VerityRomania06's Xanga

Thursday, April 06, 2006

Thu, 06 Apr 2006 21:19:19 GMT

Praise the Lord, we're alive and well!

The '06 globetrotters are all present and accounted for this side of the US border and are glad to be back on American soil. All connected flights were caught, praise God, so a good deal less time was spent in transit this time.

We're all glad to be home where we're not dependent on a translator and can't wait to see you, our family and friends.

Since this will probably be my last post on this blog, I'll sign off officially.

posted by Becky Thomson in Flint, Michigan

Wednesday, April 05, 2006

Wed, 05 Apr 2006 17:54:52 GMT

Comrades,

Strangely, this will be our last post from Romania. I say strangely because it seems like we have been here both forever and not at all--all at once.

Continue to pray, warriors. The Lord welcomed several young lives into his family within the last week and we are loath to leave them. The culture here is similar to America in that Christian young people will find it difficult to chose the path of most resistance in their every day lives. Pray for the seeds we've planted, the ground we've watered and the lives we've birthed. They will all need it in the days to come.

We will leave here in approximately three hours for Budapest where we will board our flights home. We can't wait to see all of you! We come back exhausted (we did a lot of shopping today ) but stronger in the Lord and tighter as a group.

Oh yes, and pray that the Paris group makes their connection.

P.S. Watch the Verity website after spring break for a Romania Trip photo gallery in the Student Life section.

posted by Becky Thomson from Oradea, Romania

A late photo post...

Sat, 01 Apr 2006 18:44:03 GMT

Sorry about the wait. It's not about not having images to view but having the means to put them up to view. These pictures are from our days in Marghita—we are in Stei right now.

Tuesday's adventures...
Went to the black forest on this day and then had supper and a walk at some castle with a name I will not try and spell. It was a lovely day. Below are some group shots and I have more on my blog.

Some great chaps on the first step...

Wednesday's visits...

Verity students making friends with the students at one of the schools we visited.

Sarah getting down to the students level...this works in opening doors for good communication.

Verity students make friends were ever they go, just as Rachel is doing now.

Several of the teams were able to return to one of the orphan houses and see our "old" friends again.

This little tyke loved the post card that was given to him.

Some of the girls couldn't put them down...can't blame them.

Thursday's travels...

The team in front of the city hall in Beius. The mayor, located in the middle, was very welcoming and made our short stay most pleasent.

After peeking in a interesting market and eating at a highschool, we traveled up some mountains and froze. Eighteen inches...and dress shoes...not a great combo...people like me enjoyed our North Face hiking shoes and made a packed trail for the frozen ones.

We are currently in Stei. I will hopefully post more photos later. God bless and thank you for your support.

Posted by Grayson Stallings in Stei, Romania.

Thoughts from the Road...

Fri, 31 Mar 2006 16:35:20 GMT

Who are you when there's someone looking?

As Americans in Romania, we're pretty high profile over here. Even the most awkward among us is hugely popular, which basically means that everywhere we go, someone's looking. They watch our bus as we roll into town, pause in their chores as we walk by their yard and essentially just stare quite unashamedly at anything we happen to be doing.

The responsibilty is pretty overwhelming.

For some of the people we've met, we may be the first--and possibly only--living representatives of both America and her church that they have ever seen. Do they see Christ in us?

I certainly pray that they do, but it makes me consider my life back home too. People say that you are the person you are when no one's looking, but it's also important that your life when people ARE looking is reflecting what you believe.

Do Americans see something different in you?

posted by Becky Thomson from Stei, Romania

Thursday, March 30, 2006

Thu, 30 Mar 2006 11:13:56 GMT

Greetings from Beius!

We traveled here this morning from Marghita and will be staying at a nearby town until Monday. (I don't know how to spell it, so you'll just have to live in suspense.)

This morning we met with the mayor and were treated to a delicious lunch--we've started counting the silverware trying to anticipate how many courses we'll be served. Most of us are afraid they'll have to roll us onto the plane to go home! The people's hospitality here has been overwhelming. They are truly gracious and give generously where ever they can. We've been pleasantly surprised to find that many of the city officials where we've been are Christians--this being the case, they are happy to have us visit local churches and socialize with the high school students.

