The past week has been a little rough for me honestly. I'm beginning to realize just how much I do not like change. I suppose this is a good thing to know especially since I had no idea prior to moving here. However, regardless of how I feel, the Lord is so faithful and that is a fact! Time and time again I see how He hears me and answers my prayers. I had been feeling overwhelmed with the move. It's hard when everything around you is completely unfamiliar. Even going on a date with my husband was a little stressful simply because I had no idea what to order on the menu at the restaurant we went to because it was all in Romanian. It ended up being great and thankfully our waiter spoke English. He recommended the "meat pancake" and it was delicious. It was kind of like a lasagna burrito with sour cream type stuff on top. My stomach didn't quite agree with my taste buds but I suppose adjusting to the food just comes with the territory.
I've found myself really trying not to be angry at the Lord. He continues to encourage me and remind me that He does actually know what's best for me. He has been reminding me of how initially, I didn't think that Matt was His best for me either. Initially when Matt and I became friends I had absolutely no romantic interest in him at all...and then one day I looked at Matt and he looked different. Not because He had changed at all, but because God had changed my heart. Now having been married for almost 3 years I know without a shadow of a doubt Matt IS God's absolute best for me. The Lord is showing me that Romania is sort of the same. Initially I may have no interest in being here but one day I will look around and suddenly it will all look different and not because anything around me has changed, but simply because my heart has been changed. Until that day He remains faithful to remind me constantly of His presence while assuring me that He is with me and my family and this team.
On Saturday, one of the people we met through Pathway to Joy and his wife, took us to their grandpa's farm out in a tiny village in the countryside of Romania. It was absolutely beautiful! The best part was it was something familiar, which I desperately needed. It reminded me of the summers I spent in Tennessee with my best friend's family who lived on a farm. The smell of the hay, mixed with fresh cut grass, the clean crisp air and just the simplicity of life on the farm. It was a breath of fresh air and a reminder that my Father in Heaven hears me and is ready to help me in any way I might need Him to.
Isaiah 41:10: "Fear not, for I am with you; Be not dismayed, for I am your God. I WILL STRENGTHEN YOU. Yes I WILL HELP YOU, I will uphold you with my righteous right hand."
There is no feeling quite like the feeling you get from being strengthened by the Lord. It's almost indescribable. One minute you feel as though you can't go on any longer because it's just too hard...and the next minute you feel as though nothing could stop you. It's one of the many reasons that I know my God is real. That Jesus is real. That He is alive and active and that He cares about me and how I feel. It's what enables me to press on and press in...to do things I could never do on my own...(like move to Romania with my husband and a baby.) I truly can do ALL things through Christ who strengthens me. So although it's hard and it's uncomfortable most of the time, He enables me to thrive. To not only move forward, but to run forward in the goodness that He has for me, my family and my team. He really only does good and wondrous things and even if it doesn't necessarily feel "good" at the time, I know that He is good and that's good enough for me!
(On a side note we start our language classes tonight. We will be meeting with our teacher for an hour Mon-Thurs. Please pray for supernatural understanding because this is pretty much what will allow us to build relationships with people. Communication is key!)
Monday, June 18, 2012
Saturday, June 9, 2012
What a Week
Greetings from Romania!
The past week has been a bit of a whirlwind. The team went out to visit one of the gypsy villages, we went to a pentecostal church where Matt and Amy got to share, we bought a car and we have been exploring Oradea and figuring out where and how to buy groceries (it's hard to buy food in another language so most of the time we're just guessing and hoping for the best). We are hoping to start taking language lessons 4 times a week soon which will help A LOT. The team will be going out the gypsy village again tomorrow and we are planning several outreaches for the week so this week should be pretty exciting! (we still don't have internet. We have an internet stick that gets passed around between the 6 of us to use. Once we get it in the house it will be easier to post pictures & update more regularly. We are learning that everything is a lot slower than we are used too...well except for drivers on the road ha ha.)
Acclimating has been a pretty fun experience and fortunately Kylie has been handling it really well. It was a little rough the first couple of days when I was jet lagged and she wanted to play at 1 in the morning but we are starting to get back on a schedule which is nice for us and for her. Plus she's back to sleeping through the night (well as of last night at least.) But each night has been getting better and better. We've also starting feeding her oat cereals which she loves and I'm pretty sure she's going to start crawling soon.
