http://www.harvestmoldova.com Andrew & Nancy Raatz, Elissa, Natalie, Lauren. Missionaries to Moldova Sat, 20 Jun 2009 06:54:49 +0000 http://backend.userland.com/rss092 en I've never been one to shirk from a challenge, but even I would be nervous about the challenge Pastor Stefan faced.  When the mayor called him and asked him, "Pray for rain," Stefan realized it was more than a concern for the weather.  It was a dare, a trial that ... http://www.harvestmoldova.com/archives/479 Look your sweetie in the eye and say, "I you love." Makes sense in Romanian but loses its zing in English. Or after finishing your dinner, say to the chef, "To me it is liked spaghetti your." That sounds like something Jedi Yoda would say, but it is ... http://www.harvestmoldova.com/archives/465 You have this window of opportunity. I have heard that phrase countless times over the years, usually tossing it off as a salesman's pitch to close the deal. Both secular and religious leaders have used the concept as a way to force the decision or empty the wallet. Yet I have ... http://www.harvestmoldova.com/archives/450 Moldova is full of stories, colorful scenes begging me to write.  I feel like an artist with a palette overfilled with colors, wondering which to apply to the canvas first. Do I write about the grandma that walks her three goats to the field each morning? Do I write about the coffin ... http://www.harvestmoldova.com/archives/426 Can life get any more extreme?  Extreme sports have nothing on a life in missions! Ministry often appears sweet and sour, a seemingly contradictory combination of emotions bordering on the extreme.  We experience the thrill of victory and the agony of defeat, joy and discouragement, often within the same hour.  The ... http://www.harvestmoldova.com/archives/393 Thanksgiving is all about perspective. That thought flashed across my mind last week as I stood in a Moldova medical building, waiting for a dentist appointment.  Of the four lights in that long corridor, only one light worked, the other three dangling loosely from the ceiling.  The walls were rough plaster ... http://www.harvestmoldova.com/archives/378 “If I were a rich man…” sang Tevye in Fiddler on the Roof. If I were a rich man, then I could be a self-supported missionary! If I were a rich man, I wouldn’t stress about support during recessions. If I were a rich man, I would not need to stare at needs ... http://www.harvestmoldova.com/archives/367 “But what can I do about it?” Those seven words have been echoing in my head lately.  An intern expressed them after describing a visit to one of our Moldovan village homes.  She was describing her visit to see Danny and Aliona, young children, raising themselves in a filthy, rustic house.  ... http://www.harvestmoldova.com/archives/345 “Fill your bathtubs, buckets and barrels.” That strange order was repeated countless times last week in our city of Chisinau.  The news was reporting that our water would be off for four days, and no one knew when it would happen.  Due to the extreme flooding, bridges were covered, houses were ... http://www.harvestmoldova.com/archives/138 Life stinks.  Literally. To be technically accurate, life stunk. Our septic tank backed up about 2 weeks ago, and we were left with an interesting dilemma.  No one knew where the tank was located. A previous owner had placed a tank in the backyard together with an elaborate drainage system.  No one ... http://www.harvestmoldova.com/archives/85