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This is a story that occurred while we were in Bucharest in September. I never had a chance to post it then, so I hope you enjoy it now!

One night in Bucharest our group partnered with a local church to do some street evangelism. We were not exactly sure what we would be doing, but when we arrived the church group was gathered together, preparing to hand out flowers to people. As we waited to get started, I began to notice two little girls weaving in and out of the group. One of the little girls in particular caught my eye. She had one of the toughest, meanest expressions I have ever seen on a child’s face. She kept going up to people and either demanding that they give her their flowers, or simply snatching them away. She was wearing dirty, baggy clothes and I could tell by her dark complexion that she was a gypsy. She was also smoking a cigarette. She was probably seven years old.

I’ll be honest- When I first saw her, my initial reaction was to be annoyed and guard my purse. But as we started to discuss what we wanted our evening to look like, I couldn’t get her mean, tough expression out of my mind. I know that children do not naturally behave the way she was behaving. It is something they learn out of a desperation to survive. I told my team that I wanted to go find those little girls. Others were actually feeling the same way, so we set off.

We eventually found the little girls sitting further down the road. We went over to talk to them. I asked the little girl her name, and she told me it was Anna Maria. After talking for a few minutes, we asked them if we could take them to McDonalds. They eagerly agreed. Kel and Kaleb took off with the other sister to help her get some groceries, and the rest of us took Anna Maria, as well as two other homeless ladies, to McDonalds.

Anna Maria still had her tough face on as we walked down the street and entered the restaurant. She didn’t speak English, but I tried to smile at her and communicate the best I could. I bought her a happy meal, and as I handed it to her, I saw the tough expression fade. The biggest smile crossed her face, but as quickly as it appeared, it faded. However, as we sat down to eat, her smile became more and more frequent. I told her that Jesus loved her, and that the happy meal was from Jesus. She smiled and handed some of her fries to the other homeless ladies at the table. I knew she understood.

We walked outside and said goodbye to the girls. But later that night as we were preparing to leave, we ran into them again. Anna Maria gave me the biggest hug, and it seemed her beautiful smile had permanently replaced her tough frown. We talked to them for a little bit, and then sadly said goodbye. We had already walked halfway down the street, when I felt someone touch my back. I turned around and saw that Anna Maria had run up to me to give me one more hug and a big kiss on the cheek. As I watched her walk away, I couldn’t believe that this was the same tough little girl I had seen smoking and stealing flowers.
 
While I was really happy that I could help Anna Maria that night, I think God used that experience to help  me remember a simple lesson. I was reminded how easy it is to show someone God’s love, and how sometimes the simplest of gestures can make a difference. When I first saw Anna Maria, I was unsure what it would take to break through that tough exterior, but as it turns out, I think the wall was just waiting to come down. There are so many hurting people in the world, like Anna Maria, who
desperately need to feel the love of Christ. And as we allow God to use us, the walls will keep falling down.