Hope Church is the only evangelical church in all of Craiova, Romania. What an amazing host ministry to be working with, as they are so passionate about the people here and they do everything they can to proclaim Jesus to them. Their ministry reminds me a lot of Jesus’ ministry in the gospels as they seek out needs in the community and they meet them. So, what does this mean for us?
STREET EVANGELISM: Street evangelism is when we go walk around the town and meet the people in the community. We form connections and follow up with them, maintaining relationships by setting up coffee dates and inviting them to church. We try to show the love of Jesus and share his story by cultivating and keeping friendships.
FLYERS: While on the streets sometimes we pass out flyers to those interested in coming to events such as worship nights, Christmas parties, family photoshoots, English classes, and more. By doing this we get to bring people to the church and show them what community looks like.
WORSHIP: At first worship was not a ministry. Worship was held an hour after our workday was done just for us missionaries as a way to relax and praise after a day ministering in a spiritually dark and draining place. One day those who were street evangelizing brought the people they met to worship night, and the new friends absolutely loved it. Inviting the community to come to worship has been one of my favorite parts of being here. I get to see people experience the presence of God in worship for the first time!
MEDIA: The media team runs the social media accounts for Hope Church and helps promote events on Facebook and Instagram. The media team also does photography for the community, offering individual or family photoshoots for the holidays, as well as making interview videos for the website.
ADMINISTRATION: Some people do administrative jobs such as planning schedules, running errands for the Romanian missionaries, or organizing the Christmas shoeboxes for children.
ROMA VILLAGES: This is my personal favorite kind of ministry. We go to Roma communities and do Christmas celebrations for the children living in poverty. This includes singing Christmas carols, telling the Christmas story, and passing out shoeboxes filled with Christmas gifts!
EVENTS: Another way to plug into the community is through planning special events. This is especially well-received by the youth and this month we have been doing holiday parties for the local high schools.
MAINTENANCE: One way we help Hope Church is by keeping it clean or doing maintenance on the building such as painting.
