1. We have been immersed in the cross-cultural context of Eastern Europe for a year and three months now, and things are gradually taking shape. We remain focused on the initial, foundational phase of planting a church in Limanu—the last coastal town in Romania—which comprises three districts: 2 Mai, Vama Veche, and Hagieni. We believe the Lord has a people to reach in this humble region.
2. During this initial planting phase (the second quarter of the year—April, May, and June), we have averaged 30 visitors per service, including church members from Mangalia. The majority are children and teenagers from Limanu, along with some local adults. Attendance varies from week to week—sometimes 30, sometimes 10 or 15; it is always a surprise! Given the local context, this represents a huge number of visitors.
3. Our preaching focuses on Christ in the book of Genesis, presented in a simple, straightforward manner. The young people follow along and provide feedback using a mind-map note-taking sheet we adapted for them. We also provide light refreshments, which makes a significant difference given the economic reality and the fact that they walk about 2 km to reach the church.
RELATIONSHIPS AND SPECIAL EVENTS
4. We continue to build connections in Limanu and welcome people into our home. Birthdays are very special occasions here; in addition to actual birth dates, people also celebrate "name days," a custom linked to Orthodox tradition. We make a point of celebrating birthdays with neighbors and new friends, thereby gaining the opportunity to pray together in gratitude for their lives.
5. In mid-April, we attended a Presbyterian conference featuring leaders from various countries. Together with part of our Romania team, we traveled to Budapest, the capital of neighboring Hungary, where we were spiritually renewed through sixteen sessions of worship, preaching, lectures, and seminars. It is an event organized by Westminster Seminary (England) in partnership with other Reformed seminaries in Europe. During the week of this conference, Jaci stayed home with the children and shared precious moments with the neighborhood kids.
6. While Eurico was attending a gathering of Reformed leaders in Hungary, we had the privilege of staying home, adjusting our routine, and hosting some neighbors. We welcomed three children from a large family living nearby. Karen said the prayer before dinner, thanking God for their presence in our home. These children motivate us to keep working on language acquisition, in addition to giving us an opportunity to serve. Their mother works at a dairy farm and supplies us with *queijo coalho* (a type of curd cheese) and fresh heavy cream, from which I make our butter. The baby needed a bath—he hadn't been bathed in 24 hours—though I later discovered that babies here are only bathed once a week. I messaged the mother to apologize for overstepping by bathing the baby. To my surprise, she was very grateful for the care shown to her children. Having five children in the house is a wonderful feeling, and I hope she sends them over more often until trust is established and we are able to share the Bible with them.
INTENTIONAL ACTIVITIES
7. On Sunday, May 31st, we celebrated Children's Day (*Ziua Copilului*), as it is observed here on June 1st. We prayed for the children during the service and gave them a delicious snack. Among both Roma and Romanian people, we can see God at work, drawing people to the worship gathering.
8. As a way to reach families in our city, we distributed gifts at the school near our home. About 100 children were blessed. These items were part of a donation we received from an international Christian organization. We treat every opportunity as if it were the only one, making the most of it. 9. Our home has become a gathering spot where we fellowship with brothers and sisters from Mangalia and their non-believing relatives from Limanu; in this way, we are expanding our horizons.
BRAZIL AND BANQUETS
10. Jaci has been baking cakes and gifting them to the brothers and sisters from the Mangalia church who support us in Limanu. She even created a cake replica of the Mangalia Presbyterian Church, complete with whipped cream frosting, for its 26th-anniversary celebration.
11. During the matches played by the five-time world champion national team, we gather people—including non-believing neighbors and Christian families—for feasts, fellowship, and cheering for goals. All of this happens late at night and into the early hours of the morning, as we are six hours ahead of Brazil.
A FINAL FAREWELL AND SOLIDARITY
12. On June 3rd, we ended the day deeply shaken by the passing of Gabi, a 9-year-old boy who occasionally attended our church and participated in the after-school tutoring program held at our church facilities in Limanu (which runs from 11:00 AM to 2:00 PM). I had seen and even spoken with him that morning. After class ended, he played on the bounce house and then headed home with his friends.
Around 4:00 PM, he went out with two other friends (a girl and a boy), climbed a tree, and plummeted, falling violently onto a concrete block; he died right there. He came from a Roma family, in a community of being extremely needy. We went to offer our condolences. Besides his parents, he leaves behind four siblings (two boys and two girls).
13. Of the team, I was the only one who remained at the cemetery until the very end. It was there, witnessing the anguish of a mother who had lost her son, that—amidst many tears—I saw children and relatives arranging toys, personal belongings, and snacks inside the grave, intending for his soul to be able to play and eat over the next 40 days. This is a belief held by this ethnic group, rooted in Orthodox doctrines.
What saddens me most is the spiritual blindness of a people deceived by Orthodox and Islamic priests. I pray for the liberation of these captives of sin and the enemy.
14. My weekly soccer teammates voluntarily pooled funds to help ease the financial burden on the grieving family. I was surprised; beyond the solidarity shown, I could sense the group's trust in me to deliver the money to the family. Day by day, God uses various situations to establish His precious will through us.
A GYPSY COMMUNITY TO BE REACHED
15. We spent an afternoon in the Gypsy community of Limanu simply to be with them, observing their daily lives more closely and talking with adults, young people, and children. Some of the children and adolescents from this ethnic group attend our church plant; the community is subdivided into Romani people of Turkish origin, Muslims, and Orthodox Christians.
16. Please pray for this community, as we face major challenges: strong rejection of them by other Romanians; some parents do not allow their children to attend school; despite not being practicing believers, they blindly follow Orthodox religious traditions; a large number of the kids cannot read; they have low cognitive ability, struggling even to grasp simple stories; and they face great difficulty memorizing things, including Bible verses. Please pray for strategies and wisdom regarding decisions on the direction of our ministry activities, studies, preaching, and social work.
OUTREACH STRATEGIES – ROMANIANS IN GENERAL
17. We are in the final stages of preparing the proposal to request a plot of land for sports activities. It will be evaluated by the local government. Please pray, as the obstacles are immense. We face quiet stigma because we are not Orthodox, which creates difficulties in various areas.
18. MUSIC LESSONS: We are praying for guitar, keyboard, and cajón (percussion) lessons for the local youth. Thank God, a team from Sweden that visited in April left an offering that was used to purchase a professional keyboard.
Building relationships is our primary means of outreach. We continue to develop these connections—always prayerfully—confident that God cares most deeply about the lives He has here.
THANKS AND REQUESTS
We want to express our immense gratitude to you for "holding the ropes" with us as we advance this missionary work—whether through prayer or by sharing information with your local church to mobilize more people to pray and get involved in various ways, helping God's Kingdom advance in this place.
PRAY WITH US
1. Health: The children tend to get sick with every change of season;
2. Our family: wisdom in raising our children; Karen starting kindergarten in September (adjustment period);
3. Church planting: projects to be developed, people trained, and the granting of land for sports.
4. Relationships: grace, perseverance, boldness, and wisdom, as well as the salvation of Romanians;
5. For more workers in the Lord's harvest.