I thought I'd share a few thoughts from my trip to Şiria, Romania. I was there for about 6 days, getting to know people who are part of a missions team called Networks, and getting to see some of what they do. There are around 50 people there, some long term staff and others who are part of a missions training program.
Firstly, it was amazing just to spend time with some of these people, who are all so passionate about following Jesus and seeing His Kingdom come - I felt so at home among them. I took part in a couple of classes with people doing missions training, which I really enjoyed. They are very intentional about discipleship, and there seemed to be an atmosphere of real openness and learning. It was great getting to know some people there, and I was pretty inspired and challenged by the way they live.
I spent one day with one group visiting an area called Alfa. The residents of the area are Roma people, and they live in 'huts' made of whatever materials are around, which is pretty crazy considering how cold it was. A few of us went to visit a guy who they'd given a guitar to a few weeks before. He was a really amazing guitarist, but hadn't owned a guitar for some time. I got to spend some time playing music with him, which was really cool. The group also gave out flour to people, and we got to pray for one lady, who had lung problems, and apparently she felt God touch her as we prayed. It was pretty eye-opening to be there, as I've maybe only been in that sort of environment once before (in Macedonia this summer).
During the week there I got to worship with people a number of times, including at their Sunday gathering. I love getting to worship and pray with people - somehow you see their hearts. And getting the chance to inspire people in worship is such a privilege. I also got to go up this mountain (or big hill) nearby, where there's ruins of a 13th century castle, and I prayed and worshiped up there (which was great).
So, overall, I had a wonderful time, and I'm pretty sure I'll be back at some point. It seems God's put something in my heart for the Balkans, we'll see what plans He has for the future...
