FOCUS on Women's Ministry

In the past few years the Lord has opened my eyes, my mind, and my heart with a special burden for the women of Romania. First, a special place in my heart is for the group of missionaries’ wives who serve in remote areas alongside their husbands, many of whom have limited resources and they live in difficult conditions. Second, another group of women from an institution, most of whom have been there most of their lives as they are all considered orphans. Third, women in villages where our missionaries serve, with whom I have come in contact over the years. I am so burdened that they would be in the Word, yet so many still do not know the Savior. And fourth, there are also many who are ill and in so much pain, who are in need of encouragement and prayer.

Em and her daugher Kim

Serving - Loving - Giving - In Every Stitch

Amy is a very giving person, she has worked very closely with Florina, national missionary who has a sewing and craft shop as part of the ministry there.

My dear sister in Christ Em B. with her daugher Kim and her brother have been part of our support team for years. They have been knitting and crocheting baby blankets, hats, scarves, mittens, donating clothing, school supplies, etc. on a regular basis. Every year we ship boxes to both Romania and Ukraine with these beautiful handmade items that our missionaries distribute to families, and many times the missionaries themselves had need of these items. Their love and prayers are woven in the yarn and with each stitch.

Amy P. has been an amazing sister in Christ who has done so much for our fundraising efforts for our short term mission teams from Indiana two years in a row. She also helped us fill our bags with goodies for our women missionaries and their children. She is a good friend and encourager for me personally.

Judy speaking and Gabi translating in the village of Comani Olt, Romania

Teaching / Mentoring

My sister in Christ Judy has returned to Romania after many years as a Bible teacher and an “older woman teaching the younger women”. She has also been an encourager to the widows and the older sisters on this last trip we took together. I believe that the Lord has more for her in using her spiritual gifts and her love for the Romanian people.

There were several other women who served on a short term mission trip this year, and their humble spirit and loving hearts have touched so many people. I am so thankful for each of them. It is the Lord who focused on the Women’s Ministry, and He also provided the people with the right hearts for the work.

Encouraging the Missionaries

Missionaries, especially the women have a special place in my heart. Florina is one of them. Perhaps because Cornel and I got to spend a lot of time at Mark and Florina’s home, getting to know their two boys, that they feel like family. Florina is also a leader among the women in the southern part of Romania. So having the missionary women meet at their home was great. This year we had two meetings with the women: one in the summer and one in the Fall, each unique and special. We also had the opportunity to attend a conference together with three other women, and see them get excited about studying God’s Word and leading a Bible study group.

A true partnership: Women from the LBC Team with the PIE Missionary Women in the South meeting together

Second meeting with the Missionary Women, with Judy and Gabi in November 2019

Studying God’s Word Together

One of the highlights getting together with the missionary women and with the women in their villages was to get them introduced to studying God’s Word. Some of the women who came have never read the Bible before. So the discovery process of learning truth was so amazing. Judy taught 1st and 2nd John to several groups of women, some in homes and some in the local church. I had the privilege of translating her and also speaking to these women. It is such a joy to get to know them and pray for them.

At Florin and Alina’s home, a group of women in the village of Beciu.

At Tavi and Nicoleta’s home, a group of women from Draganesti Olt, together with our November US Team

City of Craiova is a special place, a new mission point, and also a new place for women’s ministry. We met there twice this year, once in the park in the summer where several people, including myself, got to share our personal testimonies. This Fall we met with Judy and women for a time of Bible study and fun with crafts and handmade Christmas cards. I love this group of very intelligent women who ask the best questions!

Special Place - Special Women

These are my sisters in Christ from Arges, who love the Lord and they really love and pray for me! We think we go and encourage them, but each time we go, visit, and spend some time with them they encourage us. Wow! This time I meet several new girls who came to the meeting place outside their institution. I had the opportunity to do counselling with those who prayed for salvation on that day. This is my third visit this year with the girls, and I am thankful for being able to keep in touch with them on Facebook, too!

Radio Ministry - Women Power!!!

In Sibiu at Radio Vocea Evangheliei Sibiu a predominantly women’s team manages the station, with station manager, Cristina, doing a wonderful work. We at PIE have a long lasting relationship with RVE Sibiu. This year we once again continued our relationship with the station.

