The Greatest Gift

Hello all!

I’m sorry that I haven’t been able to blog at all this week. Hopefully I don’t make this post too long haha. I was on the Negru(Black) team and had 11-12 year olds-they all had so much personality! 5 boys and 1 girl. To say the week was entertaining would be an understatement.

Ema, Cristi, Sergiu, Robby, Marton, and Lulu.

Ema was the only girl (camper) in our group but she definitely held her ground. I was pleasantly surprised to find out that she spoke English! It was nice communicating with her without the need of a volunteer to translate. Ema has a heart of gold, seriously. Her story is heartbreaking but it is evident that she has a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. Ema is wise beyond her years and possesses an undeniable sense of maturity. Not to mention the fact that she’s hilarious. 

Cristi is a typical 12 year old boy, rambunctious and full of energy. He is the one kissing my cheek in the group photo. Cristi had a tough exterior but on the inside he was a total softy. I caught on to a little crush he had on a camper in another group and when I asked him about it he bashfully admitted it was true. This past week had eternal significance in Cristi’s life because he accepted Christ! Steve Howard (Jessica’s dad) prayed with him and talked him through that decision.

Sergiu was the quiet one of the group. He observed and participated in everything we did but he rarely spoke; he had some kind of disability. He loved to kick the soccer ball with me! I obviously enjoyed this quite a bit. He was the only one of the boys who beat Steve in an arm wrestling competition. Well, he was the only one who Steve didn’t mean to lose to ;)

Robby was the athlete of the group. He was good at everything! Robby’s sister, Roberta(good thinking, parents), was at camp as well. It was awesome to see how much he cared about her and looked out for her. He is going to be a good father one day. Robby also accepted Christ this week! We had he and Cristi both talk us through what their understanding of grace was, who they believed Jesus to be, and what they believed Jesus did for them on the cross. They both lit up when we asked them if they wanted to pray and “confess with their mouth that Jesus is Lord” (Romans 10:9). That moment was the highlight of my week, hands down.

Marton did not live in the group home with the other children. His mother is a caretaker for one of the group homes so he was able to come to camp. Marton was so sweet! He had a good head on his shoulders and was nice to everybody. He and Cristi hung out together a lot throughout the week.

Lulu is ridiculously smart. The first thing he told me when I met him was the number of bones a snake has? As a conversation starter, that was a first. It was his first time at camp and he LOVED it, I mean really loved it. Lulu is going to do great things with his life. He gives 100% to everything he does and doesn’t settle with mediocrity. He has a “fighter’s” spirit.

Friday night the interns borrowed a projector and speakers from the Livada office and had a movie night in our living room. It was a very needed night of community and down time. We ordered pizza and put our mattresses on the floor so that we could have one big pallet. It was incredible. Today I visited the town of Sighisoara with the American team from Dallas Bible (aka Jessica and her family!) where we did some sight seeing. The town has been there since the 12^th Century and it had so many historic things to see. We climbed to the top of an old clock tower, visited an old church that was around during the Protestant reformation, and saw the childhood home of Vlad the Impaler. It’s been a good weekend so far!

(In Sighisoara. Mary is another intern)

(Me and Jess! At the top of the clock tower)

(View from the clock tower)

(Walking the streets)

The past week has been a roller coaster of emotions for me. It’s one thing to read a child’s heartbreaking story through a book, blog, or even in a news paper, and a completely different thing to actually KNOW the child who lived that story. I think that the reality in which these children live hit me full force this past week. The brokenness and pain that I see in their eyes is a constant reminder of my DESPERATE need of a savior because as humans, we are so broken. One of the most incredible things that Christ has done for us is give potential to things that are broken. Through a broken situation, death, he redeemed us and gave us the hope of life with him forever. This is the greatest gift! 

I have clearly seen God at work but I have also seen the Devil's hand at work as well. It is comforting to know that God is greater and that he is still in control but I would be kidding myself to believe that, while God is still the ultimate authority, Satan has no authority on this earth. 

“For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms” Ephesians 6:12

This upcoming week I will be doing something a little bit different than in previous weeks. I won't be at camp but I will be assisting a few members from the American team (from Ohio) at the baby hospital! A specialist from their team will be going to the hospital to evaluate the developmental status of each child and will then train the Livada staff, who work with those babies on a regular basis, in techniques that will help facilitate development. Each baby and toddler has a specific developmental need and none of them are progressing normally. 

Throughout this week please pray for these things:

*Pray against spiritual warfare. Specifically discouragement, doubt,  and disunity among the body

*Pray for the volunteer translators who are hearing the gospel for the first time and the volunteers who may have heard the gospel before but whose hearts are hardened

*Pray for organization and leadership of camp activities

*Pray for the LOC kids. Specifically pray that they experience the Lord in a whole new way this summer. Pray that they are able to acknowledge a God who is good in the midst of a time in their lives that is hard. 

*Pray that God is glorified through broken situations