Better Late Than Never

Today I blog with not just good news, but GREAT news!! Today, I have another reason to praise the Lord! TODAY... are you ready?

drum
roll
please....
Nancy and I received our LIVING PERMITS. *8 months in Moldova and we finally have them* woo HOOO!!!

The Lord is always worthy of praise, glory, and honor, but today we CELEBRATE the fact that He is in control and that He brings all things to pass in His timing. The WAITING is over. This long process is over. I am not writing with news that we will receive the documents tomorrow or next week. I have the documents in HAND. Praise God from whom all blessings flow. Thank you for your faithful prayers concerning this matter. A huge weight has been lifted and it feels really good! God is faithful.

Light vs. Dark

This past weekend I lost power in my apartment for 24 hours. It wasn't too frustrating because for about 8 of those hours I was sleeping and for another 5 plus hours I was out of the apartment. It stayed light outside until about 6:30pm. So, I didn't have too long to sit in the darkness. I lit three candles(that's how many candles I had). The candles weren't all that bright, but they provided adequate lighting for such a short time. This experience was a good reminder of the verses in the Bible about light and darkness.

2 Samuel 22:29
You are my lamp, O LORD; the LORD turns my darkness into light.

Psalm 139:12
...even the darkness will not be dark to you; the night will shine like the day, for darkness is as light to you.

Isaiah 42:16
I will lead the blind by ways they have not known, along unfamiliar paths I will guide them; I will turn the darkness into light before them and make the rough places smooth. These are the things I will do; I will not forsake them.

At one point in the process of trying to figure out how to get the power restored I became slightly frustrated. I didn't know what to do. The Lord gently reminded me to trust Him and He will take care of all things. During the time without power, I decided to read, cook(that was interesting in the dark),and sleep. I haven't been to bed that early in a long time. :) At one point in the process,I was talking on my cell phone in English, my apartment phone in Romanian(to my landlord), and in Romanian to my friendly neighbor who was trying to help. Finally, the electric company came to my apartment at 11pm and restored power. I'm sure the worker thought I was crazy. I was clapping and saying thank you over and over.(I almost hugged the workers from the electric company) I was so thrilled to have electricity again.

It wasn't a huge inconvenience really. I wanted to check email, but that wasn't a huge deal. The main problem I had with the power being out was the darkness. I don't like being in the dark for long. I want to be able to see all that is going all around me. I think I often associate darkness with fear. Fear of the unknown.

Another thing I was thinking about was: What would it be like to live in darkness all the time? For many this is a reality. All over the world there are people without electricity. But also, for many this is a spiritually reality. Many people all over the world are living in darkeness without the hope and light of Jesus. As Christians we should be the light of Jesus to those around us.

I am thankful that I personally know the LAMP that turns my darkness into light.
I am thankful that He guides me and lights my paths. I am thankful that I know Jesus, the Light of the world.

GIRLS NIGHT!!

Tonight Heidi and Heather(missionaries here) and Elissa, Natalie, and Lauren(MKs and my students) came over to my apartment to watch movies and eat lots of junk food. We watched Game Plan and Nancy Drew. These movies were both really cute and fun. We ate grilled cheese sandwiches, tomato soup, chips, popcorn, cookies, and drank soda! It was a lot of fun hanging out with the girls. I thought I would post some pics. Enjoy.


Heidi and I

Elissa, Heather, Lauren, and Natalie




Ok, It's late and I can't decide if the Girls should be with an apostrophe s or not. Please forgive.

Sweet Hugs and Emotions

Last night Nancy and the girls arrived home to Moldova. I mentioned in a previous post to pray for Nancy after she received news that her mother had gone to be with Jesus. Well, Nancy returned to the states and Andy and the girls joined her in the states a few days later. Andy returned to Moldova a week and a half ago. Last night the girls returned! It was so good to see Nancy and the girls. The girls are so full of life and energy and we exchanged some very sweet hugs. Today after our first day back to the books(since Feb. 19), I even received more hugs! Very sweet. I'm glad that everyone is back in the country and we can continue on with our normal schedule. I think the girls are very much ready to be back in the swing of things as well. Everyone is tired from the emotions over the last three weeks, but glad to be home. Thanks for praying for the Raatz family.

The airport is a very emotional place for me. For one thing I am always so nervous in airports and definately not relaxed. On the other hand, I am so touched by watching all the families reunite after someone has been out of the country for a long time. It never fails. Each time I have been to the airport to pick someone up or drop someone off, I am moved to tears. It's those bitter-sweet kind of tears.