We're a little behind schedule, so I'm signing off now. We should have internet access again tomorrow.

posted by Becky Thomson from Beius, Romania

Wednesday, March 29, 2006

Wed, 29 Mar 2006 10:11:50 GMT

A rainy but delightful day in Marghita...

Having a great time here in this "new" town and I have enjoyed getting to know the people and visiting the schools and the orphanages located here.

Below are some photos from Sunday, when we were in Oradea, and Monday, when we were located in Marghita.

Oradea, Saturday and Sunday.

Sight seeing with our two Romanian buddies, Vlad and Katlynn, after walking around the town we treated them to some awesome pizza.

Sending a note home...

Our Birthday party for Jeane up on a hill top restruant.

On Sunday our group was led by Senator Radu to four churches in the morning. This was the last and best church that we went to, it is Pentecostal church.

Gen and Laura decided to buy lunch for gypsy children instead of handing out money.

Other towns and Marghita, Sunday afternoon through Monday.

After leaving Oradea, on Sunday, we went to a gypsy community and visited a new church and school that was recently built there. JP, Alex, and Jeanne hanging with the locals.

On Monday we went to a highschool and visited with the students.

JP wowing the group...

In the afternoon we went to a orphanage for the disabled and for the young toddlers

Rebecca with Silvia at the home that is named after her.

One of the most happest orphans that I saw...he greeted me with a hug and a kiss on the cheek.

Good thing Ben and I were strong, we carried the children everywhere.

Smiles all around...

If this is the only picture I get for myself from this trip...then bringing God's camera will be worth it.

It was hard for all of us to leave these children of God.

So there you have it. I have much more to show but little time to do it. May the Lord bless you all and please continue to pray for God's team in Romania.

Posted by Grayson Stallings in Marghita, Romania.

Wednesday, March 29, 2006

Wed, 29 Mar 2006 09:42:22 GMT

Having finally reached a computer, I am connected with the rest of the world once again.

Our group is now in the city of Marghita, which is in the state of Bihor, the region of Transilvania and the country of Romania. I know technically where I am, but ask me to find anything, and I'm completely lost. The streets here were apparently built with nothing particular in mind, apparently, but are a tangled web of concrete, cars, vans and horse carts.

We have been in Marghita two days now, and have been to a few of the high schools and a local orphan ministry. Many of the students are learning English in school and have a remarkable level of fluency, given that they rarely practice outside of class. Several of the high school kids told us that this is the first time they have ever had Americans in their city.

The novelty of our visit has opened multiple doors for us. In the schools, several of the students gave up their breaks to show us around, and we were able to share the gospel with them in conversation. Romanians are still very religious as a nation, so there is no need to convince them of God's existence--just his importance in their life. Praise God for the opportunities we've had to share with them!

We were all very blessed to visit FCE, a local ministry started to help abandoned children in Romania. Following the fall of Communism in Romania, the world became aware of the huge orphan population and many volunteers came here to help them. FCE was started by a Swedish couple and is staffed by volunteers from all over the world. They run one house for small children and another for disabled kids, as well as a transient home for older boys--they help them make the transition into normal society there. Many of the Verity students were able to visit the various houses and play with the children--they are so beautiful and precious! A couple of the girls are wishing they brought bigger carry-ons.

Continue to pray for us, friends. We have been on more of a diplomatic tour than a scrub-some-toilets missions trip, but God has been faithful providing us with opportunities for ministry. We desire to be good stewards of the time we have with the local people and quick to recognize windows of opportunity.

Thank you for your prayer support so far! I know that without Christ behind us, all our efforts would be useless. The Lord bless you for your faithfulness.

posted by Becky Thomson from City Hall in Marghita, Romania

Monday, March 27, 2006

Mon, 27 Mar 2006 16:03:06 GMT

In Marghita, a small town of 17,000 people, the Verity Romania group is learning how "to be abased and how to abound.” They have experienced both lowly accommodations and nice accommodations. It sounds like they are somewhat of a spectacle where they are right now (imagine that!) because the people that surround them don't see Americans very often.

Today, they visited an orphanage and several public schools. The young people at these places are always anxious to talk to the Verity students – it’s a chance for the school kids to practice their English!

Please pray that the group will be a shining testimony to all of Romania. They have had many chances to shine so far, and they will have many more in the coming week and a half. Only God knows the impact that this trip could have on the future of the country! Pray in great faith that God can do something amazing through the Verity students!

