Recent Happenings: June and July 2012

The people of Smirna church together with the people of the church in Hobita. Sunday, July 15th, 2012, in front of the church building in Hobita.

Greetings from Romania!
We hope this finds each and every one of you continuing to draw strength, joy, and encouragement from Jesus in every day...

Nehemiah 8:10b: "...for the joy of the Lord is your strength."

This is an update about what we have been doing and been involved with in the last couple of months here in Romania.

June
As summer wears on, we have been very busy with projects around the property - cleaning, mowing, sweeping, clearing space to be more clean, putting locks on garage doors to "fortify" them better against thieves, etc. We also need to work in the basement some, and on the water system in the basement. There's nothing wrong, we just want to modify the space a little more so others will have more room to store canned goods and things for the winter, also need to modify the water system slightly to not leave water messes any more when we have to switch the main pump hose to fill different water tanks. Busy, busy...before we know it, it will be time to buy firewood and deal with that in preparation for the winter.

Ministrywise in June, things seemed a little scattered. We had some different things going on, so even though the church met every week like usual, the youth group was on and off. Either they couldn't

come, or we had some thing to do, or whatever.
Early in the month myself and another leader from the church (Dan) were invited with our families to a leadership meeting (an afternoon/evening with dinner too) near another city called Targu Jiu. It was actually up in the mountains, and there weren't a lot of people. It was a nice time to get away for the afternoon and evening with our families and learn a bit together and fellowship with others. Plus all our kids enjoyed it a lot since there were quite a few other kids there to play with.
The last week of June was a really great week for us. Many of you have already seen the pictures we posted on our Facebook page. We got the opportunity to take whichever kids that wanted to go from

our church (and who were old enough) to a camp for kids (in the end, only 1 other kid came with us to the camp). The camp is near the city of Fagaras, about 450km from where we live. The drive was long, but it was very much worth it. Geta helped all week in the kitchen, and I helped with the kids in the camp, taught lessons, was a room leader (there were several dorm rooms with 13 or so beds each). The kids were generally between 9 and 13 years old, and there were about 45 or so there, from all around Romania. It was an amazing experience and one that we will not soon forget. It was one of the

best weeks we've had in a long time. It was great to get to know the kids, and they are at that age where they just are eager to be your friend, and they are so trusting. By the end of the week, we were

sad to go. On the last night there was a big campfire; some shared, and there were lots of laughs but also lots of tears, as the reality set in that it was the last night of camp. We miss the kids, but are

looking forward to going again next year to help. We want to stay for two weeks next year, and are hoping to see many of the same kids again. We are also hoping to take more kids from our church next year. We will see what God has in store for us in regards to that next year! 

July
The month of July continued pretty much as normal, with the weather being quite hot for most of the month (near 100 degrees! Although it's cooled off here a bit at the end of July). We've had our

regular church meetings every Sunday, with afternoons full of fellowship, "hang out" time, and encouragement.
One of the weekends in July (the 14th and 15th) we were went as a church in mission to a village, about 150 kilometers away. We left Saturday afternoon, and arrived at the village (Hobita, where we

also went 2 years ago as a church) toward evening. There were 19 of us (wow!) that went on the mission, and it was really a great time of being together with others. Saturday evening, we had a meal together and visited with people from the church. Later on, the ladies all worked together with the ladies from the church in Hobita to prepare a whole bunch of sarmale (cabbage rolls) for lunch together with the church the next day. They all seemed to enjoy that; again, many of you may have already seen the pictures from our trip to Hobita on our Facebook page.

Sunday morning, we all walked along a little creek through a small wooded area to where the church was. There we sang a lot together, which was great because the people there at the church don't have someone to play music during their services, so that was something a little more special for them. We really are blessed to have someone at the church (both here and in America) who can play music and lead us in worship. After that, I spoke from Romans (10:12-15) about "Beautiful Feet". I  believe that went pretty well, especially considering that I taught in Romanian; people seemed to understand

the message that God had for us that morning and that is what is important.

After the service, we walked back to the house where the majority of our group had stayed the previous night, and we all had lunch together - our church and their church. It was a nice meal together, and a nice afternoon of just being together with other believers. Later that afternoon, we had a short service again, with singing and various people sharing. At the end the church's pastor showed up for a brief word of encouragement. (they still have many areas in Romania where a pastor has several churches under his care, and must travel to several of them during the morning service time, and several during the evening service time. This is the situation in Hobita and the surrounding areas.)
As I mentioned earlier, the weather cooled off a little in the last week or so (all the way down to 90). We were supposed to have church camp last weekend, but postponed it for a week because of

thunderstorms. More of the same is predicted for this week, but hopefully it will clear up by Friday so we can all go for a weekend together in the mountains. We'll see...

