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Online Journal - June 2007 Archive
June 29, 2007 - Friday - I returned home around 10:30 this morning from my trip to northeastern Romania (Botosani to be exact) to attend the funeral of our dear friend, Tudor. Romania is about the size of Oregon (636 miles according to a website) which would on average take about 6 hours to drive from east to west on the highway system we enjoy in America and western Europe. I, and a few others from church, spent 12 hours traveling between train and car to go 450 miles. It was a tiring and difficult trip physically but more so emotionally.
Not only did I
face the normal emotions of burying a
close friend but the cultural differences for me were very
real, graphic, and painful; I choose not to share them out
of respect for my friend. The funeral service was around 3
hours long followed by a walking procession through town
behind the casket and choir to the cemetery. Following a
meal, we traveled back across the country another 7 hours,
slept a few hours, and completed the trip on the train back
to Arad with a 4-hour train ride this morning.
We are already feeling the difference of Tudor being gone as my phone nor the front doorbell ring as much. Sunday worship will be difficult for our congregation as we will miss Tudor’s excellent gift with the drums and his great spirit. We will take time as a congregation on Sunday to remember Tudor, give thanks to God for him, and also give thanks that Tudor is now receiving his reward from our Lord.
We appreciate your prayers and continue to ask for them for Tudor’s family (Hirtie family), his best friend and roommate (Cristi), for our church (especially the children as they really loved Tudor), and our family (we have a hole left in us).
Work continues on the new Oaza home with hopes to move into the house on Monday. We still do not have the septic tank up and running nor do we have gas installed. Please continue to pray about these two items. Also please remember Scott as he is putting in 12-14 hour days right now trying to get things and contractors in order. Paula
June 28, 2007 - Thursday - Well, amidst all the tragedy of Tudor's death we still needed to move forward with the new Oaza house for which I have been managing construction. We managed, with much difficulty, to cross a major hurdle this week: the septic tank is finally in the ground! It will be hooked up to the house by Saturday, clearing the way for the kids to move in on Monday, July 2 (my birthday, happy birthday to me, I guess). The only thing we'll lack (besides exterior finishing) is the natural gas installation. That is still wandering its way thru the bureaucracy. But we've planned to cook with bottled gas, and the kids will be transported to another Oaza house for hot showers, so move-in is possible. And the gas is expected to be installed sometime within the next 3 weeks. Pray!
Click on the following to view the pictures of the septic tank being installed. Scott
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| New Shalom Septic Install June 23-27, 2007 |
June 25, 2007 -
Monday -
We
received a phone call at 2am this morning informing us that
a good friend and attender of our church here in Arad had
been killed in a motorcycle accident. Tudor was actually one
of the first people to befriend us after we moved here in
January 2006 (the picture here is from February, 2006, not
long after we had met him). He would have turned 23 years
old on July 16th.
Tudor was from the northeast part of Romania but had been living in Arad for the last few years while attending university. He was a gifted drummer and had recently begun (again) to play with the worship team in our church. Tudor had become a good friend of our family; Paula and I sometimes commented that it was like we had become a surrogate family for him. So for us it feels a bit like losing a son or maybe a younger brother. And of course this kind of loss rekindles some of the grief we’ve experienced over the last year and a half with the loss of Paula’s grandmother and sister (and several good friends and mentors).
So we would appreciate your prayer support as we grieve yet again. And pray also for Tudor’s family and friends. We were with his room mates last night and they were pretty devastated. And pray for our church, that we can grieve together and also be a help and source of hope for everyone involved. We are comforted to know that Tudor’s faith in Jesus was real and alive. He rests with Jesus today. Scott
June 24, 2007 - Sunday - What a difference one week can make! This past week we enjoyed the presence and help of a construction team from Emmanuel Christian Centre (London area, UK). We need to move the children into the house by the end of this week, and I think we might actually have the place livable! The only essential things we still lack are the septic installation (should happen Monday or Tuesday...that's a looong story) and gas line installation (no idea when this will happen). Keep praying with us on this. God has been answering prayer! Click on the following for updated pictures:
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| New Shalom June 23, 2007 |
We (Paula mostly) will be continuing to help host the team from Family of Christ Church (Michigan, USA) that is here to work with the Oaza children. Some of them have taken sick over the weekend, so pray for their physical health. We also need to begin preparations (teaching and speaking engagements) for our trip to the USA coming up in July. More on that later. Blessings to you! Scott
June 17, 2007 - Sunday - You might guess from the lack of posts this past week that we've been quite busy. For me (Scott), the construction project for the Oaza house has consumed a lot of time because we're coming down to the wire on getting the house in livable condition. Click on the following for updated pictures.
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| New Shalom June 15, 2007 |
And in between the construction work, Paula and I scheduled a whirlwind 24-hour trip to Bucuresti. We climbed on a train from Arad on Tuesday evening (a sleeper car) and awoke Wednesday morning in Bucuresti (10-hour train ride). We had meetings all morning and then re-boarded a train at 12:30pm, returning to Arad 26 hours after we had left (and 20 total hours on the train). It was a looooong day, but good.
We went to meet
with a small group of people with whom we have been
corresponding by email. They were led to Christ a few years
ago by a Methodist missionary from South Korea. Due to a
number of reasons (including the missionary's return to
Korea) they are no longer a part of the Methodist church,
but they want to be Methodist and have relationship with
other Methodists in Romania. So we have been extending the
hand of relationship to them. They are currently meeting as
a house-church with one of the young men serving as pastor.
We will be continuing our contact with this group and allow
the Lord to show us the next steps. Please pray for them as
they seek ways to grow their house fellowship and reach
their neighbors for Christ!