You know, I would just like to say that for all of you out there who read this and might think that you could never be a missionary or don't "feel" called...don't worry, I didn't either. I never saw myself living in Romania that's for sure. All I know is, the Lord invited me to join Him in His work and experience Him in a way I never had before. Because I love Him I couldn't say no. It certainly wasn't my first choice and honestly it's been hard. I've just gotten to a place of being willing to accept that things in life are hard and I'm willing to struggle through it. I have days when I wake up and really want to be back "home" in San Diego and it's hard not being there but we are each created to know and experience our creator...the lover of our souls. There is no life outside of Jesus Christ. Knowing Him IS life. So if that means I have to slap a label on my back says "missionary" then so be it. But I challenge you to really ask yourself, are you truly experiencing the fullness of Christ in your life? Are you willing for Him to take you to a foreign country even if you don't "feel called." Society says follow your heart...Christ says to lead your heart by following Him. It's not easy and sometimes you don't want to but I'm sure Christ didn't want to necessarily die on the cross...but He did, and that's what love does. It lays down its life for its friends...
So our Romanian adventure has begun...this should be interesting.
"For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many."
Mark 10:45
The past week has been a bit of a whirlwind. The team went out to visit one of the gypsy villages, we went to a pentecostal church where Matt and Amy got to share, we bought a car and we have been exploring Oradea and figuring out where and how to buy groceries (it's hard to buy food in another language so most of the time we're just guessing and hoping for the best). We are hoping to start taking language lessons 4 times a week soon which will help A LOT. The team will be going out the gypsy village again tomorrow and we are planning several outreaches for the week so this week should be pretty exciting! (we still don't have internet. We have an internet stick that gets passed around between the 6 of us to use. Once we get it in the house it will be easier to post pictures & update more regularly. We are learning that everything is a lot slower than we are used too...well except for drivers on the road ha ha.)
Acclimating has been a pretty fun experience and fortunately Kylie has been handling it really well. It was a little rough the first couple of days when I was jet lagged and she wanted to play at 1 in the morning but we are starting to get back on a schedule which is nice for us and for her. Plus she's back to sleeping through the night (well as of last night at least.) But each night has been getting better and better. We've also starting feeding her oat cereals which she loves and I'm pretty sure she's going to start crawling soon.
You know, I would just like to say that for all of you out there who read this and might think that you could never be a missionary or don't "feel" called...don't worry, I didn't either. I never saw myself living in Romania that's for sure. All I know is, the Lord invited me to join Him in His work and experience Him in a way I never had before. Because I love Him I couldn't say no. It certainly wasn't my first choice and honestly it's been hard. I've just gotten to a place of being willing to accept that things in life are hard and I'm willing to struggle through it. I have days when I wake up and really want to be back "home" in San Diego and it's hard not being there but we are each created to know and experience our creator...the lover of our souls. There is no life outside of Jesus Christ. Knowing Him IS life. So if that means I have to slap a label on my back says "missionary" then so be it. But I challenge you to really ask yourself, are you truly experiencing the fullness of Christ in your life? Are you willing for Him to take you to a foreign country even if you don't "feel called." Society says follow your heart...Christ says to lead your heart by following Him. It's not easy and sometimes you don't want to but I'm sure Christ didn't want to necessarily die on the cross...but He did, and that's what love does. It lays down its life for its friends...
So our Romanian adventure has begun...this should be interesting.
"For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many."
Mark 10:45
Monday, June 4, 2012
We finally made it! Kylie and I made it safely to Romania. It was a very long journey (we missed our connecting flight and got to stay the night in a beautiful hotel in Istanbul) but Kylie did SO good. I still can't believe what an amazing baby she is. I have never encountered such an easy going baby. I mean of course I'm a little biased, but she didn't really even fuss or cry at all during the whole 2 day adventure.
The biggest challenge has been adjusting to the 10 hour time difference. We are all still tired and trying to catch up on our sleep. It's also a little different having the sun out till about 10:00 pm but we are adjusting.
We are still working on getting a better internet connection and when that happens I plan to update more and add some photos but I just wanted to let everyone know that we made it and are enjoying our new life in Romania!
The biggest challenge has been adjusting to the 10 hour time difference. We are all still tired and trying to catch up on our sleep. It's also a little different having the sun out till about 10:00 pm but we are adjusting.
We are still working on getting a better internet connection and when that happens I plan to update more and add some photos but I just wanted to let everyone know that we made it and are enjoying our new life in Romania!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)