"It was the best of times, it was the worst of times..." Aoleu!
GOD IS ON THE THRONE! Let me give you a BRIEF rundown of August (and the summer as a whole, I guess): Awana & Youth camps: Cancelled. One YFC camp: Almost cancelled, then done with social distancing. Youth Worker Training camp: Rescheduled twice. Vaca: Not a way, then found a way. Youth meetings: From video to live, back to video. Many of us are done with COVID-19 (and its many versions), done with quarantine, done with the stress and strife, and done with the relational distance this season has brought upon us. We are right there with you! We have adjusted ministry to the new norm, however, and have watched the Lord strengthen us individually and as a community despite the problems. God is still on His throne! The cancellations of various camps didn't stop David from being able to drive to Brătășanca to do a week of day camps for three age groups of youth. Looking back on it, his work with the youth during this week was very much like his first acting-and-ministry job with Saltworks Theatre Company in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. While he was gone, Rebeca was able to have an all-girls meeting where the ladies talked about "Influence" – what's the difference between a good influence and a bad influence, what's (or who's) influencing you, and who are you influencing? Upon return from Brătășanca, the family was able to get away with Rebeca's father, mother, sister, and our four kids for some fun in the sun! Troubles followed, however, as the grandparents both got sick at different times, which led to them getting tested for Corona Virus when we returned. Grandpa got tested once, Grandma twice (she still wasn't feeling well and wanted to be sure!), and they all came back negative. After a rough night with Rebeca playing caretaker, they called the ambulance for Grandma to go to the hospital. Going to the hospital here in Romania can be a scary thing, so the entire family was worried. When the hospital tested her for COVID again, she was positive. Though she's not back to full health yet, and is still in the hospital, she was tested again and it came back negative. Bottom line, we don't know what's going on. 😬 But we're hopeful, because we know God is on the throne! THE POWER OF PRAYER Through the camp cancellations and camp-with-quarantine-cautions and youth meetings and church services, we have continued to pray for this city, its people, the youth group, our work with Youth for Christ Romania, and for so many of you in the United States. By God's mercy, we have seen Him work in humbling ways. The youth here have continued to grow in their relationship with Christ. The youth in these camps have been challenged to turn to the Lord and trust Him, and we've seen many who have been moved to do just that. Continue to pray with us for their salvation! We have prayed for your loved ones through their health concerns, not knowing what's in store, and asked you to pray with us as we faced the same. We were so thankful to receive your kind notes and prayers for Delia, and have greater hope for the first time in over a week that she is pulling through into complete healing. We also want you to know about the prayer for more young men to join up with the youth group, a prayer we offered on a Saturday night and IMMEDIATELY saw God answer that prayer the next morning! We met a young man who attended Sunday morning (and evening), joined us for our youth volleyball trip, and has now attended his very first Video Call Youth Group! This young man is seeking, is reading the Word, and we ask that you pray along with us for his salvation and growth in the grace of God. Prayer, Praise, & People Here's a snapshot of the ministry right now:
I like deep conversations, and even though people don't know me, they tend to open up easily to me. I'm wanting to study psychology so I can learn about these problems, and why people feel the way they do. For example, if we're going to the root of the problem, I would ask who told you these things – where did it start, how did it start, and how did you feel about them – and then help them find a solution to their problem. Thanks so much for sharing about yourself, Enola**, and you can trust that some people from the other side of the world will now be praying for you! Now it's time for our UNITY QUESTIONS, so Enola...
For those who are interested, here's Enola in her own words: Buna! Numele meu este Enola si am 18 ani. Sunt studenta in anul 1 la psihologie, lucru de care * If you want to learn your very first Romanian word, let's set up a video call this next month so I can teach it to you and we can catch up with you! ** This was probably one of the coolest SPOTLIGHT's because I was talking to Enola on the video chat and asked her if I could add some of those thoughts as well. That's why they're in italics in the English version, and not in Romanian below. I hope you enjoyed hearing about Enola as much as we enjoyed our conversation and putting it together for you. I enjoyed it so much I might well make that a regular part of these SPOTLIGHTs. What do you think: Did you feel like the italicized details helped you to understand Enola better? Let me know your thoughts in the comments or a DM! |
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December 2020
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