It has been a few days of wonderful ministry opportunities here in Romania. On Friday, we drove to Remeti which is about 2 hours from where we are in Oradea. We were able to visit a home for individuals with special needs. These adults have no one to care for them. The staff was so kind and caring for each one. Although our time with them was short, it was very impactful. Our group sang many English songs similar to children’s Bible school or Sunday school songs with motions and the residents just loved it! It was fun to watch the kids on our team enjoy serving in this way with puppets and hand motions.
Friday evening our team was able to take part in the youth service at the church we have partnered with here in Oradea. It was a wonderful time of worship and some of the pastors on the team were able to share encouragement and challenge to the teens there.
Saturday we had a full day of ministry to the gypsy community in the village of Tinca. It was a special day set aside to minister and encourage the pastors and pastors’ wives of gypsy churches in the area. These sweet servants of the gospel are not received within the greater Christian church and live a very hard life. The day was broken down into three sessions all focusing on the theme of finishing well. The first session allowed pastors, their wives and children to participate in a shorter time of song, and a couple words of encouragement from pastors on our team. The middle session provided a unique opportunity for the men to hold a Q&A while the women were able to hear from some of our ladies; meanwhile the children had a program of their own. During the kids program, the team led songs, played games, and had a short devotion using the wordless bracelet. During the final session the children were able to share a song we worked on during the kids program with the adults. The team was then able to serve a warm meal to everyone in attendance and later hand out gifts of fresh bread and medicine to each family.
After a full day we were able to enjoy dinner as a team and some time to prepare for another big day. We will be participating in and ministering in one church service this morning. In the afternoon our team will split into two groups and minister to two different churches.
Praise God for His provision of these opportunities and the way He has orchestrated all the details thus far.