Anatol Dunas reports of the special time he had nurturing and encourgaing a group of young people from his church over four days of travel:
We organized a four-day trip for 25 young people and teenagers; 2 days in Chisinau and two days in Balti. I did this in order to be able to be with them in the morning, at breakfast, at the prayer time, Bible study, worship, to have fellowship with them and to visit different places. We prepared the meals ourselves. So, this way, I was able to find out more from them and about them. We had Bible study and discussions every morning and night. One of the problems they are facing is envy. They become envious when someone else is more talented than they are.We played games together and I was able to see their characters. There is a 20-year-old young man. I used to know him as a calm person, but now I was able to see his competitive nature. I saw that he cared to win the game more than he cared for the other people. So I talked to him to help him see what is more important.
Someone played a trick on a young person and everybody laughed at him. He felt so humiliated and started crying. So I talked to him and I found out he was poor and that being laughed at was very difficult for him. He is living only with his father, who has a very small income. We do the laundry for them and also give them food supplies from time to time.
A teenage girl said all kind of love words to the boys. So I encouraged her to write love letters, thinking about her future husband. This way she wouldn’t waste her nice words with other boys, but keep them for him alone.
After spending two days in Chisinau, we went to Balti, where we visited Emanuel Church. In the evening, we met with the young people from the church in Balti. We were accommodated in the believers’ homes. Our young people, most of them coming from poor families, were impressed by the believers’ hospitality. So they have learned another important lesson of hospitality.
Five of our teenagers and young people stayed in the same place. After dinner, their host brought out a game and they started playing together. Three of them have grown up without their fathers and one of them without his mother. By this father playing a game with them on the kitchen table introduced them to a whole new world. It was something they have longed for. They didn’t have the chance to play games with their fathers because they had left them. One of them never had the chance to eat food cooked by his mother because left him when he was 7 years old. So, the food was so special for him.
This trip was tiring for me, as I had to take care of everything (organization, communication, lessons), but it had a great impact on the young people.
Liviu (17) is more dedicated in the youth ministry and he helps me with the worship time. Ema and Dana have become more mature in their relationship and they don’t argue anymore.
Don is serving as the HeartCry Coordinator for Eastern Europe. As an itinerant evangelist, his pulpit ministry is directed toward preaching on the inner life of the believer and the spiritual need of the lost. With HeartCry, his ministry includes organizing Bible conferences and corresponding with the HeartCry missionaries in Europe. He and his lovely wife Cindy live in Tuscumbia, AL.
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