The second week in Galati looked a lot different than the first week. For starters it was a smaller team and everyone was a veteran, so the trip practically ran itself. Which was a good thing b/c myself and 5 others were wore out from week 1. We had to face oppressive heat, but with a change of schedule to keep us out of the sun during the hottest part of the day, we persevered. I briefly hit on a story in a previous post about a lady named Ana Maria. Her story is a testimony to God's timing and the importance of seed planting. I asked Jean Kinney, the campaigner who first met Ana Maria, to write up the story so I could share it with all of you so...
"It was July, 2006, when my team (my translator Dragos, and his mother Marianna, my Romanian National, and myself) went to the small village of Tulucesti, outside Galati, Romania, to do visiting and share the Gospel. Because the houses do not have numbers and the streets do not have names, we were asking everyone we met if they knew the people we were trying to visit. We were not having much success, or so we thought.
We turned down a dusty and rocky road that had deep cart ruts. When I looked down this road, it seemed to go on forever. We did not know if this was the right road or not. But, the three of us began our journey. I looked up, and in the distance, I saw a young lady walking towards us. As she neared, I could see her more clearly.
My Romanian friends conversed with her in Romanian, asking her if she knew the family we were searching for; she said no, but her Mother might. She asked us to follow her back home so that we could ask. I thought that was very nice of her to be so helpful and thoughtful. So, the three of us followed our new friend. As we walked, she looked at me, and I just smiled at her. There was just something about this young woman I could not put into words.
While Marianna spoke to her Mother, the young woman looked at me and began to speak to me in perfect English. She told me her name was Ana Maria and that she was a college student. Ana Maria was a beautiful young woman, but to me, I saw some sadness in her eyes that spoke volumes. I did not know what the sadness was from, but I knew Jesus did. It was at that moment that I knew we were not lost; we were right on schedule and at the right place. This lady had a need, and we had the eternal cure: Jesus.
I was surprised when Ana Maria agreed to help us find as many of the families as she could that we had on our list to visit. As we walked, I began to witness to her and share the Gospel. The Lord brought verses to my heart that I felt she needed to hear. She listened as we walked. We talked for almost two hours. My heart told me that there was just something special about this lady and that this was a divine meeting. As we parted, I asked her if she would come to Galati for lunch on Friday, my free day. She said yes. I was so excited. I wanted an opportunity to share with her more. I knew I had given her much to think about.
She came to my hotel on Friday with my translator, and we all went to lunch. We talked and shared our hearts, as well as discussed questions she had about the differences between the Romanian Orthodox Church and the Christian faith. She had reservations about making the decision to accept Christ, and so she did not. We spent the rest of the afternoon together at a museum, just getting to know each other. I knew she needed to trust me in order to hear me. I felt the Holy Spirit was working in her heart, and was testifying to her. At the end of the afternoon, I had shared every thing the Holy Spirit told me to, and so my part was finished; the rest was His job.
Ana Maria was heavy on my heart all the way home. I prayed for her every time she came across my mind. I prayed the Lord would bring circumstances and opportunities into her life to be exposed to the Gospel. I prayed that people would come into her life to water the seed that had been planted. This was my prayer for her.
The Lord placed her into a dorm at the university that fall with four Christians roommates. Ana Maria found a friendship with these ladies, and began to talk to them about Jesus. As all of the roommates shared, they were able to also witness to Ana Maria. She was able to see how Christians lived out their faith daily.
It was in December, 2006, that I received the email that Ana Maria had accepted Christ and had been baptized. I was so excited; I told my husband that it was the best Christmas present I could have received.
This year in 2007, Ana Maria came to Holy Trinity to see me, and it was so wonderful. The sadness was gone in her eyes, and it had been replaced with the joy of the Lord. Her face was joyful and she had the sweetest spirit. There was no doubt that Jesus had touched her life and was in His rightful place in her heart. She agreed to not only help us translate, but she also agreed to go back to her village of Tulucesti. It took courage and strength (the Lord gave her) to go back with us to her Orthodox village, where her parents lived, to help us share the Gospel.
The Lord has been working in her heart so much. She is a Senior at the university studying English and Hebrew, and I know the Lord is going to lead her to a great place of ministry and service. She is now my Sister in Christ. - Jean Kinney"
This story reminds me of 1 Cor 3:6-8, "I planted the seed, Apollos watered it, but God made it grow. So neither he who plants nor he who waters is anything, but only God, who makes things grow. The man who plants and the man who waters have one purpose, and each will be rewarded according to his own labor." So planting has a purpose, and God will bring others along with the purpose to water, but pray first and foremost for God to make it grow.
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