We're here with a Spring Update for you today, to let you know how the Spring Mission Bible School is coming along and to share about our summer ministry plans!
Ministry Update:
First, we want to say a big THANK YOU to our monthly supporters, donors and prayer partners. The last 3 months have been extremely challenging for us and there have been many days where we have felt held up by your prayers and have been so encouraged by each of your standing with us in our ministry here in Romania. We value you all so much and we are so thankful for each and every one of you and how you hold us up in prayer and provide for our daily needs - you're an integral part of what God is doing here at PdF!
In these difficult moments we are reminded of the privilege it is to disciple young Christians and walk alongside them as they experience God, some of them for the first time. This spring has been a challenging one, but very rewarding as well. We can see even more clearly how God has prepared us to minister to these students and we're thankful for His provision and that He is guiding us in each step.
The students completed the Cultural Encounter Challenge earlier this month and enjoyed their adventure in Romanian villages and an overnight stay with a Gypsy family. Unfortunately the students picked up a terrible stomach virus or water-borne bacterial infection in one of the villages, and once the group returned to PdF it quickly spread to 5 of the students and 2 of the volunteer staff. Thankfully our family was spared, although Chrissie spent over a week nursing sick students back to health, taking temperatures, handing out medicine and rehydration salts, and coaching the students on virus prevention.
In the last few weeks the students have enjoyed lectures on Apologetics, Jesus in the Book of John with Andy Thomas, the Book of Ephesians with Birgitt Gehring, and the book of Acts with Frank Cirone, the director of Ravencrest, one of the Torchbearers Centers in Colorado. This week we're hosting Phil Peters as the guest lecturer. He's teaching the students all about Christian Leadership and it is wonderful to have him here as we have known Phil and his wife Tammy for over 15 years. Phil was the Principal of Tauernhof, the Torchbearers Bible School we both attended in Austria in 2002.
The students have also continued their weekly outreaches, enjoyed an independent travel weekend, and completed the Mission Outreach challenge in Mangalia, a town near Constanta on the Black Sea. The students hosted a youth and children's ministry outreach program for the weekend in partnership with a local church.
During the students' travel weekend the female staff (and staff wives) hosted a Women's Conference here at PdF. Many local women attended and it was a wonderful weekend together. The theme of the weekend was An Oasis in the Desert and the women enjoyed teaching from the Bible about how God meets us in the desert times in our lives. Chrissie led worship on the piano along with a few other staff, she shared her testimony at one of the conference sessions, and she instructed an afternoon craft workshop. It was a full weekend, but an enjoyable one!
After Bible School is finished and summer begins, Jerry will be busy managing the summer team volunteers who keep PdF running for the busy summer months. He's already accepted several volunteers and filled many of the positions, but there are still a few more needs. He will spend time with each of the volunteers one-on-one each week and host a weekly Bible Study for them, as well as planning fun events and outings, taking them to church, etc. Chrissie will also help with the mentorship of the female volunteers. In addition to managing the summer team volunteers, Jerry will be involved in several of the outdoor camps beginning toward the end of July. He will lead the Max Bike mountain biking program and the Outdoor Challenge Camp in August.
Another exciting development here at PdF is the completion of the "Fun Court". It's a multipurpose outdoor sports field that is already getting a lot of use here! It will be great for the summer camps to have a place to play soccer, basketball, volleyball, field hockey, etc.
Family Update:
Family time is difficult to come by during the Bible School season, but Chrissie and the kids have enjoyed hanging out at PdF with Jerry and the students for meals and free times. They've also been enjoying the beautiful spring weather and maintaining the small container garden we planted when Chrissie's mom was here in April. The Bible School season this year has put a huge strain on our family, and Chrissie and the girls have missed Jerry since he's been away a lot with the Bible School. We are all looking forward to spending more time together as a family in the summer.We recently went rock climbing together with the Bible School, and the girls got to enjoy some climbing time too.
We are SO thankful that were able to get a garden swing this year for our yard, which we're using daily to enjoy the mountain views from our yard.
After saving for many months, we were also able to purchase screens for our doors and windows so we're able to keep the wasps and flies outside and have the windows open at night and in the morning to let the cool mountain breeze in before the heat of the day (there's no such thing as air conditioning here!!). After Chrissie woke up with a huge beetle on her pillow one night last summer, we knew insect screens were going to be a necessity for the hot summer months. We're so thankful for blessings like these that allow us peace of mind, and moments of rest and rejuvenation.
(crooked photo courtesy of our favourite 5-year-old!)
The girls only have a couple weeks of school left before summer begins and we are in the midst of making decisions about their educational path here in Romania. Miriam is registered for Grade Zero in the public school system German/Romanian program for September, but we've been presented with the opportunity to put the girls in a private Christian Homeschool Cooperative run by a Romanian teacher in the nearby village of Bran. This would mean they'd attend school in English and Romanian and have the opportunity to study with local Romanian children who are learning English, and study using American and British curriculum. Tuition is affordable and Chrissie would be able to have much more input regarding their educational experience than if the girls continue attending public school here. It would also give us the flexibility to travel to Canada during the school year without fear of the girls falling behind in their learning. Please pray for us as we discern what would be best for our girls and our family regarding their education and their future studies.
As Spring comes to a close and summer begins we are playing outside for hours and hours each day. The girls love riding their bikes and playing outdoors with the other children here at PdF, and having so much space to run around in is a huge blessing for them.
We are looking forward to having Mary from Bucharest come and live with us for the summer. We lived with Mary's family for three months when we first arrived in Romania and we've continued our friendship with their family ever since. Mary visits us regularly and she'll move in with us for the summer to be our nanny, so that Chrissie is able to help Jerry with managing the Summer Volunteers, leading Bible Studies and worship, mentoring the female volunteers, and also just to have some breathing room after an extremely stressful spring season. We're excited for Mary to come and be a part of our family again for the summer.
Prayer Requests:
Please pray with us:
- And thank God for a successful Bible School season that's almost complete - Thank God for keeping all the students and staff safe and (mostly) healthy.
- For a good, solid finish to this 2018 Bible School, for renewed strength and energy for these last few weeks and rest, even amongst the busyness.
- That God would use the summer season to strengthen our family again and give us lots of good fellowship with one another; that we would have a safe and healthy summer full of fun and ministry.
- That God would continue to provide for our family financially through monthly donations - Thanks be to God for His provision!
- That God would provide the funds needed for our trip to Canada at the end of 2018. We need to raise $5000 CAD to cover the costs of our flights.
- That God would lead us in making decisions regarding our kids' education situation.
If you'd like to join our Facebook Group for more regular updates, request to join HERE.
If you'd like to become a member of our Prayer Network and receive more regular prayer requests via email or Facebook Messenger, please send Jerry an email (jerry.baker@pdf.ro).
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