I’m Home!

I just wanted to let all of you know I’m back in Wilmington. It has been so great spending time with family and friends.   Today, I went to church at Church on the Cape and it was so great to see everyone and to hear the sermon and worship music in English.  It was such a blessing.  I loved all the hugs!

Thank you everyone for your support while I was in Romania.  I will keep you updated on everything, but as it stands now, I’ll be back in Romania around May 15.

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All my bags are packed…I’m ready to go….

Just wanted to ask for your prayers as I leave tomorrow morning. The airport van leaves at 1:30 am Wednesday morning (that’s 6:30 pm Tuesday for those of you on the East Coast). I’ll fly from Budapest to Munich, Munich to Charlotte, Charlotte to Wilmington. The travel time will be 24 hours. Please pray for safe travels, easy airport time, quick boarder and custom crossings, and no lost luggage! Thank you so much. See you soon!

Back to Ci-ghid

Last Thursday, before going to the Ci-ghid orphanage I googled it.  I wouldn’t recommend it.  What I found was a heart breaking video from 1990, soon after the fall of the communist government in Romania.  The film was shot by a German news crew when they found babies and small children in horrible conditions.  Soon after this a German doctor came and made many changes to the orphanage.  German families raised money and cottages where built for the children.  The main building was used as a school.  MBK got involved with Ci-ghid in the early 1990’s and has developed a great relationship with the children and staff there. 

The open space for the kids to play. Here are 2 boys taking a walk with the dogs.

When I was looking on the Internet for information about Ci-ghid, I found nothing nice said about the current program there.  Its clean and the children are well treated.  The staff loves the children.  So, after doing a craft project with about 22 children, I wanted to get a better look around the place.  “Geta” and “Sandi” took me on a tour of the property, something I had never really done.  We walked around the buildings: a small shop for the children, laundry facilities, 3 cottages for the kids, a small house for some of the girls, an activity building with therapy and doctor’s office, and the old big house. 

The house where my tour guides live

During the tour with “Geta” and “Sandi”, “Geta” told me she never lived in the big house, but that “Sandi” had when she was little.  We looked through windows because the building was locked.  This big house was original a manor house owned by a Hungarian Family.  After it was confiscated by the communist, it was used as a hunting/sports lodge and training ground, then a TB sanitarium, then a retirement hospital.  In about 1986, handicapped children were sent there with the elderly patients.  Two years later the elderly patients were removed and it became a full time hospital/orphanage for abandoned handicapped children. 

The main house.

One of my favorite features of Ci-ghid is this tree turn art project that one of the boys has been making for years.  Every time I visit there is more on the tree.  He ties trash to the tree.  I love it!

A very large art project.

I can hardly wait to visit with the children and staff at Ci-ghid again in the summer. In the meantime, please pray for the children and the staff.  Specifically, please pray for the children who have recently showed some interest in Jesus.

The Lost Sheep

Today, as we were driving back into the city, we saw a Shepperd struggling with one sheep.  He was trying to keep the sheep on the narrow road, to keep the sheep from going  into the briers and into the ditch.  The sheep was very uncooperative.  Further up the road, we saw the rest of the sheep with another Shepperd.  The Shepperd left 1013 sheep and went to find 1.   

Then Jesus told them this parable: “Suppose one of you has a hundred sheep and loses one of them.  Does he not leave the ninety-nine in the open country and go after the lost sheep until he finds it?  And when he finds it, he joyfully puts it on his shoulders and goes home.  Then he calls his friends and neighbors together and says, ‘Rejoice with me; I have found my lost sheep.’  I tell you the that in the same way there will be more rejoicing in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who do not need to repent.”   Luke 15: 3-7

Happy New Year! La Mults Ani!

This is just a quick note to say Happy New Year to everyone.  I was able to spend most of last week in Satu Mare, about 3 hours by train from Oradea.  I went to visit Ioana (sounds like Yana) who I met a couple of summers ago in Carolina Beach.  It was so nice to catch up and to meet her family.  During the 5 days I was there, I learn a traditional Romanian dance and card game,  heard lots of traditional music, and ate so much new food!  I have to say the mici (fried meat paste) was great, but I was never brave enough to try the beef salad.

Beef Salad

I also went to an orthodox church service with Ioana and her family.  The building was beautiful.  An orthodox church is not completed until it is fully painted. The painting was not done until this past summer.  The is a wooden screen on the alter.  The screen is in the tradition of curtain in the Jewish temple.  Only men are allowed to go through the screen and then only on the sides.  Priests in full robes can go through the center.  The center symbolizes the gates of heaven.  Although it was beautiful, I have never seen so many sad looking people in a church.  My heart was burdened.

The alter

Looking up!

Ioana and family took me to the village where her grandparents lived.  It was a really great time and opportunity to practice my language skills.  Now I am back in Oradea.  I will be back in the States next week.