I would go to this guys church anyday.
Saturday, October 27, 2012
Monday, September 10, 2012
Listening
Today I was thinking about listening and it occurred to me that I have to work to listen even when I am just listening to the quiet. If I don't stop myself from thinking and intentionally hear the quiet, sometimes I miss it altogether. Isn't that ironic?
Thursday, September 6, 2012
Church: Re-imagined
Sometimes I get on a visionary kick. Somedays I feel as if I can do anything, be anything, and create anything. I know it sounds kind of juvenile and naive, but there are times when I re-imagine the world and completely believe that it could change! Actually, those times happen more often than not.
Since (as demonstrated by my last post) I have recently been thinking about the church, I decided to start day dreaming about a new kind of church. As I was contemplating this, I got really excited about the idea! I don't think it is enough for us to hold onto the same kind of structure, we need to build something entirely different than what our world has seen before. Something as old as dirt, but that feels completely new. I thought how I wanted to get back to experiencing God together, and I think it is possible.
What if we had an experience church. One with no pastor who gives weekly sermons. What if the people take ownership of the church and our weekly gatherings were led by the members of the church themselves. It wouldn't be so much instruction on how to live your life as it would be sharing life together.
I imagine board games available for people who just want to show and and play games with one another in community. Having fun together is crucial, and I think we tend to forget that a lot. It is also great for building fellowship and helps us learn to love one another.
In another room we could just have space for discussions. If you want to talk about something you could lead a discussion at church the next week. It could be anything from abortion or politics to lonliness or depression. No topic is off limits. And all would be welcome: kids, teens, adults... anyone. We wouldn't seperate from one another, we would all learn from each other! People just need space to talk to each other, and time to be heard. We should be intentionally doing this for one another!
Worship would be freestyle. Anyone could bring there instrument (kazoos are welcome too!) or you could just join in. It would be spontaneous, but welcome. People would pray for one another, build up relationships, plan to volunteer or serve together.
The church I imagine would be about experiencing God together. It would be a commitment to one anothers lives, to sharing with one another and taking care of each other. We would be the church to each other so that we could be the church to the world. With space and love. Not structured sermons and watered down worship. It would be a family of believers experiencing the goodness of God together. A taste of his kingdom. A place where people could just be. Just come and not have to do or be anything, just exist and be loved for it.
I don't think that people would find the need to hunt for a church that fits their specific needs if church were this way, because the church would be what you need it to be! Although, I do realize I am being extremely idealist here. I just feel that the world is ready for something new. People are thirsting to EXPERIENCE God... not just hear about Him. And we are thirsting to experience one another too (that's sometimes the best way to learn about God anyway). Afterall... the church is the people.
Since (as demonstrated by my last post) I have recently been thinking about the church, I decided to start day dreaming about a new kind of church. As I was contemplating this, I got really excited about the idea! I don't think it is enough for us to hold onto the same kind of structure, we need to build something entirely different than what our world has seen before. Something as old as dirt, but that feels completely new. I thought how I wanted to get back to experiencing God together, and I think it is possible.
What if we had an experience church. One with no pastor who gives weekly sermons. What if the people take ownership of the church and our weekly gatherings were led by the members of the church themselves. It wouldn't be so much instruction on how to live your life as it would be sharing life together.
I imagine board games available for people who just want to show and and play games with one another in community. Having fun together is crucial, and I think we tend to forget that a lot. It is also great for building fellowship and helps us learn to love one another.
In another room we could just have space for discussions. If you want to talk about something you could lead a discussion at church the next week. It could be anything from abortion or politics to lonliness or depression. No topic is off limits. And all would be welcome: kids, teens, adults... anyone. We wouldn't seperate from one another, we would all learn from each other! People just need space to talk to each other, and time to be heard. We should be intentionally doing this for one another!
Worship would be freestyle. Anyone could bring there instrument (kazoos are welcome too!) or you could just join in. It would be spontaneous, but welcome. People would pray for one another, build up relationships, plan to volunteer or serve together.
The church I imagine would be about experiencing God together. It would be a commitment to one anothers lives, to sharing with one another and taking care of each other. We would be the church to each other so that we could be the church to the world. With space and love. Not structured sermons and watered down worship. It would be a family of believers experiencing the goodness of God together. A taste of his kingdom. A place where people could just be. Just come and not have to do or be anything, just exist and be loved for it.
I don't think that people would find the need to hunt for a church that fits their specific needs if church were this way, because the church would be what you need it to be! Although, I do realize I am being extremely idealist here. I just feel that the world is ready for something new. People are thirsting to EXPERIENCE God... not just hear about Him. And we are thirsting to experience one another too (that's sometimes the best way to learn about God anyway). Afterall... the church is the people.