At RVE Sibiu during Judy’s interview with Lucia, Gabi translating

Gabi, Judy, Lucia / RVE Sibiu and Violeta

Last year we had our speaker from Indiana, Mandi Cornett, interview at the radio station, and together we organized a women’s event at the Ramada Hotel in Sibiu. This year we had Judy share her testimony, and also made a mini series for the radio’s women’s morning show! How exciting! Violeta Stef, my sister-in-law was very kind giving us rides between Alba Iulia and Sibiu, And Violeta also attended one of the Saturday conferences!

And So Much More!

A women’s fellowship at the PIE Center in Alba Iulia with women from several rural areas where PIE missionaries serve.

Meaningful home visits to encourage hurting people.

Two Saturday women’s conferences on Saturday in Sibiu.

And So Much More!

Ministry with Lili

The women’s ministry continued in “the North”, as the missionaries from the South refer to the PIE headquarters in the city of Alba Iulia and surroundings. And indeed, there was more ministry! Judy and I met with Lily, missionary wife from the Alba region, who planned a meeting with women from several villages at the PIE Center. We had a large group of 33 women. The women came from the area of three of our our PIE national missionaries. The next day we went on a home visit to see a new sister in Christ with a terminal illness who needed encouragement and assurance about heaven, her Savior, life, and death.

Ministry with Nuți

The last days were spent with the women in the village of Nou and in Sibiu. Nuți and her family are our family away from home “in the North”, just as Florina and her family are our family away from home in the South! The sisters in Christ in Nou prepared a feast for us after Bible Study and fellowship. The church was filled with women singing, praying, studying together, loving God and loving each other

Sweet fellowship with the women in the village of Nou who filled the church with songs of praise and powerful prayers, and the basement dining room with sandwiches and sweets! Many thanks to our missionary sisters Lili, Violeta, and Nuți, also the sisters in Christ from the Betania Church in Sibiu.

Oh, how much I love you all!

Blessings for Christmas and a Happy New Year,

Your sister in Christ,

Gabi

Sisters in Nou praying

A New Generation of Equipped to Equip Students

The E2E Program was developed out of the need to train missionaries for the urgent “now” need to evangelize unreached areas where there are no evangelical churches.  “The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few; 38 therefore pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest.” Matthew 9: 37a-38

The Seminary in Bucharest is a four year academic intensive theological program that trains students to become pastors.  The Olt and Dolj areas alone need dozens of missionaries and workers for the massive spiritual need of this part of Romania.  

E2E is designed to train and prepare students to become missionaries in a six month time period.  It is a daring program that we earnestly bathe in prayer so that it would produce laborers into His plentiful harvest. 

This year is the third generation of E2E students. These 7 students are working hard to delve into the Word of God and learn about ministry. Most of them have shown a desire to do ministry full-time, but will need supporters to partner with them financially and in prayer. If you feel a calling to mentor, pray for, or support any of them, you can learn more by clicking on their names or learn how to contact them directly here.

Meet the E2E Students…

MIHAELA PETRE

These two sessions I have dug into the Word of God, I have laid the foundation of a proper understanding of what it means to be a missionary and what involves this kind of ministry. I understood that you cannot do mission by yourself and besides God you still need people and some financial/material support. I believe these sessions helped me to grow, spiritually speaking, to understand better my position in the ministry/ church and to sketch as accurately as possible the portrait of a servant leader.

Also, I had the joy to plant the seed of Truth and to be part of its sprouting. I thank the Lord and give Him praises for listening my prayers and I am hoping that this seed will grow and bring forth good fruit.

TATIANA DUTA

The deeper I go, the more I realize how little I know and how superficial I am in many situations when it comes to deepen the Word. I realize that when I gave up to go to Poland through Erasmus Mobility program in exchange for the E2E program, I made the best decision.

ZINAINDA ROSCA

The time spent during the E2E courses helped me a lot, besides the care of the teachers I also received good, useful and healthy teachings. I’ve leaned that I don’t have to judge the heart’s motivation. Also, another thing that I’ve learned was that Jesus was a servant leader even when the disciples where thinking only of them, and this fact really improved the way of seeing things, how to work more spiritually and professionally. I would have more to tell about what i did not mention and how the truths heard helped me enormously, but I prefer to remain laconic.

