The church I pastor, Victory Assembly of God in Atkins, Arkansas, is currently supporting five Romanian churches. The churches are all located in small, very poor villages. All five of the pastors that we support were participants in the School of Christ.
Upon arriving in Romania, we purchased the needed supplies and began teaching the SOC the next morning with eight pastors. The Christians in the village were also invited to come and hear the lessons. I marveled at their enthusiasm for the Gospel as they watched founder, B. H. Clendennen, teaching the lessons.
Services were held every night at different locations, and on Sunday, we ministered in four churches. Many people gave their hearts to Christ during these particular services, and all came for prayer.
The church where we held the SOC classes was in a village so small that it only has one store.
This is a very poor area and they depend upon a well that runs into a community trough. Their water supply has recently gone totally dry and they are now depending on another very weak spring outside of town to supply their water. The European Union, who took over Romania in 2007, installed a central water system in this village last year. Very few, if any, have the money to pay for the hook up to the new water system. The cost is equal to a family’s income for three months.
Over half of the population of these villages are gypsy families and most of the Romanians despise the gypsies. Their way of life is far below what we would call poor here in the United States. These poor and often overlooked people need to hear the Gospel of Jesus Christ.
The Romanian pastors and I are so thankful to everyone that made the School of Christ available in the Romanian language. Only eternity will reveal the effect the School of Christ teachings has and will have on Romania.
Mike Chisum – Pastor