Tuesday, August 21, 2012
It is a love it/hate it kinda thing
Recently, I have become an employee of a church. As a previously hesitant church-goer, I wasn't sure how I would do as a person who was regularly expected to participate in Sunday morning church activities and the like. Something about the American church has always kept me at a distance. I'm still not quite sure what it is. Maybe it is the idea that Christians have to sit through a sermon on Sunday mornings to be considered part of the church. Maybe it is the adventurous part of me that wants to be moving and exploring all the time... lets face it, our generation is not exactly one that focuses too much on settling down. Anyway, the other day I was sitting in a meeting (enjoying what was going on) and I began to think about why going to church has been difficult for me. (Before I continue, let me make it clear, that this is not my opinion of the church I am working at, but rather my view of the American Church in general.)
Recently, the church has become a tool for evangelism. We focus our time and efforts on getting non-believers to come in our doors, find Jesus, and help us continue to recruit others. The sermons have to become "Seeker-friendly" and even small groups continually work to bring in new people. So much effort is going in to conversion rather than life transformation. In my opinion, the church should be a place for fellowship and growth. The church is a place made up of faithful believers who are working to follow God's Word together, people with an alternative way of living. It is not about bringing as many new people in as possible, and if that is our focus, we have lost our way. In Acts, people were loving one another and working to grow with each other, and others naturally saw that and wanted to join. I do believe there is a time for evangelism, but I do not believe it is at the pulpit. Being a faithful follower of God does not mean we need to convert the most amount of people. Being a faithful follower of God does not mean that we need to focus on how to make our own lives better. Being a follower of God means we have to work together to love a broken world, and join in the effort to bring His kingdom of peace and love to all of creation.
When churches focus so heavily on "bringing people to Christ" (I know this blog has contained a lot of Christan-ese) we lose the fact that we have to care for one another as well. We can not allow ourselves to become so intent upon conversion that we fail to be the Church. People do not want to join a mission. They want to join a family.
Recently, the church has become a tool for evangelism. We focus our time and efforts on getting non-believers to come in our doors, find Jesus, and help us continue to recruit others. The sermons have to become "Seeker-friendly" and even small groups continually work to bring in new people. So much effort is going in to conversion rather than life transformation. In my opinion, the church should be a place for fellowship and growth. The church is a place made up of faithful believers who are working to follow God's Word together, people with an alternative way of living. It is not about bringing as many new people in as possible, and if that is our focus, we have lost our way. In Acts, people were loving one another and working to grow with each other, and others naturally saw that and wanted to join. I do believe there is a time for evangelism, but I do not believe it is at the pulpit. Being a faithful follower of God does not mean we need to convert the most amount of people. Being a faithful follower of God does not mean that we need to focus on how to make our own lives better. Being a follower of God means we have to work together to love a broken world, and join in the effort to bring His kingdom of peace and love to all of creation.
When churches focus so heavily on "bringing people to Christ" (I know this blog has contained a lot of Christan-ese) we lose the fact that we have to care for one another as well. We can not allow ourselves to become so intent upon conversion that we fail to be the Church. People do not want to join a mission. They want to join a family.
Sunday, April 8, 2012
Being Home
I anticipated that being home would be hard, and I was right. It is not so much the reverse culture shock that is getting me, I DO wish everyone was speaking Romanian and that the grocery store didn't have to be inside with everything boxed, but I was expecting that and can handle it. It is the longing to be in a place that I can't be right now that makes it so difficult!
I love my family, and friends, and the support network I have here, but it isn't where I feel like I am supposed to be! I feel like God is calling me to be in Moldova and I hate feeling like I am not listening to God by being in the states. I'm really really trying to trust in the wisdom of the WMF Staff from Moldova. I do trust them, and I know that I am not the only one who is capable of listening to God and discerning what he wants. It is just extremely hard to trust in that when I so strongly believe that that is the place I am supposed to be right now!
I have had dreams every (and I mean every) night since I have been home of things that I could have done differently so that I could have stayed. I don't allow myself to think about it during the day very much, so I think my longing comes out at night. The other night I dreamed that I decided to live homeless in Chisinau (an idea which did actually cross my mind at the time, lol). I just feel like there are so many "if only" situations, that maybe I could still be there!
When I do allow myself to think about it during the day, I spend my time teaching myself Romanian and/or looking up opportunities for people to live and work in Chisinau. I have found every international school in the city, looked at Youth for Christ International, and even things that I could do with the American Embassy over there. In my heart though, I know I want to go back with Word Made Flesh, and maybe I will be able to someday. I am just impatient.
It just hurts. Being human really hurts. It hurts to feel unwanted and to feel abandoned. It hurts to feel jealous and lonely. It hurts to feel like you are not valuable. I am trying to hard to remind myself that all of those things are lies. I am not unwanted, abandoned, or alone. I have lots of value and no need to be jealous because God has great things for me! I am trying, but some days I don't do so well.
Right before all of this happened in Chisinau I began to pray that God would humble me. I felt like I was becoming a bit prideful and leaning on my own strength instead of God's. I vocalized this to both my team mates and one of my good Moldovan friends. They all prayed for me, and I prayed for it too. He did not humble me in the way I expected Him to at all! I never meant that I wanted to leave, but that's what happened, and believe me I have been humbled!
