Big Alex

He lived with us for 9 months and became part of our family. Our little Alex (4 years old) adored him and is already missing him. This is his story:

“For the last nine months, I have been an intern with Pathway to Joy Ministries. Last March I came on a short trip with my church to Romania. I was in the middle of choosing a college, so naturally we talked a lot about where God is leading us in life. Through a series of events and a lot of prayer I ended up deciding to take a year off between high school and college to serve in Romania. It has been an amazing experience and I cannot believe that I will be heading back to "real life" in less than a week. It is strange how people on short mission trips use the term "real life" referring to the life they are accustomed to in US. I certainly understand it, life here is different, and is pretty easily compartmentalized from the hustle of the routines we develop in environments that are so familiar. But I have learned, living here, that this is real life too, we are all just ordinary people serving God in a somewhat extraordinary place. With all the time I spent with the teenage orphans in Romania I started to see just how similar they are to high school kids in America. They have the same needs and the same struggles. There is still a huge difference; the kids here have a lot fewer people pouring into them. That's where I came in, and that's where you can come in too. Interning has given me life skills and experiences that I really and truly couldn't have received anywhere else. It gave me a chance to get down to the nuts and bolts of what ministry really is and how it works on a daily basis. I could tell you many stories and show you tons of pictures but I could really never fully convey to you what this experience has meant to me. I encourage you to come on a mission trip and see for yourself what you read about in these newsletters. And if you've already been here, then you know what I mean when I say “a part of you never leaves”. PTJM has plenty of opportunities to come and serve the needy. I have been doing some work in preparation for our summer interns who will arrive shortly to serve at the orphan camp and to help with the rest of our work. What a great way to spend a few months diving headfirst into what God is doing in Romania. Come check it out!

You can always do what I did before I made my mind. Check out our website and pray.

Interning has given me a chance to serve my neighbor as we are called to do, tithe my time if you will, and pour out my love in His Name. There are plenty of hurting people around the world. Find your mission, answer God’s call.

I would like to thank everyone who has supported this ministry and made my experience here possible. Your prayers are very powerful and very apparent. Being on a mission field doesn’t make us special people, but makes our relationship with God and His people special. God calls us all to serve in different parts of His kingdom. You are just as much a part of what God is doing here in Romania as we all are; your support, thoughts and prayers give us the strength to do what we do. As much as I will miss being here I can take comfort in the fact that there are others coming to take my place. I can only hope I have blessed this ministry as much as it blessed me. Alex Gray”

Please continue to pray and support all our projects, children and workers here in Romania.

In His service,

Cornel & Karen Bucur

Prayer Requests

Please pray for:

† The School for Gypsy children: funds

to accomplish it.

† Church Planting Ministry: workers to

help carry the load of ministering to

the needs of the people.

† Funds to finish the building in Tinca.

† Orphan Mentoring Program: our

staff, for patience and love for the 115

teenage orphans.

† Foster Care Ministry: the foster families

that care for the 35 children.

† Oradea Children’s Hospital Ministry:

the abandoned orphans and our staff

working there.

† The Bucurs: protection and strength

to oversee all the ministries.

† More partners to join our prayer and

support team.

† For the mission teams that arrive this summer

to serve the children and youth of Romania.

†For the new interns arriving this summer.