God’s Provision in Southern Romania
Like most 18-year-olds in the small, southern Romanian town, it was time for Dani to go away. Job opportunities were scarce in the region near the Bulgarian border, so young people routinely sought work in larger Romanian cities or other European countries.
Greater Europe Mission worker Octavian “Tavi” Berechet had known the tall, blond youth since he was a boy. At the age of 16, after attending a youth camp, Dani approached Tavi and told him that God had spoken to his heart. He felt that God was real and present in his life, and he wanted to follow Jesus. However, the boy had some concerns. Dani knew his father and grandparents would never accept him becoming an evangelical believer and leaving the Orthodox tradition.
Making the most of the next two years, Tavi discipled Dani, encouraging him in his walk with Christ. Dani was a deep thinker, someone who truly took to heart the things he had been taught from the Bible.
“I don’t want to leave this place,” Dani confided to Tavi. “I want to stay here and learn more about God.”
Nevertheless, Dani had to make a living. So, he headed off to Germany to work as a chef, and all Tavi could do was say goodbye and pray for him.
Hard Realities
A deep discouragement began to trouble Tavi. His home country of Romania was hard ground in which the seed of the gospel did not easily sink in and grow roots. Those who responded to the gospel were few and far between. Young people were the most receptive, but harsh economic realities forced them to leave and establish lives elsewhere. How could newly planted churches thrive under such circumstances?
Sometimes, Tavi wondered if he’d misunderstood God’s call to full time Christian work.
Like Dani, Tavi had given his own life to Jesus as a sixteen-year-old in 2003, when a small group of Christians from northern Romania came to his town to plant a church. Before that, no evangelical church existed in the community of two thousand.
As an adult, Tavi sensed God nudging him into evangelism along with his wife, Nicoletta. They had been working in youth ministry and church planting for a handful of years, but when frustration and burnout set in, Tavi dared to ask God for two signs to show him whether they should quit or keep going.
It wasn’t that Tavi didn’t feel a desire to reach people for Christ. He shared his home church’s vision to spread the gospel in southern Romania, establishing churches in the surrounding towns and villages. But the Orthodox Christian tradition, with its lack of emphasis on deep relationship with God, seemed to have a vice grip on Tavi’s fellow Romanians. It could take years for a person to come to Christ, or even to build trust in an environment in which evangelicals were highly suspect.
Was this feeling of discouragement a sign that God didn’t want him in ministry anymore?
God’s Faithfulness
“Lord, please confirm my direction in missions in two ways,” Tavi prayed. “Let at least one person respond to the gospel and be baptized, and please bring at least one more person to work alongside Nicoletta and me.”
After praying, Tavi continued with his ministry. He sought to share the gospel with local children and teenagers, inviting them to church activities and youth meetings. When Tavi and Nicoletta visited the parents of two girls who had begun attending the church’s programs, they learned that the girls’ mother, Daniela, was open to hearing more about Jesus. The friendly, blond woman in her late thirties had been seeking God in various ways over the years. Although she was raised in the Orthodox church, she wasn’t afraid to explore other religions and visit other types of churches. Still, something eluded her.
Tavi and Nicoletta continued to visit Daniela and her husband. When Nicoletta invited Daniela to study the Bible with her on a regular basis, she happily accepted.
“I can feel something is different in you both,” she said. “Your faith seems real. I want to know more about what you believe.” In time, Daniela trusted Christ as her savior and was baptized.
One prayer had been answered. But what about the other? Did God still want Tavi to continue in ministry?
Before long, God brought not one, but several new people to work alongside Tavi and Nicoletta. One of them is Nicoletta’s brother-in-law, Alex.
“Ever since I prayed for confirmation, God has shown his faithfulness,” says Tavi. “We have not lacked for help on our church planting team, and I know I am exactly where God wants me to be.”
If you are interested in knowing more about church planting in Romania, contact [email protected].
About the Author: Jenny Garrity is a storyteller with Greater Europe Mission. Jenny and her husband Kim joined GEM in 1984. They have served in Germany, Belgium, and most recently, Greece in response to the refugee crisis.