I do think joy and hope are really important things though! I think that joy and hope are what keep us moving, what keep us motivated. Its kind of fun to look for joy in places where joy is not obvious. It is really healing to search for hope in places of despair. And it is freeing to trust in God and not rely on my own abilities to accomplish things and heal brokenness. Maybe that is what god wanted for me in all of this mess.
I love my family, and friends, and the support network I have here, but it isn't where I feel like I am supposed to be! I feel like God is calling me to be in Moldova and I hate feeling like I am not listening to God by being in the states. I'm really really trying to trust in the wisdom of the WMF Staff from Moldova. I do trust them, and I know that I am not the only one who is capable of listening to God and discerning what he wants. It is just extremely hard to trust in that when I so strongly believe that that is the place I am supposed to be right now!
I have had dreams every (and I mean every) night since I have been home of things that I could have done differently so that I could have stayed. I don't allow myself to think about it during the day very much, so I think my longing comes out at night. The other night I dreamed that I decided to live homeless in Chisinau (an idea which did actually cross my mind at the time, lol). I just feel like there are so many "if only" situations, that maybe I could still be there!
When I do allow myself to think about it during the day, I spend my time teaching myself Romanian and/or looking up opportunities for people to live and work in Chisinau. I have found every international school in the city, looked at Youth for Christ International, and even things that I could do with the American Embassy over there. In my heart though, I know I want to go back with Word Made Flesh, and maybe I will be able to someday. I am just impatient.
It just hurts. Being human really hurts. It hurts to feel unwanted and to feel abandoned. It hurts to feel jealous and lonely. It hurts to feel like you are not valuable. I am trying to hard to remind myself that all of those things are lies. I am not unwanted, abandoned, or alone. I have lots of value and no need to be jealous because God has great things for me! I am trying, but some days I don't do so well.
Right before all of this happened in Chisinau I began to pray that God would humble me. I felt like I was becoming a bit prideful and leaning on my own strength instead of God's. I vocalized this to both my team mates and one of my good Moldovan friends. They all prayed for me, and I prayed for it too. He did not humble me in the way I expected Him to at all! I never meant that I wanted to leave, but that's what happened, and believe me I have been humbled!
I do think joy and hope are really important things though! I think that joy and hope are what keep us moving, what keep us motivated. Its kind of fun to look for joy in places where joy is not obvious. It is really healing to search for hope in places of despair. And it is freeing to trust in God and not rely on my own abilities to accomplish things and heal brokenness. Maybe that is what god wanted for me in all of this mess.
Monday, March 26, 2012
How to Make a Fool of Yourself in a Foreign Country
My last day in Moldova was the perfect opportunity for me to misinterpret someone!I mean, you can't leave a foreign place and not have at least one really dumb thing you did to tell people, right?
So after getting a snack at this delicious Turkish cafe, a group of us were walking in Centru (the downtown area of Chisinau) and a couple of the girls in my group decided to go look in a store. While they did that, the rest of us waited outside where there just happened to be a pack of stray puppies. Now, anyone who knows me knows I can not pass up the opportunity to play with puppies, so I was really excited when I remembered that I had half a lavash (a sort of sandwich wrap) left in my purse from the evening before. I got it out, tore it into pieces and began to feed the dogs.
As I was doing this a little old lady walked past. She was this adorable little thing with tufts of white hair and a head scarf. She came up to me and began to speak to me in Romanian. Since the phrases I know in Romanaian are very limited, our team leader began to interpret for me. The woman was telling me these really beautiful things! She was saying how she felt as if I were really feeding her instead of the dogs because I was taking care of them. She told me how God cares for the small things that can't care for themselves and he must be filled with joy watching me care for his creation. She crossed herself and continued speaking to me. Then she looked at me and pointed to her forehead. I did not understand what she wanted so she tried again, she pointed at me and then pointed at her own forehead. So what do you think I did????
I grabbed her head with both of my hands and I kissed her forehead.
That is not what she meant. It was just at that point that everyone else walked out of the store. Oh man, I was SOOOO embarrassed.
I found out later that what they lady had actually meant was "Where are you from?" because I was wearing the awesome bandana that my friend Magda had gotten me of the Moldovan flag (how cool is that people!) Thus, she was pointing to my head and trying to communicate about my bandana.
Looking back, I'm not sure why I didn't just turn around and ask what she was saying to me. How was it that my first reaction was to kiss this random woman? I don't know, but I must say it did make for a whole lot of laughter =)
So after getting a snack at this delicious Turkish cafe, a group of us were walking in Centru (the downtown area of Chisinau) and a couple of the girls in my group decided to go look in a store. While they did that, the rest of us waited outside where there just happened to be a pack of stray puppies. Now, anyone who knows me knows I can not pass up the opportunity to play with puppies, so I was really excited when I remembered that I had half a lavash (a sort of sandwich wrap) left in my purse from the evening before. I got it out, tore it into pieces and began to feed the dogs.
