Online Journal - August 2006 Archive

 

August 28, 2006 - Monday - I just read a really thought-provoking post on the blog of our Director of World Missions, Dr. Art Brown. Check it out HERE and scroll to his August 23 entry if you want to think about little things making a BIG difference in our God-assigned task to reach the world for Christ.

And after you check out that link, go to http://www.geordan.lx.ro/ty.html to find out how we feel about all of you who support us so faithfully with your prayers and gifts! You'll understand the message, but the first words you see are in Romanian, which read, "Do you know how much I give thanks for you?" Keep refreshing your browser if the page fails to load; it will eventually. Go ahead, it'll make you smile.   Scott

August 24, 2006 – Friday - Back to the festival this morning for a few minutes. I heard there were craft booths so I had to take a look! :-) There were a few craft tables but mostly food booths. I love the baskets and the pottery! My only purchase was a handmade white table runner. However, I was very tempted to purchase the largest hand-painted egg I have ever seen made from a ostrich egg. It was larger than my hand! Absolutely beautiful but too expensive for me at this time (about $90 but very much worth it.) I also really like the handmade musical instruments…another temptation. :-) I would have a room of cultural instruments if I could! Scott (and I) enjoyed a chocolate filled pancake and we went to smell the large pots of sarmale (cabbabe rolls).

 

 

 

 

Thanks for praying for the kids and their first week of school. They have had a great start and both feel encouraged.

We have been busy the last several days helping Oaza with three teams (two here at once) from the UK. We certainly enjoy meeting new people from all over the world and serving them as they minister to our community.

I picked up a book from my shelf the other day of daily devotions written by Hannah Whiteall Smith (compiled by Melvin and Hallie Dieter) which I purchased years ago while at Asbury Seminary. The title is God is Enough. I have found the last couple of days readings very interesting being where we are in ministry currently. Here is an excerpt,

Whether in temptation or in service, if we cease from our own plan and our own activities, leaving the care and ordering of our work to Him, He will plan for us, work through us, and use us as His instruments to accomplish His own purposes of love and mercy. The responsibility will be all His; we need only be OBEDIENT. Who can understand the sweet rest of the soul to be found in this, except those who have experienced it? Everywhere and in everything we are nothing and Christ is all!

No matter if we are (that means you and me)...in the States or somewhere else in the world…following His plans obediently is all He asks. May all of us know this “sweet rest of the soul” as we seek to be obedient to Him!

Fiţi binecuvântaţi (be blessed)…Paula

 

August 24, 2006 – Thursday - We had a tradition back in the States that we decided to continue…first day of school pictures. It has been interesting over the years to compare pictures and see how the kids have grown from year to year. I don’t have last year’s picture on my computer to show you but maybe you can compare the picture with our prayer card taken two years ago…you do know where that is don’t you! :-)

 

A friend from our church helped us find someone to put Stephen’s cello back together this week(it was taken apart for shipping purposes). The gentleman plays for the Arad symphony. He invited us to attend an outdoor concert which was the kick-off for a festival in town called “Zilele Aradului” (The Days of Arad). There were horse-drawn carriages and people dressed up in period costumes. The festival will have many concerts from different bands and apparently some craft and food booths.

 

More fruit picking….yellow plums, purple plums, and our first picking of grapes. Some of the teens from Oaza came over and helped us pick more fruit which we shared with the three homes. Fruit was picked and fruit was eaten. We ended up with 11 grocery bags full of plums. We appreciated the help and the homes appreciated the fruit.

 

If you haven’t heard, the buyer's inspection on our house revealed a previously unknown bulge in the basement wall of our house that is for sale in the States. We do not know where it came from because we never saw it, but nonetheless it is there. The buyers have backed out of our purchase contract, so the house is back on the market. We are currently trying to obtain estimates for repair (which will be costly). The story of the walls of Jericho came to my mind yesterday…not that I want our wall to fall down. I figure that if God can cause walls to fall then He can certainly cause walls to straighten again…right?! Please pray for us to see God’s path through this entire situation. Paula

 

August 20, 2006 – Sunday - Wow! What a summer. As you have read, we have not been bored. We cannot believe that our summer is over tomorrow…the kids begin school bright and early tomorrow morning. They will again be attending NorthStar Christian Academy (an internet-based school) right from their very own living room while being connected to students all over the world. They have classmates in St. Petersburg (Russia), Al Ain (United Arab Emirates), India, and the USA. We continue to feel God’s provision for Stephen and Lydia for which we are very thankful.