Prayer Requests
Please pray for all the boys and girls that were at the camp near Fagaras at the end of June (camp Bit of Heaven, as it's called); pray that God will speak to the children's hearts and cause seeds that were planted in their lives to grow so that those kids can know him more.
Please also pray for the church, the people in Hobita. It is a very small church with almost all older people, several of whom have died in the last couple of years. Pray that they would be strengthened and encouraged physically as well a spiritually, that God would work in their church and use the people there to reach the village and raise up a new generation of people there for the glory of his kingdom.

We appreciate all your continued prayers for Geta - it is a great encouragement to our family. She is still having trouble with her leg; in fact she took a bad spill in the ladies restroom on a wet floor while we were up at the children's camp in June. Please pray that God will continue to heal her leg, give her strength, joy, and encouragement. I am so proud of her (and inspired by her), because in spite of the pain and discomfort that she has to live with every day, she continually has a positive outlook, and chooses in every day to declare that God is in control and knows what is best for her.
We hope and pray that all is well with you and your family. God is taking care of us, and we see his hand in our lives on a daily basis. We trust and pray that the same is true in your life.
To God be all the glory!
Servants together with you,
Andrew & Geta and family

Christmas Play: The Three Trees

This is a video of a play that Geta did together with the Sunday School kids here in Romania on Christmas Sunday. It is a simplified version of the story "The Three Trees" (or in Romanian, "Povestea Celor Trei Copaci"). Geta only had a couple Sundays to get the kids ready, but they do fine. I drew the outline of the pictures, and the Sunday School kids had fun coloring them.

Our daughter Ammi is the first tree, Elijah appears as a carpenter, and Joseph  as a woodsman. Another boy, also appearing as a woodsman, is not one of our regular Sunday School kids, but has been coming fairly often to our youth meetings; he wanted a part in the play too (which was great), so we got to include him as well.

The video is made using a cell phone, so the quality is not very good, but those of you that are familiar with the story can figure it out pretty easily. The audio quality is also not very good so you'll have trouble hearing the Romanian. We hope you'll enjoy it for what it is though.

Take care and may God continue to bless you!

Andrew & Geta

God's Protection and People's Gratefulness

Andrew with some of the people in the village of Plopi

Dear Friends and Family,
We hope and pray that all is well with you, and that you continue to be blessed and see God's hand in your lives on a daily basis.In June the we saw the lower floor (most of it) of the multipurpose building here on the property completed, which has been areal blessing. It turned out very nice and "homey" feeling, and is a very pleasant atmosphere to be in for Sunday services and fellowship times in the afternoons - although most of the fellowship time is spent outdoors these summer days.
Sunday afternoons continue to be a great time of fellowship here as people from several different churches come to spend time together, whether that is visiting around a picnic table with drinks and sunflower seeds (the hang-out snack of choice here) or friendly competition in a game of volleyball. It is also a good opportunity to include/get to know more non-believers, as several have come when they have opportunity.
We saw God's hand of protection in our family a while back as we went to a village near the city of Targu Jiu. When we were about 20km from the city, in a curve, the front driver's side wheel of the van came off and shot off into a nearby field. Needless to say it was quite a surprise, but praise God, I was able to hold onto the wheel until we slid along and came to a stop mostly off the road. Turns out the big screw in the middle of the wheel came out somewhere along the line. But God's hand was certainly upon us, as none of us was hurt, no other cars or people were anywhere near when it happened, and not more damage was done to the car. To make a long story short, We have a friend in Targu Jiu who helped us non stop in the next two days to get the car to the city, find parts. etc. we really thank God for the people he has put in our lives!
Late in June, the planter of the church where we serve, and his wife left with their family to move back to America. It was a sad day for everyone here, and hard on all the kids to see their friends leave for good. But we are convinced that God is bringing even more good from this than we can dream of. Church is continuing, and we believe God is going to do great things. Please pray for the people still here, the leaders, and those whom God will put in our path and in the church's sphere of influence.
Near the end of June, I had the opportunity to help some friends take several mattresses, boxes of clothes, etc. to the village of Plopi to some needy people, about 50 kilometers away. We went to a couple different families, and people and kids just crowded around to see what was going on. (The picture at the top is me with some adults and the adorable kids) I am still amazed at the profound gratefulness of people in the villages when they receive something.
Thank you for your continued prayers for us and for Romania. May God continue to pour out his blessings and fill your lives!
In Christ,
Andrew & Geta Roby

Thank You / Support Information

Our family at the St. Ana's Monastery in Orsova, May 2011. We went there one Sunday afternoon with a number of people from church.