As I was doing this a little old lady walked past. She was this adorable little thing with tufts of white hair and a head scarf. She came up to me and began to speak to me in Romanian. Since the phrases I know in Romanaian are very limited, our team leader began to interpret for me. The woman was telling me these really beautiful things! She was saying how she felt as if I were really feeding her instead of the dogs because I was taking care of them. She told me how God cares for the small things that can't care for themselves and he must be filled with joy watching me care for his creation. She crossed herself and continued speaking to me. Then she looked at me and pointed to her forehead. I did not understand what she wanted so she tried again, she pointed at me and then pointed at her own forehead. So what do you think I did????
I grabbed her head with both of my hands and I kissed her forehead.
That is not what she meant. It was just at that point that everyone else walked out of the store. Oh man, I was SOOOO embarrassed.
I found out later that what they lady had actually meant was "Where are you from?" because I was wearing the awesome bandana that my friend Magda had gotten me of the Moldovan flag (how cool is that people!) Thus, she was pointing to my head and trying to communicate about my bandana.
Looking back, I'm not sure why I didn't just turn around and ask what she was saying to me. How was it that my first reaction was to kiss this random woman? I don't know, but I must say it did make for a whole lot of laughter =)
La revedere pentru acum
Friends and family, my heart is breaking as I write this to you, but I need to let you all know that due to some very difficult circumstances I had to leave Chisinau before my time with my servant team ended. I am writing this blog from the comfort of home, where I can flush my toilet paper and drink the water from the sink, but I would gladly give so much of this up to be back in the beautiful country of Moldova. Unfortunately, at this point that is not possible.
The Word Made Flesh staff and my teammates made me feel so loved and valued as we prepared to say good-bye to one another. I have honestly never met a community comprised of more beautiful people. From the moment it became clear that I could no longer stay in Moldova I met nothing but love and care from those surrounding me. Each member of staff made time to pray with/for me, share meals with me, and just spend quality time enjoying life with me. We did everything from going to a communist style amusement park and riding really sketchy roller coasters to walking through the art plaza to find souvenirs to getting some really good Moldovan (and in a couple cases Turkish) food. We drank coffee, played volleyball with the children, fed stray puppies, and cried together.
I was taken to the airport by an entire entourage of people who waited with me until the very last minute. Before I went through security my team and those who came to say good-bye prayed over me and I prayed for them. We held one another and cried, but I know that that was not the end. I know I will some day return to my friends there. God is a God of hope and joy, and though this is really painful, I trust in His goodness.
For those of you thinking to yourselves "What happened to the money I donated to Megan" be comforted that it is being put to really good use. Some of it was given to me before I left to use as I chose to help build up the community I was a part of. The rest of the money was put into the field budget which will go to help program costs at the internat where I was working, and frankly, I do not know anyone who deserves that money to be spent on them more than the beautiful kids that I interacted with. I am so thankful to know that even though I can no longer be physically present with the kids, the money I raised will still be going to help them.
Though it was necessary for me to leave the program right now, I fully intend on returning to Moldova. I know with all of my heart that it is where I am meant to be long term. When the time is right, I hope to return with Word Made Flesh as an intern (as opposed to a servant team member) and then to commit to living there on a permanent basis. My heart is so filled with love for this place and these people, I can not imagine doing anything else.
So thank you to those of you who supported me financially. Thank you to those of you who prayed (please continue, I think I need them now more than ever). And thank you to those of you who were a part of this journey with me. To my team... Jessie, Heather, and Amanda. To the WMF staff: Annie, Rachel, Rahela, John, Adriana, Mariana, Magda, and Violeta. Thank you for loving me through all of this. Know that you are loved and valued, and deeply deeply missed. La revedere pentru acum:Goodbye for now.
The Word Made Flesh staff and my teammates made me feel so loved and valued as we prepared to say good-bye to one another. I have honestly never met a community comprised of more beautiful people. From the moment it became clear that I could no longer stay in Moldova I met nothing but love and care from those surrounding me. Each member of staff made time to pray with/for me, share meals with me, and just spend quality time enjoying life with me. We did everything from going to a communist style amusement park and riding really sketchy roller coasters to walking through the art plaza to find souvenirs to getting some really good Moldovan (and in a couple cases Turkish) food. We drank coffee, played volleyball with the children, fed stray puppies, and cried together.
I was taken to the airport by an entire entourage of people who waited with me until the very last minute. Before I went through security my team and those who came to say good-bye prayed over me and I prayed for them. We held one another and cried, but I know that that was not the end. I know I will some day return to my friends there. God is a God of hope and joy, and though this is really painful, I trust in His goodness.
