Letters from the Church: Romania
I met Rachel and Cornel while I was team leading in Romania in the fall of 2019. They are an amazing couple who are dedicated to the youth of Romania and making Christ known among them. Rachel did the World Race many years ago and felt God’s calling to Romania where she met Cornel, her husband. I’ll always remember staying in a hotel room with Cornel in Greece and him walking in with an armful of lemons. Classic. Please enjoy reading about how the Lord is moving in Eastern Europe and pray for a revival among the young generation!
Greetings from Romania!
We hope and pray that all of you are well! Shout out to Philip for letting us share a little bit about what God is doing here in Romania!
We first met Philip last year in Craiova, when he came as a team leader in the fall of 2019. We absolutely loved his squad and remember so many fun stories with them! Before sharing about what we see God doing, we would like to give you a little update about this area and what it is like.
Craiova is the 5th largest city in Romania, having a population of close to 300,000 people. It is situated in a region called Oltenia, that is known for a few things. 1) It is predominantly pro-communism, 2) it has the highest concentration of Romi (aka Gypsy) and 3) it is known for witchcraft. In the city of Craiova, only 0.2% of the population are baptized Christ followers. It is very hard to follow Jesus here, because almost all of the population claims to be Orthodox. With sharing all of this, I would like to tell you what we are seeing God do.
Together, we are long-term missionaries sent to work in Craiova, specifically as the coordinators of the youth ministry in this city. While we know that there are Christ followers in the city of Craiova, we have only personally encountered 1 teenage-aged girl who has decided to give her life to Christ. However, God is good. On a day to day basis, we go out and share Christ on the streets with the youth. Cornel goes out and plays basketball and tries to establish new relationships with Christ. (Romanians are very relational. You must first establish a relationship with them). Rachel has been teaching English, which has attracted so many youth, some of them wanting to know more about what she believes. Through the English program, we were able to do an English camp at the Black Sea with 9 new youth. Relationships grew overnight and we were able to share Christ with these youth. Some of them have even stated that they would like to see what the church is like. As hard as it is being in a city where there is such a small evangelical presence, God is encouraging us that we have influence, whether that is good or bad. He has been teaching us to keep our eyes focused on Him and for us to not allow the enemy to steal our concentration.
Thank you so much for your prayers! We wish you only the best and pray that God keeps you safe and well, wherever you find yourselves!
-Cornel and Rachel Mich-
Contact information for the Mich’s
Email: [email protected]
https://www.hoperomania.org/mich.html
Great to hear from these guys. We miss Romania especially the Roma people. We encourage people to sow into this ministry in what is so aptly called “the missionary graveyard”.
Thanks for the update. Praying now for Rachel and Cornel. We got to meet them here in Minneapolis when they were state side. I’m so thankful they were able to return to Romania.
I visited Romania in 1997 and 1998 and left a part of my heart there. I also made a dear friend – a Sister in Christ – with whom I have sadly lost contact. As far as I know, she still lives in Bucharest. But I keep her in prayer and trust that we will have a sweet reunion in heaven someday. Praying for fruit for Rachel and Cornel as they minister to the youth there. May hearts be softened to the Gospel.
~Katie Chandler