We got a witnessing opportunity this morning to the real estate agent who represented our new landlord at the apartment we have just rented.  It happened when she suggested we must do what is a common practice in Romania these days among owners and renters whose integrity is worth less to them than a little money.  She said what we must do is first sign the real contract for the rental, and then make a second fake contract that would lie about how much money the apartment was being rented for, so the landlord could report the false numbers to the government and avoid paying the taxes she owed.  It is done so commonly and with so little conscience against it that when I said No, we won't do that, she was pretty sure I was just joking.  (Because the end result is that we will have to pay the taxes on top of our rent since we refuse to help the landlord avoid it, and in a city like this, someone taking that stand is uncommon.)   

   When I told her I was completely serious, and she realized that I was refusing to tell a lie that would have made my rent cost 16 percent lower by bilking the government, she said somewhat mockingly, "Yes, you would go to hell for sure if you did this." 

   I said, "Oh, no, I'm definitely going to heaven, but even though I know that for sure, I'm still not going to do this.  If she (the landlord) lies to the finance officials, her signature will be the only one on the paper." 

   Then she said, still kind of mockingly, "Okay, so you'll always be poor in this life, but at least you get to go to heaven because of this."

   "No," I said, "I'll never be poor because of this, and I'll not get to heaven because I was honest, either."  

   Something in that moment changed her demeanor, because the situation that started out with flippant talk about eternity, because of our willingness to do what was right even at a financial cost, somehow had just become a situation where she wanted to talk sincerely about such issues.  She was intrigued about a couple things in what we had told her that were different from anything she had ever heard before. 

   The first was that I was speaking with assurance that I have eternal life, and the second was that I wasn't trusting in any good works or in personal integrity to earn it for me. 

   So why will you be going to heaven, then, she wanted to know. 

   I explained to her that the Bible teaches that no one is good enough to deserve heaven, and that the only people who go there will be those who receive it as a free gift of God because they trust in His Son. This is possible, I explained, because Jesus had lived a perfect life in our place, and then had died on the cross in our place, taking all the punishment we deserve for our sins against God.  So we can have eternal life if we trust in Him, and let Him give us His righteous record. 

   "And it is because of thankfulness to God for that gift of eternal life," I explained, "that I can be motivated to refuse to be dishonest in this situation." 

   She marveled at that, saying that "our church always threatens us with hell and says 'if you're not really good and don't do this and this and this then you'll go to hell.'"  The idea that eternal life is a gift of God, not of works so that no one can boast, was a completely new concept to her. 

   And I tell this story to ask you to continue to pray for us, because as we share the gospel in Cluj, Romania, we'll see that this all-important truth about right relationships with God is a totally new concept for almost everyone we share it with.  And I also share this story to remind all of you reading it who believe, that this is a truth that is lost on almost all of the people you encounter each day, wherever you live in this world.  Even among religious people, you'll find most folks you know think that "good people" go to heaven and "bad people" go to hell. 

   If you know the Lord, and know the simple, Biblical way to come to know Him, live your life looking for and asking God for opportunities to tell others about Him.  He wants the people you encounter as you go about your daily life to know the gospel of Jesus Christ, and as you pray asking His Holy Spirit to fill and empower you, and to prepare the hearts of people you meet, then He will give you chances to share and the boldness it takes to walk through those open doors. 

   Well, it looks like the Lord has already answered prayers about our apartment hunt on the first day.  We found a place this morning that we like, in a good neighborhood that we like, and we expect to sign a rental contract on it this evening.  It is nicer than our current home in Buzau, and we thank God for His provision in that, because housing costs a lot more in Cluj and we're getting a good deal, paying less than we thought we would have to pay for a place, although it's just under 200 dollars per month more than we pay for rent in Buzau. 

   The rest of the week we'll be trying to get things ready best we can, before we return to Buzau for the move.  We need to paint and do other fixup type work, as well as get a stove and some kitchen cabinets and a few pieces of furniture.  We'll try to get the place as close to ready for our move in as we can this week, and plan to go back to Buzau on the weekend. 

   Thank you to all of you who prayed with us for this--God heard and answered. 

The Spirit and the bride say, "Come!"
--Revelation 22:17a

An update to the post below on Friday night--You can see some YouTube video from Will Anderson from the concert Thursday in Brasov at his blog here. 

   The Calvary Chapel churches in Brasov and Bistrita are having evangelistic concerts next week--Thursday and Friday evenings (Aug 9-10) in Brasov and Saturday the 11th in Bistrita.  These events have the potential for large crowds of people who don't know the Lord, so we pray that God's Spirit will move in hearts through the popular music styles, to bring people to Himself. 

   As God is moving us across the country, He is also raising up replacements for us in key areas of ministry we've had here. 

   Today when we did our orphanage ministry along with our friend Johnny, we told the orphanage staff about how we're moving to Cluj soon.  We've been hoping to replace ourselves there in ministering to the kids when we go, and the response of the workers there opened the door for that when they asked if we would have anyone else who could keep coming weekly and doing what we've been doing after we're gone. 

   So we told them about the Baptist missionary that we were hoping to pass this ministry open door to when we leave, and they were open to that.  It turned out, in fact, that one of the workers there already knows him and has a favorable impression of him. 

Slobozia

   Another ministry we've had for the last year and a half is frequent preaching/teaching ministry in the evangelical church in Lili's hometown of Slobozia, which has been without a senior pastor for that time period.  This month, they took on a new fulltime pastor, so the time of need for us to be there has come to a close.  The new pastor learned this week that we are moving to Cluj, and he is having us come there this weekend for me to preach one last time this Sunday and so that we can say our goodbyes to that congregation. 