For those of you thinking to yourselves "What happened to the money I donated to Megan" be comforted that it is being put to really good use. Some of it was given to me before I left to use as I chose to help build up the community I was a part of. The rest of the money was put into the field budget which will go to help program costs at the internat where I was working, and frankly, I do not know anyone who deserves that money to be spent on them more than the beautiful kids that I interacted with. I am so thankful to know that even though I can no longer be physically present with the kids, the money I raised will still be going to help them.
Though it was necessary for me to leave the program right now, I fully intend on returning to Moldova. I know with all of my heart that it is where I am meant to be long term. When the time is right, I hope to return with Word Made Flesh as an intern (as opposed to a servant team member) and then to commit to living there on a permanent basis. My heart is so filled with love for this place and these people, I can not imagine doing anything else.
So thank you to those of you who supported me financially. Thank you to those of you who prayed (please continue, I think I need them now more than ever). And thank you to those of you who were a part of this journey with me. To my team... Jessie, Heather, and Amanda. To the WMF staff: Annie, Rachel, Rahela, John, Adriana, Mariana, Magda, and Violeta. Thank you for loving me through all of this. Know that you are loved and valued, and deeply deeply missed. La revedere pentru acum:Goodbye for now.
Friday, March 16, 2012
Friday, March 9, 2012
National Women's Day
In Moldova everyone celebrats Opt Marti, or the 8th of March. It is National Women's Day where women are honored. It was really sweet, men everywhere bring flowers to the women in their lives and girls get together and celebrate being women! It is a national holiday, so everything closes and everyone has the day off!
Last night, to celebrate, we went over to Magda's house (one of the Moldovian women on the WMF staff). There were about 15 women there and we worshipped together and Mariana (another member of the WMF staff) gave a talk about how we are princesses of God. We all went around and namend beautiful things about ourselves and honored how God made us.
There was one Moldovan woman there who spoke French, so we got to ahve a conversation that I could actually understand!!!! We also played lots of games together (Pictionary, 4 on a couch, and a game where we were all animals and had to find our pair... whioch was actually more difficult than it sounds because Moldovan animals make different sound than American ones haha!)
Julia and another girl from the internant who is 14 were both there as well! I loved watching these girls become empowered by the evenings events, and being able to encourage them and let them know that they have worth and value just because they exist! Julia even baked a carrot (morcov) cake for us all! We wrote one another cards to encourage each other.
One of my favorite things about Moldovan culture is their good-byes. People here do not merely sy good-bye and then walk out. Everyone has to give a speech and wish everyone well in some beautiful flowery way before they go. I attempted to do this last night, but accidently ended up saying I am so glad for all of your food (I meant to say joy).
I think every culture should celebrate Opt Marti. Totally amazing holiday!!!!!
Last night, to celebrate, we went over to Magda's house (one of the Moldovian women on the WMF staff). There were about 15 women there and we worshipped together and Mariana (another member of the WMF staff) gave a talk about how we are princesses of God. We all went around and namend beautiful things about ourselves and honored how God made us.
There was one Moldovan woman there who spoke French, so we got to ahve a conversation that I could actually understand!!!! We also played lots of games together (Pictionary, 4 on a couch, and a game where we were all animals and had to find our pair... whioch was actually more difficult than it sounds because Moldovan animals make different sound than American ones haha!)
Julia and another girl from the internant who is 14 were both there as well! I loved watching these girls become empowered by the evenings events, and being able to encourage them and let them know that they have worth and value just because they exist! Julia even baked a carrot (morcov) cake for us all! We wrote one another cards to encourage each other.
One of my favorite things about Moldovan culture is their good-byes. People here do not merely sy good-bye and then walk out. Everyone has to give a speech and wish everyone well in some beautiful flowery way before they go. I attempted to do this last night, but accidently ended up saying I am so glad for all of your food (I meant to say joy).
I think every culture should celebrate Opt Marti. Totally amazing holiday!!!!!
Beautiful Love
There is this little girl I want to tell you all about. For the sake of protecting her identity, I will call her Julia.
Julia is an orphan. She lives at the school where I work, and is 9 years old... but looking at her you would think she is only 7 at the most. She has these giant brown eyes and a very serious face, loves to draw and make cards for people, and rarely talks.
This week the kids at the school were on vacation. For most of them, this means spending a week with their parents (if they have any) or visiting a relative. Julia had no one to go to, so the Word Made Flesh staff decided to make her a part of their family. For the week, Julia got to takes turns staying with different members of the community (all who wanted to spend as much time as possible with her).
It was so beautiful to watch this little child, who is deemed an orphan by most of the world, be cared for by so many people. When it was Annie's turn to keep her, she was over at our place all the time (she kicked my butt in checkers!) As I was sitting playing with her, it struck me how amazing it is that so many people would be devestated if she were adopted. If Julia were not there, she would be missed so much! I know many tears would be shed... by the staff and by Julia. She is truely loved and cared for. She has a family.
