C o n t e n t s
the Starfish Story
Prayer Needs
Once upon a time, there was an old man who used to go to the
ocean. One day the beach was littered with starfish for hundreds of
yards. Off in the distance, the old man noticed a small boy
approaching. As the boy walked, he paused every so often, bending
down to pick up a starfish and throw it into the sea. May I ask
what it is that you are doing? the old man asked. Throwing starfish
into the ocean. When the sun gets high, they will die, unless
someone throw them back into the water. The old man replied, But
there must be millions of starfish on this beach. One starfish here
and there wont make any difference. The boy bent down, picked up a
starfish, and threw it into the ocean. Then he looked back smiled
and said, It made adifference to that one!
We have been involved in orphan ministry here in Romania for
almost 20 years now, and we have seen and heard the news many times
about the hundreds of thousands of orphans in our country helpless
children left alone to die by their parents. We have felt like the
old man in the story many times, but by the grace of God we
persevere and are able to make a difference in the lives of a few
hundred children. We are not able to help all of the orphan
children of Romania, but we are committed to make a difference in
the lives of the children God brings to us.
t
H E
The Starfish Story
April 2015
Our Orphan Mentoring ministry is one of the ways we are helping
the orphan children survive their abandonment and experience godly
love that keeps them going. Each week we get the children at the
local orphanage involved in various extracurricular activities. The
ages of some of the children we work with are between 4 and 13
years old. The children like to color, make crafts, and play.
Rewarding them for their participation and efforts varies according
to their age. Sometimes we take them out to play games or to walk
through the local mall. They enjoy each and every moment. During
the last month they learned about Gods creation of animals, the way
animals were at the beginning of Creation, and what happened to
them after the fall of man into
Main OfficePathway to Joy Ministries 1415 Wiley Street,
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Romania OfficePathway to Joy Ministries
str. stefan cel Mare nr. 88 oradea, cod 410437, Romania
[email protected]
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Laviniu Molojan
Estate Planning and Living Family MemorialsIt is our desire with
humility and respect to become the living testament for your family
and friends in their time of grief, offering some comfort as a
life-giving partner in ministry to these once aban-doned children
we serve. Such a deci-sion should only be made in complete
confidence, so we invite you to contact us directly for more
information of ways to establish a living family memorial. Please
write to [email protected]
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sin. We browsed encyclopedias together and studies the classes
of animals and found new interesting facts about different
animals.
Every week we also teach the children Bible lessons, help them
memorize verses, or just read to them. This season we are studying
the lives of different Bible characters. Recently we learned
lessons from the life of Joseph. We learned about his family: about
the robe of many colors he received from his father, the jealousy
of his brothers, the selling of Joseph into Egypt, and Josephs life
in Egypt. We also learned from Joseph how to forgive those that do
evil against us. To motivate the children to attend and to be
involved, we sometimes offer them candies, cookies, juice, and a
variety of coloring materials to keep their attention. There are
children who need no added external motivation and are just keen
and eager to know more of the Bible. One of these children is
Laviniu.
Laviniu is 8 years old and came to the orphanage just before
Christmas. He has a brother and a sister, but because of the
familys poverty, Lavinius parents decided that it would be better
for him to live at the orphanage. Laviniu is a good child, polite,
and quiet, who loves to color and wants to be a cop when he grows
up so he can protect others. Until he came to the orphanage he had
not known about God or stories from the Bible, but today his
appetite and excitement for spiritual matters are humbling. Its as
if Laviniu is trying to catch up with God. Every time we read the
Bible, he is attentive, excited, eager to learn, and able to recall
and retell the story he just heard. He can answer almost every
question. He was among the few children his age who came to all the
lessons about Josephs life. What also surprises us is that he
remembers what he learned even after a few days. He is a very
unique little boy. If someone gives him a candy, he is as happy
as
if he had received a huge chocolate bar, and he says thanks with
a serenity and a joy, which makes the rest of us reflect on the way
we relate to God and others.
A couple of weeks ago I took Laviniu to the city to a nearby
mall as a reward for doing so well in our Bible Study club. I also
took him to KFC, a place hes never been before. For Laviniu, it was
a new experience. Being a shy kid, he was withdrawn at first, until
we went to a place at the mall where we were able to rent small
electric carts in the shape of animals. He relived the Creation
story in a new way. This experience brought such joy to his face;
he was so cheerful and happy. His happiness left its mark on
us.
Ive also known Laviniu to be conscientious, obedient, grateful,
and too serious for his age, a child who does not laugh often
enough, as if he carries a burden on his shoulders all the time. He
has reasons for being sad: the separation from his parents; his
arrival at the orphanage; but now seeing him so happy has brought
renewed encouragement to us, as well as the assurance that our
ministry to Laviniu and all these precious children is not in
vain.
I hope, reading these lines, you will be reminded how little
things are so special and treasured by the orphans we work with.
Without your support and our involvement in their lives, these
special children would not experience the joy and pleasure many
children take for granted. On behalf of the orphan children we
serve, we send you a heartfelt thank you. Please remember us in
your prayers and through your support.
Sincerely yours,
Cornel & Karen Bucur
Prayer for our foster children and parents, staff, volunteers,
and ministry partners.Prayer for funding and prayer support for our
ministry throughout 2015.Prayer for the 110 children that are part
of our mentoring ministry and for our staff and volunteers working
a the orphanage.Prayer for the 25 children abandoned at the Oradea
Childrens Hospital, for our staff working there.Prayer for the
Gypsy churches and the ministry that goes out from these
churches.
Prayer Needs
CP2 kids at Laser-tag
