Thursday, February 16, 2012

No heat for the schools.

http://www.nineoclock.ro/79-killed-by-cold-and-blizzard-259-localities-still-isolated/

This is news link talking about the weather in Romania.  Many people have asked how we are holding up because of the news of cold weather here.   Our part of the country is not too bad and pretty typical for Nebraska weather.  Weather to the north of us is much worse; snow has covered entire homes.  To the south of us an hour there is lots of ice and snow.

The news link is a bit long but if you want a good idea of how Romania operates read it.  We don't have snow plows like Auburn does or the salt spreaders.  Salt spreaders here is a couple of guys shoveling out salt as they drive by. Basically our whole village is a sheet of ice.  Walking is difficult and driving for the last couple of weeks has been out of the question.

We have kept the wood soba running and I think it has a hard time keeping up because it is never really that warm.  A few days ago I wore 7 long sleeve shirts to keep comfortable.  To leave the warmth of the stove requires a jacket so to cook or use the bathroom or do anything away from the heated rooms we bundle up.  We are counting our blessings though at least we are not trapped in our house for days and days.  We have learned of people trapped in their houses' for ten days. The firemen bring bread to the people after the home owners are tunneled out.

Here in Babadag the schools have ran out of heat for the buildings.  At first I thought the furnace broke down but the truth is they don't have the money to heat the building.  The kids continue to go to school with winter jackets on.  One of our friends' daughter got frost bit toes at school.  Kind of crazy.  Sheena went to school with a woman getting a GED. She said it was COLD!  

Saturday, February 11, 2012

Code orange

This is the week when everything breaks down I will be glad we got it scheduled and now it is out of the way for the year. Two fridges went out, the car gave us all sorts of fits, our computer charger is not charging, the shower faucet split somehow, we found mice in the house, etc etc. to top it off we have had snow and wind and so many of the highways are closed. When the weather gets bad the Romanian nation has a color code for highway safety. Yellow is take caution, orange is stay home and red is you will die if you leave. We seem to be in code orange and yellow a lot.

Because of the highway situation we have been limited on what we can do in other villages. The code orange has not stopped the ministry in our village though. Here is the latest. Andreea and I have been working with a girl who said her first personal prayer a couple of weeks ago. Last week we prayed together as a group. Please pray for this girl. We have been teaching her english through an english Bible.

We are also getting ready to launch a youth group here in Babadag. There are a few teenagers that I have met at a youth center ran by a Romanian foundation. We will teach the students biblical leadership practices and then we hope to have the students lead small groups of younger kids in our village. Please please please pray for this group. We are very excited about it.

This week my family had supper at some friends house. It was awesome. We had a very traditional meal of sarmale and baked apples. A very good meal and even better fellowship. Moving is a bit intimating; moving internationally is even more so but it seems to me God had prepared everything for us to plug in and start working. The mother of the home of where we ate and visited told me it was always her dream to have a Bible teaching youth group in town. It will be fun to be a part of that dream very soon.

I have been talking with a church in Oregon they plan on bringing a team in the summer. To plan pray and think about what we will do in the summer is a nice escape from the snow and wind. More importantly it is encouraging to meet new people interested in making disciples amongst the least of these. Please pray for this very enthusiastic team.

Maybe you have heard Romania is in a bit of political turmoil (what country isn't). The headlines read much worse than the real situation. One headline read 'government collapses after violent protest.' The truth is the prime minister stepped down. That is it. Some protest have been going on but by in large very peaceful. Romania has taken loans from the European union and is now therefore subjects to austerity measures much like Greece but not nearly as bad.

Kale is doing very well and is an instant hit with everyone he meets. We almost have him completely potty trained. He is picking up many words in english and says a few in Romanian. His friend came from Constanta and they had a few play dates together. Watching Kale learn to share if fun. Thank you all for reading and praying. It is working I can't wait to see what He has planned next.