AURA DUINEA

I think I’ve learned and I hope to practice more this unity in diversity. Nothing is desirable, each one is unique and valuable. I liked every situation I got into, because you can learn from anything and you can add to your knowledge. E2E represents my brothers’ ministry: they have the vision and I am very surprised to see that the things that happen are going in a good direction.

NICU VLAD

Attending these courses seemed useful to me, it helped me enrich my knowledge bank, it built me up seeing that are still people who want to do something for God. It is an encouragement to me. I really appreciate the people that I met, the way of living their life, the fact that they are sincere, real and they recognize their mistakes. Specifically, the Partnership course surprised me and the Expository Preaching helped me to understand how a message can be better and more concise.

PETRISOR BOLD

These two session I attended some edifying courses – the most interesting being the Expository Preaching course – which helped me in reorganizing the study of Scripture; I was amazed that when you want to get a message out of a text you can do it even if at first you think it would be impossible.

MARIANA VLAD

Taking these courses, some aspects related to the missionary life were brought to my attention and it helped me understand the importance of a systematic Bible study.

Summer in Romania

This August we were blessed to have three teams from the United States come to Romania to encourage and serve alongside our national missionaries. 

Pastor Bryan Tema and his wife Tammy from Gracespring Bible Church in Richland, Michigan came to see his long time partner, Cornel Fogorosiu. Pastor Bryan and his church have been supporting Cornel and his ministry for twenty years, but this summer was the first time Pastor Bryan has been to Romania. Together we were able to celebrate the work God has done in Sibiu,  and visit the two churches that have been planted in this area.

The southern region of Romania is referred to as a “graveyard for missionaries.” The people of this area are suspicious of outsiders and the prevalence of the Orthodox Church weighs heavy. The weight of religion leaves little room for the transformative power of an intimate relationship with Jesus Christ. Despite the challenges our missionaries face here, God is moving and we are seeing lives changed. lThe Bible tells us that “faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.” Romans 10:17 Under the leadership of our National Director, Raul Costea, our nationals have begun working in a variety of ministries throughout the region. One ministry God is using to speak His word to the people of this region in through evangelism. Teams visit local parks, plazas, and neighborhoods to build relationships with people and pass out New Testaments to those who are interested. 

On August 4, our friends from Hillside Fellowship Church in San Antonio, Texas arrived ready to spread the love of Jesus to the people of Craiova. On their first day, a few members of the team met a young woman in a nearby neighborhood. She was excited to talk with them and and graciously accepted the New Testament they offered her. She soon opened up about her life and the hopelessness she feels from her divorce, the death of her sister, and the darkness her mother brought into her life by practicing witchcraft. The team was able to share the love of Jesus with her and the hope we have in Him. Please pray with us that God would use these conversations and New Testaments for His glory and for the furtherance of His kingdom.

Our teams also had the opportunity to visit local Roma villages with Daniel Davidescu. The Roma people have long been seen as less than and struggle in their bondage to sin. Violence, cheating, and stealing are common values in this community, but God has given Daniel His heart for these people and is doing a work in the hearts of the Roma people. 

This week a team from Calvary Chapel Long Beach in Southern California visited these precious people and witnessed first hand the door God has already opened here. Daniel brought the team to encourage a Roma family of believers and together they broke bread, prayed, shared testimonies, and praised God for His faithfulness. Before they left, the mother of this family shared her desire for a church to be built, and even showed the part of her land she has offered to build on. Join us in praying that the Lord will bring a pastor to teach, encourage, and minister to His people here.

Pastor Andrew Cochran from Calvary Chapel also led a two-day conference for our national missionaries where he encouraged and challenged them in the work God has called them into. 

“And let us not grow weary while doing good, for in due season we shall reap if we do not lose heart. Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all, especially to those who are of the household of faith.” Galatians 6:9-10

Thank you for your continued prayer for the people of Romania and your support for our national missionaries.

Building Connections between an American Team and National Missionaries

This July we came to Romania with a team from Liberty Bible Church (LBC) in LaPorte, IN. Although short-term mission trips such as this one are typically oriented around specific tasks, this trip has been designed specifically to bring encouragement to the Nationals working in the Southern part of Romania. Most of them work very hard in a touch region with limited resources and few rewards, and they can become discouraged and drained. We strive to be a listening ear, an open heart, a comforting embrace, and a lifted prayer to nourish and replenish their souls for the work they feel compelled to continue.

