interact with Romanian kids. He will be attending two days a week. The school teaches the kids in German and in Romanian. We are also glad that the teachers speak English very well, so the language introduction will not be a complete shock to Athan.

We’re doing well and getting as much accomplished as can be expected in the slower more laid back world of Romania. Nothing happens fast here. For example getting our paperwork notarized for our visas took three trips to the same office and half of the day. The slower pace matches our jet lagged brains quite well, so it hasn’t been too much of a frustration, just a lot of walking around down town, which we and our children have enjoyed.

The Kids

Vivian is adjusting very well. She’s enjoying soaking up all of the attention her blond curly hair brings her. She’s even started to great people in Romanian and often waves at everyone we pass.  Athan’s had a bit harder time adjusting, but he seems to be doing better than he was at first. As you pray for us, please remember our two tiny ones. Your prayers are helping!

Although they have their clingy nervous moments, they’ve also been having a grand time most of the time. They have chickens to visit next door. At the Howerton’s home where we are temporarily staying, they have a dog and two cats, a trampoline, and a swing set.  And in town within walking distance they have multiple parks, bridges, and waterfalls to play at and see. They also get very excited to see the occasional horse and cart rumble by. And as in America, nothing makes their day like seeing a bus or an emergency vehicle—sirens wailing—speed by.

Learning Lugoj
Joshua and I are learning the layout of Lugoj—locating groceries stores, the post office, the library etc. Today we got the first step on our visas done, and Pastor Howerton showed us where the electronic stores were, and I bought a hairdryer and priced appliances. We also learned where the open market is, and discovered a children’s shop.

It’s very hot (mid 90′s) with no air conditioning. Our legs have been operating as our primary vehicle, so while the weather is cheerfully sunny, we are very much looking forward to the relief fall weather will bring to mid-day errands.

I think that we will do some more work on Visas tomorrow and also try to set up language lessons. Baron and Joshua are also trying to nail down the weekly schedule for the church and are organizing groups of church members to share the cleaning of the church, the children’s Sunday school, the yard work etc.

We’ve currently seen three apartments and favor one. We’re hoping to see a few more before we decide. We can’t see any more until this coming Thursday when Lugoj’s weekly paper is published.

Prayer Requests

As always we are so grateful for your prayers. I’ll try to get some specific prayers up here soon. In the mean time, please pray

• for the people of Bereea to adjust to Joshua’s leadership smoothly
• for our kids to adjust, sleep, and eat
• for the government to grant us five year visas
• for the Lord to lead us to the right home.

Thank you.