Camp was great for Lydia and I, and we believe God used our service. Thanks for praying! We personally enjoyed the sound and feel of the cold mountain stream and hiking through the beautiful hills and forest. We continue to laugh about the daily encounters with the herd of cows who visited the camp doorstep. We used our language skills (no matter how small) daily and gained some confidence. We came home exhausted (as you always do from camp) but feel a new depth of relationship with the children of the church and others.

 

We had some family time this past weekend in Budapest. Larry and Katie Winckles graciously allowed us to stay with them for a few days. On Friday, we enjoyed a folk art festival (in connection with St. Stephen's Day, a national Hungarian holiday) with them and then began our journey back home on Saturday after a long-awaited shopping trip (seven months waiting…no one can say I am a compulsive shopper!) for some household items.

 

Unfortunately, the contract we had on the sale of our home has fallen through… again. We are continuing to trust God even though it does not make sense to us. Our Father is aware of our needs and will either meet those needs or use this time to deepen our faith.

This week we will assist Oaza with a ministry team from the UK and continue preparations to take several people from the church for a Regional Leaders Conference in the Ukraine in mid-September. Language study is also at the top of my list along with getting the kids going in school.

As we look back over the summer, we can see the many ways in which God provided for us and strengthened us. The ministry teams that served here not only blessed the ministry but also us personally. Again, we are so thankful for your support through your finances, notes, emails, prayers and packages.

With a tired body but a thankful heart…Paula

 

August 16, 2006 - Wednesday - Today is our daughter Lydia's 13th birthday. We can hardly believe our "baby" is now a teenager! We are so thankful for the beautiful young lady (both inside and outside) she has become and is becoming, and we are very proud of her.

Many thanks to those of you have sent cards, etc. Lydia's youth group from Columbus sent her a box of special items, and it actually arrived today, on her birthday. It was great timing for her considering the unpredictable postal system here. We know of another box or two that are still in transit. Thank you for those in advance! Scott & Paula

 

August 12, 2006 - Saturday - We're in Budapest this weekend for training event for our national pastors who are in the ordination process. We're accompanying Pastor Nelu and his son, Casius. Paula and the kids are here with us, taking some R&R in this beautiful European city. For a more complete report on the New Pastor Orientation sessions, you can check out Larry Winckles' blog here. Scott

 

August 10, 2006 - Thursday - We arrived in Budapest this evening for the beginning of an ordination training weekend for our national pastors in Europe. As we approached the city we received a call from our realtor in Ohio telling us that we had TWO accepted offers to choose from on our home in Columbus (It's been for sale since November, 2005). So we were able to use the technology tools at our European office to sign the deal. We're in contract! We count this as an answer to YOUR prayers, and we ask that you continue to pray about this transaction. It is scheduled to close by the end of August. Scott

 

August 9, 2006 - Wednesday - We brought Paula and Lydia home from camp with the Oaza kids today. They are tired! Stephen and I went down Tuesday afternoon to spend the evening with the campers. He and I went for a short hike up one of the mountain roads about 9:30pm last night and snapped these pictures of the fog and rain clouds hanging over the valley and village of Marga below. Sorry they're not better quality; all I had with me was my cell phone and it doesn't quite capture the majesty of what we saw!

Now we're trying to get all their clothes washed from 12 days of camp so we can leave for Budapest tomorrow late-morning. I am taking Pastor Nelu to our European office in Budapest for a training weekend for our national pastors who are in the Free Methodist ordination process. Paula and the kids are going along for just some R & R time. Pray for their rest. Scott

 

August 7, 2006 - Monday - Well, it's been a whirlwind around here since my last entry. Paula and Lydia are still at camp with the Oaza kids (we bring them home on Wednesday), and Stephen and I have been busy helping host a team of plasterers from England. They are plastering some walls in the new Oaza house that is under construction (see May 22 journal entry here), and since Laura is at camp with the kids, she asked me to help supervise the team's visit. Stephen and I have had fun (most of the time) learning how to hang plaster board, mix "gear" (the glue that sticks the board to the brick walls), and clean tools to a plasterer's satisfaction! Scott