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At certain
times during the year, particularly at Christmas and Easter, our Aid Programmes
in Romania are extended beyond those who receive support through our
Child Sponsorship Scheme on a monthly basis, and into the wider (equally
needy) community in which they live.
This includes the provision of food parcels or clothing, assistance
with utility bills or arrears of rent, repairs to a leaking roof and broken
window frames, or perhaps replacing a wood burning stove, heating system or
hot water boiler. More recently, we
have also established links with an orphanage for severely handicapped
children, and an old people's home where we were met with tears of gratitude
in response to providing fresh bread. Every year, we aim to deliver at least 100 extra food
parcels to needy families at Christmas, to share the love of God, and to
demonstrate our love for them too.
These families have not usually had any dealings with the church or
aid work before, but it’s worth noting that several of the Romanian church
fellowship today only began attending Curieri pentru Cristos after receiving
a food parcel. These are a vital
means of outreach. Here is just one
report from an aid delivery such as this: “...The elevator stops on the second
floor. The lady opens the door and we
find ourselves in a wide hallway. There
are apartment doors on both sides. We
turn left and knock. An elderly lady
opens the door. She looks puzzled,
and before she could say anything, we give her the Christmas food
parcel. The lady looks at it, and
then looks at us in amazement. She asks:
“Why am I receiving this bag?” “Because
God loves you and so do we” I answer.
Her eyes are filled with tears, her arms open wide, and I get blessed
with a huge hug. When we step out to
leave the apartment, while the door is closing slow, we can still see the
lady standing there, just looking at the surprise Christmas parcel that
blessed her day...” |
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