Remembering Romaina

Once upon a time, in a land called Romania, there was a girl named Becky (aka me). She was on her very first overseas trip, and did not want to go home.

For the last 2 weeks her team of 12 girls had been visiting the children’s home, playing with kids who were starved for attention, and sharing with them about the love of Jesus. They had also gone to gypsy villages and ministered to the low-caste people from India.

Becky had felt called to do this since she was 9 years old. At the time she thought she would one day live in India or China, like Amy Carmichael or Gladys Aylward.

But by the time she was 15, she had decided that she could fulfill this call by living in Lima and being a youth leader, or working at the Bible college or Church office. Those where the people who had made the biggest impact on her life...until that day in Romania.

As she spent time with people who were serving God on the field, God clarified that when He called her to this, He meant full-time over-seas. So on July 29, 2001, after staying up late talking to her host, Betsy, and crying on her couch, Becky surrendered her plans to live "the American dream", and chose to follow God's call on her life.

It's been 10 years of preparation, but it's been worth it. India, here I come

More Romania

For the most part, this road trip has involved meeting lots of people who Duane, Quinn, and Vanessa know from China trips. So we sit around the table and laugh about the crazy stories of good times in China. I've heard so many stories that when I'm old and confused, I'll probably laugh about the good-old-days when we were in China...

Every once in a while we mix in visiting one of my friends. So on our way from Nashville to Kansas City, we had a dinner break at my friend Erika's house.

What fun to hang out with one of my friends and talk about our trips to Romania!!

We were on the same team for the Romania trip in 2001, but I also got to see Erika again in Romania the following summer.

Since we both grew up in NY, we did see each other a couple other times, but the last time was Michelle's wedding in 2003...so it's been a while...

Reminiscing about Romania...

I've heard it said that people have a heart connection with the first place they go on outreach. That's why there are so many M-workers in Latin America. This is also why we like to take people on outreach trips to less reached places...

My first outreach trip was 10 years ago. I and 11 other high school girls spent 3 weeks in Arad, Romania ministering to orphans and gypsy's - one of the lower castes of India who had migrated up to Romania.. The trip solidified my desire to work with orphans and do full-time M-work...and I ended up being focused on India.

Beyond that, I was inspired by our hosts, Jen & Betsy. Jen is now in Kenya, and Betsy is in Alabama, so I got to see her today :)

Betsy & Jen are two of the reason that I have been doing what I have been doing these past few years - living in Idaho, and traveling in India on my own. After seeing these women fearlessly serving God overseas, I said, "if they can do it, I can too."

Before my trip to Romania, my plan was: college, marriage, and then being a full-time M-working family.

I still remember that night in Romania, when God messed up my plans - challenging me to be willing to go, even if I wasn't married. That night, with many tears, I decided I would choose to follow God's call on my life, even if that meant I would never get married.

The following summer, I was on another outreach trip in Romania. At a church we visited, I was prayed for and the person prophesied (with Jen translating), that I would get married and my husband and I would be m-workers to many countries. Sweet!!!

None-the-less I decided I was not going to sit around in America waiting for a man to marry before following God's call on my life...besides I'd rather find a guy who is already involved in ministry, and one day notice each other and realize we're doing the same thing, why not save the world together :)