Update From Our Day

We went to church this morning which is always awesome! From the time you walk in the door, you feel the presence of the Holy Spirit! Before service, there is a time of prayer where people pray out loud if they choose, and you can hear the praises and you can hear the pain in their voices, hands raised and so much passion. The worship is very upbeat and again, you feel the Holy Spirit moving throughout the church. Rachel sits behind us and translates. The sermon was about being thankful, and for us, we have even more to be thankful for being here for Christmas in Romania and even more to soon be home with our families.

Colin, the children's minister told Rachel that he had come to America, and had been praying about helping with Forget Me Not in the village. He's been to the village a couple of times and is great with kids programs, and plans to start outreach in the village soon on a regular basis. He's working on getting others involved to be part of his team. God is "connecting the dots" and moving through FMN for sure, and can't wait to see what's in store!

Kim, Missy, Rachel, Iza and Dave took Albert, Atilla, his wife and new baby out to lunch and had a great time. Lois went to visit with Paul and Dana and went out to lunch with them. We have "family" in Romania and it's a special time to get to spend with them. Tonight the tree is being decorated and the Christmas music is playing. Potato soup is cooking for lunch tomorrow at the center.

We shopped for a freezer for the center which will allow them to buy in bulk to save money and time. It will be brought to the center later this week. The freezer was another one of the blessings from Christmas in Romania.

Thanks to those who have ordered cinnamon rolls for Christmas and prepaid to provide sponsorship for three kids in Paul and Dana's house at Caminul Felix, a separate ministry from FMN. This sponsorship is very special as it is given in loving memory of my parents (Lois), Hearld and Ginny Hammond. They raised 14 of us and sacrificed everything, and this is a way of keeping their memory and spirit alive, especially at Christmas. It's always a special blessing to hand deliver the sponsorship. We were also able to bring a polishing lathe from America that was purchased with money donated by several of you for Paul, that was recommended by his ocularist who made two separate artificial eyes for him after losing his eye to malignant melanoma almost six years ago. This will allow him to polish his "eye" for comfort and health, that will hold him off for another five years. God is good and provides EVERYTHING and more.

We were talking last night and were sharing that even though only three of us are here in Romania, through all of you and blessings from God, we have been able to accomplish so much. This has been a special time and we thank each one involved.

We have a lot to do tomorrow as it's our last day in Romania. We can't wait! We'll update again soon. Pictures coming soon!