We have been blessed to be hosted by Mark and Florina Darvell, and Alexe and Veronica Costea. Octavian Berechet and Florina Darvell have arranged the schedule for our trip. Florina is one of the nationals who supports local women who need income by providing employment at Spero Designs. One of the LBC team members, Amy Paarlberg, met Florina and the girls last year, and felt God speaking to her to order hundreds of back sacks from Florina to put in boxes for Operation Christmas Child. This year she has returned, and when we took the women for an outing to the park, she shared how deeply she feels her connection to the work that they are trying to accomplish. We hope that the relationship that Florina and Amy have cultivated with these women can lead them to the feet of Christ.

Our team has spent time visiting with other nationals as well, listening to their incredible testimonies and providing encouragement. George Bulfan and Sorin Caragea talked about their growth through the E2E (Equipped to Equip) program. Ion Vlad and his wife Christina spoke of the violence in their past and how God has freed them from that lifestyle. Florin Sfetcu and his wife Alina shared how the persistence of a coworker brought Florin to Christ, and the provision of God allowed them to return to Oltenia from Italy to fulfill their passion for reaching the lost in that region. We prayed for spiritual protection for Daniel Șerbănescu, who battles with a culture where witchcraft is prevalent. We praised God along with Traian Chilău and his wife Cornelia over the miracle of the liver transplant and medication that he received. As we stay longer in Romania, we look forward to spending time with Mircea Dumitru, Alexe Costea, and Raul Costea. Samuel Ilies, Alecs Tudoroiu, MIHAIL GEABOU

The team from LBC has also been a part of great works in the region of Oltenia. After Ion Vlad spent 3 years in prayer for the village of Vilcele, which has zero presence of Christian ministry, we were privileged to begin the task of planting seeds by placing New Testaments on the gates of almost every house on the main street. In the city of Craiova, we met up with Raul and Ana Costea (our National Director), Lucian Brinceanu, Adrian and Donna Jurge, Veronica Palcau, Emanuel Serban, and another American team to do some home visitations with the Roma people and have a picnic with non-Christians. This is part of an initiative that Raul is heading up to begin a church in the city of Craiova. We were also blessed to spend time with some special needs adult orphans in Curtea de Argeș, who gave us more encouragement and love than we could ever give back.

While we are here, we are planning to hand out food bags with Alexe and Veronica Costea in order to create relationships with non-Christians in the community. We will do street evangelism with Mircea and Cornelia Dumitru, and later with Mihail Geabou. We have prepared to do some children’s ministry with Samuel Ilies. Don Peiffer (whois an American upholsterer on the LBC team) will be doing some much needed repairs on the nationals’ furniture. We will also be serving the missionaries’ wives with an evening of encouragement. We are looking forward to hearing the testimony of Alecs Tudoroiu over dinner. On Sunday, we will split the team as we did last Sunday and visit several house churches, including the one in a shipping container. Towards the end of our trip we will have a picnic will all of the PIE missionaries and their families.

Please pray for all of the nationals working in the region of Oltenia. The area has almost no Christians and is in desperate need of the presence of the Holy Spirit. The nationals daily face the forces of darkness that have taken hold of the southern part of Romania, and many of them do so without full financial support. Please pray for their protection from the Evil One, and consider supporting them financially so that they can conduct their mission with a peace of mind for their families.

God has the power to change lives

It’s been almost three years since I sold my business in Chicago and started to serve in full time ministry.  However, it was my business that has enabled me and my family to get deeply involved in the ministry in the first place, to take regular short term mission trips and invest in the ministry long term.

I have just returned from a two month ministry trip in Romania, and I would like to share with you what keeps me motivated to keep going, and what is the main factor that encourages me to do what I do, where there is no financial nor any other personal gain from the work that I now do.  This is the other side of the same coin!

Why supporting national missionaries makes a world of difference and is the fuel that keeps me going?

I hope this story is just as encouraging to you as it was to me this past trip to Romania!