The more I hung out with her, the more I fell in love as well! I would spend 10 minutes trying to communicate a simple question to her in Romanian and she would just sit there with her big eyse and patiently wait until she understood. Then she would give me a quick answer and we would keep playing. A couple times she would run to Annie and say something in quick Romanian and then Annie would translate a sweet little phrase to me. She even made me a card (I'm pretty sure I will treasure it forever!)
I am so honored to be a part of this organization after I watched how they treat orphans. I am so honored to be a part of Julia's life.
Julia is an orphan. She lives at the school where I work, and is 9 years old... but looking at her you would think she is only 7 at the most. She has these giant brown eyes and a very serious face, loves to draw and make cards for people, and rarely talks.
This week the kids at the school were on vacation. For most of them, this means spending a week with their parents (if they have any) or visiting a relative. Julia had no one to go to, so the Word Made Flesh staff decided to make her a part of their family. For the week, Julia got to takes turns staying with different members of the community (all who wanted to spend as much time as possible with her).
It was so beautiful to watch this little child, who is deemed an orphan by most of the world, be cared for by so many people. When it was Annie's turn to keep her, she was over at our place all the time (she kicked my butt in checkers!) As I was sitting playing with her, it struck me how amazing it is that so many people would be devestated if she were adopted. If Julia were not there, she would be missed so much! I know many tears would be shed... by the staff and by Julia. She is truely loved and cared for. She has a family.
The more I hung out with her, the more I fell in love as well! I would spend 10 minutes trying to communicate a simple question to her in Romanian and she would just sit there with her big eyse and patiently wait until she understood. Then she would give me a quick answer and we would keep playing. A couple times she would run to Annie and say something in quick Romanian and then Annie would translate a sweet little phrase to me. She even made me a card (I'm pretty sure I will treasure it forever!)
I am so honored to be a part of this organization after I watched how they treat orphans. I am so honored to be a part of Julia's life.
Sunday, March 4, 2012
Piata (The Market)
Today I had my first experience in the Moldovan "Piata" (pronounced pee-ah-t-za). But before that, we went to out first Moldovan church service. After my teammates and I met up with Annie (Our hair covered and our skirts long) we took the autobus to church in Cientra (Chee-en-truh) which is pretty much down-town Chisinau. We walked to the main church right in the center of the city which is an orthodox church. Pretty much everyone here is Orthodox. It was soooo packed that people were standing smushed up against one another even outside the building. It made me think how crazy it is that we have such big churches in America and they are never really fully filled, and here they have smaller churches where people are desperate to get in and willing to stand for 4 hours for the sermon. That church was so full, Annie actually took us to another church close by (also Orthodox) . There were a lot of people begging there, and it was so hard to walk past mothers holding children on church steps begging for money and not give anything! After church, we went for lunch and coffee/hot chocolate! We got to order in Romanian, so that was a lot fun.
Next came the Piata. The Moldovan market. It was crazy and hectic and stressful and wonderful. I loved it so much, it was a huge outdoor place where you could get anything in the world. We did some grocery shopping and we got things like shampoo, pillows, and head scarves for church. I was so proud of myself for knowing numbers because it sure came in helpful. Everyone there was really nice and it was quite obvious we were American! Although, one woman thought we were French =) We ordered lots and got very good at saying "half a kilo" in Romanian. After today, I'm pretty convinced that anyone should make a trip to Moldova sometime in their life just to experience this!
I am so excited for my adventure here, I can't believe it has only been 3 days! I am already exhausted, but it is so much fun. I adore the culture and the people, and playing Romanian Bulderdash with my teammates at night. I hope you all are well too, thank you for all of your support and helping me come to this wonderful place. Annie said to us all the other day "It is not the story of me and God together, it is the story of you and you and you and me and God. It is all of our stories wrapped together!"
If you would like to keep up to date with my teammates blog as well (for a different perspective... or to see if she's writing and crazy stuff about me) here is her link:
www.amandajomartin.wordpress.com
Love you all,
Nopte Buna!
Next came the Piata. The Moldovan market. It was crazy and hectic and stressful and wonderful. I loved it so much, it was a huge outdoor place where you could get anything in the world. We did some grocery shopping and we got things like shampoo, pillows, and head scarves for church. I was so proud of myself for knowing numbers because it sure came in helpful. Everyone there was really nice and it was quite obvious we were American! Although, one woman thought we were French =) We ordered lots and got very good at saying "half a kilo" in Romanian. After today, I'm pretty convinced that anyone should make a trip to Moldova sometime in their life just to experience this!
I am so excited for my adventure here, I can't believe it has only been 3 days! I am already exhausted, but it is so much fun. I adore the culture and the people, and playing Romanian Bulderdash with my teammates at night. I hope you all are well too, thank you for all of your support and helping me come to this wonderful place. Annie said to us all the other day "It is not the story of me and God together, it is the story of you and you and you and me and God. It is all of our stories wrapped together!"
