Open hands

It is only in the honest heart that ‘sowing’ can take root.

I Peter 2: v 3 ‘Now that you have tasted that the Lord is good’. Taste delights the palate with many forms of delectable flavours of sweetness and refreshment.   We all have tasted the graciousness of our Lord; the love of Christ is a precious delicacy as I sip His sweetness and taste His delights. His grace, His plan, His purpose draws me to Ephesians 1: 11-12 ‘In Him we were also chosen …..’

A speciality of grace can be identified in every child of God, as can the flowers in God’s garden. All requiring love and care. Unless I am prepared to show how much I really love how much I really care, how can they ever know the love of Christ?   I need to love as Christ would love, giving of my time, moments precious to me, with no concerns about tomorrow, knowing it already rests in the palm of His hand.

Now into my second week, I am drawn to Matthew 18: where we read ‘And they brought young children to Him, that He should touch them’.

Lately my blogs have been centred around my heart recognising the call, the challenge to impact ‘the precious little jewels of Romania’.   But the key to opening the door of my heart must be Love, Joy, Peace, Patience, Kindness ….I was moved as I entered the Hospital wards with Silvia where loving parents sat quietly by a bedside. The pain in my heart was real as I chatted with parents and children, one little girl of two stole my heart, she was so cute and sang in English ‘Five Little Monkey’s’, her Mum was so proud. Their days are long, nights are short yet through it all they smile, just so thankful someone had time for them. The question I asked myself leaving: is my heart a harbour where many can anchor? The following morning, still heavy in heart, quiet in spirit and struggling emotionally I longed for our Worship Service in Emanuel Chapel. Even before 10 am, a large number of students had assembled to rehearse their worship songs, the presence of the Lord was so real, you could reach out and touch it.  Later, Dr. Paul Negrut introduced a guest from USA,

Dr.Gary Mathena, Director of Liberty University School of Music, who rendered his latest composition entitled; ‘Even For One’. I was broken as I listened to the God inspired song assuring us that He is the One who will sustain us, enabling us to open our arms in love to those facing darkness and despair. My thoughts turned to my time in Casa Grace, a place of shelter, offering comfort in hopelessness by sharing the love of God in a practical manner. The talent displayed in the Sewing Room, the determination of the four mature students in the IT Class was special.   Special because each one needed love and assurance that someone cares.   Next week I have the opportunity to visit another arm of Casa Grace – Kingdom Kids. This is a new work for me and I will be updating you once all my visits to the various works have been completed but one thing I can see, God made a way where there was no way. One gentleman whose wife died from cancer, now left alone to care for his 30 year old severely disabled daughter, confined to the rented room as he had no means to take her outside. God did make a way!  Dr. Moore and I were ministering in Limavady Baptist Church some weeks ago and one gentleman asked as we were leaving: ‘Could you use a wheelchair?’ Through this man’s heart, God’s provision brought hope to this precious man. Another gentleman (Grange B.C.) delivered School furniture, laptops, desktops ……………… the laptops in Casa Grace were 20 years old! The new composition filled my heart – ‘Even for One’.

Just arriving home after spending the morning with the Mandrut family. Acim and Florintina live in the Roma Community of Alesd with their four children, Acim, Narcissi, Maria and Ishmael, Florintina will go into hospital next week to give birth to her fifth child. I saw true acts of love from this godly mother, their humble one room was spotless and they couldn’t wait to show me the ‘new’ room our work team painted. They also built a roof conversion, certainly much needed accommodation. The joy and happiness, obvious from the permanence of love in this tiny room – surely an important place to begin. We had great fun in sorting the items Estera and I had brought for the ‘new arrival’. ‘Where is the cot, where is the pram?’ I asked. There wasn’t one! Both are on the way plus a teddy bear. In comparison to our personal relationship with brothers and sisters, God’s perspective is far greater and surpasses ours. We bought food from the funds so lovingly supplied by all who lovingly donated to the ‘Hospice Feeding Programme’ 2016 ‘The Hungry Fed, The Humble Lifted High’. BUT the biggest surprise of all was the box of Cadbury ‘Heroes’ one of the fifty boxes lovingly supplied by a friend in Coleraine Baptist Church. They had never tasted Cadburys chocolate before – Thank You for giving to the Lord.

