Blogs from Simleu Silvaniei, Salaj, Transilvania, Romania, Europe

Time has passed again without me even knowing. Two more days have come and gone before I had a chance to tell you everything that is going on here in Romania. Yesterday (Tuesday) we visited the village of Nushfalau and set up the clinic in their church there. They have a two-story church and we were able to set up the clinic upstairs and the VBS/waiting room down stairs. The clinic saw about 200 people and Tom was able to share the gospel with those that were waiting upstairs. We had VBS downstairs and were able to even share the Bible stories with the adults that were waiting. It was a long day but we were able to do a lot of good. Today (Wednesday) the medical clinic went to the village of Zauan. This time ... read more

Today started out with breakfast as usual (in Romania I mean). We were greeted with a brief thunderstorm this morning, but it soon cleared off for another beautiful day. Then the drama team (teens) met us at Tony’s house for the first time since we got here. We loaded two busses and Tony’s car and started our hour and a half ride to Camp Joy. We twisted and turned through the mountains and ended up on the side of a hill where several buildings stood. We were happy to see that the construction team was hard at work. We got to see the camp and meet other members of the Romania team as well as others who were joining them to work this summer. They were hard at work building 1 of the 3 new bunkhouses. ... read more

Wednesday, January 5, 2005 Ten pairs of hopeful eyes waited quietly in the remarkably pleasant coolness (for mid-winter) of the Romanian city. Each one of them so full of joy, though we each knew that behind that joy lay a unique painful story. They were the children of the orphanage that we had heard so much about- the House of Hope. Today, the fifth of January (or Ianuarie, as the Romanians would have it) of 2005, the team traveled to Oradea for a life-changing experience, and Marios and Alina came with us. From a trip to the piata (marketplace) in that town, a brand new way of looking at a McDonald’s meal, and a heart-wrenching tale of tiny tots, we will never be quite the same. Besides doing a bit more souvenir shopping (or fake name-brand ... read more

Monday January 3, 2005 Hello All! Well if today is any indication of the week to come I can’t wait to see what the Lord is going to do in us and through us over the next few days. Our day began with a delicious breakfast of omelets, cereal, toast and juice prepared for us by the wonderful Alina. Since our fearless leaders were away for the morning we were on our own for our devotional discussion time, and may I say (not as a result of the absence of any of our members) that it was one of the best sharing times yet. There is nothing like discussing the strengths and struggles of one’s Christian walk and learning that we are not alone on this journey (but more about that later). We readied quickly and ... read more

Jan 1 2005! Buna ( Hello ) from Romania. Today was a slow start as we recovered from a lack of sleep and an abundance of fireworks. Really, this one firework shot over our heads, missing by inches, bounced off the wall and exploded on the front porch. It was the best night of my life! We started around 11:30 and ate a late breakfast. The vans showed up at 12 as we went to visit another Gypsy village. The village of Nusfaleu has one of the more established Gypsy churches and a large congregation. The cold drizzle started early and stayed the whole day. But nobody was discouraged; in fact they hardly seemed to notice. The church had gathered all of the families in the village so we had a very large group. How large? ... read more