When our ministry partner in Romania, first met Narcisa, she was distant, agitated, unfriendly, and shot down any opportunity for communication. During a shopping trip, our ministry partner tried to engage with Narcisa and encourage her to spend time with the other girls, but she remained closed off to interaction.
“Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love.” Ephesians 4:2 (NIV)
The following week, when the team was cooking with this same group of girls, Narcisa finally started to open up. She shared with our in-country staff that prior to the shopping trip she tried calling her mother to ask for her opinion on buying some clothes, but her mother didn’t have time to talk to her. While she keeps in touch with her mother and sees her from time to time, she experiences great heartache from their strained relationship. This explained her actions during the shopping trip, which she apologized for.
Narcisa shared how she feels lonely, without any real friends, and doesn’t truly trust anyone, often only seeing the bad in people and the world. Our ministry partner wanted to continue this conversation and further build trust, so they made plans to meet up and have more discussions.
The next time they met, they discussed friendship, ultimately coming to the conclusion that Jesus is our best friend, and Narcisa—who was initially distant and quiet when they first met—led this conversation. She talked about God’s love and goodness, trusting that He is always with us and takes care of us. At the end of the meeting, our partner and Narcisa prayed together, thanking God for showing His love through Jesus.
“See what great love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are!” 1 John 3:1a (NIV)
This was just the beginning of their friendship and mentorship—they continued meeting and studied respect and self-image through the Word of God.
Narcisa was in a dark and lonely place when she met our ministry partner, but through consistent relationship-building, support, and guidance, Narcisa now has a greater understanding of her identity as a Child of God and continues to grow in her faith every day.
We praise God for revealing His goodness to Narcisa and giving her hope in the midst of pain. We pray our partners in Romania will continue to reach vulnerable children so they too may experience God’s love.