Here's some photos 

from the first time I went to Moldova 

to help with a children's day camp (VBS) 

in the village of Vulcanesti.

Over 20 years ago, it was just me, 

three Americans + one Moldovan translator. 

We did everything ourselves.

Here's some photos from one of the last times I helped with a children's program in Moldova. 

This time, the children and youth 

in Vulcanesti 

prepared one day of camp . . . 

which they led 

for children in a different village

by singing . . .

. . . acting out the story of 

the Lost (and found!) Coin . . .

. . .  and sharing the Gospel 

through a craft with colored beads.

I don't have a photo yet of this year's camp--being held today, tomorrow, and Saturday (July 6, 7, 8). 

The people in the Moldovan church are doing it all themselves. 

Well, with God's help and our prayer support.

Staying home but still praying,

.

Mary VanRheenen

Breaking (Gluten-free) Bread

When representatives rom our Encourager Church in Columbia, MO, visited, breaking bread together took on new meaning. Michael McEntyre(pictured on the right, far away from the stack of bread) cannot eat gluten. Gluten is normally found in all kinds of bread made from wheat flour. 

Fortunately, many regular grocery stores stock gluten-free products. Michael carried a supply with him to places like this Sunday afternoon feast with our Roma brothers and sisters from Moldova who are working in North Holland. They were eager to celebrate the Lord's Supper with us and with their pastor Petru Ciochina, who had traveled from Moldova for this weekend. 

When Petru invited Michael to share in leading this part of our worship time, Michael pulled out one of his gluten-free breads. "Genial! (great)" Petru exclaimed. 

He put the mini-loaf on the plate, and we all at the same bread, gluten-free.

Thank you, Jesus!

 

Romany believers from Bethlehem Baptist Church in Moldova have been going abroad to work for many years. 

Isn’t it possible, someone asked pastor Petru Ciochina earlier this month, for believers to earn a living in Moldova and build up their church there?  No, Petru replied. He gave the example of two women who wanted to work in a sewing factory. Oh, they were told, this work is too hard for you; you wouldn’t like the hours; the pay wouldn’t be enough for you . . ..” 

Really, they didn’t get the job because they were Roma. (Note that it was different in the Soviet days when these two Roma women did work in a sewing factory--a factory which subsequently closed.)

Even if Roma can find work, salaries in Moldova are low but living expenses (due to inflation) are high. And Roma tend to have more than just two children. children. It would be difficult to earn enough in Moldova to support their families.

So the Roma go abroad. They come back for holidays, family celebrations, and to attend to business at home. Some go to Poland to beg (by Catholic religious sites). Christians do not do this. They go to Germany or the Netherlands to work. For example, those in North Holland have jobs in greenhouses picking tomatoes and cucumbers. 

They miss worshipping in a language they understand. They miss fellowshipping with other Christians. So when we visited those working in North Holland with their pastor and worshipped together it was especially meaningful. To us all.

Pray with us for all who go abroad to work. 

And welcome those who must go abroad to work, for whatever reason.

Prayerfully, Mary & Keith

NOTE:  North Holland is a province in the Netherlands. Amsterdam is in the province of North Holland. Rotterdam and De Hague are in the province of South Holland. We live near Arnhem in the province of Gelderland. 

A welcomed sight:  visitors from our Encourager Church, First Baptist, Columbia, MO.

They considered the tulip fields here a welcomed sight, too!

Thank you, Michael, Cindy, & Lynne, for your visit.

And thank you, First Baptist, for sending them. It was indeed, very encouraging!!

Mary & Keith

 “What’s that flower that they have a lot of in Holland?” an American teenager once asked our daughters. “Dandelions,” was the answer (our daughters were very young). “Or maybe you mean tulips.” The tulips in our front yard are nearly finished. But the dandelions are still going strong.

Tulips require a bit of work. We’ll dig them up once the leaves die down and plant them again, preferably in sandy soil, before the frosts come in the fall. 

Dandelions just show up. They pop up, persistently smiling, from the cracks in crumbling concrete and the banks of otherwise dismal roadsides. They brighten up a dull yard and a dull day. I thank God for these drops of sunshine so freely given. Though, yes,  I do sometimes pull dandelions out of the tulip beds. Tulips are more work . . . .

Palm Sunday in the Netherlands

 

This past Sunday the children in our Dutch church's Sunday school all carried something like this.

Then they put on a song about Jesus' triumphant entry into Jerusalem and paraded out of the church, down the street to the "Old Catholic" church. When they paraded into the service there, the priest blessed them (while sprinkling them with water) AND gave them pieces of greenery to represent palms.

They then proceeded to parade around the neighborhood before circling back into our own church. 

Every "Palmpasen stok" (Palm Easter Stick) had these key elements:

• shaped like a cross, to symbolize Jesus' death
• decorated with green or yellow (crepe) paper
• rooster on top to represent Peter denying Jesus 3 times; (traditionally made of bread, to represent the bread Jesus broke during the Last Supper)
• flower decorations as a symbol of spring and of hope
• eggs to symbolize new life and Jesus' resurrection
• heart (in our church) to symbolize Jesus' love for us

Other church traditions make sure to include a piece of greenery (see below) to symbolize the tree branches people waved on that first Palm Sunday. 

Traditionally, the palmpasen stok is given as a gift to someone else, often an elderly community member, after the "parade" is over.

Bakeries sell the little rooster-shaped breads this time of year. Or, if you are ambitious (and either understand Dutch or understand how to use Google translate), you can make some yourself! Rooster from bread recipe.

Day 4: Pray for sweet fellowship as field personnel invite and gather with others at the table

to cultivate beloved community.

Comment: A video to help guide your time of prayer for cultivating beloved community

https://vimeo.com/723882436

For Children’s Network: Invite children to pray for other people who may be lonely or do not

have opportunities to be with those who love and care for them. https://cbf.net/childrens-weekofprayer