Unsung Heroes is a month that looks very different on the race from your average month. Instead of being given a contact to stay with for the entirety of the month, we have been traveling around Romania.
So What are Unsung Heroes?
Unsung Heroes are people, churches, or organizations that are working in their communities towards spreading the Kingdom of God. They gain little recognition or help for the work that they are doing. They could be pastors that are starting churches in communities that have none, people who have built a childrens home after seeing the children in orphanages or on the street digging through trash heaps…They may not have many resources, but they are fulfilling the Lords calling on their lives–the Great Commission.
Matthew 28:19-20 // Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and of the Holy Spirit and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age
What to do we do when we find them?
After we hear about individuals and ministries, we try to connect with them and get to know them a little. We go to see them and their ministry (if possible), spread the word about their ministry by telling their stories in our blogs, and in the end, potentially partner with them by sending future World Race teams.
As we began this month, we prayed and researched to find these Unsung Heroes. We asked God to direct our steps and lead us to people. And He has definitely been faithful in placing people in front of us.
We serve such an INCREDIBLE God.
One ministry that The Lord placed in our path was Belief In Motion.
Through some crazy connections, we were able to meet with Kalep and the rest of the family who started the organization.
Belief in Motion was started by Aaron and Robin Bruski who answered the Lord’s call and moved their family to Romania in 2005. In 2007 they formed the non-profit organization, Belief in Motion and Project 127, based on the verse James 1:27
Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world
Immediately we felt so welcomed! They showed us around the houses, fed us homemade rice crispy treats, took us to a Roma village to play with the kids, welcomed us into their home for dinner and a game of Gestures…their generosity was poured out to us.
But what impacted me even more than that was being able to hear their vision for their ministry–why they were there–and actually seeing their hearts for the community in action.
Their amazing vision can be summarized in the FOUR E’s:
–Evangelize: their goal is to first and foremost share the gospel and spread the love of Christ. This is at the core of every project and ministry they engage in, whether it is handing out bread to homeless on the street who are digging through the trash (Our Daily Bread), or going into Roma villages and building relationships–playing with the kids, talking with the parents. There are an estimated 11 million Roma in the world today and Romania is home to over 2 million Roma. Over 99% of the Roma are unreached with the gospel and are considered outcasts, living in extremely poor conditions. They are so in need of the gospel and the love of Christ.
“Belief in Motion exists to glorify God by initiating purposeful relationships
to share Christ’ anticipating the Holy Spirit’s drawing to impact souls for
eternity and igniting a passion in individuals to live unto the Lord alone!”
–Educate: In the Roma villages, most children do not stay in school and because they have no education, they cannot get jobs…thus the cycle of poverty perpetuates itself. Belief in Motion believes that through education, this generation can begin to break the chains of severe poverty and make a new life for themselves and their families. They have many programs and incentives to help keep the kids in school and to give them the best education that they can. Through their after school program, they provide a hot meal for the kids and teach them bible verses, how to read and write, music, and sports. To encourage good behavior, the kids are able to learn points for going to school, doing homework–and the points can then be used to buy food to take home to their families. The families then encourage them to stay in school because they are receiving food.
–Empower: Belief in Motion seeks not to enable people as beggars, but rather to empower women in the community through providing them with an honest occupation. They seek to give hope for a better future–to show them Jesus so that their lives are changed by the power of Christ to reach their own people. One way that they do this is through Piranda, which is a project where the Roma women make colorful braided bracelets and headbands to sell. Piranda has a specialy meaning; it is a word for a gypsy woman, but it actually has a positive connotation. It denotes dignity, and beauty.
You can support these women by buying their bracelets!
Piranda Belief in Motion About from Belief in Motion on Vimeo.
–Establish: Part of their vision is to establish homes for the abandoned and forgotten. They are currently building a home which will house babies who have been abandoned. They want to establish these homes with houseparents so that they model true families. They want to bring these children out of the painful and horrifying experiences of the orphanages and place them where they can be cared for and loved—every child, whether baby or teen.
I love how they wrote scriptures all throughout the bare bricks of the house
They have so many ideas that The Lord has placed on their hearts to do, to help people and to show them the gospel. I haven’t even begun to touch on many of them. I hope that my summary has done justice for this amazing ministry. And before I end, I just want to leave you with one phrase that we heard while we were there:
You may not be able to change the world, but you can change someone’s world
Sometimes all it takes is to LOVE the ONE in front of you
If you would like more information, you can visit their website and see all the ways that you can support them!
Belief In Motion Overview (2012) from Belief in Motion on Vimeo.
Prayer:
-Pray for God’s provision of the materials needed to finish building Lanie’s Home for children, and even above an beyond to start construction on more homes (to help support the construction, you can donate here: http://www.xsandosfromro.org/#!donate/c1vud)
-Pray that God continues to perform signs and wonders as His people seek His face.
-Pray for th salvation of families in all the Roma communities that they serve in.
-Pray for the after school program, that the children will not only learn academics and have the desire to stay in school, but they would really learn about the Lord and truly know His heart
-Pray for the family behind Belief in Motion, that The Lord will continue to fill them with His supernatural strength, empowering them to love others without reserve. Pray for rest in His presence and continuous overflow of joy in their lives.
-Pray for more of God’s presence to sweep over Romania.
