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Update from Adi Stanciu about Ukraine · The Father's Business Podcast

• 0:03
  Speaker 1: The Father's Business was founded by Sylvia Gunter to encourage people to a deeper relationship with God.
• 0:08
  Speaker 1: I'm Elizabeth Gunter Powell and I am Kimberly Roddy.
• 0:12
  Speaker 1: Welcome to the Father's Business Podcast.
• 0:14
  Speaker 1: We are so glad that you've joined us.
• 0:16
  Speaker 1: Welcome everyone to this bonus episode of the Father's Business Podcast.
• 0:23
  Speaker 1: This is Elizabeth, and I just got back from being able to go overseas and meet up with my friends, adi and Flory Stanchu.
• 0:33
  Speaker 1: You've heard us talk about Adi.
• 0:35
  Speaker 1: You've heard Adi before on this podcast before.
• 0:37
  Speaker 1: They're a wonderful, dear, dear, more like family than friends of mine, romanian friends who have been spearheading the ministry that we have been supporting to help Ukrainian refugees over the last two years during the war in Ukraine.
• 0:52
  Speaker 1: The last two summers we have been able to be one of the organizations that has helped to raise funds so that they can host children's day camps and also an overnight youth camp for Ukrainian children and Romanian children living right along that Ukrainian-Romanian border who have been deeply impacted by the war.
• 1:14
  Speaker 1: And it was just, it did my heart so much good to be able to see Adi and Flory, to hear firsthand what's been going on and how they've been ministering and how they're doing as they have carried the load of the ministry to refugees that are still struggling in a war that we thought would never last this long.
• 1:36
  Speaker 1: So I asked Adi's permission if I could record part of our conversation that he had, talking about the desire he has to do camps again this summer, and I hope that you'll enjoy listening in on our conversation.
• 1:51
  Speaker 1: There's so many more stories that Adi and Flory told me while we were together that are not part of this recording and I'd love just to share one with you before we get into the conversation with Adi.
• 2:02
  Speaker 1: He told me about a mother and daughter who are living in Romania because their home has been destroyed and they're on their own.
• 2:12
  Speaker 1: And they came and the mother was very sick.
• 2:17
  Speaker 1: They took her to the doctor, helped her get medical care, only to find out that she had pretty severe cancer.
• 2:23
  Speaker 1: And they were able to help care for her and love her and just through Audie and Flory being Audie and Flory being those loving people that would go and spend time with them and help take food for them, medical care for them, for them, both of these women prayed to receive Christ and I.
• 2:50
  Speaker 1: Just as awful as this war is and how I wish it never had begun Adi and Flory were sharing that most likely, had the war not started, had these two women not come to Romania trying to find a safe place to stay and had met Adi and Flory, that one, the mother probably would not have known that she even had cancer.
• 3:11
  Speaker 1: And then, two, they would not have been able to share the gospel with them and allow both of them to become Christians.
• 3:19
  Speaker 1: And so after that, after they both prayed to receive Christ, adi and Flory would be sure to visit them on a regular basis.
• 3:27
  Speaker 1: And Adi said to me every time we went to go see them they wouldn't let us leave until we had prayed for them and with them.
• 3:37
  Speaker 1: And so sadly I mean in some ways sadly, but in some ways a sweet relief that the mom has gone to meet Jesus.
• 3:46
  Speaker 1: She has passed away and is no longer in pain and is no longer suffering.
• 3:51
  Speaker 1: But just I marvel every time I'm with Adi and Flory at the way they just ooze Jesus with their life.
• 4:00
  Speaker 1: So I hope you enjoy.
• 4:02
  Speaker 1: It's about 15 minutes of conversation I had with Adi about his hopes and his dreams of how he can continue to be the hands and feet of Jesus to these children and teenagers who never asked to be a part of the type of childhood they're living in now.
• 4:19
  Speaker 1: So, adi, I sat down with you about two years ago.
• 4:26
  Speaker 1: It was May and June of 2022.
• 4:30
  Speaker 1: The war in Ukraine had just started a few months before and you were sharing with us some of the things that have happened when we were sitting at that table.
