We were overwhelmed at how wonderful the response was at the three conferences!! We experienced such a hunger in the ladies for these translated Bible study resources! The attendance was higher than expected and the need for the resources was much greater than what we had anticipated. We literally ran short of enough resources for everyone.
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Ladies in Baia Mare, Romania area
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Ladies in Suceava, Romania area
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Ladies from all over the Republic of Moldova
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Each of these precious ladies at these conferences are leaders who represent their churches, villages or regions who now have been blessed with these Bible study resources. They are more equipped now to teach, train and mentor the women in their groups. I am so thankful for the blessing of meeting and worshiping with these dear Sisters.
Here are some really awesome ladies who worked very hard to make our Moldovan conference so wonderful!
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Lidia Malancea, Alina Birgean, Alina Stoler, Aurica Soltan, Paulette, Liliana Caraush
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Lidia did a marvelous job coordinating the conference and helping to set everything up. What a precious friend, pastor's wife, Bible study leader and mentor to women! Also, three of these special ladies have sung for several of our conferences in Moldova over the years. They are some of the most gifted musicians I have ever heard, and I love to partner with them in worship! Alina Stoler, Aurica Soltan and Liliana Caraush lead worship, not just sing beautifully. They truly pour out their hearts like water before the presence of the Lord. (Lamentations 2:19). Alina Birgean - what can I say about this darling friend, translator, Bible study leader, mentor and travel buddy - she is awesome!!
Speaking of travel buddies...Dawn and Alina are just way too much fun!! Thanks for all the laughter, joy and blessing of ministry together. You two are the best! Dawn Elenbaas is "Super Woman" since she did all the driving throughout Romania and Moldova for this trip. Can you just see the mischief and fun on their faces as we stopped for some yummy goulash on our return trip?
I just need to pause here and share an AWESOME answer to prayer for us at the border crossing into Moldova.
I had specifically asked for prayer for the logistics of this trip in the last newsletter, and the Lord poured out His abundant provision and protection! We knew it was possible for us to be delayed for hours or to even be turned away with so many "religious" materials in our vehicle. However, the kindest border agent came up to us on the Moldovan side and popped his head into our car to see us and our cargo. Almost immediately, he got a phone call and was distracted. He then waved us on to pass through without any further inspection or questions! All three of us gals just stared at one another, then swiftly departed in case he changed his mind. NO ONE could believe we came through the border SO FAST and WITHOUT ANY PROBLEMS!! ONLY GOD!!
As I mentioned above, we literally ran out of enough resources for the Moldovan ladies. It was very apparent that the Lord has been doing a mighty work in Moldova over the past few years as the ladies are growing in their relationships with the Lord and passion for His Word through our translated Beth Moore studies. It broke my heart to tell so many of the ladies that we didn't have enough for their groups in their villages and cities. It is my hope to immediately do another reprint to provide additional workbooks for these dear Sisters. Moldovans have suffered so greatly from rampant poverty and the highest alcoholism rate per capita in the world. In addition, they face political and economic challenges every day. Because we freely give these resources, it is a blessing for them in the midst of their daily struggles.
Even though this is already a lengthy newsletter this time, I just cannot resist sharing a few more photos during the small group discussion and prayer time at the Moldova conference. Blessed me beyond measure how they connected!
Finally, just a quick note to say how wonderful it was to be with Cristina Olariu for a brief time in Moldova. Cristina and Alina Birgean were guest speakers for a huge conference the day after ours, which was geared specifically for younger ladies. The attendees were more than double what they had expected. Cristina is the producer and anchor for the Christian Radio Voice of the Gospel in Timisoara, Romania (RVE Timisoara). She's an amazingly gifted speaker with a beautiful heart and passion for Jesus! We get to run into each other periodically on my trips to Romania (and now Moldova!) It was such a delight to collaborate with Eugenia and Petru Podoleanu again for another Bible study conference. At the end of the day, we all had about 10 minutes to dash over to the local chocolate factory store, Bucuria, to stock up on some yummy Moldovan treats!
Whew! Are you exhausted? It was a joy for me to write this newsletter, and also now a joy to share with you our need. Please partner with us with a gift this month to help do the workbook reprint which I mentioned earlier. God is good and doing a mighty work in Eastern Europe. All glory to Jesus!
With great joy,
Paulette
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