“He was born for you, too….”
Dear Friends and Family,
The words quoted above come from one of the songs our children sang for their parents and siblings at a Christmas party we held at the Day Center in Galati on December 21. One of the children with whom I’ve spent a considerable amount of time over the past year and whom I’ve grown especially close to was the soloist for this particular piece. With arms spread wide and his face glowing, he announced the birth of Jesus into the world for each of us, reminding me of the Scripture that says that “a little child will lead them” (Isaiah 11:6).
The rest of our Christmas celebration included two nights of caroling in which the children belted out the good news of peace on earth at each of their homes as well as at the homes of friends in Galati who support us through prayer and finances. Then on Christmas Eve, we all smashed into two minibuses and rode to the home of one of our board members on the outskirts of Galati. This gracious family treated us to a wonderful feast of Romanian food (including stuffed grape leaves, one of my favorites!) and allowed us to use their living room for singing, devotions, games, art and cookie decorating. My favorite part of the evening was a time in which staff members spoke words of affirmation over each of the children, acknowledging growth that has happened over the past year as well as recounting favorite memories. The kids then each tore into the gifts prepared for them (again, a really special moment) and then spread out on the floor for a movie marathon that lasted until 7am. We returned home early Christmas morning, thankful anew for our friendships with each other and particularly aware of the beauty of a God who was made flesh, born among the poor for the restoration of the world.
As I write this letter we are in the midst of preparing for our January 15 departure to Moldova. Although each of our team members is experiencing this transition in his or her own way, I can say that in general we are all feeling a mixture of joy and nervousness. We are so excited about the possibility of what is to come and of being a part of seeing a new WMF community birthed in Moldova. But we are also dealing with fear: fear of the unknown, fear of saying goodbye and letting go, fear of stepping out into new relationships.
Our first couple of weeks in Moldova will be busy. As many of you already know, we found an apartment in Chisinau that we will be using for our office and meeting space. We are so thankful that the owners of the apartment are good friends of one of our staff, so we anticipate a good renting experience from them. Not all of our staff, however, know where they will be living, so we will still be doing some host family hunting during our first weeks in Moldova. We will also be meeting quite frequently during the first two weeks for orientation activities and will be putting together all necessary documents for our living permits.
We envision our first six months in Moldova as being a period of openness and learning. Many of us will be living in host families, taking language lessons and volunteering at different organizations that serve among vulnerable children in the greater Chisinau area. Our desire is to intently seek God during this time as we want to know how we are being specifically called to serve him long-term. We see these months as a crucial and foundational period of relationship building with our neighbors, churches, children and other non-profit organizations as we want to see service birthed out of real relationship.
I want to not forget to thank you for your prayers for Iosif Chiriac who has been a volunteer at the day center in Galati for over a year and has been planning on coming on staff in Moldova. Although he had originally planned on moving with us to Moldova in January, he has decided to postpone his departure for personal reasons. Please continue to remember him in your prayers.
Also, thank you all for your incredible support during this transition. Your encouraging emails, phone calls, cards, prayers and donations mean so very much. Thank you for continuing to choose to stand with us on behalf of our friends who are among the most vulnerable.
With love,
John Koon
PRAYER REQUESTS
1) Keep our team of five in your prayers as we adjust to our new life and service in Moldova. Ask that we would be unified in vision as a team and that our relationships with each other would be strong as we learn to love each other well.
2) Pray for our first guests in Moldova! WMF US staff Chris and Phileena Heuertz and Liz Ivkovich along with Romania staff David Chronic will be visiting us from January 31 to February 4. They will be introducing us to the bigger picture of WMF history and vision and leading some sessions on the contemplative/active life. Pray that it is a time of learning and encouragement for us all.
3) Pray for the relationships that we will be forming in Moldova, that they would be sustainable and authentic. Ask that we would have wisdom in knowing where to invest.