• 4:41
  Speaker 1: Did you ever dream that two years later, there would?
• 4:48
  Speaker 2: still be a war going on in Ukraine?
• 4:50
  Speaker 2: Of course not.
• 4:51
  Speaker 2: We suppose that in maximum one year everything will finish and involved in a reconstruction of Ukrainian country, but with a very deep regret that it's not stopped the war and the situation in Ukraine it's still difficult and without hope.
• 5:21
  Speaker 2: We don't see the final and without hope we don't see the final.
• 5:24
  Speaker 2: This is the biggest problem for us who are involved, but also for the people there.
• 5:30
  Speaker 2: They're tired, they don't know how long it takes from now to finish, and also not only when, but how?
• 5:42
  Speaker 1: So tell me two years later, what types of things are you and other pastors in your area continuing to do?
• 5:50
  Speaker 2: We continue to help the community of Ukrainians who are located in northern Romania, south Ukrainian border with Romania, where they speak Romanian language because that was a part of Romanian before the Second War.
• 6:12
  Speaker 2: So there is a large community of Romanian and we collaborate with the churches there because they go with the support in the places where is the war.
• 6:27
  Speaker 2: So we continue to help them.
• 6:29
  Speaker 2: But our focus with our ministry was to help especially young people and children, because there is a big problem with them.
• 6:41
  Speaker 2: They are without hope and they don't have enough support and they don't have hope for the future, for their school, for their education and for developing their life.
• 7:03
  Speaker 2: But what we have done?
• 7:07
  Speaker 2: We organized camps during the summer and we helped the young people and children from different communities to know the gospel, to help them with the good news and to understand that God is in control with everything and God loves them and take care of them.
• 7:35
  Speaker 2: And we start, two years ago, a camp with the young people.
• 7:41
  Speaker 2: Last year we have the other one, the second one, with them and see the difference.
• 7:49
  Speaker 2: The people are more involved and they trust to do things they own in a camp.
• 7:58
  Speaker 2: They have good leaders.
• 8:00
  Speaker 2: The first camp was to train leaders.
• 8:04
  Speaker 2: Now we assist the leaders.
• 8:07
  Speaker 2: In a second year, and probably this year if it's possible, we will organize a camp, but we will not be involved doing things.
• 8:18
  Speaker 2: We will just stay with them and let them to do the camp, but with the children, the children.
• 8:28
  Speaker 2: Last year we trained some Ukrainian leaders.
• 8:32
  Speaker 2: They do a very good job but they need one year support for 200 in our camps and we like to be with the leaders there to support them in leadership of camp.
• 9:06
  Speaker 2: So this is our plan for this year.
• 9:10
  Speaker 1: What happens after the camp, after?
• 9:12
  Speaker 2: the camp with the young people.
• 9:15
  Speaker 2: We have a follow-up program.
• 9:17
  Speaker 2: We have devotional time in every day.
• 9:21
  Speaker 2: We have a group in what to say?
• 9:26
  Speaker 2: Telegram.
• 9:28
  Speaker 2: It's like Instagram or like WhatsApp, but Telegram it's their connection there.
• 9:37
  Speaker 2: So in Telegram we have daily devotional time and everybody can add what they discover in relation with God.
• 9:48
  Speaker 2: Almost in every month, somebody from Romania, from our team, visit them a youth ministry with these leaders, with these young people, and also we start in all the churches a program, alpha ALPHA program for youth, which is amazing and it's working properly for their culture.
• 10:16
  Speaker 2: So we have Bible study, follow-up, devotional and different meetings together every month.
• 10:29
  Speaker 1: Do you have a story you can tell?
• 10:30
  Speaker 2: Yeah, Impressed me, one of the child who tell us that after the camp he is not fair.
• 10:40
  Speaker 2: When the siren the alarm.
• 10:43
  Speaker 1: When the alarms go.
• 10:44
  Speaker 1: He's not afraid when the alarms go off.
• 10:46
  Speaker 2: Yes, because he know that Jesus is with him.
