Dan

People keep asking, "Why did you move to Romania?" The short answer is, "God called us to serve Him in St. George, Romania." The longer answer is - People are the same all over the world...we all want a comfortable life, a family that loves us, true friends, work we enjoy. The "good life" that so many are chasing after never quite fills the deep longing within. Is contentment just going to be around the corner when we have...the new car, the better house, the Right mate...whatever it is that we think will make us happy?

In Ecclesiastes 3:11, we find "He has made everything beautiful in its time. He has also set eternity in the hearts of men." To have a good relationship with God is what fills the emptiness that so many live with day in and day out. We believe God has sent us here to help people learn how to fill their emptiness with Him.

Today, Tuesday, there is another funeral. One of our friends went to the Nursing Home Saturday to visit her mother only to be told that her mother had been sent to the hospital Friday. No one had notified the family. Rushing to the hospital, she discovered that her mother had died two hours earlier!

The day Reka learned that her baby's heart had stopped beating, 3 other mothers in the St. George hospital received the same news about their baby. Now, while Reka is dealing with her grief over her miscarriage, one of her mother's best friends died suddenly.

Huba's father's cancer is spreading. The doctors give him no hope. People are asking, "What is going on? This is such an unusual summer...so many deaths. I don't understand!" Please, pray for these hurting people. God is opening doors for us to help many find the answers to their questions.

ON THE BRIGHTER SIDE - Adolf figured out how to read with those on the LST waiting list. We will interview each one, and assign them to a small group based upon their English conversational skills. There will be the VERY, VERY Beginners English Group, and the New Readers' Group. We discovered ONE beginner's workbook here from which we'll make copies!

Adolf, Reka and 6 year old Dorothea took us on a successful mattress shopping trip Sunday afternoon in Brasov - a city of 300,000, only a 30 minute drive from St. George. The center of town has beautiful ancient buildings dating back to 1141 with sidewalk cafes, a park full of flowers, modern play area for children, very tall trees, delightful places to walk.

On the Southwest edge of the city is The Shopping Area. At least Six huge mega stores have anything you can imagine. Sam's, Walmart, Home Depot can't even begin to compare with them. I was like a kid from the country walking around staring at all the "stuff!" (Many international companies have now located in Brasov. Salaries are triple, quadruple what people in St. George earn. But all the typical problems of big cities are also in Brasov, and the cost of living is higher. Most of our contacts prefer the simpler life in St. George.)

We thank God that the health of all three of us is good, that Rosemarie and Dan are enjoying reading with all these good people, and that God is using my counseling skills to help the deeply wounded. We also thank our God "every time we remember you. In all our prayers for you, we always pray with joy because of your partnership in the gospel...." Phil. 1:3 -- Love in Him, Dan, Anne and Rosemarie