Then to add to an already busy week, today was my turn to preach, so sermon preparation entered into the mix. It felt good to preach today! You can click on the following links to download the text and PowerPoint.
This week will be another busy one. We had a team of 15 arrive early this morning from London, England to assist with the Oaza house construction. They will be here thru Saturday. Another team arrives on Wednesday from America to work with the Oaza children as we get them ready to move next week (yikes!). So for a few days this week we will be hosting 24 guests/servants. Pray for them and pray for us that we can keep everyone where they need to be and when they need to be there. And pray for lots of progress on the house project. This week we need to install a septic tank and receive final approval for our gas line installation plus lots of smaller projects. Thanks for reading and praying! Scott
June 10, 2007 -
Sunday -
Its
cherry
season here again. The cherry tree in our backyard is really
loaded this year. In between the construction work, school,
and assisting some of our short-term volunteers, we've also
been picking bags and bags of cherries. We've boiled some
for juice to be made into jelly (yum!). Others we've given
away to Pastor
Nelu
and his
wife, to our neighbors, and others. It is fun to have this
blessing to share. We'd share with you, too, but these
pictures will have to do!
I also had my
devotions in the backyard one day this week (not that I
planned it that way, God just showed up unexpected!). I took
some time to prune our grape vines, which have now set their
grapes. I learned from my neighbors that I need to prune the
vines after they finishing blooming and set their grapes so
that the plant puts its energy into growing big, juicy
grapes rather than meters and meter (literally) of
empty
vines and leaves. The clusters of fruit only need a few
leaves to grow nicely. So as I was pruning away the
unnecessary branches with no fruit, I was thinking the whole
time about John 15 where Jesus speaks about the vine and
branches, pruning and fruitfulness. As i would cut away a
branch with no fruit on it, it seemed a bit harsh. But
ultimately it is for the good...the plant is healthier, the
fruit will be more plump and sweet, and we'll get to enjoy
lots more grape jelly!
Then the Spirit seemed to ask, "Scott, which kind of branch are you? Are there any activities in your life that need to be trimmed away to make you more fruitful for Me?" Ouch! But it was a question aimed for my ultimate good.
So, I guess I'll share that question with you: "Which kind of branch are you? Are there any activities in your life that need to be trimmed away to make you more fruitful for Me?" Scott
June 6, 2007 - Wednesday - From time to time situations will arise in which we need our community of senders to make an extra effort in prayer on our behalf. Now is one of those times.
As
you may remember, Scott has been managing the construction
of the new
Oaza house (a ministry to abandoned children). Today we
have just over three weeks to complete this new house…or at
least get it to a point where the children can safely
live in the home while it is being finished. There are
many details yet to be accomplished, and we have faith that
the Lord can accomplish them! So, we are asking you to lift
these matters to prayer.
1. There is a man who has been contracted to modify (fiberglass) our septic tank prior to installation. He has promised now for several weeks to come and do the work but as yet has not shown. That we know, there is no one else here who can do this task. Please pray he will come this week and be blessed when he does!
2. Once the septic tank is modified, we need to hire an excavator and get the tank in the ground and running. Timing on this is crucial and safety concerns are an issue as we dig such a large hole in a relatively high-water-table area.
3. Please pray for our volunteer tile-layers (a man from our church and his assistant) who are working very hard to complete the tile work in the upstairs bathrooms. They will then need to move downstairs and complete hallways, bathrooms, and a large entry hall. Pray that their efforts will be miraculously multiplied daily and for the Lord to bless them as they work!
4. Laminate flooring will arrive next week. Pray that we can find a reliable and quality-work contractor to do this work in a timely manner.
5. Please pray for the electrician (also a volunteer from our local church here) that his work will be a blessing to him and to the children…and done on time.
6. Please pray that the kitchen will be installed next week as promised and for all to go well with this.
7. Please pray for the gas lines to be connected within the next two weeks. The gas company and the city hall work at their own pace! The Lord can work in spite of government red-tape!
8. Please pray that the fencing around the courtyard will be completed on time. We’re currently experiencing delays on this due to contractor issues.
9. We have two teams (totaling 24 people in total!) coming in the next two weeks to assist us with final construction and move-in stuff and with keeping the children occupied while all of the transition is taking place. We are so thankful they are coming, however, this is a lot of people to care for at the same time as trying to complete the work on the house. Please pray for them and us! J
10. And while you’re on your knees, ask the Lord to send a few more dollars (or euros or pounds or lei) our way. The Lord has provided enough funds to get the house livable (for which we praise Him!) but we’re still short on funding for making the house complete (like exterior plaster, for example, a costly item).
This is a short list of things that need to be accomplished but as you can see they are very critical items. We would so much appreciate your prayers on our behalf but more importantly on behalf of the workers and the children. The Lord sees their needs and wants to care for them. But the Lord is giving all of us opportunity to partner in this project through prayer and see His hands at work!
We are counting on your prayers! Please consider sharing these needs with your church, small group, or class…neighbors and friends if you wish.
June 4, 2007 - Monday - I (Scott) took a train about 4 hours south on Saturday afternoon in order to visit an 8-month-old church plant that we are encouraging in the city of Drobeta-Turnu-Severin (see our January 25 and 31 journal entries). Our connection with this work is through a young musician from our Arad church who has been working with this church plant over the last six months to train worship leadership for them. Since one of the primary things God has called us to do in Romania is encourage and equip Romanian leaders for church planting, it is a natural place to invest some of our time. My time spent with them was great! They are ministering in a very spiritually difficult area of Romania, but God is helping them. Please pray for their lead planter, Ionuţ, his wife Jenni, for Cristian (the musician from our church in Arad), and for the 10-15 young adults in their core group. Scott