| July/August 2005 Newsletter |
God at Work
Previous Image [1 of 14] Next Image
What would we be without God but dust and bone? What would we have to hope in if not for Him and His goodness? In times such as these, when the trials of life weigh heavily on the hearts of so many, it's good to know that God is not without mercy and compassion.
Even in such trying times, the hand of God still comes down to stir the waters, and bring about such miracles that even those who have been praying and fasting diligently for them, often times confess that God far exceeded their prayers and expectations. Even those who as yet do not know God are in awe, unable to deny the fact that a miracle took place before their eyes.
It is nothing short of a miracle to see the haggard faces, made so by hardship and desperation, smile for the first time in months, at the fact that their children will eat that night, or that they will all the able to play outside at the same time because they all have a set of clothes.
It is nothing short of a miracle to see a mother crying tears of joy at the knowledge that her family will have a roof over their heads, or that her children will be sleeping in a bed for the first time in their lives. Miracles happen every day.
Shouts of joy, and thanks to God could be heard from afar when we visited the Ilie Valeriu family in Corni, and brought them the news that we would be building them a home. A month later, when their home was built, their joy could not be contained, their hallelujahs so passionate, that it caused those passing by to stop and ask what all the excitement was about.
"I can't remember the times, I would go to the neighbors to get water, only to be chased away and told there was no water for us in their well" the mother said. "There are too many of you," they would say, "Why don't you dig yourselves a well."
"We barely had enough to eat, and we knew only God could provide us with a well. It only took two days once God answered our prayers, and now we have a well, and my children have water." This is the God in whom we trust. The fact that we built a home for the Valeriu family, and also dug them a well, was not only an indescribable joy for this family, but a testimony to the entire village as to what God can do.
God was not indifferent to the pleas of the Hritcu Filip family in Dumeni either, and today, July 3, 2005 the windows and doors of their new home are being installed, and with that another miracle has come to completion.
Dina Papuc of Tudor Vladimirescu also has reason to be thankful to God for the great blessing He provided. A building crew is currently working on the roof of her home, and a new well was dug for her. How could anyone but God know that only one day after being told by her neighbor she was no longer allowed to get water from her well, Dina would have a well of her own?
It is good to trust in the strength and promise of the Almighty, for He knows not only how to work, but also when to work.
The joy of the Irasoc family was self-evident for the blessing God provided them. A cow was delivered to their home, and now they have the necessary milk for their children. Yet another prayer answered yet another family saved, yet another reward stored up in heaven.
It was a day of celebration for the Bacrau Ilie family of Crisana, when God in His infinite mercy provided them with a cow, and also for the Bacrau Marcel family who was provided with a horse that he might till the fields, and thereby provide food for His 10 children.
None of this could have been done without your prayers and support, and our prayers for you and our thanks toward God are unceasing. For all these blessings and many more, may the name of our heavenly Father be praised forever.
Virginia Boldea
Our Romanian Trip
Previous Image [1 of 11] Next Image
The day we drove up to the Valeriu family house to tell them that God had heard the cry of their hears to have a new home built, we found out that Valeriu's wife had had a dream that she was in a new home, but when she woke up she began crying because she was still in their old home. (A home where the ceiling is caving in and there is so much mildew that they are experiencing serious respiratory problems.)
Valeriu told his wife that he had had a dream, and in the dream Virginia was at their house and was wearing a blue shirt, which is the color of the shirt she was wearing when we arrived at their home. When we told Valeriu that we would be building them a new home, he said, "I'm so happy my face is burning," and ears of joy rolled down his wife's cheeks.
The man who needed to see the building site in order to get the permit to build is very busy and hard to get a hold of, but Virginia got through to him on the first call. When she asked how soon he could go to check this property in the village of Corni, he said he just happened to be in Corni right then and he could go see it in about an hour.
When the families in the village heard that people had come from America to build them a home, one man donated 5 million lei (approximately $175.00) another man offered his cement mixer to be used for mixing the concrete for the foundation, and another man said, "I can't come to help because I need to be working in the fields, but I will send my son to help." We also dug them a well. God's blessing was very evident in this building project. We thank God for the opportunity to be His hands of help extended to this family.
We also had the joy of contributing to the funds that had come in for the Filip family's new home in Dumeni. Tears of joy came once again and deep gratitude to God for answering their prayers. The foundation of their old home was crumbling and the walls were buckling.
We had great joy in taking food packages, clothing, and money to poor families and watching them praise God, knowing He had not forgotten them in their hour of need. One woman told Virginia, "Every time I'm at my lowest and so discouraged, God sends you to my house and I'm so thankful." We were also able to buy cows for two other families.
