2016 Elevate Moldova Mission Trip

As I write this we have started the long journey back to America. While it has been a long exhausting week, it was also rewarding and went by quickly. Many on the team have come down with a respiratory infection which was bothersome but did not stop us. We saw some 300 patients in the clinic. We we're so blessed to have one of our team members receive donations of vitamins and supplements for us to distribute. I got the most joy when I was able to pray with people - it was emotionally draining though - it felt at times I was taking on their burdens during the time of prayer but at the same time I often felt an indescribable peace. Prayer is powerful. After I finished assessing and praying with one lady she reached I her purse and gave me a banana - I was humbled. Others prayed for me. I believe that the prayer while holding hands was just as important as the medicines that were distributed. If I encouraged just one person, then this trip was well worth it - as that person is loved by God.

I also go to see Lucia again this year when we visited one of the transition homes. We met the first year I came, I distinctly remember she liked looking at the pictures on my phone that year and listening to the music. When our eyes met, I could see them light up as she pointed and smiled and we hugged. She is not forgotten! She motioned me upstairs to see her room before the others came up in a group. It is neat and orderly and she has 3 small stuffed animals on her bed. She has a lovely balcony to step out on (so I think she and her roommates have the best room in the house). We can communicate love and caring even if we don't speak the same language. She has grown into a strong young lady, now 18, who will be transitioning out of the house at the end of the school year to a social apartment into the workforce. I now see hope in her bright eyes that wasn't as evident in 2013. 

Alex is one of the older boys in the Balti Transition Home, now 17. I remember him a few years back when he took younger neighborhood boy aside when we were playing games to show him how to jump rope. He likes music and dance. He is quiet and always observing what is going on. He is taking a course at the university for dance 'hip-hop' - he tells us. We saw him first when at a local market. I say hello Alex, he looks and again you can see recognition register in his eyes. We talk with him - and when we can't understand each other we find an interpreter so we can. I believe God has a bright future for him and he will make a difference. When I look in his eyes I new see a brightness, hope. He is not forgotten! 

Why do I keep going back? I love the people. It is where God has called me. I never imagined that I would be a short term missionary, traveling some 5000 miles to a small country in Eastern Europe that I had never even heard of. And as much as I might be helping other people, God is changing me. I am so thankful to God and the Moldovan people for blessing me.