The Search for a new home

   On Monday, Lord-willing, we'll be on trains for 11+ hours to go to Cluj, where this coming week we'll begin our search for a place to live.  Please pray for God to guide us in this and provide the right home and location for our family.  We praise the Lord that our financial support level is good, because housing in Cluj will cost at least twice as much as in Buzau, and since the Lord has been and continues to be a generous provider of our needs, we can go into that new situation without cause for worry. 

            An additional possible opening door for ministry for Calvary Chapel Cluj is in the city of Gherla, about one-hour away from the city.  Gherla (pronounced "GAIR-lah") is a city of 40,000+ where a group has asked Razvan to begin a Bible study, and a house has been made available for that to be done there (pictured above).  In time, this could possibly become a church plant.

            Below are a couple other pictures from the town of Gherla, which I visited with Razvan a little over a week ago.  The architecture of the city has a different flavor than much of the country, because the town was originally an Armenian settlement, and has that influence on it.     

   Sometimes professing atheists like to accuse followers of Christ of being "arrogant," because of how sure we are of our claims to know God is real and He is a part of our lives.  But when you think about it, isn't it the atheist who is holding to an arrogant belief system?  After all, it is the atheist, not the Christian, who makes a claim to have all knowledge.  For his claims to be proven, the atheist must back them up with evidence that would require absolute omniscience to find.  

   Here's an example of what I'm talking about that is based on a similar illustration from evangelist Ray Comfort.  

   Imagine I wanted to say, there is gold in the country of Romania.  How much knowledge of Romania must I have to be able to be certain my claim is true, and to prove it to others?  Not much, really.  All I have to do is point to my wedding ring, which has gold, and I have proven irrefutably that there is gold in Romania.  

   But imagine someone was claiming there is no gold in all Romania.  How much knowledge is that person claiming to have of Romania?  Complete knowledge of the country is what they are claiming to have.  For their claim to be proven, they have to know everything about what is in every house, yard, field, church, store, and building of every kind.  They have to show inventory of what is in every single one of the 22 million Romanian people's teeth.  They have to have completely unlimited knowledge of Romania to prove something isn't there.  So if someone told you there is no gold at all in Romania, even if you'd never been here before and never seen the proof that there is gold here, you would still be wise to consider foolish that person's claim; because you would instinctively know that they couldn't possibly have any real clue what they were talking about.  

   That's how you should view atheists, too.  Not a one of them has any idea what he is talking about when he denies God's existence, even if he is eloquent or successful, or able to communicate with words in a way that make him sound intelligent.  Maybe he hasn't seen God act in his life.  But that proves nothing.  It doesn't even help his case, much less prove it.  His knowledge is far too limited to be considered ample evidence.  

   For him to claim God isn't there, he would need complete knowledge of everything that has ever happened in your life, too.  And mine.  And the person next door to you, and the person next door to them.  And every person in the entire world.  And every person in all of world history.  And not just people.  He'd have to know every animal and plant and rock.  And he can't limit his search for evidence of God's non-existence to this little planet, either.  He has to have complete knowledge of everything you can conceive of in the universe, as well as the trillions of things you cannot conceive of.  Otherwise, he simply fails to prove his foolish assertion that God is not real. 

   Atheists are not just lacking proper evidence of their atheistic claims--they are lacking any evidence that they are right.  And yet they claim that they can know about these things.  That's arrogance.      

   How much evidence must I have to claim God is real and not be arrogant in saying so?  I just have to know what I know, and I don't have to claim knowledge of anyone or anything that I don't have.  My own life has seen irrefutable proof that God is real, and no one has ever disproven His existence in my life, nor can anyone.  And I'm just one of billions of witnesses to this truth that God is real, with each one of our billions of testimonies remaining undisputed. 

   At the least, an atheist should be willing to admit he doesn't know if he is right.  Even if he will not believe the words of those who do know God is there, he should at least be willing to consider that in the 99.9999999999999999999999999999999999 percent of knowledge of the universe that he hasn't learned yet, there might be ample evidence that God is real, and he just hasn't yet found it.    

   In addition to having a team in Cluj, Calvary Chapel has some other works in that area of the country, so we won't be as "alone" there in our labors as we have been in Buzau. 

   There is an established Calvary Chapel church in Bistrita, with three families in full-time ministry and a congregation serving the Lord.  Bistrita (say it BEECE-treet-sah) is about 2 hours away from Cluj. 

   Also, even closer are two Calvary missionary families with a few village church-planting works in the area of Huedin (hoo-eh-DEEN), about 20 miles from Cluj. 

   This is the ministry house and grounds that is being rented for worship services and as an outreach center for Calvary Chapel's work in Cluj.  It was selected in part because it is a prime location for outreach to college students, thousands of whom walk down this particular street daily during the school year, and it is also a "hangout" for students, since most of the other buildings on the street are student bars and clubs of various kinds.  

   During the summer, the outdoor grounds are used for outreach barbecues and also as a worship center on Sunday mornings.  The inside of the building is where children's ministry can be done simultaneously.   

   The highest priest of the Romanian orthodox church died yesterday of heart problems that came about during a prostate surgery he was undergoing.  He was in his 90s and had been the patriarch of the state church since late 1986. 

   Last night during the TV coverage of the beginning of ceremonies for his funeral, we saw Lili's cousin, who is an orthodox priest in Bucharest, standing over the body and doing a prayer. 

   I pray that the days that come be days for Romania where the word of God in the Bible is given the place of honor it deserves, and all matters of faith are subject to its decrees, so that people's souls can be saved and they can have eternal life, and glorify God with their lives on the earth.  And may an authentic Biblical Christianity take hold, by a move of the Holy Spirit, so that the words of God, not the traditions of men, will be revered.  And may Christ in us be glorified.