Our trip to Romania was such a blessing to us that it is hard to put into words. We experienced the truth that it is more blessed to give than to receive. For us this experience was like drinking from rivers of living waters.
Dave, Cheryl, and Hosanna Edman
Kalispell, Montana
Charlie & Jeanne Hubbard
Gallatin Gateway, Montana
I lost my job!
"What will I do now?" Maria Achitei of Suharau asked, with pain in her voice, the victim of a governmental decision to downsize its employee roster. In one day, four thousand people found themselves without gainful employment, and no prospects of finding another job.
"In a city like Suharau," Maria said, "it's next to impossible to find work, and up until this week I considered myself blessed for being one of the fortunate ones that did have a job, and that could at least provide some food for her family. Now, I just don't know how we are going to survive."
God saw the hardship the Achitei family was going through, and just one day after having lost her job, He sent us to this family with the cow they had been praying for, for some months. He, who watches over all things, stands with us in our suffering, and even in the midst of our greatest trials proves Himself to be faithful, and caring, showing His mercy in our darkest hour.
"You will never know how timely your visit was," Maria said as she wept. "It was ordained by God, because only this morning I was thinking to myself. I have no job now, no land, our home is ready to collapse and I owe 20 million lei ($700), if ever there was a time my family needed a miracle, it's now. And here you are, providing the miracle my family so desperately needed. I now know that my family is under God's protection, and He will not let us down."
It will not be easy for the Achitei family to adequately feed a cow without any land, and they will have to labor, but for them, as for any other family in similar conditions such a blessing in a trying time such as this, is nothing short of a life saving miracle.
"God could not have spoken to us more clearly through this," Maria said, "He will care for us, and provide for our needs, we serve a truly great God."
Nothing is impossible to our God, and if we patiently, and prayerfully wait for the fulfillment of His promises, we will never be disappointed, for God never fall short. Blessed be the name of the Lord.
Hand of Help Staff
Hand of Help Orphanage
With summer vacation upon us, the children are looking forward to one thing. Namely the yearly summer camp we've been able to take them to since the inception of the orphanage.
They are already buzzing with excitement, talking about the hiking trails in the foothills, and the waterfalls that are abundant near the camp. Since Christians own the camp, they offered us a discount, and we would be able to take 100 children for $2500, for a period of 2 weeks. This would be a great blessing for the children, and we ask that you keep this need in your prayers as the time approaches. May God bless you, and know that you are always in our prayers.
Dumitru Matei
Romania under water
The rains came so swift and sudden that it caught many people off guard. Terror, fear and shock swept through the entire nation as thousands of homes were swept away, or covered over with the subsequent landslides that followed.
The nation is in a state of emergency, but there is not much they can do. It has been decades since such a devastating storm was visited upon Romania, and unfortunately it has left countless thousands homeless, their life's labors swept away in the blink of an eye.
Romania as yet does not have home insurance, and so over 90% of those who lost everything will receive nothing in return. It is a tragic site to behold, as entire villages lie submerged, and those fortunate enough to escape with their lives must now contend with the fact that all they have is the clothes on their backs.
Please remember the Romanian people in your prayers during these trying times.
Hand of Help Staff
Have you forgotten me Lord?
"Lord hear my prayer for I am at the brink of desperation, and who will hear me if not you?" This was the prayer of Maria Bacrau, a widowed mother of nine living in the village of Crisana.
Having heard of her recent loss, and the desperate state of her situation we drove to her home, to find out in what measure we could help the Bacrau family. We discovered that Maria, and her oldest children work as day laborers in order to survive, and even when they find work, often times there isn't enough food to go around.
What's worse, the day before we arrived, her oldest son, who is sixteen, fell onto his head off a ladder, while working, and she did not have the money to get to the hospital to sign a release form for a surgical procedure. It is heartbreaking to see such families who endure one tragedy after another, and we knew we had to do all that was in our power to help this family. We arrived at Maria's home, at the pinnacle of her desperation, and we wept with her as she held her nine month old, and said, "it's not enough that there is never enough food, I have no land, I have no income, I've lost my husband, and now my oldest son. They tell me there is little chance he will survive. What am I to do? I prayed to God for a cow, so that in the least I would have milk for my babies, there is nothing more I can do but pray."
We helped Maria with money for milk, as well as funds to travel and see her son in the hospital, but her prayer remains steadfast for a cow, which she says would solve her problem with the food shortage. For a family of nine children, a constant source of nutrition would truly be a blessing. May God show His grace toward the Bacrau Maria family, and may He answer her prayers. Also, please remember her son in your prayers, as he is still in critical condition.
