The President of Everything

A year ago, I was asked if I would consider becoming the next Romania District Superintendent. Never in my wildest dreams could I have imagined that becoming DS was just the first of several new leadership roles that I would be entrusted within the coming year.

This is an actual screen shot from my phone. 
I was typing "I'm probably...",
but Siri knows a bit too much about my life.

After being appointed district superintendent at the Church of the Nazarene’s Romania District assembly in November, I also became the new president and director of OCEAD Nazarineanul, our legal organization in Romania. Soon thereafter, I was also given the responsibilities of president of the “Nazarene Workshops” organization which operates the wood shop in Tigmandru. A few months later, when Jay and Sheri Hartzler announced that they would be leaving Romania, I was elected to succeed Sheri as president of the Veritas board. Then, to top it all off, this spring the neighbors in my apartment building elected me as building president. 

In addition to these new official titles, I continue to serve as Romania Learning Center coordinator for EuNC and Romanian language literature coordinator. That’s led one of my friends here to call me “the president of everything.” I still laugh at how ridiculous it all sounds, and I often joke that if I wouldn’t be laughing, I’d be crying.

But all joking aside, the point of this post is to share two things with you:

First, I can see God’s leading in so many areas during these past few months. The various Nazarene-related activities in Romania have sometimes been a bit disconnected from one another. By being entrusted with the leadership of these different organizations, I’m working to make sure we have better communication, which I hope will lead to a clearer and more united vision. I’m also leading a restructuring of Nazarene ministry in Romania so we’ll be better positioned for future ministry. In the past few weeks, I’ve made multiple trips to the bank and to the notary. I’ve worked with the lawyer and signed contracts. It’s a lot of administrative work at this time, but it’s long overdue and will help us as we explore post-pandemic opportunities for ministry.

Second, I am repeatedly being reminded that I can’t be “the president of everything” in my own strength. For at least the past 4 Sundays, we’ve sung the same song at church…and that’s saying a lot since I’ve actually worshiped in 3 different churches! It’s like God wants to get this message across. In each church, we’ve sung, “Lord, I need you, oh, I need you. Every hour I need you.” It has become my prayer as I face the new challenges of each day. 

There’s a lot more I could include in this post. On the one hand, I could write about the unique challenges each of these different organizations is facing. On the other hand, I could tell you about the amazing friends God has blessed me with who help me relax and de-stress in the time we spend together. Instead, I’ll conclude with a simple request that you continue to pray for me as I serve here in Romania.