Back in Ocna

 

    Today we were back in Ocna Şugatag for a morning of our second eyeglass clinic, some back to the maternity center, and construction, then the afternoon was split between construction and widow care.

    The eyeglass clinic was great today! We held it within the church where we are staying. We had a lot of people come through who heard about us from a friend (or even a friend of a friend!) who was at the clinic we held in Sighet. We had a great turnout and gave out many glasses and had many good conversations. Most all of the people we have seen within our eyeglass clinic have been elderly people, and it has been wonderful to connect with them and hear their stories.

    Mary and Vera went out shopping for more supplies for care packages for an orphan center and maternity center. They were able to get many things, pray that these would be a blessing to those receiving it.

    Construction team was able to finish the fence! A local welder came by and helped them out by welding the fence pieces to the posts. He was very gracious and didn't ask for any money or anything in return. God is good, and he always provides! 

Here is the before and after of the construction project:

    You can see that they raised up the concrete level, and also extended the fence around to the other side of the church. It looks fantastic! It is hard to see, but each fence piece was stripped of the paint because it was chipped and damaged, and then the pieces were repainted. The team worked very hard and did a great job!

    There was supposed to be a medical seminar today where Dave Miyatake and Jim Yamashita would give a presentation on dental and medical practices, but no one showed up. We decided to reschedule the seminar for tomorrow since it will be Saturday, and pastor Tom is holding a parenting conference. Pray that people would show up to these conferences tomorrow!

    In the afternoon, a group of us went to help out a local widow named Eugenia who lives not very far from the church. She had three husbands, and each died of cancer. Recently she broke her ankle and is not very mobile anymore. We were able to help her out by cleaning her house, mowing her lawn, placing some mouse traps in the attic, and chopping firewood. After we finished the chores, some stayed behind to have a good conversation with her and hear her story. She currently attends a Catholic church, but doesn't go often because she can no longer sit in the pews with her broken ankle. After talking we learned she tries to read her Bible every day, but can no longer do so because she doesn't have glasses. Tomorrow we are going to pick her up and bring her to the clinic to get her a pair of glasses so she can read. The gospel was shared with her too, so be praying for her and her salvation, and pray that her ankle would heal so she can move around again. 

    A friend of the church invited our group over for dinner at their house tonight, and it was a lovely time. The food here has been spectacular, and everyone is so generous with their time and efforts. Praise God that we can connect with brothers and sisters in Christ all the way across the world. 

Prayer Requests:
- Praise God that the construction team was able to finish the fence! Praise Him for all the generous people who helped and for providing everything they needed.
- Pray for Eugenia. Pray for healing for her ankle and pray that she would be able to get some glasses so she can read her Bible
- Pray for attendance at the parenting and medical seminars tomorrow!

Question of the day for the team: "Who is someone who is impacted you in some way on this trip, and how did they impact you?"

John Mar: "For me many were impactful - but I’ll pick just 2. Monica and Marta as the most impactful to me. They have given their time to help us communicate the gospel during different situations. They are eager to serve and willingly going wherever they are needed. They came over to help us speak with a lady (we had helped with some chores) and share the good news. They truly went out of their way to help. I am so encouraged by them."

Dave Miyatake: "During 1st two days of eyeglasses Abel, an interpreter, helped me share the gospel.  I would say something to a patient and have a spiritual conversation and then he would start getting into it and start talking on his own. Great kid."

Vera Wong: "At the maternity and child center, I met a young man who was clearly struggling. After sharing my testimony, he asked in a sharp voice, “Are you calling us sinners?” That question opened the door to meaningful conversation with our team. We were able to share with him the hope and peace that can be found in Jesus. As we got to know more with his situation, we were also able to encourage him by showing him how God is at work even in the hardest & darkest moments. It was a blessing to have extended time with him and listen to his story."

Brianne Pratt: "All of the Romanian translators have impacted me the most with their servants hearts. A specific example of this is Alexandra, the niece of pastor Dan, who traveled 4 hours and took time off work to come here and help us all week!"

Mark Pratt: "There are many people who have made an impact on me, it's difficult to pick just one. I was able to help chop the firewood for the widow, Eugenia. She broke her ankle when she fell in the kitchen and she has a tough time moving around. While we were there she never stopped trying to help us with many things. I told her that it might be good to take a rest and get off her foot, and she agreed and sat down, but less than five minutes later she was up and running around again making sure everyone was good. Her hard work was inspiring to me. She has many chickens on her property, and she offered to give me an entire chicken as a thank you for chopping wood. I declined, of course, but her generosity despite her circumstances was inspiring as well. Be praying for her!"

Photos from the day: