The Light Shines . . .

 A colleague recently wrote that they were feeling tired and blue. Does that sound familiar to you? It does to me. This is begins a series of what helps me. Everyone's different. What helps me might help you . . . and it might not. 

Acknowledging emotions but focusing on truth.* 

For example, the Light does still shine in the darkness. 

Specifically:  A young Roma guy from the church in Vulcanesti, Moldova, only has 6 months left in his two-year pastor's training course. He and his wife had trouble making ends meet, and shortly before Christmas he thought he might need to break up his study to go work abroad. We prayed with our Moldovan partner Pastor Petru Ciochina about this. God reminded me of someone who had asked us to let her know if we ever had a specific need. We sent her an email the next day. She wrote back: 

Thank you so much for letting me know of this need.  I prayed to God that he would lay something in my heart to help someone in this season and then there is your email!  HE is an amazing God and reaches across the oceans. I will mail a check today . . . .

The check covers the rent for the rest of this young man's study time.

*Learned from my wise friend Crista Smidt. Crista has an MSW and 30+ years' experience as a guidance counselor in a Christian school system. She also has 50+ years' experience focusing on the truth of God's grace and Jesus' love. 

Several years ago Keith recorded the New Testament in the East Slovak Romani language with Faith Comes By Hearing. 

Pierre van Vuuren, the coordinator of the translation project, is seated next to Keith.

 Hi Keith

See how our media person is using the videos you made:

https://www.facebook.com/100007797197789/posts/2898034363799775/?sfnsn=mo 

Pierre

Keith later made these videos, where the words are highlighted as they are spoken. This is an aid in reading while listening. 

Old and New Friends

Alina and Silvika in Vulcanesti, 2011

Two old friends from Vulcanesti recently arranged an online meeting with Erika, Els, and Mary with Alina translating. It was wonderful to catch up with Silvika (now living with her husband and daughter in Berlin) and Catea (still in Vulcanesti). 

They invited us to join their weekly Wednesday night Bible study. This past week Marina and I were able to join them. There were 30 on the Zoom call; some of those thirty (like me & Marina) stood for multiple people. 

Marina is a friend from our Dutch Baptist Church who was born in Romania. A couple of months ago she went with me to visited some of the Roma women who are working in the greenhouses in North Holland. 

Marina & Mary, returning from
visit to North Holland

This renewed contact with the women inspired Marina. We've talked again about going with an elder from our church who also speaks Romanian . . . and hold a communion service with the brothers and sisters in North Holland. 

Marina also offered to come again next week so that she & I could listen to the Bible study online, microphone off, while she translates Romanian to English (or Romanian to Dutch) for me. 

Pray 

• for Marina, who has such a good heart
• for Alina, who leads the Bible study part of these meetings
• for the women who meet every week to learn, pray, sing, and grow together
• for the Roma who are scattered across Europe in search of work; God finds them wherever they go.
  
  

Evangelistic meeting led by Roma in a Roma village in Moldova. 
We pray that the Spirit continues to move!

As part of my on-going work, I serve on the board of the Dom Research Center. Dom are a group in the Middle East/North Africa closely related to the Romany of Europe. 

A number of Dom live in Gaza. As you can imagine, this community has been hard hit. Just last month, 28 children in the community died. Help keep our brothers and sisters in Gaza alive. Give to the charity of your choice. Or give through the Dom Research Center. Aid is regularly sent through Dom pastors and churches in the area. 

Dom Research Center, Inc

PO Box 

Rising Star, Texas 76471

USA

DomResearchCenter
@gmail.com

On-Going

Keith recently gave away all of his recording equipment. (He's practically deaf in one ear and can no
longer do the quality recordings he did in the past.) 

However, most of the things he recorded, created, or dubbed are now online. They continue to share the Word of God. Here are three links to some examples. Pray with us that the people who need to hear/see these will continue to find and use them. 

https://www.youtube.com/user/Sikepaskro/videos?shelf_id=0&view=0&sort=dd 
Joseph and His Brothers, The Good Samaritan, The Lost Son

Luton Roma Church
https://www.youtube.com/user/LutonRomaChurch/playlists?shelf_id=0&view=1&sort=dd 
18 stories in English and Romanes

Jesus film

https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=jesus+film+romani 

Building within the Body of Christ

This is Natasha. She lives in a Roma village in Moldova. She and her family needed a new home. 

There was no place in the village that she could afford.

The Baptist Church of Arnhem-Centrum, American believers, and Germany charity (led by a Sinti Romany) donated funds to purchase the land.

Local believers donated funds to do the paperwork.

A Christian organization in America agreed to build the house.

They have finished the foundation and the outer shell.

They will come back later to do the rest of the construction.

And the Sinti-led charity is planning to help finish and furnish it.

It takes a village to raise a child? Sometimes it takes the world-wide body of Christ to build a home. 
Thank you for praying with us!