Super Team Camp 1

This week we were part of the super team running camp at the girls school in the south. There wasn't enough room to have the girls come to camp at the girls transition house so we had a team go to their school each day. It was a great week filled with fun, spiritual growth, and relationship building.

We started each day with worship and a skit that showed someone having courage. This was the theme of our program. Then we would break into small groups and go over the story again and ask questions about it. We had journals and memory verses and we had them color something about the story.

Mark playing the part of Jesus, preaching as the paralyzed man was lowered through the roof of the house.

After the lesson we would play games and go to lunch, and when we came back we would do crafts and play more games. We also shared why we were in Romania with the older girls, some of whom have aged out of the orphanage but still hang around there.

We played water games one day which was really fun, especially since it was so hot outside.

We especially enjoyed bonding with Miki and Veo, two girls who we were close with at camp two years ago. One of the most fun parts of the day was when the little ones came, they would run up with such excitement and hug us and sit in our laps, how wonderful.

Stela was glad to see Mark again, over the holidays she gave me a knitted wall hanging and this time she gave me a bracelet. She is really special and has a big tender heart.

Pipe cleaner crowns were the biggest hit out of the crafts.

The highlight of camp for me was the day when we talked about Jesus in our small groups and then asked if anyone wanted to ask Him into their hearts. At least two girls in our group said yes and when we prayed the prayer more joined in. It was such an exciting feeling to hear so many little voices following along inviting Jesus to be in their hearts. This camp went so well, the girls were very receptive and open and we had a great time. Thanks so much for your prayers and please continue to pray for the next camps.

Boys Backpacking Trip

Backpacking through the mountains of Romania with eleven boys was a great opportunity for us to pour into their lives. That is exactly what happened last week when we created memories, made new friends, and experienced changed lives.

First we had "boot camp" at the girls transition house, slept in our tents, and left for the mountains in the morning. We took a cable car to a high point in Sinaia and hiked out from there.

There were boys from three locations but the bonding began immediately. We stressed working together as a team and the boys really took this seriously.

We hiked to the cross memorial and talked about how it was made and what the significance of it is. We had many conversations when we hiked and many of the boys shared their stories with us. Others shared their stories when we had our highlights meeting at the end of the day.

We set up a base camp at the mountain rescue station, they were so gracious letting us use their facilities for free. One of them even shared with the boys what he does and the joy that he gets from saving people. He also talked about the joy of being thanked by people long after they were saved. This was a great tie in to how we need a savior and that when we are saved it is good show thanks to God.

The boys really enjoyed the scenery and the nature all around. We we went to a cave behind a monastery and were let in free. The cave was magnificent and there was an underground waterfall inside.

We had a scavenger hunt and orienteering course where the final prize was a container with smores ingredients that we had buried the week before. We played soccer and ultimate frisbee and some other games that the boys enjoyed.

On the way back from one of our hikes a few boys and a few of us were talking about what it means to be a true Christian. When we got back to camp all of the boys sat down in a circle on their own and listened in. We were able to very clearly present the gospel to the boys and they asked lots of really good questions. I know the holy spirit was working in this because it was totally unplanned and the boys were so receptive.

We went to a beautiful lake and the boys swam even though it was freezing cold.

We conversations each morning and evening where we talked about things like what it means to be a man, what we would like our legacy to be, relationships and sexual purity. The last night we collected lots of wood and had a great fire. The conversation went on until about 1:00 AM and we talked about many things, ending with talking about how simple it is to accept Christ into your life, just by believing in Him and asking him into your heart.

The highlight of the trip came next, us leaders were talking and Bebe came up to us and told us he wanted to accept Jesus into his life. We prayed with him and he asked Jesus to be his savior, praise God!!!

God was in this excursion from start to finish. He provided great weather, beautiful scenery, and many opportunities to share our stories and to share the gospel of Jesus Christ.

Girls Camp 2

The second girls camp had the same schedule and program as the first. We continued to talk about lies and God's truth. We shared more testimonies with this group and the girls really enjoyed hearing them. Pray that they continue to think about the truth we have talked about it and fully let God set them free!

