Romania Prayer Letter - 6.16.2007

“And the LORD, He is the One who goes before you. He will be with you, He will not leave you nor forsake you; do not fear nor be dismayed.”
-Deuteronomy 31:8

Hello everyone! I hope you are all doing well. These past few weeks have gone by so quickly. The Lord as always has been faithful. As of right now I am planning my move for around November 14th. Part of why I am planning to move at that time instead of sooner, is to celebrate ROCK Ministries 10th anniversary here in Montebello , California on November 10th. I am committing 2 years to living in Romania , but I am wanting to be open to what the Lord has for me to do. If that means the rest of my life will be spent there, I will certainly not argue with that!

Everyone has been very supportive and encouraging of my move to Romania . Anyone who knows me knows my love for that country and the people there. Everyday seems so exciting to me, as I am preparing and speaking to different people about what is to come. I met with a couple, Brent and Nancy, who founded an organization called Promise Child the other night. I was so blessed to spend the evening with them and share my heart for missions and Romania . They shared their heart for ministry and we spoke about the possibility of working together in the future in Romania . It is so exciting to see how God is opening doors for me and bringing other people in my life that also have a passion for reaching out to the world. I was so encouraged after meeting with Brent and Nancy, it was another confirmation to me that God is “the One who goes before” me and that He is with me.

I also wanted to introduce you to ROCK Ministries a little more. I have attached their most recent newsletter for you to read. ROCK Ministries was co-founded by Nannette Gonzales in 1997. I will be working with Nann in the hospitals of Bucharest with the orphaned and abandoned children. ROCK also has an excellent foster care program, helping abandoned children who would otherwise spend their lives in an institution, become a part of a loving and nurturing family. There is a great need for people to love these abandoned children. Foreign adoptions have been closed in Romania for many years now, and it is socially and legally acceptable for parents to abandon their children to orphanages and hospitals. Parents will not lose their “parental rights” as long as they visit their children once every 6 months. Many times a parent will come in and not even know which child is theirs. Unfortunately for that poor child, they have no hope of being adopted because they legally still belong to their parents and so many will spend their entire life in an institution, with little contact from people. This can lead to many developmental delays in these poor children who just want love. Through ROCK Ministries I will be able to be a part of making a difference in the lives of some of these children. The numbers of abandoned children are overwhelming, but I know that the children I will be able to interact with and love will be changed. Love is so vital to their emotional, physical and mental well being.

If you have any questions please feel free to contact me. I love hearing from all of you. Please also keep me in your prayers as I prepare for this journey. Pray that the Lord will provide, that He will continue to go before me and open doors for what all He has for me to do. Thank you for all your prayers!

With love,
Rachel

Romania Prayer Letter - 5.27.2007

Hello everyone! I wanted to thank each one of you who through the years has been praying for me as I have gone to Romania on missions trips. You know that I have such a special place in my heart for that country and the people there. Well after much prayer, I finally went and spoke to our Missions pastor (Pastor Phil) at church this morning about moving to Romania full time. It was sort of funny to me, he began speaking to me as though, this was of course what I am supposed to do. He didn't act surprised, he didn't question anything, he just said here's what you do...I am so excited! I told Pastor Phil I would like to be able to move out there at the end of the year and he suggested that I start sending out an email once a month to people to make you all aware of this, and to ask that you begin praying for me as well. Prayer is such a vital part of being a missionary and it is so important to have other people praying for me! Please pray that the Lord will open the doors for me to move out there, that He will provide for me, and that He would go before me and prepare the way.

It looks as of right now I would be moving to Bucharest, Romania to work with ROCK Ministries. That is one of the places I went to this past March. The Lord has also given me a desire to work with the elderly although I have no clue what all that entails as of yet.

I don't have much else to say right now. I will fill you in monthly as new things develop. Please keep me in your prayers! Thank you again!

"Then I heard the voice of the Lord, saying,
' Whom shall I send, and who will go for Us?'
Then I said, 'Here am I. Send me!' "
~ Isaiah 6:8

with love,
rachel