After an extremely hot summer, full of events, exams and changes, the girls spent a week with cold temperatures in the mountains together with the young people from Bethany Baptist church in a warm atmosphere. When they came back, the girls spent a few weeks together at Deborah 2, while the parents from Deborah 1 had a well-deserved holiday, after 4 years of constant working and serving.

Please see the following PDFs to read about this past month’s Pastor’s Retreat:

• 2007 Pastor’s Retreat Newsletter
• 2007 Pastor’s Retreat Participant Reflections

After celebrating Easter at Bethel together with approximately 300 children from several orphanages, we had a period full of activities in the orphanages in Recas, Lugoj and in Timisoara with the group of students that we meet with every week.

We continue to have meetings with the children, to learn songs and to study the Bible with them. We are glad that their participation is very good and they happily get involved in what we do. During the school year there are about 80 children who come to school from the villages around Recas and are not orphans. Through them our teachings reach their families. It is a chance and a great opportunity through which Jesus Christ can be known by the little ones and by their families.

We had the joy to be visited by several teams from the States. The children enjoyed their presence, their messages and of course, their gifts.

During the summer holiday (especially those who are admitted in the centers, and do not have families), went to school camps. Together with Rodica we visited them, and both the children and the tutors had the occasion to hear about the love of God. 

At Raul Alb, a camp in the mountains close to Resita, at about 80 miles south-east fromTimisoara, a team from Aldersgate United Methodist Church, from Toledo, OH, USA, lead by Tim Kreps visited the children, and they had biblical sketches, gifts and games through which they presented the Lord Jesus. We enjoyed spending time with the children in the beautiful landscape.

For the international day for children, 1^st of June, we were invited with the children from Recas and Lugoj and with the students from Timisoara to the Young Offenders Center in Buzias where we had a religious meeting. The children sang and said poems, and all those who participated, almost 250 people, were able to listen to a short message about the priority to have a personal relationship with the Lord Jesus. God opened this door for me to present the importance of having Jesus Christ in your heart.           

Between 10-12 September we went with some of the students from Timisoara and a group of young offenders from Buzias to Surduc (a Christian center for Bible study, 100 miles east of Timisoara), where we studied the Word of God for 3 days, and played sports during the day, while in the evening we had a special time of worship. It was a blessed time.

Another school year has started now and we are daily involved in this ministry. We do appreciate very much your continue support in prayer, we need it very much! We are very much aware that only God can change the hearts of the children we minister to. At a personal level, please do pray for us as family, especially because my father is very ill, mainly is in bed all the time. We thank each one of you for your partnership in ministry! Thank you for your prayers, it means so much to us! During the years you have been such an encouragement and a blessing for us.

May God bless you all abundantly!