The first confirmation from God to our calling in Romania!

The first year, after we got to Romania, in 2008, I prayed to God that for at least one soul to return to Him and then all the effort of our moving to Romania would be worth it! God heard my prayer and while my wife and I were getting ready to help church Maranata with the preparations for the Festival of Hope, we were discussing that we should be open for any soul even before this festival. God can save a lost soul at any time! Collaborating from the start with church Maranata, God had put in our hearts to open the gates of this church, twice a week and ask children from around the neighborhood to come to play on the slides and swings. They were coming with their parents and grandparents, and we gave the adults the Holy Bible, and to the children The Children’s Bible
Many times we put on Christian songs that were heard all around the park. That way God drew closer a special soul for two weeks around the fence of the church; he was coming closer to hear these songs, but didn’t have the courage to get in. Two weeks passed by, and then church Maranata started to get ready for this Festival of Hope, to give out flyers around the neighborhood, us and a few other couples.

 The first day we gave out flyers, there was a Tuesday afternoon, and we went to the church to get the invitations ready. I was in the church, counting the invitations, when, at the gates, there was a man that wanted something. My wife saw him from the window and I decided to go to the gate and see what’s it all about. When I got there, he said:  “Good evening, I do not believe in God! I want to come inside this chapel ( church ) to look if he exists. Can I enter dressed like this? ”  ( because he was homeless ).Shocked, I answered: “Good evening, God does exist, He loves you, you are valuable in His eyes,you can enter just as you are, because God does not look neither at the face nor at the clothing, but at the heart. Come with me so I will pray for you.” ( I answered him ).

            We both entered the church, he told us that he’s homeless, that he doesn’t have a job and that he would like us to pray for his faith. In the church there was another young man and we all decided to pray for him. After we prayed, we asked him what can he work. He told us that he can work as a constructor and right then I knew that a friend from church is CEO at a constructions company. When I told the name of this CEO, Flavius, he entered the church, without calling him or something like that. It was Tuesday evening, and we didn’t expect that.

            For this young soul, it was a great wonder, and I told him:  “See? God does exist. I didn’t even call this man, but god sent him here for you to believe that He exists.” I gave the man The Holy Bible as a gift and told him that this Scripture can change his life. As a sign of trust for the job, we decided to meet again with him Sunday morning to chat with him a little more.

           The man left with the Scripture in his hand and… Where to go? Back on the street where he lived lonely and hopelessly. Sunday morning, my family and I came to the church and I was surprised to see him on one of the chairs. He introduced himself to everyone because it was the first time he went to the church’s sermon. His name was Leontin.

            AAfter the sermon ended, he spoke with pastor Remus Runcan and he came again that afternoon ( at the afternoon sermon ). After it ended, I told him to wait for me in the park out side the church. When I was done in the church, I went to him. When we started talking, he said: “ Mr. Doru, I want to give my life to God”. Surprised by that, I asked: “What made you decide on this matter?” “The Bible, he answered, the Scripture, if you wouldn’t have given it to me, I wouldn’t be here today!”

            I was surprised to hear that in 5 days, after he got the Scripture, he read almost all the New Testimony. He realized he’s a sinner, and he read that he can still be forgiven. He wanted to pray with me on the bench, but he didn’t know how and I said that he can give his life right there, on that bench. So he prayed with me and he gave his life to God forever. After he left that evening, he still had a cigar pack in his pocket, and he threw it in the trash bin. When he was young, he was drinking and smoking two packs of cigars a day.

            God gave this soul the chance to be free of everything, and that day ( it was my birthday ), God gave me the most beautiful gift: a soul. And he was the same age with me. I was so happy, I couldn’t believe what was happening; I didn’t preach, I only gave away a Scripture at the right time, and it changed a life.

The next day in the morning, an hour early when I met with him for the job, I called that CEO to tell him he wonder and ask if he has a job for him. He was happy to hear about the wonder, but he didn’t have anything to work. After an hour, 5 minutes before meeting with this man, I received a call from this Ceo, which happily asked me where is that man because he needs him at 9AM. I told Leo and in that moment, God gave him a job.

            In the evening, when he was about to go there, the CEO heard that Leo didn’t have a place to stay, he offered him a bachelor’s room. Leo was so happy… God gave him eternal life, and the next day, God offered him a job and a place to stay. It’s wonderful to see God’s work!

            From that day on, Leo’s life changed: his behavior, his language, his actions, and he always was reading the Bible with passion. The CEO was impressed, because he was the first at the job and he was the most hard-working of them all. When I visited him a couple of days later, I was surprised to see Bible versed everywhere: on the pillow, on the window, over the sink, all across the room I saw only Bible verses. He desperately wanted to know more from the Scripture and he already read a lot.

             God changed Leo and offered him another destiny, a new family in the Lord, because he was an orphan: his mom and dad died when he was little ( because of the alcohol), he had 6 brothers and sisters. He grew up in an orphanage and then lived on the streets. He his last period of time in Brașov and there he tried to suicide for 3 times.

            He was an atheist, he didn’t believe that God can possibly exist when in his life there was so much unfairness. Desperately, he tried to take a whole bunch of meds, but God didn’t want him to die.

            He tried again, because he didn’t have any money, food or a place to stay. This time, he wanted to cut his wrists, and he failed; God didn’t want to lose him.

            The third time, he was so sure that his plan will work that he prepared a rope on a tree to hang himself. The branch broke. Angry, he realized that he can’t take his life… he realized that there is something supernatural.

            After a long search, he decided to leave Brașov, going by train. There were two trains: One for Timișoara, and one for Bucharest. God decided that he would get in the one that was going to Timișoara. He heard that there is more faith, so he went looking.

            The first two weeks in Timișoara, he went around Bega until he reached the park near Maranata. In the evening, he slept near Bega, but God attracted him back to that place. In that park he met me ( Doru ), I really said hi to him ( so he says ) and my smile gave him hope to follow me ( he thought I was the pastor of the church ) and to approach me.

             It’s wonderful to see how God works and how he changes everything! After he gave his life to God, he attended a catechesis course, and the he got baptized in church Maranata, where he still is a member.

            We are happy for him and we still are amazed that God kept him near for merely 3 years, and never left him alone! It’s wonderful to leave ourselves as instruments in His hand and see what God can do!

          Doru Herdean