If you would like to keep up to date with my teammates blog as well (for a different perspective... or to see if she's writing and crazy stuff about me) here is her link:
www.amandajomartin.wordpress.com
Love you all,
Nopte Buna!
Things I have learned about Moldova
Moldova is a BEAUTIFUL country and I absolutely love being here. My teammates and i are getting along great, and the WMF Staff are the most amazing people ever (besides you, of course). They are a mixture of Moldovan's and North American's, last night we had some of the over for dinner in our little tiny kitchen and shared our stories and laughed a lot! Although I have only been her for 3 full days, here are some things I have learned thus far:
*Moldovan's really really like beets. They eat some form of beets at pretty much every meal.
*Don't talk on public transportation.
*American's are really loud
*Putting your hands in your pocket it consider the ultimate disprestful action in church
*Personal space does not matter to Moldovan's.
*The language "Moldovan" is spoken Romanian, but written Russian
*You can know anyone's political standing pretty much by the language that they choose to speak. If they are speaking in Russian, they are most likely communist.
*Don't throw your toilet paper in the toilet. It has to go in a trash can.
*Church pretty much goes on all the time! (We have a church very close to our apartment and you can always hear the bells and the choir. It is beautiful)
Friday, March 2, 2012
Buna!
Hi everyone!
I'm here in Moldova and we are having a fantastic time! I am living with 3 other women (Amanda, Jessie, and Heather) and we have our own little apartment! It is a really cute place, we have 2 bedrooms, a room where we will have meetings and stuff, and a kitchen. The kitchen is my favorite part because the table has little benches that go around the wall and make it really cozy to sit in. Like a little breakfast nook!
Last night, we arrived and Annie (our leader) picked us up from the airport. We took a taxi to our apartment and loved looking at all of the buildings. It kind of looks like you would expect Eastern Europe to look like. Really big buildings, mostly housing, kind of gray. Everything here is written in Russian and Romanian, so I've got to work on getting my language better! I kept trying to read the labels on the things we were having for dinner and forgetting that it wasn't English. Lucky we had people there to translate for us!
Today we got to go to the Internat, which is the state run boarding school/orphanage where we will be working. It was really hard not to be able to communicate with the kids, but they won my heart all the same! One of the little girls gave me a lot of hugs and we painted each others nails. She kept following me around and helping me learn how to say things in Romanian. They were all frumas copii (beautiful children). I can not wait to build relationships with them!
I'm here in Moldova and we are having a fantastic time! I am living with 3 other women (Amanda, Jessie, and Heather) and we have our own little apartment! It is a really cute place, we have 2 bedrooms, a room where we will have meetings and stuff, and a kitchen. The kitchen is my favorite part because the table has little benches that go around the wall and make it really cozy to sit in. Like a little breakfast nook!
Last night, we arrived and Annie (our leader) picked us up from the airport. We took a taxi to our apartment and loved looking at all of the buildings. It kind of looks like you would expect Eastern Europe to look like. Really big buildings, mostly housing, kind of gray. Everything here is written in Russian and Romanian, so I've got to work on getting my language better! I kept trying to read the labels on the things we were having for dinner and forgetting that it wasn't English. Lucky we had people there to translate for us!
Today we got to go to the Internat, which is the state run boarding school/orphanage where we will be working. It was really hard not to be able to communicate with the kids, but they won my heart all the same! One of the little girls gave me a lot of hugs and we painted each others nails. She kept following me around and helping me learn how to say things in Romanian. They were all frumas copii (beautiful children). I can not wait to build relationships with them!
Wednesday, February 15, 2012
An Excerpt from One of my Papers
Before leaving for Moldova, each of the girls on our team is required to read and write papers about 5 books. Here is a short excerpt from one of my papers, in which I was responding to "The Irresistible Revolution" by Shane Claiborne.
“Jesus came not just to prepare us to die, but to teach us how to live.” (p.117) I heard a song on the way to work yesterday about how earth is not our home and heaven is really where we are meant to be. I disagree. Earth is our home, and if we were never meant to be here, we wouldn’t be here! We might have messed our home up, but that doesn’t make it a place we came to be in by mistake. I think a lot of Christians in this world, or at least in America, are just waiting for Jesus to sweep down to earth and remove us from the chaos we created ourselves. But what about redemption? What about restoration? I think it is all possible (though extremely difficult) and if we all quit thinking that our only option is to tear down this house and start over somewhere else, some real change might be possible. Bit by bit, through God (who is Love) we can once again make our home fit to live in. We can create a place where people want to be, where we can see God’s beauty and glory everywhere we turn… in every created thing!