Many of ‘My Girls’ have been coming to room 205. They are so precious to me. I love to see them relax on the settee sharing their hopes, dreams, ambitions but there are disappointments too.  I am so privileged to be part of the life of Emanuel University, to be part of this family of God where we are loved and accepted for who we are. The ‘Prof’ treated his boys to KFC as a ‘Thankyou’ for their assistance in unloading the lorry last week. The students have been arriving to collect one box of books each (2,000 donated) sorted by Andrei, Oana, Ligia, Madelina and Natalia. They were still working in the darkness of the corridor last night and knocked at 205 just to say ‘Noapte Buna’ (Goodnight) Sister Shirley.

I love this family of God, because we are indeed close in heart and one in spirit.

Another day, Emma is calling at 10 am then I am off to sort various items within Campus then meeting Monika in the afternoon.

Saturday, 22^nd October, (our 4^th Wedding Anniversary) ends the second week with the wedding of Nicu and Alexandra. Nicu is now pastoring in First Baptist Church Bia Mare. He has been a very special student/young man during our time here. Dr. Moore will be one of the six pastors participating in the wedding ceremony.

Next week is already booked solid with visits planned to Elizabeth, Ella, Denisa, another visit to Casa Grace also meeting Marinela to discuss the Feeding Programme for 2017. The Beauty of Holiness Group are meeting with me on Wednesday; do remember our time together.

Dr. Moore is busy writing his third publication on the book of Galatians, meeting with the faculty, organising the International Conference, the publication of the translation in Romanian on the Pastoral Epistles which will be distributed free to all attending the Pastors Conference held 16 – 18 November.

How do we spend our time in Romania?   Gifts differ, ministries differ but it is the same God who works in all and through all.

Please do remember us

Shirley, 21 October, 2016.

Pastor Jackie King, Calvary Baptist Church sent the following in a recent email: Three weeks before President J F Kennedy was assassinated he said, “Almost all Presidents leave office feeling that their work is unfinished, I have a lot to do and so little time to do it.”

A lot to do, so little time to do it? Got you thinking? Our minds in overdrive!

William Arthur Ward penned: ‘If you can imagine it, you can achieve it. If you can dream it, you can become it.’ And yes, we did achieve our goal last evening. In the pitch darkness of night (yet again) even too dark to take a picture and in torrential Romanian rain, the lorry thundered up the driveway of Emanuel University. With the light of a mobile torch, Dr. Moore identified each box with a team of male students, led by Andrei Miraute, standing by to unload. Perhaps only twelve young men but amazing – they carried over 1,000 books up eight flights of stairs, ‘All these books Sister Shirley this night?’  My heart ached as I watched them, soaking wet, dripping, yet so willing always replying ‘It is our joy’. What a task but they were determined to finish! Three ministries were standing by to receive their specific items, the remaining items for Emanuel University and hospitals taken to their Store for sorting and distribution. i.e:, School Furniture, Medical Equipment (we commence an inventory tomorrow).   Casa Grace were thrilled to receive over one hundred boxes, laptops, desktops, disabled equipment. The contact coming to collect the Designer Suits/Hats tomorrow.

Dr Moore is at present in discussions regarding the publishing and printing of his translated commentary, also establishing the arrangements for the radio ministry. Today he continues to write the new book on the Epistle to the Galatians – among other things… Shirley will visit hospitals, and the ministries of Casa Grace from Monday onward. The Beauty of Holiness Group resumes shortly although all her girls have been ‘in touch’ with a beautiful flower arrangement so lovingly placed to say ‘Welcome Home’. So little time, so much to do…

We value your prayers, we need to feel your heart beat in mission with ours.

Hamilton & Shirley

13 October, 2016.

 Through the inspiration of a moment, climbing the staircase of meditation, I began to think:

How deeply rooted is my seed of love for others? Is my heart strangely warmed? What is the true desire of my heart? To love the Lord with all of my soul, heart, mind and strength. Love never ends, it can never be quenched. If I have not or do not possess love, I have nothing (I Cor 13: 1 – 8)

Moments, hours, yes, within hours Hamilton and I return to the land of our adoption – our beloved Romania. The apostle Paul, John Wesley, both urge us to pursue love above all else. The language of our hearts compel us to go, to demonstrate love in every aspect of our daily life together as a couple.

We embark on our ministry, different roles yet serving as one. The frontier lies before us, all we ask is that you whisper our name in prayer. God in His wisdom joined us all together as ‘parts of His body’. Love is the highest gift of all. The inspiration of this moment is to achieve such love as described in I Corinthians.

Shirley, 8^th October, 2016.