Our family would like to thank each one of you for the many ways you continue to bless us here in Romania. Your friendship and support of our family have been an immense encouragement to us. Thank you for keeping us before the throne of God in prayer, no matter what the circumstances. God continues to show us how good he is!

Thank you also to MCII (Mission Churches International, Inc.) for allowing us for the last year to be a part of their organization, and for the help that they are to us in prayer, finances, and accountability. We have been missionaries now with MCII for the last year. MCII is the only non-profit organization we are affiliated with, and through which our support is sent. (http://www.mcii.org/)

If you are interested in what the Lord is doing in Romania, and continuing to support us and our ministry financially, whether that would be ongoing monthly support or a one time gift which is tax deductible, a check would be made out to: MCII; and it would be sent to: P.O. Box 354, Ellsworth, KS., 67439; please note that it should also have our name (Roby) written in the memo line.

We also have a new mailing address here in Romania (it's a p.o.box). If anyone would like to write to us, the new address is as follows:
Andrew & Geta Roby
OF. Dr. Tr. Severin 1,Ghiseul 2
C.P. Nr. 12
Dr. Tr. Severin
Jud. Mehedinti
Romania.

Thank you again, and God be with you!
In Christ,
Andrew & Geta and family

Give Us Your Eyes...

Andrew visiting with Panas, a woman in a nursing home in Satu Mare.

On April 28 - May 1, 2011, myself (Andrew) and three other leaders from the church had an opportunity to take a trip together to a different city to be at a gathering of missional churches - churches that are not cast in the mold of traditional churches at all.

So we left from Drobeta Turnu-Severin on April 28th and drove to Timisoara where we stayed the night. The next morning at 3:30 we got up and left for the rest of our journey which would take us through Arad, Oradea, (and a myriad of small villages) and finally to Satu Mare, our destination - about 570km total (about 10 hours' drive!)

Beginning Friday the 29th until Sunday May 1st at about lunch time, the people and churches that had gathered from many different parts of Romania shared their experiences, asked questions,learned and interacted with each another, with the goal of understanding more what missional churches are and how they function. Some were there to share how they function as a missional church, and others were there to try hear more, and try to see if that is the direction God may be leading them.

The overall goal was sharing about and understanding more about what missional churches are and how they function. The missional church movement here in Romania is mostly made up of groups of people who meet in their houses once or more per week, similar to small study groups, except these are considered churches. In a given city or area, any number of these "house churches" meet together in a larger group setting, once a month or more, whatever the groups decide together should be the case. These types of churches are very interactional within themselves and with each other - and they are a phenomenal way to reach many unbelievers that people come in contact with on a daily basis (work, school, neighborhood, etc.), people who may not be interested in church in the traditional sense, but may be open to a gathering of friends and saints in a house setting (a house church). Based on the testimonies and stories shared at the gathering, this way of missional church - of living church daily in our every day way of life and touching the lives of those we come in contact - has opened many doors, and changed many lives.

At one point we broke into three large groups and went to visit three different places: a retirement home, an orphanage, and a psychiatric hospital. I was able to go to the retirement home, and it was very moving to see how happy and thankful the people were, just to have someone to listen to them for a few minutes. We also had a singer with us - Cristian Cazacu - who sang a few songs for them, to their great enjoyment. I think we stayed there a good hour or so, and during that time I got to visit at length with a woman who had just had her 86th birthday the day before, believes in God, but is tired of "religion". It was a great opportunity, we had a very nice talk, and just before we left she let me pray for her. It was a profound experience, and if you would like to pray for this woman, that God would touch her and turn her heart to him, her name is Panas. (She is the elderly woman in the picture with me at the top of this blog entry).

I have to say that this is an exciting time in Romania, and in the church around the world. As many of you already know, the missional church movement is not something that new, and did not originate in Romania. It is something that has been growing and building for some time, and one of the ways we believe God is using his people and working through them as time for the world grows short.

We learned a lot over that weekend (at least I did), and got to spend a lot of time visiting with and getting to know others who think in this same way. We were also blessed to stay with a family who has one of these churches in their house, and it was great to get to know them a little as well. Definitely my favorite part of the weekend, how I was blessed the most, was the time I got to spend meeting new people and in fellowship with others. There always seems to be that nearly instant bond with others that love the Lord that makes talking and getting to know one another so much easier.

And, praise the Lord, Sunday at lunchtime we headed home, and 10 hours and 570km later we arrived safe and sound back with our families in Drobeta Turnu-Severin.
Thank you Lord for keeping us safe, and helping us understand more of how you are working in our lives and the lives of those around us. Give us your eyes to see others the way you see them...Amen!
Andrew & Geta and family