“Jesus came not just to prepare us to die, but to teach us how to live.” (p.117) I heard a song on the way to work yesterday about how earth is not our home and heaven is really where we are meant to be. I disagree. Earth is our home, and if we were never meant to be here, we wouldn’t be here! We might have messed our home up, but that doesn’t make it a place we came to be in by mistake. I think a lot of Christians in this world, or at least in America, are just waiting for Jesus to sweep down to earth and remove us from the chaos we created ourselves. But what about redemption? What about restoration? I think it is all possible (though extremely difficult) and if we all quit thinking that our only option is to tear down this house and start over somewhere else, some real change might be possible. Bit by bit, through God (who is Love) we can once again make our home fit to live in. We can create a place where people want to be, where we can see God’s beauty and glory everywhere we turn… in every created thing!
Thursday, February 2, 2012
Old Romanian Folk Songs I Like
Tara noastra-i tara noastra
Dulce pajiste albastra
Aripa sculpta-n dor
De lumina ochilor
Daca-i dor, nu-l stingi cu apa
Daca-i timp, nu-l poti intrece
Daca-i gand, nu-l poti strabe
Noi suntem romani, noi suntem romani
Noi suntem romani ca brazii
Noi suntem romani ca graul
Noi suntem romani ca focul
NOI SUNTEM ROMANI !
Tara noastra e a noastra
Varf de jale si de dor
Dulce arsita albastra
Ca lumina ochilor
Tara noastra-i tara noastra
Dulce pajiste albastra
Aripa sculpta-n dor
De lumina ochilor
Wednesday, January 25, 2012
Unexpected Answers to my Prayers
This evening I had the chance to speak with some families at a church I volunteer with about my trip to Moldova. My hopes for this time was that I would find a couple families who would be able to support me on my trip (fundraising is going painstakingly slow). I have been very worried lately that I will have to zero out my bank account completely, and possibly even have to sell my car in order to be able to go on this trip. With all these fears weighing on my heart, I made up a flyer, practiced a speech, and got ready to ask for help!
When I got to the place, nothing really went as planned. A lot of the families I have had an ongoing relationship with were not able to attend tonight, and things got moved around so there was not really a good opportunity for me to speak to the group as a whole. So, very awkwardly, I went around to the families individually and handed out my flyer and asked for support. I was feeling pretty foolish (and maybe a tad bit hopeless) when I encountered the mother of one of my favorite Kindergarteners.
I had never met her mother before, so as I awkwardly tried to explain who I was I handed her a paper, and her face lit up with excitement! It turns out that is from the Ukraine and spent a lot of time in Moldova. I could see in her face and hear in her voice how much she wanted to talk about her home. She talked away for about an hour, teaching me some Romanian, telling me the best things to eat, how to best protect myself and my belongings, and what the best methods of transportation are. She described to me the terrible struggles people of Moldova have faced in the recent past, recounting her own tales. She opened up to me in a beautiful way, even telling me little things that she does now as a result of the things she experienced back home. She also told me to make sure I spent time with the poor because I could not know the true beauty of the country unless I did.
I did not get to hand out as many of my papers as I had hoped, and I don't think that I got a lot of people to sponsor me, but I got way more out of my conversation tonight than I ever could have imagined. Through being vulnerable and awkward, I gave else the chance to be reminisce about a place that she really misses. I gained a friend and saw a deep sense of pride for a country most of us have never even heard of. Though I still need to kick it up a notch with my fundraising, tonight renewed my faith that God provides. He will give me exactly what I need in order to be present in Moldova, and I think I really needed this beautiful woman he allowed me to meet tonight. Not to mention, she got me really excited to go swimming in the Black Sea!!!
When I got to the place, nothing really went as planned. A lot of the families I have had an ongoing relationship with were not able to attend tonight, and things got moved around so there was not really a good opportunity for me to speak to the group as a whole. So, very awkwardly, I went around to the families individually and handed out my flyer and asked for support. I was feeling pretty foolish (and maybe a tad bit hopeless) when I encountered the mother of one of my favorite Kindergarteners.
I had never met her mother before, so as I awkwardly tried to explain who I was I handed her a paper, and her face lit up with excitement! It turns out that is from the Ukraine and spent a lot of time in Moldova. I could see in her face and hear in her voice how much she wanted to talk about her home. She talked away for about an hour, teaching me some Romanian, telling me the best things to eat, how to best protect myself and my belongings, and what the best methods of transportation are. She described to me the terrible struggles people of Moldova have faced in the recent past, recounting her own tales. She opened up to me in a beautiful way, even telling me little things that she does now as a result of the things she experienced back home. She also told me to make sure I spent time with the poor because I could not know the true beauty of the country unless I did.
I did not get to hand out as many of my papers as I had hoped, and I don't think that I got a lot of people to sponsor me, but I got way more out of my conversation tonight than I ever could have imagined. Through being vulnerable and awkward, I gave else the chance to be reminisce about a place that she really misses. I gained a friend and saw a deep sense of pride for a country most of us have never even heard of. Though I still need to kick it up a notch with my fundraising, tonight renewed my faith that God provides. He will give me exactly what I need in order to be present in Moldova, and I think I really needed this beautiful woman he allowed me to meet tonight. Not to mention, she got me really excited to go swimming in the Black Sea!!!
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