Our loving hands...Rebecca and Cyndee

Trying to get Monica to overcome her fear of not being able to swim

Rely race game

On the drive up to Sinaia

How many vans does it take to get 42 people there? 5!

Marci was helping Ioana warm up

The castle and mountains

Making jewlry

The beautiful girls

A beautiful ending to the day...and the girls camp

Girls Camp 1

We had a girls camp for the older girls this week at Snagov. For four days we had twelve girls from various orphanages at the house. Our theme was the truth will set you free. We talked about common lies teenage girls believe and the truths from the Bible. We had a fun packed four days. On Tuesday the next group of 12 girls come. Be praying that these girls hear God's truth and apply it to their lives.

Playing foosball

Make-over skit

Pool Party at Pipera

Marci and Claudia

Mermaid Princess Roxana

Mermaid Princess Isabella

Foot soaks and facials

Vio

Rebecca and Nicoletta

My extreme makeover

All of the girls

Backpacking Exploring

Last week I went backpacking in the Carpathian mountains! Soon we will be bringing 11 boys on a backpacking trip through the mountains, so we needed to scout out the route and find out everything we needed to know. My friend Matt who I've known since fourth grade flew in the night before along with Richard. JT, who is working on coming as full time staff, came a few days earlier so we could make sure we had all of the right materials. It was an amazing experience and we were really lead by God in all of the planning.

We started at Sinaia, where the Peles Castle is located. We took the cable car up the mountain and headed out from there.

There were many sheep and cows grazing the mountains.

Which way does the trail go?

If you look closely you can see the cross, a 70 foot tall monument to the heroes of WW1. We were constantly in awe of God's creation, everything was so beautiful. This was near the spot where we set up camp the first day - where our plans completely changed. We put up our tents and started cooking when the skies opened up and poured. After that a man drove up to us on a quad and told us we couldn't tent camp anywhere in the park because of bears. We were really surprised since we did lots of research and talked to several people, but he was very forceful so we packed up. It was almost dark so we went to the nearest hostel for the night and tried to figure out what to do. We had planed on tent camping all over so this blew up our entire route.

We talked to the innkeeper who was very helpful and we planned out our next stopping point. This rock formation is called the Sphinx.

We hiked down the other side of the mountain to a place where we heard we could camp in tents, and were blown away by the beauty there.

Our destination was the mountain rescue station. Once we got there we talked to the leader there who was really nice. He allowed us to set up camp within their fenced in area so we'd be safe from bears. He also agreed to let us stay there for three nights with all 16 of us, and we'll be able to use their water, bathroom, and fire pit. He will also find firewood for us and buy us bread for the days we're there. It was so amazing how accommodating these guys were, it had to be God working because everything came together so well. The mountain rescue guys also agreed to tell the boys about what they do and some stories which we are going to tie into our need to be saved by Jesus' sacrifice.

This monastery is very close to our base camp, we will go there and explore the cave behind it with the boys. I talked with the priest there about what we're doing and he said he would give us a discount for the boys to get into the cave. Another God moment.

The new plan is to do day hikes from our base camp at the mountain rescue. We think the boys will be blown away at the beauty of the place and we pray that our discussions will penetrate their hearts.

The morning dew covered the entire valley, as if encasing everything in tiny crystals.

This stunningly beautiful butterfly played hard to get but he finally landed long enough for me to get a great shot.

The last day we took the cable car to Busteni, our final destination for this trip. We went into the house of culture and met a great man who was so excited to tell us stories. He was hosting a recital and he introduced us to the players who were practicing, showed us a big book of signatures of famous people, and played his Transylvanian flute for us. After that we boarded a train back to Bucharest. It was a beautiful ride and a fun experience.

This trip was amazing in so many ways. We enjoyed beautiful scenery, met many nice people, and finalized the plans for when the boys come with us. We asked God to lead us and He definitely did, and now we pray that he continues to lead us when we bring the boys. They will arrive today and we'll leave for the mountains tomorrow morning. Please pray that everything goes well and that this is a life changing experience for the boys.