• 10:50
  Speaker 2: Also, I see the leaders from the children's camp.
• 10:55
  Speaker 2: They continue to go in this village to follow up with the children and they have their own curriculum.
• 11:07
  Speaker 2: Which impressed me, that we just give them suggestions and now they put in the practice in their culture, in their way.
• 11:17
  Speaker 2: So these leaders and these leaders are young people in a high school and they develop their ministry so great.
• 11:31
  Speaker 2: I am impressed how the war and the difficulty make them to be mature, to think about the needs and to be involved properly with the kids.
• 11:44
  Speaker 2: So in Romania it's not happened so quickly.
• 11:50
  Speaker 2: That was happened probably after revolution 24 years ago.
• 11:55
  Speaker 2: But now what it's happened in Ukraine with the youth ministry, children's ministry and the leadership and discipleship, it's amazing.
• 12:04
  Speaker 2: Also, I'm impressed that the church support and the parents, the parents see the difference, the parents of the children.
• 12:16
  Speaker 2: The leaders told me that after the camp they invite parents and the kids when they stop the school and they came.
• 12:27
  Speaker 2: It was another way to connect with the church and to follow with the Bible studies.
• 12:37
  Speaker 2: The children and the parents.
• 12:39
  Speaker 2: Yeah, I cannot, I don't know exactly how many parents and children attend the church, but I know that the church is supporting everybody who is coming, because I keep the contact with the pastor and the pastor is involved in this and I ask him ask me if you need something or it's something that we can do for you.
• 13:10
  Speaker 2: But he said, for the moment, this is our responsibility.
• 13:13
  Speaker 2: We know what to do with these new children and parents who come to the church.
• 13:20
  Speaker 2: So I see that the church is supporting the ministry and just a few days the pastor sent me a message so he said don't forget us.
• 13:36
  Speaker 2: We need to do the camp.
• 13:39
  Speaker 2: It's very important for us to have a continuity of this program for the summer.
• 13:47
  Speaker 1: Yeah, Especially when they're living through so much without hope.
• 13:51
  Speaker 1: I'm sure for the kids it's a big highlight of their year to be able to get away and just be a kid for confused how we will deal in the future.
• 14:28
  Speaker 2: So we like to encourage them by telling we are here and we will do what we can do the best to continue.
• 14:38
  Speaker 2: Don't stop now and give them hope, yeah.
• 14:44
  Speaker 1: Yeah, because I can only guess that in some ways, they all are beginning to feel forgotten, because when the war first started, everyone's attention was on what was going on in Ukraine, but as it has continued on, as we do in our culture, we've moved on to the next thing and we're no longer focusing on what's still happening to these people in Ukraine.
• 15:08
  Speaker 2: Yes, and also because this community of pastors and leaders go every week in the places where is the war working, with the military and hospitals there.
• 15:22
  Speaker 2: I hear so many stories that even the soldiers are very tired and they don't know what happened in in next month or next week.
• 15:35
  Speaker 2: So two years ago they go every week three times.
• 15:41
  Speaker 2: Now they go only one times every one or two times per two weeks because they don't have enough money, enough goods, support and it's less things to to to bring with them.
• 16:02
  Speaker 2: Also, I I was impressed.
• 16:05
  Speaker 2: In the autumn they have a many, many fruits and they organize A reunion of the churches from that area to make food Like preserves, preserves, mm-hmm.
• 16:23
  Speaker 2: Gem, or juice or vegetable in preserving or other things.
• 16:33
  Speaker 2: And they have now food made by them.
• 16:40
  Speaker 2: It's not by it, it's not by it, it's from their produce.
• 16:43
  Speaker 2: So this impressed me.
• 16:45
  Speaker 2: Actually, one of the ladies sent me last week a jar of jam made by them which is very tasty and very good.
• 16:57
  Speaker 1: Yeah, very good.
• 16:59
  Speaker 1: So your dream for the summer would be to have two weeks of camps for children and one for youth.
• 17:08
  Speaker 1: Yes, but the need is the financial support to make that happen.
• 17:12
  Speaker 1: Yes, you have been able to raise some money from within Romania and other organizations.