Please remember HAMILTON as he organises a second International Conference. Resumes links with the Research Forum (faculty and students) .   Lecturing Theology Students. Teaching in the School of Practical Theology. Preaching in Village Churches. Radio Voice of the Gospel.   Mission trips to Odoreu. Roma Community in the Stadium, Satu Mare. Publishing of I & II Timothy & Titus. Publishing of Journals. The proposed new publication on the book of Galatians. 

SHIRLEY meeting with Marinela regarding the Hospice Feeding Programme, Monika, Casa Grace (Orphans). Hospice visits with Estera to Denisa, Ella, Elizabeth, Ishmael and others. Child Life Romania Hospital Craft Classes with Sylvia. Radio Voice of the Gospel. Contacts with Ichoebed, Suceava, Preventis, Cluj, Visiting Cluj Hospitals. The special link with her girls in the Beauty of Holiness Group. 

FOOTNOTE:

LOVE IS ONE OF THE THREE PRINCIPAL GRACES. WE ARE TO LOVE ONE ANOTHER.  TRUE LOVE BURNS WITH THE BRIGHTEST FLAME.

He did not waver at the promise of God through unbelief, but was strengthened in faith . . . And being fully convinced that what He had promised He was also able to perform.  Romans 4: 20 – 21

Rejoice with us today – this morning seventeen men filled one 45ft lorry filled with Medical Equipment, School Furniture, Laptops, Desktops, Pallets of Christian Literature & Books, Designer Clothing. 400 Boxes of clothing and handbags filled with toiletries for the work of Casa Grace, Bathroom, Plumbing items, Oven . . .
God is our pilot, God is our compass.  We have proved God is faithful, God is able.

 II Timothy 4: 2 ‘Preach the word; be ready in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke, and exhort, with complete patience and teaching’.

24^th September 1966 – 24^th September 2016

Fifty years ago a young teenager heard and answered the call of God on his life. Hamilton Moore was to prove ‘The riches of God’s grace superseded any earthly wealth, for the spiritual riches of faith brought peace and contentment in his choice, believing that we are who He says we are and can do what He has called us to do’.   He has proved that ‘Little is much when God is in it’.

How can I say thanks for the things you have done for me
Things so undeserved
Yet you gave to prove your love for me
The voices of a million angels
Could not express my gratitude
All that I am and ever hope to be
I owe it all to Thee

Chorus

To God be the glory, To God be the glory, To God be the glory
for the things He has done
With His blood, He has saved me
With His power, He has raised me
To God be the glory for the things He has done

 Just let me live my life, Let it be pleasing Lord to Thee
Should I gain any praise, Let it go to Calvary.
With His blood, He has saved me
With His power, He has raised me
To God be the glory for the things He has done.

Winston Churchill penned: ‘We make a living by what we get, We make a life by what we give’.

There is a work for all to do that only eternity will reveal. Hamilton Moore made the choice to press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God had called him.

What is our goal, are we running the race to touch the finish line? Let us run with the hope that God wants us to have in Christ Jesus.

Shirley 27^th September 2016.

The Psalmist penned: ‘As for man, his days are like grass; he flourishes like a flower of the field ……………’ Psalm 103: 15-16. ESV

Matthew Henry states: ‘How short is man’s life, and uncertain! The flower of the garden is commonly more choice, and will last the longer, for being sheltered by the garden-wall, and the gardener’s care, but the flower of the field, to which life is here compared, is not only withering in itself, but exposed to the cold blasts, and liable to be cropt and trod on by the beasts of the field. Such is man. God considers this, and pities him, let him consider it himself. God’s mercy is better than life, for it will outlive it. His righteousness, the truth of his promise, shall be unto children’s children, who tread in the footsteps of their forefathers’ piety. Then shall mercy be preserved to them’.

This week, precious friends are facing trials, heartbreak and discouragement, life changing circumstances.   2 Corinthians 12: 9 assures us ‘ His grace is sufficient’, it is an endless supply that will never run dry. His matchless grace is my comfort, my solace, simply because His grace is always enough for every situation and circumstance of life.

The delicate Lily, arrayed with beauty, a fair copy of life, revealing the beauty of kindness, meekness, gentleness …… yet soon to droop, soon to fade! Time is our estate, time waits for no man nor will it produce without cultivation, care and patience. What is life? Yes, a gift from Thy hand but also a pilgrimage of moments! Tomorrow Lord must be Thine. ‘Change and decay in all around I see, O Thou who changest not, abide with me’ . Surely all the sensibilities of our heart are moved when we think of ‘The Lily of the Valley’ conveying the sense of pardon which is ours.

In love, the One who is the Giver of All, gave His all for us and so we should diffuse as we have received, reflecting the nature, the character of our Lord. People matter!