Posted by Erica White in Flint, MI

Sunday, March 26, 2006

Sun, 26 Mar 2006 19:01:34 GMT

Here's a quick update...

From the sounds of it, it was a pretty exciting day for the group in Romania. They had a "spring forward" time change this morning, but it sounds like they found out about it at the very last minute! It's a good thing they are used to being flexible. They are now 8 hours ahead of Eastern Standard Time.

Even with the surprise time change, they were able to make it to six different churches today! Can you believe it? Six! They also got to visit a gypsy community. Although the language barrier prevented them from communicating very much, they were able to say things like, "thank you" or "peace."

Throughout the next week, they will be traveling all over Bihor County. They are planning to visit 6-8 different cities. Here's a link that has information on Bihor County if you'd like to know more about it!

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bihor

It sounds like their internet access will be more sporadic in the next week.

That's all for now! I'll keep you updated as I find out more.

Posted by Erica White in Flint, MI

Saturday, March 25, 2006

Sat, 25 Mar 2006 21:08:31 GMT

>(Note to the user: several of the pictures can be viewed larger by right clicking on the image and selecting View Image)

Here I sit in a cold hall...

This is a recap of the three days that we have spent in Oradea, Romania. Below is a journal posting of mine on the first day.

3.23.06

Romanian Trip Recap

     I have finally decided to keep a journal of my adventures and thoughts while I am in this interesting country.
     This is the first full day in Oradea, Romania. Woke up kind of late and took a bus to, I think, an elementary school. While eating some local breakfast food, which consisted of some sort of pastry, very strong coffee, fruity drink, bread with butter, and other pastries, school children sang songs for us. Some of them were of American origin, Romanian favorites, and even an Hungarian song. A teacher sang a song for us as well, and man did he sing, had a very strong voice. After that we visited several classrooms and one class sang for us.
     After lifting a car and moving it onto the sidewalk, our bus took us back to the highschool dorms that we are staying at. We were told to rest. I was antsy and asked if I could go out, I was told no because we didn’t know what we were doing in the afternoon.
     After gaining some knowledge about the future, our leaders took us to another highschool and used the computer lab to update my xanga and email.
     We hauled some bottle water back and hopped on the bus again and drove to supper. We arrived at a 2,500 body highschool and ate with their “jovial” principle. We were served by “professional” servers and had a three course dinner. It was very good and it consisted of food that you all would find familiar. The company was quite good as well, and I was able to talk to Valad our translator and the principle.
      Now several guys are rustling after we had a “limon aid” party. More details in why we are having “limon aid” and it involving JP. Pictures, pictures, and more pictures. Sorting through all the snap shots of the day and thanking God for Him providing me with the equipment, safety, and subjects to take pictures of.
     Gratefulness is big over here in Romania and everyday I am thanking God for His faithfulness to even me, a sinner saved by grace, and His bountiful blessings.
     I am in my element over here. Shining the Light, traveling, being with awesome friends, and taking pictures...can it get better? “I submit that it cannot!”

Here are pictures from the first day.

Our breakfast concert was much loved...

Gen with some of the singers from the school we ate at.

Mr. Shoemaker and Vlad with the principle from the school we visited and used internet at.

more pics...

Good limeon-aid....

Here are picture from the second day.

After shopping at an "American" mall...we went to a press conference. We looked zoned out because flashes were flashing and camera taps were rolling. I guess we were on the news that night and we have a paper with an article on us as well. Praise God that we can do PR for Him.

Pastor Shoemaker sharing and Senator Radu(on the left) translated. Mrs. Shoe and Julia (not shown) looked good for the camera.

After the press conference we ate with the Dept. Major at town hall.

We were taken to a SWAT demo after our dinner with the mayor and got some sweet pics and close up video action.

Hmmm...this pic is not loading so I will tell you about it. Anyways, we ate with another mayor and went to a spa in a "mountain village." It was pretty cool, until we went to the hot springs and then we left..really fast.

More pics from that day...

Did a ton of pictures today(Saturday) and we are going to four churches tomorrow morning. We are then leaving for the week and we wil be visiting 4 cities within the week.

I probably will not be able to post this next week...so I'll talk to you all later. God bless and please continue to pray for us all.

Posted by Grayson Stallings in Oradea, Romania.