1 February 2010
Dear friends in Christ,
Today is first day of the school holiday, marking the end of the first term and preparing to start the second term. It is amazing how fast the time goes! Or my life is so full that I perceive time at full speed! Indeed, last term was full of events and many opportunities that challenged us in our service, feeling discouraged, but not without hope, cornered, but not without the power God provides through His Spirit.
This last Christmas, as we developed our tradition, we enjoyed the events through which we celebrated this holiday: walking through high snow, caroling the children's families, and the families of those that support us from Galati. The end of every caroling night (around 10 pm.) was a joy for the children for then they could have a snowball fight. The children also prepared a special program for their families, when they offered gifts to their brothers and sisters, gifts they worked for.
Our Christmas party was a special one, for a family from Emanuel Church opened their house for us. More than that, they offered to cook for us, offered us warm blankets to sit on while watching movies.
Stepping into the new year meant starting the last four weeks of the first term, and now we are at its end. Thinking over and evaluating this last time period we are grateful for the victories the children, and us with them, won day by day, against criticisms, negativism, they face from their teachers, the abuse situations from their families, the neglect and lack of interest from their families regarding their needs.
We are aware again the way God is calling us to respond to these dehumanizing situations by creating a place of safety, where they can feel that limits can be imposed through love, respect and dignity, where we take down the lies from their lives through truth, and face their resentments with acceptance, and where we can pour God's oil on their wounds.
Most of the time we have to face our own fears and wounds in our service, that from time to time try to hinder the work of the Holy Spirit. Again we recognize our constant need for our Father, His guidance, we need the courage of the Holy Spirit to overcome our own fears and limits, to be able to free others, too. This is something we ask you to join us in praying for.
Also, please pray for:
Us, to see God's presence in our daily service, in all we experience with the children.
For all workers, to have a clear vision in leading the children and their families to God.
For the new school term, that will start next week, for the children that didn't have good grades, to learn and receive good grades, to pass into next grade, and also to learn and catch up where they didn't study enough.
In Christ,
Lau & Vali Archip
O.P. 6, C.P. 256
Galaţi, România
800 760
www.wmfromania.com
valikid@yahoo.com
lauarchip@gmail.com
http://valiandlau.blogspot.com
Saturday, February 6, 2010
during the winter
hopefully only one more month of winter is left.
The cold weather keeps us mostly indoors, and we try to take advantage of this by reading a lot. Vali posted on a wall a list of books to be read, and one with the books we have read this year. The first list grows every day, us we hear about new good books we will like to read. the second list... grows at a slower pace, as we finish reading, a book at a time.
The cold weather keeps us mostly indoors, and we try to take advantage of this by reading a lot. Vali posted on a wall a list of books to be read, and one with the books we have read this year. The first list grows every day, us we hear about new good books we will like to read. the second list... grows at a slower pace, as we finish reading, a book at a time.
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