Romania – July 10, 2023

Today was an early wake-up call for the team as we headed from where we are staying in Beius to the Roma village of Tinca at 6:30. It was a beautiful 45 minute drive through the countryside to reach the village where we would spend the day working on a house for a family. Pulling up to the village, we were all struck by how quickly the homes went from what is commonly seen in the rest of the country to homes that were clearly impoverished.

The house had a foundation and wooden frame that was built prior to our arrival. The morning of work began with moving long wooden planks from inside the church building to the work space outside. Most of our team worked on planing and painting, and over time, we developed an efficient system!  Throughout the day, the team planed about 130 of these boards, and painted about 50.  This was all prep work for the materials for the house.

George, Daniel, and Alex worked on the house itself, installing a moisture barrier around the sides and part of the roof, and getting it ready for siding. For tomorrow, there is more of the roof to do, we can begin putting on wood siding, and we can mount the door and window.

As the morning wore into afternoon, the sun beat down stronger and the shadows moved away from the workspace. The last hour or so before lunch was brutal! Throughout the morning, the kids of the village became more and more comfortable with us, coming up to the worksite, hanging on the fence, and singing. A man from the village also volunteered to help us paint.

Many of us looked at the large sandwiches provided for lunch with incredulity, but we soon found that we were able to down the delicacies quite quickly. With our souls refreshed and our bodies refueled, we prepared an experimental lesson about making choices God wants for us, a lesson on germs, a craft, and some outdoor games (which turned into soccer!) for the kids in the village.

18 kids showed up for the program, and they really enjoyed the activities. It can be heartbreaking to know how little these kids have, not just in ways of material possession, but in love and attention from their families as well. Our heart for them this week is that they would get a taste of the love the Lord has for them.

After spending some time with them, we provided them all with some fruit leftover from our lunch. Some of the team also helped put away the leftover boards that we didn’t get around to painting while the rest of us handed out the fruit, which was such a blessing! We then headed back to Beius for some rest, relaxation, and a delicious dinner.

In conclusion, our team works really well together. Tomorrow we will finish painting the boards, start getting them up on the house, and make more progress on the roof. Thank God for the success we had today, and please pray that the children would feel loved by their Creator and that we would be renewed in His strength for another day of work tomorrow.

~Emily for the Romania Team