On May 13th our squad returned to the same country that we started the race on, Romania. We are back in the same house with the same church in the same city. It has been really weird arriving in a place that we’ve already been. Knowing where the church, the stores, and the restaurants are located. Knowing some of the people that we got to meet and do ministry with and remembering a few phrases of the language. It’s not something that happens while you're on the race. I’ve heard of people going back to places they’ve been after the race but never on it. 

The reason why we are back in Romania is that Romania is a neighbor of Ukraine. And Hope Church, the same church we were working with the first time we were here, has been helping refugees fleeing Ukraine. This is why when our squad was given the choice between going back to Romania and going to Kyrgyzstan, a country in Central Asia, for our last month. After falling in love with Ukraine because that was our fourth country we really wanted to go and help however we can.

Hope Church has rented out 8 houses to take in refugees from Ukraine. Seven of those houses are for people staying long-term in Craiova and the eighth house, the one I serve at, is for short-term people. People who only need a place to stay a few nights before they move on heading towards their final destination. Whether that final destination is Germany, the UK, France, Canada, or wherever else. Hope Church transports those refugees to other countries mainly to Budapest, Hungary. Hope Church also gathers supplies like food and clothes and provides them to the refugees. They have a “store” for the refugees in the church office where they can take any of the food and clothes from there for free. They also collect food and clothes and drive them into Ukraine. They’ve also been helping the refugees in Craiova who are staying long-term to find jobs. The church really wants to make sure that all the refugees they get at least hear the gospel because they know their future is so uncertain.

Getting to come back here and serve in Craiova again has been so great. I’ve been able to see how much I’ve grown over the course of the race and more effectively be able to serve. I’ll share specific stories about my time here in future posts. I’m not sure when because this has by far been my busiest month. But I’ll try to share some stories soon.

Finally, I wanted to finish this blog by asking for support for Hope Church. Please pray they can get the finances to buy a ninth house for refugees. Pray that they can get more drivers who can drive supplies into Ukraine and drivers to transport refugees to neighboring countries. Pray for the refugees to know Christ and to stay safe. Pray for the war to end and for there to be genuine peace. If you want to support Hope Church in their care for refugees you can donate here.