The Coming of spring and joy

Here's a picture of my two pins:




Tomorrow, March 1st marks the first day of spring in Moldova. This will be celebrated by "Martisor." People wear these red and white pins on the left side of the chest beginning on the first day of March. It is common to give these pins as gifts. Exchanging them with friends is a sign of friendship, respect, appreciation, and love. I have had two very sweet friends each give me one, so I will proudly wear mine starting tomorrow.

You can read more about this tradition here: http://www.marisha.net/martisor.htm

and here: http://www.haverford.edu/newsletter/march05/moldova.htm

and here: http://www.moldova.org/pagini/eng/59/

It's really a fascinating and interesting tradition.

Thankful for My Friends in Moldova! (Part 1)

Me with Ana

Me with Aliona, Ana's sister

Me with Adriana, my language teacher


Me with Alida, a Dutch teacher

Me with Alida again

Kelly, my former roommate and I at the airport before she flew home.
(our last picture as roommates)


Kelly and Tanya at the airport

Zooming Out

"Worship is zooming out and refocusing on the big picture. It's refocusing on the fact that two thousand years ago,Jesus died on the cross to pay for the penalty for my sin. It's refocusing on the fact that God unconditionally loves me when I least expect it and least deserve it. It's refocusing on the fact that I have eternity with God to look forward to in a place where there is no mourning or sorrow or pain. Worship is forgetting about what's wrong with you and remembering what's right with God. It is like hitting the refresh key on your computer. It restores the joy of your salvation. It recalibrates your spirit. It renews your mind. And it enables you to find something good to praise God about even when everything seems to be going wrong."-Mark Batterson, from the book: In a Pit With a Lion on a Snowy Day

Yesterday I zoomed out as I stood singing in church. I am really getting the hang of singing the songs in Romanian. I don't get it all right, but man I give myself an 'E' for effort. I was able to lay down all the events of my week and the world around me and just focus on who God is. It was wonderful. We must have sang songs for nearly an hour, but honestly I think I could have sang for another hour. I was most excited and surprised when we sang, "Shout to Lord." This is my favorite worship song of all time. The Romanian words of the song pierced my heart just like the words in English do. The part of the song that gets to me every time are these words:
Forever I'll love you, forever I'll stand
Nothing compares to the promise I have in
YOU!

Indeed, what a promise we have in Him. I am so thankful for this! I was really refreshed as I zoomed out and sang these words yesterday.
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A bonus at church: There was a Turkish Christian who shared his testimony about how he and his wife converted from Islam to Christianity. Powerful stuff. Besides his powerful story, I was surpised by his English. He shared his story in English and then the pastor translated in Romanian to the congregation. What a joy it is to hear English in church. I don't think I fully understood before I came here how much English really is the universal language. It is amazing how many people speak it and speak it well here. It never ceases to amaze me. It is times like these that I am so thankful I was born in America. :)

Speaking of Turkey...Did you know that I get to go to Turkey in June? Yep. I'm really exctied. I will be there for retreat.

What I Like About Moldova....

This is a partial answer to a question I am frequently asked.

I like Moldova because: (In NO particular order)

1. It is fairly easy to get anywhere in the city. They really do have a good public transportation system.

2. The people in general are kind and friendly.

3. It's not too hard to find someone who wants to speak English.

4. It is easier to get out and walk. There are really nice parks here.

5. McDonalds...enough said.

6. All the little cafes there are to discover.

7. The way people greet one another(when meeting friends)is really nice.

8. The chocolates.

9. People say things so beautifully.

10. This is where God has be for this season in life.

Please Pray

Nancy, the missionary wife with whom I work just found out some very sad news about her mom today. She was previously scheduled to fly out in the morning to spend two weeks with her family.Now this news. I am staying the night with the girls as Andy is taking Nancy to the airport in the morning. Please pray for Nancy and the whole family this week. The kids are having a pretty hard time with all of this.

Here is a link to her prayer blog for more specifics from Nancy's own words.

http://raatzmoldova.blogspot.com/

Thanks,
Shauna

I Have a Friend Named Bob

I have a friend named Bob

who likes to disappear. But when I want him back -He's right behind my ear!!

My students like to do this little hand trick. I think it's fun, so I thought I would take some pics of them. The words of the hand trick are listed with the pictures. Bob is the top of a thing of chapstick.

For Mom and Dad

Robbie, Shauna, Debbie, and Rex

Mom and Dad celebrated 31 years together on Jan. 30th! Congrats! Love you!!

This pic was taken at my send-off party before I left for Moldova.

It's really hard to put into words what I want to say, but hopefully this will be a small tribute to my parents and a huge THANKS and PRAISE to the Lord for being who He is in our lives.

For 31 years, my parents have loved and served each other. They have experienced many trials and many joys. Their love still remains strong after all these years. The Lord gave them two miracle babies and now their newest joy, Montanah (Robbie's daughter).

I praise God for who my parents are and for the privilege of being their daughter. I am so blessed to see them live out their faith for Christ. No matter the struggle, hardship, or circumstance their faith has not wavered.

My parents are two of the most fun people I know. They make me laugh.:) I think my parent's ability to laugh is so important to their happy marriage. Another key reason my parents have a strong relationship is that their marriage is based on love and in that they accept each other unconditionally.

What I love about my dad: My dad is honestly hands-down the hardest working man I know. Very rarely do I hear my dad complain. My dad is a huge people-person. He has such a love for people and a big heart. He would go an extra mile and then some for a complete stranger. My dad has a huge laugh! I am so blessed to have an earthly expression of Fatherly love from God the Father. I have a taste of the Father's love for me in the way that my dad loves and cares for me.

What I love about my mom: My mom is the toughest person I know. She takes care of so many things(i.e. cooking, cleaning, shopping etc.) so that the rest of us can have life a little easier. She does so much for us despite her many health problems over the years. She struggles with quite a bit of pain in her day to day life, but I very rarely hear her complain. She is very caring and encouraging. She loves to talk with people. I am blessed to see Christ at work in her LIFE. This is evidenced in the way that my mom has joy (is found in Christ, not based on circumstances) despite her pain. It is very apparent that God is always at work. She's a trooper!

My parents live out a great example for my brother and I through their actions, faith, and words. They have always shared openly with my brother and I about their life experiences and mistakes. We learned a lot from them, including some really funny stories!

God bless you, mom and dad! Don't ever forget what God has done in and through your life. If you were to look back over your marriage and life together, you could never count all the blessings. He has been faithful. Prayer changes things. May you have many more years together. I love you.

Shauna