New Shoes

These came all the way from America...
Thank you to my parents for sending them and a dear friend who purchased them. I like them a lot. I first saw these shoes online back in October and I wanted them. I never lost the desire to have these shoes. Now, I have them on my feet here in Moldova. My mom thinks they are ugly. We have opposite taste in shoes! I had only seen them online. So, she saw them before I did. She told me that they were so ugly. I said, "Then, I know that I will LOVE them!" And I do. They are fun and I am excited to wear them this spring/summer! The picture doesn't do them justice. So, check them out online at:
http://www.skechers.com. They are called: Dimple and they are in brown.

Celebrating Women's Day

I feel special....

Today is Women's Day in Moldova. I received a phone call today wishing me a happy holiday and many blessings. When I went to the market today, I had several people wish me a happy holiday. I received flowers from my fellow team members. I received chocolates from another friend.

Information about Women's Day from a friend's blog:

IWD(International Women's Day) is now an official holiday in Armenia, Russia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Bulgaria, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Macedonia, Moldova, Mongolia, Tajikistan, Ukraine, Uzbekistan and Vietnam. The tradition sees men honoring their mothers, wives, girlfriends, colleagues, etc with flowers and small gifts. In some countries IWD has the equivalent status of Mother's Day where children give small presents to their mothers and grandmothers.

Annually on 8 March, thousands of events are held throughout the world to inspire women and celebrate their achievements. While there are many large-scale initiatives, a rich and diverse fabric of local activity connects women from all around the world ranging from political rallies, business conferences, government activities and networking events through to local women's craft markets, theatric performances, fashion parades and more.

WOMEN'S DAY IS A BIG DEAL HERE. This isn't a holiday for moms only. This isn't Valentine's Day. This is a separate holiday. This is for all ladies. The flower markets were jam-packed. There was at least one flower per couple walking down the street. The girl was holding the flower(s) or they were both holding flowers probably because they were taking flowers to their moms.

Tonight I went to youth group. They had some special skits,songs, and games. During one game there were three boys who had to go around and give compliments to girls. If the girl liked the compliment, then she would sign a piece of paper. The boy with the most signatures won the game. So, one boy came up and said to me in Romanian, "You are like a very pretty flower." How nice. I signed his paper. I don't think he won the game, but it was a nice compliment!! (Why don't we have this holiday in America??)It felt kind of like I was 15 again and we were doing a special Valentines Day service at youth group or something. It was really funny.

After youth group I went to a nice restaurant with a few other girls. We tried to go to this fantastic Italian restaurant that has great pizza and good dessert, but they were too crowded. At the second restaurant we had to wait several minutes for a table to open it. Everyone was out celebrating and the places were packed with people. Overall, It was a very fun and special day.

7 months in Moldova...and counting.

March 1st marked seven months in Moldova for me. I still have days where I cannot believe I am here(even though the signs are all around and obvious). There are still days where I miss the comforts of home. And everyday I am thankful for this once in a lifetime opportunity. Everyday I am aware that this time is part of God's plan for my life.

I wanted to jot down a list of things that I havent' experienced in 7 months. Some of these are obvious, but it's my list.

It's been seven months since I've:

sat foot on American soil

driven a car

held my neice

attended a church service where the entire service was in English

eaten any American fast food other than McDonalds

seen my Memphis/Millington/Missouri family and friends

picked up my cell phone to call my mom at anytime of the day

eaten my mom's cooking

been to Walmart

listened to K-love

used an American dollar to pay for anything

drank water out of the faucet

So, this is just a partial listing....I could go on, but I won't. This isn't supposed to be a sad, Shauna-is-homesick-today-kind-of-post, but I just wanted to share what I was thinking about. I think it's interesting to see the little things that we give up to experience something else. If I was still in Memphis, I wouldn't have experienced the richness of what God has wanted to show me and teach me in the last seven months...and counting.

In the last seven months I've:

flown overseas for the first time in my life

taken public transportation for the first time in my life

immersed myself in a culture and a language other than my own

used a foreign language in conversation outside of a class in school

made many new friends

lived in an apartment for the first time ever

learned to cook (something I didn't know I could do)

learned to appreciate all the comforts I've been afforded growing up in America

faced my fears on a daily basis

boiled water to drink for the first time ever

experienced God's faithfulness and mighty hand at work in my life and those around me

Thank you for reading and God bless!