Opening

On Sept 7, 2019 a team of missionaries from Elevate Church in Monroe Michigan will travel to Chisinau, Moldova to work with the New Hope Moldova team to share the gospel by working to restore the physical and spiritual needs of the Gypsie community in that country. The team will share our experiences and how God is changing their lives and impacting the people of Moldova on this blog

Friday, September 13, 2019

Friday

We arrived in Chisinau late Wednesday night. We have been staying in the lower level of the Eklesia Church. The church is on the 2nd floor and we are on the 1st. Conveniently, the clinic is right outside our living space so we don’t need to take it down and put it up each day. We have seen 204 patients in the 2 days we have been here. There are 3 nurses with out team - and we work with either 2 or 4 of us based on the other things we are doing (visiting homes, schools, orphanages, delivering food, and building beds). Yes we have a diverse group - we also have 2 people doing business leadership training. The first patient I saw in Chisinau was and elderly lady, Anastasia - this is the 3rd time we have met - what a blessing it was to see her again. Life has not been kind to her over the years. Her husband passed away years ago thus she is alone. We know of one person who actually gave her life to Christ - what a blessing to hear that...right in the clinic. Her husband came in later and asked many questions, but is not ready yet to accept....but questioning is good. We don’t always get to see the outcome of our work but know that we are part of many people serving a great God, loving People right where they are. Tomorrow will be the last day of clinic. 
We are a tired group. Three have become ill at one time or another taking each down for a day. A nuisance but thankfully it was nothing too serious. The food has been great, our hosts have been gracious. Serve and Alina are making certain our needs are met. We could not do what we do without our translators and the team from New Hope Eurasia. These are a young group of people. I think back to my first journey here and some were only 22 years old. They are young, energetic, love God and love their county. I am so glad to call them friends. 

Thursday, September 12, 2019

Wednesday

We have had a whirlwind trip thus far. GO, that is what we are doing. As soon as I get home I will post photos - they tell a story. 
Our team has been working really well together - we have meshed. Bonding, sharing, exploring, learning, praying, growing. The first 3 days were spent in Balti (pronounced Belts) which is in the north. We were feed so well -  Olga is such a great cook and hostess. It was so fun to see her again, she is beautiful inside and out. Our translators are young and fun, Cristina, Lena, Nichita and Jonny. In the 3 days we saw about about 300 people in the clinic - needs were vast. All were provided with vitamins, medications and prayer. I get such a joy of just talking with people, hearing their story, providing vitamins and providing teaching. That is nursing - caring. Sometimes we get lost with all the technology and ‘things’ we can do and look past the person. This gets to the heart of nursing. Ladies night was great. We focused on Leah, who felt unloved and rejected by her husband. We have all probably felt that way at sometime or another. I have. But Leah found she was favored and redeemed by God. At the birth of her 4th son, Judah, she praised the Lord. 

I praise God for all He is doing great n this place. 


Also check out our FaceBook page - Elevate GO Missions 

Monday, September 9, 2019

Monday

Late in posting - we have had some WiFi connectivity challenges.
Today was a beautiful day. We traveled from Chisinau to Balti. The country side has rolling hills, fields with multiple crops, horse drawn wagons, and animals grazing. It is wonderful being with many of our old friends, Alex, Jonny, Nichiti, Oleg, Marina, Andrew, Vasili, Cristina, and Olga. It’s coming to visit our brothers and sisters in Christ. 
We arrived with people waiting to be seen in the clinic. We were so blessed with donations, from people far away who are part of our team. 
The very best part of this trip is praying with people. Today as a team with our Moldovan partners we prayed, held a medical clinic (seeing over 70 people), provided eye glasses, delivered food bags, held a preschool program, had a church service (remembering that we are the church wherever we are) shared meals, laughed, cried, and people prayed for us.
God is moving in this place - it seems so obvious when I look around. It was. It’s often easier to see when I am in different surroundings. I challenge all reading this to just look around our world in the USA, open your eyes today and see how God is moving. He is! 
Goodnight from Moldova

Saturday, September 7, 2019