We are doing ministry in Transnistria this month. That's right, an unknown country with its own currency and its own king. Is this real life? Maybe. I do know it is the World Race though. We will be doing some ministry in Transnistria but we are living in a no-man’s land between Moldova and Transnistria. God has blessed my team this month when it comes to our living situation. We sleep in bedland which consists of five beds that the six of us share. We are staying in the church and we are cooking our own food again this month. We have a shower and western toilet. The toilet reminds me of Peru because it doesn’t have seat but the plus is that we don’t need a bucket of water to flush it.
I didn’t realize how much I like a little bit of alone time until we made it here on the 14th. Actually, the 15th is when I felt a little overwhelmed. There aren’t many rooms to escape to. I wanted to be in a room where I couldn’t hear anyone and there wasn’t a chance of someone walking in. These are the times where I ask God to give me peace. These are the times where I pray for God to give me the desire to reach out to my teammates and let them know more details. These times are where I go back and figure what my story is. These times are when God starts showing me pictures of who I am in His eyes.
This month we are going to be assisting in children, youth, and women’s groups. They will be weekly meetings for each group. We will interact with the same children weekly Monday through Friday. I am such a relational person that I am blessed to have the opportunity to build relationships with these kids. Actually, most of them are teenagers and are guys. How does an all-girl team interact with a group of guys? Card games and sport activities have been suggested. Good thing we are athletic. We have brainstormed a capture the flag game at the end of the month if we have a somewhat of a big turnout. I am hoping for about 15 teenagers.
I feel like I am dreaming sometimes because what work/ministry looks like this month is completely different than what it was in Romania. I feel like we have more chill time. Even when we are doing ministry, we are just hanging out and getting to know the people.
God is telling me, “Now that I know you can solely rely on me, I need you to let me show you what christian fellowship and discipleship is supposed to look like.” I reply with “What the mess?! I just started fully trusting you. I just started giving things to you. How could I possibly open up to these women?” I’ve started to question what defines me. God has blessed me with a team of women who seek God first then seek out their teammates. We are learning what patience means.