Virginia Boldea
Lord Hear Us
Life has not been easy, and as any man would, I have labored intensely in order to survive, and provide for the seven children the Lord has given me. Thankfully I have been able to put food on the table almost every night, I managed to build a small shed where I can keep a cow, a pig, and some chickens, but once again the trials of life seem to have overtaken us. We have no one to turn to, my wife having been an orphan, and my family having disowned me when I came to Christ. All nine of us sleep in one room, and we've also taken in a 97 year old man who has no one to look after him. We need a miracle from God, and no miracle would be greater for my family, than that of having a home. We cannot do it on our own, but we know that God can, and so ask for your prayers for my family. Only God can intervene, and I know that He is able.
With much prayer and consideration I have poured out my heart, and I pray the day comes when my children will no longer have to sleep six to a bed, which as they grow becomes increasingly difficult. Thank you for taking the time to read this letter, and may God bless you as you obey His voice. Please forgive my boldness in writing, and if I have brought offense, I ask your forgiveness.
Nita Dorin
Milea Village
However Little
"If you could help us, however little it may be, our lives would be saved" said Valeria and Ioan Iurescu, who recently lost all their earthly possessions, including their home due to a landslide caused by the abundant rains of recent weeks. "We don't need much, just a room, a place where we can lay our heads, and where our orphaned seven year old nephew can be protected from the elements. We raised a house full of children, and have gone through many trials, but we never thought that now in the twilight of our lives, we would have absolutely nothing. There is no one else, only God can help us."
The cost of building a two-room home for the Iursecu family is around $3000, and we ask that you pray for God's will to be done in this matter. May He work as He sees fit, and may we be obedient and diligent in all that He requires of us.
Hand of Help Staff
Dear Brethren,
John 8:12, "Then Jesus spoke to them again, saying, 'I am the light of the world. He who follows Me shall not walk in darkness but have the light of life."
Matthew 11:6, "And blessed is he who is not offended because of Me."
When I first read this verse in Matthew, I was still a young boy. At the time this particular verse felt out of place, and seemed improbable. How could anyone who claims to be a follower of Christ, be offended because of Him? How can one who serves Him, concurrently be offended by His master?
What I have come to realize in recent months however, is that the words Christ uttered more than 2000 years ago, were of a prophetic nature, and we are seeing the truth of the words He spoke coming to pass before our very eyes, in this present age.
There are men today, who have risen to the pinnacle of Christian leadership, who readily choose to dismiss the sovereignty of Christ, unwilling to take a stand and proclaim that Jesus is the Son of God, and the only way to salvation. For fear of reprisal, or simply a desire not to be controversial, they minimize the paramount necessity of receiving Jesus Christ as one's personal Lord and Savior.
The hour is here when men who should know better, no longer compel those walking in darkness to come to the light, but rather placate the lost, allowing them to die in their sin, by insisting that simply aspiring to a certain standard of morality is enough of an effort to ensure their entrance into heaven.
A great shaking, and a season of sifting is soon to come upon the Christian world, for God must separate the sheep from the goats, the wheat from the tares, that those who seek righteousness and truth may be sanctified and strengthened, and those who seek another way may be cast asunder.
Though men may be offended by truth, though men may mock and scorn you for standing on the foundation of that which God established, take heart in knowing that the reward for diligence and faithfulness, the reward for obedience and sacrifice is nothing less than eternity in His presence.
While easier paths are daily discovered by self-appointed scholars, and self anointed prophets, they are paths that lead to destruction. There is only one way, and it has been thus since the Son of God shed His blood that we may have life, and life more abundantly. Jesus never promised us an easy path, just a righteous one, and armed with the knowledge that He is the only way, may we press on faithfully, undeterred by the shiny new things out in the desert of desolation.
Please remember me in your prayers as I return to Romania during a period of time that is seeing the worst floods in five hundred years, as I will remember you in my prayers as well. May the light of His glory shine upon you, and may the knowledge that He stands with you embolden you to do all that He requires.
Matthew 13:41-43, "The Son of Man will send out His angels, and they will gather out of His kingdom all things that offend and those who practice lawlessness, and will cast them into the furnace of fire. There will be wailing and gnashing of teeth. Then the righteous will shine forth as the sun in the kingdom of their Father. He who has ears to hear let him hear!"
With love in Christ,
Michael Boldea Jr.
If contributions exceed the amount needed to help a family, the extra contributions for that project will be used to help a family in a similar situation. It is our commitment to you before our Lord that we will be faithful in the disbursement of all contributions that we receive.
The Hand of Help Staff.