Today in a word: Overwhelming

Today was anything but a typical day in Moldova; yet today was an incredibly special day for our team.  We were overwhelmed by a wealth of knowledge and information followed by a list of tasks to complete.  Needless to say, we were a smidge overwhelmed.

Today we learned all about the Beginning of Life organization, where we will be working for the rest of the trip.  Before we left the States we had a pretty good idea about the overall mission of the organization, little did we know, there are MANY aspects about the organization that we had no clue about.  We didn't know about the emotion and the passion the staff had for their people; we didn't know about the many services Beginning of Life provides; we didn't know the extent of work that they accomplish.  So, the first part of the day we got to know the in's and out's of the organization.  The staff, wanting us to be fully understanding of the greater aspects of their work, detailed everything for us.  It was a wealth of information, but it was all information that makes working for them so much more meaningful.  We walked away from the meeting sharing a connection and passion for their ministry.  We were able to empathize with their stories and their ministry as a whole.  Here is a summary of what we learned:

• It is the fruit of persistent prayer.
• Has a school department that focuses on prevention and a rehabilitation program that focuses on the victims of trafficking.
• School department
• They go into the schools to teach trafficking prevention as well as teaching other life values.
• Although they are a Christian organization, they are not able to speak openly about God in the schools, but they provide other outlets like clubs and support groups where they are able to talk about God.
• They teach kids to dream and to believe in Moldova.
• They also teach kids how to live simply and not to want as many material possessions, so that they can live accordingly to their income.
• Escape is the magazine that they distribute to different schools and areas in Moldova as well as a few to the UK, Isreal, Germany and the Ukraine. 
• Escape talks about the myths of violence in the home (in Moldova they have a saying, "an unbeaten wife is like an unclean house," Beginning of Life shows the fallacy in that saying), trafficking, alcohol, differences between guys and girls, the art of communication, sexuality, etc.
• They have produced 12 editions and 48,000 copies of the magazine.
• To get involved you can send in articles to be used in the magazine or even adopt a student, school or region that can receive the magazine. 
• The school programs along with Escape helps children to begin asking the larger questions in life and to build dreams to envision a better life for themselves in Moldova.

• Rehabilitation program
• They have a support group for young mothers who have been trafficked, sexually exploited and/or abused.
• They try to create a holistic environment focusing on the physical, psychological, social, spiritual and mental aspects of the women. 
• They currently have 6 girls living in the rehabilitation house that holds up to 9. 
• The girls are directed to the house by a plethora of sources (government agencies, churches, authorities, etc.).
• They encourage schooling and offer prayer meetings.  A motto they believe in states, "if you don't want to pray, we will pray for you." 
• Recently, they have been creating different hand made crafts that they are selling to make an income. They sell dolls, purses, small artwork, beaded decorative trees and much more!
• Trafficking in Moldova
• 90% of those trafficked in Europe come out of Moldova and Romania (Moldova is only the size of Maryland)
• In the last 20 years (the entire history of Moldova) 350,000 people have been victims of trafficking.  Of those, 47,000 are under 18.
• 30,000 people just disappeared.
• 50,000 people per year travel abroad to work. (Parents going to work in another country to work and sending money back to Moldova is an epidemic here.  In total, the minimum number of people who work abroad is 750,000 people, a third of the country's population.  Because of this statistic, enticing victims with promises of a well paying job in another country is very common.)
• Of people trafficked out of Moldova: 70-80% are in prostitution; 13% are in labor; 5-8% are in begging. 

This is an incredible mission in Moldova that is completely run by Moldovan people.  The Beginning of Life is the pride, promise and future of Moldova. Hearing the staff talk about what they do was a breath of fresh air even in compared to what our lives as American's.  It is evident that they fully rely on the strength of God in everything they do.  They are the hands and feet of Christ throughout the country to a poor and desolate population; they are the embodiment of the church.  The founder of Beginning of Life kept saying, "Dream, don't be afraid.  We are just tools in God's hands, he will do what he wants to do in your life."  Words of encouragement were found in every staff member.  We are so thankful to be working with such a unique organization.

The second half of the day was spent planning and then Kelsey, Heather and Alex got a chance to teach the 6 women of the rehabilitation center how to make magazine necklaces and paper mache bowls.  Although they were without an authentic translator (the translator had only been speaking English for 4 months, so she wasn't very good) they communicated through love and friendship with women who have never had hope.  After about an hour with our girls, the women in the rehab center began opening up with our team members, craving their voices to listen to; craving their love and attention that is a product of the love of our Lord.  Their dream is to be loved and respected, but our dream is that they will be given hope in who they are and in their worth as women. Oh, and that they are able to make lots of money off of the crafts that we were able to teach them!

Today was an incredible day and we can't wait for the rest of the week to work with such an amazing organization!

Praise be to God! Let us be your servants.