Dear Prayer Partners,

 As over the last 3 days the ice and snow has slowly given way to cold damp foggy (very Scottish) conditions we are very grateful for your support and prayers which have brought such an amazing response from our Lord who loves us.  In reponse to our appeal for help with the disabled adult orphans here we were able to provide help to a number of them through this difficult time. Meeting with them however, has brought us face to face with the stark realities of the legacy of Romania`s infamous orphanages. Many of today`s 22-40 year olds are the product of these orphanages where systematic physical, emotional, mental and sexual abuse occurred. The stories we have heard from just the few we know are beyond human appreciation. So many of these folk are permanently emotionally damaged. Some of those that could not cope with this abuse ran away and became street children, and for sure some did not survive. The Daniel Centre aims to help such boys to adjust to a normal and productive life style.  If only some of you could see and appreciate the tremendous work done with the 10 such boys living there. Teaching English there is a highlight of the week for us. But of course the Daniel Centre only touches a very small percentage. It is but a drop in the ocean. There appears to have been an especially harsh and faceless regime for the physically disabled, and the obvious emotional damage to the disabled boys we have come into contact with lately is frightening, because they are the young adults of today. Getting to know them well is very difficult because they cling to you, having no concept of correct relationships, and expect to be with you all the time. God has put this group very much on our hearts, and we want to ask especial prayer for them this month, and for an idea that is slowly forming in our minds. Most of them work for well below minimum wages (they are the bottom of society and are dreadfully exploited) and live in awful conditions because they cannot afford better. We have been seeking the Lord about renting a flat for some of them (again a drop in the ocean) and raising finance within our project to subsidize their rent – charging them 50% and the project paying the rest. Such a project would need very careful monitoring because these folk have very difficult and sometimes strange lifestyles, and many of them need patient teaching about how to live. They are in the truest sense of the word survivors. Please pray with us about this thought.

On a different front our house group now has 2 regular non – Christian members who are seeking the Lord earnestly.

Bebe, Ovidiu`s brother who has made a remarkable recovery since being seriously ill in November will get married in may and we are delighted.

Oana, who was one of the students we supported and is now a fully qualified social worker, believes the Lord is calling her to open up a house here to train and bring to normality some of the abandoned teenagers. Please pray for her – it is a very brave idea for her.

Ovidiu, continues to thrive in Glasgow and is greatly enjoying the new subjects for this term. Please pray for continued success.

Simona for whom we have been trying to get an operation for almost a year now, will be seeing the consultant for a pre-operation visit next week, please pray for no more delays

David will be preaching in Romanian again this Sunday in Cara please pray because again there are new non-Christians coming to the church.

Joy had the interesting experience of giving a day of teaching `Moving and Handling` to folk from the Cardiac Hospital here and has been asked to do the same again for another group. Correct `Moving and Handling` is not usually taught here.

 Tony will sing his first major solo role here in `My fair lady` on 25th January. Praise the Lord that this day has arrived!

Finally we will be in the UK from March 13th till April 3rd  to see our family and to speak at various places and see if we can raise finance for the project with the disabled adult orphans. Please pray for an easy journey for us – we are flying directly to London from Cluj for the first time.

Again you are all so dear to our hearts. We depend on you and your prayers so much and are ever grateful to you.

With much love in the Lord,

 David and Joy

 

Prayer summary

1. Disable adult orphans project

2. Simona seeing the consultant

3. Oana`s desire to help abandoned teenagers

4. Joy`s further `Moving and handling` course

5. Preaching in Cara, and taking the weekly bible study in Romanian

6. Ovidiu`s studies and work in the church in Glasgow

7. Praise the Lord for Bebe`s recovery and marrieage to Andreia on May 17th.

8. Pray for another couple who are close to us who are getting married – Puiu will marry Andreia on May 31st

9.  Tony`s first `big break`.

10. Alfred and Andrei in our house group that they will soon follow the Lord.

davidspriggs2004@yahoo.co.uk