Season

 "FOR EVERYTHING THERE IS A SEASON..."
 (from Ecclesiastes 3:1)
 First of all, we would like to wish all of you a very happy new year, and we pray that 2007 would be a memorable year for you, full of wonderful memories and the incredible experience of God's blessings and mercies -- for they are new every morning! (Lamentations 3:22-23)
 As you can probably imagine, we had quite a different Christmas here. There were many different things for the kids to experience here that they hadn't in America, and they had a good time generally -- except that they were pretty sick right at the turn of the year for a few days, but they're doing much better now. The picture we included with this post is of our three children on Christmas Day 2006.
 We enjoyed our times together as a family both on Joseph's birthday (December 24 in the evening; he turned four years old!) and for Christmas (December 25, again in the evening). Ministry-wise, we were also pretty busy, and we also enjoyed those times with other people as well. We went caroling with some other people for several hours on the evening of December 23 in the village of Ilovita; we went to the big church here in Turnu-Severin in the morning and evening of December 24; on December 25 we went to the village of Gemeni for a Christmas Day service; and finally on December 26 we went to Gemeni again for another service and a fellowship meal with the church there, followed by caroling.
 Some of you will be thrilled to hear that on December 24 in the evening at the church here in town, all the kids in the church were given Operation Christmas Child boxes! On December 26 in Gemeni, christmas boxes were given out to the children there as well. Geta and I thought of Bridgeport Chapel each time when we saw them being handed out, and the look of joy and delight on the children's faces as they opened the boxes; it was quite a sight, moving and emotional. It was unforgettable, and we were proud (the good kind) of all of you at Bridgeport Chapel and other places who have taken time and such care to pack a box (or many!) to send to a child somewhere. Believe us when we say, it is so worth it when you see the children's faces, smiles, and joy as they receive and open one of those boxes.
 For New Year's Eve, a couple that are very good friends of ours, Cosmin and his wife Mari, came from Caransebes to spend time together with us and stay the night to bring in the new year. We had a lot of fun together, and it was a very encouraging time for us as well.
 Even amongst all the ministries, festivities, and experiences of Christmas time, we are saddened to say that we had a rough couple of weeks in relation to our ministry. Sometimes God has us go through things that we don't understand at the time, and maybe won't understand for awhile; but at the same time we can understand and believe that God is allowing it with His purpose in mind, and for His glory, and Geta and I believe this to be true. Without going into details, let me just say that though it was at times very discouraging and emotionally draining for us, we have been greatly encouraged by all the praying that we know people have done for us, and by the emails and counsel from a couple of people with whom we shared the situation and sought counsel and/or advice.
 We were also very encouraged and blessed by the way in which God continues to show Himself to us, and take care of our family day by day. It just seems like God keeps blessing us, and it is really amazing. We believe that it is because of who He is ("...God...acts for those who wait for Him." from Isaiah 64:4), and also that it has a lot to do with all of the people who have been and continue to pray for us; it has a lot to do with you.
 Another verse that has really stood out to us lately is Isaiah 65:13-14. These verses (among others) are comparing those who forsake God with God's servants ("my servants"), and part of those verses say, "...my servants shall eat...my servants shall drink...my servants shall rejoice...my servants shall sing for gladness of heart...". Encouraging for us, and these scriptures are so true! May they be an encouragement to each of you as well!
 We know that God is absolutely sovereign, and He leads us where He wants us to go. Even though the last three weeks or so have at times seemed like quite a trial for us, we know that God has a purpose in it -- that He has something even more incredible for us to do here in Romania than we could have imagined. Please continue to pray for us and for God's guidance as we consider more ministry opportunities; pray for clear direction for our family and that we will always seek to honor God by doing what He wants us to do.
 Always Servants Together With You In Christ,
 Andrew & Geta and kids