This is just a few of our stories from being in gypsy villages and loving on beautiful Roma people. Enjoy!
When I think of ministry in Eastern Europe I think of the street kids, I think of prostitutes, I think of the poor elderly that have no care, and last but not least I think of ministry with gypsy people. Some gypsies prefer to be called Roma people so from now on I’ll refer to them as that. There are many different cultures within different Roma groups. I have met some that travel, but few (our team actually met a family traveling in a wagon in India- they kill birds,squirrels, and rabbits to eat and keep going), and I’ve met most that stay put and travel only for new jobs. I have met some that speak gypsy with a Turkish dialect, Romanian dialect, Indian dialect, and Bulgarian dialect. I did ministry with them in Romania before and have a huge heart for them. You see they are really looked down upon in all of Eastern Europe. Most of Roma people who do actually “make something out of themselves” leave the Roma lifestyle, don’t teach their children the language, and will even deny that they come from that origin.
I have never seen them have jobs in the cities except for beg or sale flowers from a stand. They are mostly in deep poverty. In many villages they don’t have running water and the missionaries I ministered beside shared with me that for a lot of them it takes years to get brushing their teeth and taking showers regularly down. Good hygeine is something I think of as natuaral but when I’ve seen some of these people and their beautiful kids caked in mud, my heart is broken and I realize that I am so blessed to not only have running water, etc, but that I’ve been taught how to have good hygeine and be healthy.
(visiting their home)
My favorite day in Romania this time was helping a Roma family. The dad works all day in the fields, and the mom goes out looking for a way to make money for food. That leaves their 9 children home alone all day. Kids also don’t understand hygeine. Since they have to get their water from a well bathing each child after a long day is a lot of work, and the way the parents were raised as well, that just wouldn’t be a priority. She has to cook and get them fed. They honestly love their kids so much! However, because they are in survival mode, everything else goes by the way side. The kids have never been to school. Since the parents haven’t either again they probably think its normal and not a priority. Which you can understand all this, when they spend each and everyday thinking about how in the world they are going to put food on the table for all their kids.
One day in Romania, we were suppose to go with some people to hike a beautiful mountain. Unfortunately they miscounted how many were going and we were too many so we volunteered to stay behind. I was a little bummed at first. Then when we started out our day of ministry we stopped at this house no bigger than a shack with this family inside. I got out, went into their 2 room shack that was filthy and gathered the clothes that
had mud, diarrhea, vomit, and other yucky things on them to wash. I hugged those beautiful kids with mud caked to their faces, dirty clothes on, and no underwear. Right then and there I thought, “God knows my heart! This is 100x better than hiking a beautiful mountain. I’d rather love on the “unlovable” and touch the “untouchable” ANYDAY!!! We washed their clothes that day, and I got to bathe some of the kids because guess what? The next day we were going to enter them into school!The kids were so excited!
(a couple of before and afters- shower and haircuts to get ready for school )
I have asked God to break my heart for what breaks His and to know Him more and that day He answered me! He showed me that how I love those kids is how He loves me! They are dirty and helpless and can’t offer me anything, however all I want to do it pour out my love on them and hug them and dance with them and sing with them! And that perfectly reflects our relationship. I’m the “unlovable”, “untouchable” one, I can’t offer Him anything. Yet knowing that beforehand, He still chose to die on the cross and make a way to have an everlasting relationship with me. He finds joy in me and loves to just love on me, hug me, and sing over me! What a good God!!!
