So.....we left off with me feeling awful, riding in a car on a winding Romanian road. Once we got to the YWAM base in the city of Targu Mures we were able to rest. We then went shopping for food and in the taxi on the way home as I was talking I suddenly realized that I was hearing somewhat of a normal voice coming from my throat. At the same time Camille turns to me and says "Hey Beth, how's your voice? You're sounding more normal." Praise God-it was finally taking a turn to the better! I had been humbled and had to trust God through some awful nights of pain and little sleep and I was so grateful to hear normal tones coming out. God always teaches me through any sickness I have. It never fails that I experience Him more and greater and that I have to depend on others to help me through-something I'm constantly learning to do better within this beautiful community we call "church." Being in Romania again was a blessing, and was difficult. So many people there have no dreams and lack of hope. Most of the students say they want to get out of Romania, go study in America or somewhere else. Economically Romania isn't doing well. Yet, there are shafts of light that spring into existence when God's people choose to love these beautiful Romanian people. Romania was still as beautiful as I remembered and it uplifted my spirits with flowers in the city. The weather was so nice and we were able to wear shorts!! My first time since coming to Norway in September. :o) Here are some highlights of our time in Targu Mures:
~Teaching English Classes (1st Picture)--I got to lead some English Class for high schoolers! It was nice to be back in a classroom after volunteering for years in different schools. I enjoy teaching and it was nice to be able to do something that just comes naturally to me. The kids were pretty receptive. We had fun and it was quite funny to see their reaction to me being from California. Yep-CA is a glamour, beach, dream spot for them. I told them of CA's beauty and freedom, but I also told them that is wasn't all glitz and glamour. We encouraged them to dream and live with a purpose. We made some sweet friends and got a ton more friends on facebook! Ha.
~JoEllen, Lief, and myself all went to a hospital with a special ward for tuberculosis patients. (2nd and last picture) We played cards with two teenage boys while Anna, a little girl, colored. It was fun to bring joy and some life into their lives. At the end we prayed for them all (we had a translator). We then sang "Amazing Grace" as we sang and prayed this song I reached out and stroked Anna's hair. I looked over at her and could see and feel her body become more peaceful and she sat and listened to us. It was a "God" moment.
~Philharmonic Orchestra! (3rd and 4th picture) A little group of us attended the Philharmonic Orchestra right there in the city one of the nights. It was a huge blessing/refreshment for me, as listening to live music is one of my favorite things to do. It brings me closer to God as I appreciate His creativity and the gift of music he has given to us humans. I cried a little while listening and had an amazing time experiencing the music (with a special guest pianist!) with some of my dearest friends.
~Helping the base out practically (6th picture) We did some work for the Targu Mures YWAM base, I was helping in the garden pulling weeds, the "boys" were making a roof out of scratch materials for the attic, and the fine artists were giving the place a little more appeal. :o) The fine artists ended up painting the world on the walls of the entry way, and also did some decorating of the entry wall mailboxes. It was nice to be able to bless peeps from our YWAM family and do some physical labor.
There were many beautiful moments with the people of the Targu Mures base. They were greatly encouraged by our creativity. We got to lead worship for them and perform some of the pieces we had put together in Norway. I got to do my testimony dance outside for them and it went pretty well! (We were all relieved since we hadn't practiced much!) We prayed for some of the staff before we left and got to give them some words from the Lord. I ended up dancing for Camille, which was a blessing for me to use my dance the last day we were there. God is good all the time and this time on outreach was definitely filled with His goodness, grace, joy, peace, and love. Praise Him!! And thank you everyone for all your prayers! :o)