How beautiful when humble hearts give the fruit of pure lives, so that others may live.

How beautiful, how beautiful, how beautiful, is the body of Christ.

We are so blessed, what joy is ours when in every object we see something that leads to our unchanging friend. Friendship with Jesus. I ask myself: Do I know the language of love? Do I serve with humility and trust? Am I a faithful friend? How much do I really care? 

My thoughts on life, people are hurting today, facing heartache, coping with loss, turning the key to an empty hallway, pain is real, a long and sometimes lonely journey. Someone to care, someone to share…….

Our relationship with others is important but our relationship with the Lord is a priceless treasure.

Prospects may be in ruins, hopes, dreams shattered, joy withered, but we have a hiding place where the petals of Heaven’s Rose offers a place of rest. Stop for a moment, breathe the sweet smelling fragrance of His presence this evening.

Dwell in safety and make the Most High your dwelling.

Shirley,

Filip Faragau

When I think about the span of eternity, this life is but a moment in time. The news from Romania (this morning) another soldier had gone home to glory.   Pastor Filip Faragau had been called home, his work of thirty eight years was finished, his pilgrimage here on earth had reached completion.

There are many tender ministries of the Lord in our lives, but it is in the time of loss we discover the deepest meaning of His tenderness. He is the Father of mercy and the God of all comfort. (II Cor. 1: 3). Filip’s trial is over and he stands in faiths reward, his partial knowledge is over; he now knows as he is known and his legacy lives on with the memory of his service.

Filip endeared himself to my husband during his first visit in the nineties on the occasion of supervising his father’s PhD (Pastor Beni Faragau, Iris Baptist Church, Cluj). Filip followed in his father’s footsteps travelling to the Irish Baptist College where he completed his Masters.

How do I remember Filip? A gentle, patient, quiet young man, so zealous for His Master, always going about doing good, demonstrating in his everyday actions, the character and nature of the Lord he loved and served. To his beloved and treasured wife Violeta whose love and care go beyond words throughout these months of illness, know we are not far from home, a moment will bring us there, never more to be parted.

TELL ROMANIA pay tribute to his involvement in the transport, storage and distribution of medical equipment and humanitarian goods. Filip undertook to liaise with the hospital management as to their urgent requirements. He was a well known and respected young man in many churches throughout Northern Ireland and the Irish Baptist College and assisted Slavic Gospel Association in their teaching programmes in Romania. He played a dual role in Pastoral duties in Iris Baptist Church and assisted in the publication of his father’s commentaries.

Words could never define the life and testimony of a chosen vessel, created and formed for a purpose.   Filip is finally home, but to those who remain – hush all fears, death, how brief, eternity, how long.   Immortality, endless.

Filip, I am richer in knowing you , ‘In all your ways and all your means, you lived displaying that you had been with Jesus’. Let us reflect this mirror image of one who submitted his life to serve.

Shirley 04 August 2016

TELLROMANIA – Dr. H. Moore (Founder) Mr D. Morton, Mr. F. Smyth (Directors)

Denisa has been close within my heart especially Thursday and Friday. This morning (Saturday) I was filled with a longing to hear from Italy or Oradea.

Our Heavenly Father knows our innermost thoughts, in seasons of severe trial, we need at times to run into His arms where we are safe and secure, clasped tightly within, for it is in these times we learn more of our Lord than at any other time. Denisa is the one gift given to her Mother, Lillianna. This one year in Italy has been a year where they (as a family) have proved the faithfulness of God. I am thankful for His many precious gifts, friendship, family, health, His faithfulness comes wrapped in love, a love we should always be willing to share with others.

As our normal routine each morning my husband and I were in the study, Dr. Moore in final preparation for tomorrow in Glenarm B.C., I was writing to Ligia, (one of my Beauty of Holiness Girls), who just obtained a mark of 9.5 out of 10 in Romania for her thesis. How blessed am I to have the privilege in sharing with those I love and call ‘My Girls’. My desire, my prayer for all of ‘My Girls’ is that they will come to know and understand just how much they are loved by the Lord, by me and by you and that His plan and purpose is always perfect.

Now, a little surprise for you as was for me! I have no results as yet but I am sure you will agree Denisa looks beautiful with her special celebration cake – 1 year in Italy. She smiles expressing her love and thanks.

In the words of the Hymn writer: ‘We Rest On Thee’.

God’s Will, will uphold us through all our trials.

Shirley – Saturday, 09 July, 2016.

Available on tellromania.org  Click this link