Hello from freezing cold Romania! I literally have worn my sweater and sweatshirt every.single.day. this month! I am starting to really look forward to Africa purely for the warmth and sunlight.
Speaking of sunlight, there's almost none here. Before we arrived here we were warned that this is a very dark place. They weren't joking. Not only does the sun not shine that often but the people wear very dark clothes and walk with their heads down and have scowls on their faces. We are in an area where the people are superstitious and distrustful. They believe that Christians drink blood, have orgies and eat their children. You can imagine the difficulty of ministering in this place. But at training camp they encouraged us not to focus on the darkness of a place. We are the light and we should be talking about that light being shown.
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Sun rising over Olt River in Dragansti–I wish I had taken this picture but I didn't. Thanks google!
So that was my goal in coming here. I was going to be light and joy and happiness. I was going to win others with smiles. I was going to offer comfort and peace. And then I got here and all of a sudden I was tired all the time (my body believes once it is dark it should be sleeping–no good!) and feeling super lethargic. I wasn't really feeling like I was shining too bright.
And then I started meeting the missionaries here and working with them. I have never met people who shine so much with the joy of Christ. Every person I've met who works in the churches here has greeted me with kindness and joy as though we were long lost friends, finally reuniting to do something spectacular together. When I've gotten to a ministry I haven't wanted to leave. I want to keep serving soup to homeless old people, leading children's programs, sorting clothes to hand out, raking leaves and cracking walnuts with these people all day. I find myself walking with a pep in my step and a smile on my face after I've left them.
I want to be like that. I want to have that effect on people. I want to:
I am so incredibly thankful for these missionaries who live here year round in a place they are not welcomed nor appreciated yet continue to show joy and love to those around them. I am so thankful for the joy they are passing on to me and the encouragement I've gotten from them. That's something I've noticed about the people I've met on the race–they always end up encouraging me way more than I could ever encourage them. I love things like that.
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*on a sad side note, my favorite person on the race, Lauren Erb (who makes me smile every single second we're together) isn't fully funded yet. If she were to go home I'm pretty sure I would cry every single day. She's raffling off her guitar that has traveled the world as a fundraiser! Check out her blog for more info!
at training camp we knew we'd be friends forever!
Lauren makes 20 hour birthday bus rides totally awesome!
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*on another sad side note, I've been in this weird place where I love being on the race, what I'm doing and who I'm with but there's this ache in my heart for people back home. Prayer for peace and comfort would be greatly appreciated!