Meet Nicu. Here is his story. For all his adult life, to the age of 40, he’s lived at home with his parents, just drinking, and drinking, and being drunk all the time. His parents were fed up with him, his violence, his lack of work, his alcohol abuse. They called the police to have him removed from their home, but he came back. Where should he go? Missionary Ion Vlad tried multiple times to witness to him but he was always drunk.  One time he showed up at a church gathering at the local church in Perieti and the phrase that God loves even the drunkards resonated in his mind. On that day he said that he was done with his old life and that he wanted God to change him, he believed that God can and will change him. The missionary shared the Gospel with him, prayed with him, and Nicu accepted the Lord Jesus as His Savior.

The fascinating fact is that from that very moment he no longer had any desire to drink.  God truly changed him according to his faith.

When I hear testimonies such as Nicu’s, it is all worth it!  A changed life that now is productive for God and for the community is all worth it.  Nicu was known by everyone in the village. His transformed life has become known by everyone.  He now works for an attorney who wanted to hire an honest man to take care of confidential paperwork in a professional manner. However, satan is not pleased, and Nicu’s family is still unhappy.  They did not like Nicu drunk, and they don’t like Nicu as a believer either. They do not understand his conversion and abandonment of the Orthodox religion. Perhaps we can leave this explanation for another time.

I talked to this man Nicu, now a brother in Christ.  He shared how Ion Vlad, the missionary is pouring in his life, he is being discipled and growing in Christ.

My wife and I have recently helped Ion Vlad who does not speak English to write a support letter and create a prayer card, these are a few things we can help them to connect and create partnerships and relationships in order to ease their financial burden and ministry needs. We do a little, God does the rest.

Missionaries Retreat

As we visited and spent time with the missionaries in their own homes and mission fields, we came to  realize that they get burned out with doing so much work, serving, projects, and sometimes so few results, that they need a time to get out of their surroundings, relax and refresh, and just have a happy time when they can have fellowship with each other.

This spring we had a three-day retreat for all of them, whole families, wives, children, from all the locations in Romania.  And, why not, we’ve invited the missionaries from Ukraine to drive down and join in!

We’ve met May 2nd-May 4th. Everyone gathered on Thursday night at the PIE Center in Alba Iulia and we started with a time of fellowship around some good old-fashioned Romanian sausages and fresh bread.  Our PIE national committee did an outstanding job in housing everyone with wonderful accommodations and we had a very colorful group of 108 people, from babies, small children, teens, to grand-parents missionaries bragging about their grandchildren, such as my wife and I!

The picnic on Friday was a big hit!  Our missionaries Tani and Lili Nemes were wonderful hosts in the village of Telna, at the village church large front yard where everyone found something fun to do.  This is the village where the Stef family had an evangelistic meeting back in 2006 in front of the Culture House when back then there was no church and no believers. Now we have a missionary family and a thriving church where we had the picnic. There were lots of activities from volleyball, table tennis, chess, or just talking and sharing with one another.  Lunch was a delicious combination of grilled chicken and Romanian lamb stew with best ever Romanian fresh bread and mamaliga (corn meal) and fried Romanian donuts. Gabi made s’mores for the kids with American marshmallows and Romanian chocolate, a true partnership!

One of our missionaries who just celebrated his 48th wedding anniversary and has been a PIE missionary for over 25 years, said that this was one of the best days of his life, to spend his special day with his wife in fellowship with other fellow workers from Romania and Ukraine and be spoiled like a prince!

After lunch we met inside the church for a time of worship and testimonies, what a sweet, sweet time!

Saturday we were back at the PIE Center for a fabulous breakfast and an uplifting message from a local ministry speaker. Our meeting ended with a luncheon at a banquet hall with the most delicious three course Romanian meal that prepared everyone for the long ride back home.  

It was such a blessing to have the group of missionaries from Ukraine, some of which came to Romania for the very first time.  They were all housed at the PIE Center where they could interact and fellowship the most with the missionaries from Romania.

My wife Gabi and I were so happy to know these families, we came to care deeply for them, they are family to us, and we are honored to be representing them to our friends and church family in the U.S., as we are all part of the body of Christ.

Prayer Requests:

• There are several missionaries who are still in much need of regular financial support.

• The Missionary Intensive six month training program E2E is also in need of financial support

• Missionaries have projects that need partners

• This summer programs are in need of much help: camps, VBS, construction projects, etc.

Please contact me Cornel Stef if you are interested in giving a helping hand this summer or on a regular basis. cornelstef@gmail.com