Week 1

I can't believe I have been in Romania for a full week already! So much has already happened...I moved into my apartment, went grocery shopping on my own, learned how to take the Metro (subway) around the city, had four full days of day camp, and bailed out a flooded basement. Never a dull moment.

Right now day camps are the biggest focus of our ministry. We had the Peris camps last week, the Voluntari camps this week, and preschool camps next week. Every morning we have time for Bible stories, skits, crafts, team building activities, and obstacle courses. In the afternoon we bring the kids to the team house at Pipera, feed them lunch, and then go swimming in the pool. It rained almost every afternoon last week so the pool was *freezing*. The kids still wanted to get in as much as they could. The very last day of camps, though, it was raining so hard we couldn't go swimming so the kids watched a movie instead. That was the day of the Great Basement Flood of 2015. It was only rainwater (we think) unlike the Great Basement Flood of 2012 which was most definitely sewage.

Swimming at camp

Running the obstacle course

The theme of camps is about overcoming obstacles by having faith, hope, love, and perseverance. This is such an important lesson for the kids. They are all familiar with the gospel but they have trouble living it out. In the orphanage setting the knee jerk reaction is to fight, argue, curse, and hold grudges. What we are trying to share with the kids is so counter to what they live with day to day.

Snack time

Another fun but cold day in the pool!

Final obstacle course

As I mentioned above, this week will be day camps with the kids from the Voluntari orphanage. We are having to bring them to the team house in the morning because all their outside area has been turned into a giant sandbox (I'm assuming they are in the process of re-doing it but we shall see...). Praying that it will be a good time with the kids!

Prayer Requests/Praises:

• Pray for good weather this week for camps so the kids can go swimming.
• Pray that everything we share with the kids will take root in their hearts.
• Pray for some important licensure paperwork that will go before the Georgia professional board either this week or next week. This paperwork will determine if I will be able to become fully licensed in a year or not.
• Pray that I will continue to gain ground with my language.
• Praise God that I was able to move into my apartment and begin to feel like Romania is now my home.
• Praise God that I was able to renew my teaching license from the States!
• Praise God that we had a good week of camps last week with the kids from Peris.
• Praise God that the basement was not flooded with sewage and that we were able to get it cleaned up quickly.

Remember to email or message me if you want to be added to my secret Facebook group to get updates about my time in Romania.