• 17:18
  Speaker 1: Yes, money from within Romania and other organizations.
• 17:25
  Speaker 2: So can you tell me how much the goal would be and how much you have already raised Support that we need?
• 17:29
  Speaker 2: It's about $20,000.
• 17:32
  Speaker 2: And I already raised $8,000.
• 17:35
  Speaker 2: And I hope to raise more from Romania, but probably 10,000 will be necessary to do this, to cover all the projects.
• 17:50
  Speaker 1: All the projects for the summer, all the summer.
• 17:53
  Speaker 2: So I can say that half it's already raised.
• 17:59
  Speaker 2: But half of these 20 I need to raise more.
• 18:03
  Speaker 1: Yeah.
• 18:05
  Speaker 2: Yeah.
• 18:06
  Speaker 1: So how can we, as Americans, very far away from the war, how can we help you?
• 18:13
  Speaker 2: By praying specifically for these two camps, I mean three camps two for children and one for youth Also by supporting every child with a specific money for every child or student or young people.
• 18:34
  Speaker 2: The cost for a person is $65 for one week.
• 18:44
  Speaker 1: For one camp $65 $65 per child for the week of camp.
• 18:50
  Speaker 2: Yes, and this is including the materials, the food, our transportation from Romania and, yeah, everything that is covered.
• 19:04
  Speaker 2: And I can tell you that for the youth camp normally we charge a little bit just to consider that they have to add something.
• 19:18
  Speaker 2: Probably for a youth it's necessarily $50, but for the children it's necessarily $65.
• 19:28
  Speaker 1: Well, thank you for giving us a way to continue to be involved in the ministry in Ukraine from very far away.
• 19:35
  Speaker 2: Thank you and appreciate very much your support till now, because without you God can't do things, but with you God makes amazing things and I see and I know that many lives were touched by the gospel and by love of others, and because in every camp I ask people to think about, write about or pray about the sponsors.
• 20:13
  Speaker 2: They pray for you.
• 20:17
  Speaker 2: I'm sure that they pray and they thank you.
• 20:22
  Speaker 1: It's very humbling to think of Ukrainian children praying for us.
• 20:25
  Speaker 1: So thank you, Adi, for all that you are doing, being the hands and feet of Jesus to some people that are in some very dark places.
• 20:33
  Speaker 2: Praise.
• 20:33
  Speaker 1: God.
• 20:34
  Speaker 1: So thank you everyone for listening to part of my conversation I had with Adi.
• 20:39
  Speaker 1: They are so precious and so faithful to give what is given to them and be good stewards of it for the kingdom, and so I would appreciate us, as the community of the Father's Business, coming around Adi and Flory and their ministry team and the pastors in Ukraine and help them to reach their goal of $10,000 so that they can have fully funded both two children's camps and a camp for teenagers.
• 21:09
  Speaker 1: There are many of you that have been giving monthly throughout the last two years and we appreciate that Some of those funds that you've been giving are going towards the camp.
• 21:18
  Speaker 1: Some of those have been sent in humanitarian aid efforts, as Adi has already mentioned.
• 21:23
  Speaker 1: So if you would like to either sponsor a child for $65, sponsor a teenager for $50, or if you want to give a larger amount towards the goal of $10,000, you can go to wwwthefathersbusinesscom can go to wwwthefathersbusinesscom, click on the donate page and on that page you can designate your gift for the Ukrainian ministry.
• 21:47
  Speaker 1: Every last cent of what you give we send over there.
• 21:51
  Speaker 1: We do not hold any of it back.
• 21:53
  Speaker 1: We send all of it over there to help with the ministry and if, for some reason, god blesses us and we receive more than $10,000 towards this goal, all extra proceeds will continue to go towards humanitarian aid efforts in the Ukraine.
• 22:09
  Speaker 1: So everything you give towards Ukraine will be used either for the camps or for humanitarian efforts going on in the Ukraine, and so I appreciate you in advance for being just a generous community that you are, so that we can help Adi and Flory and their team move forward and be able to have an impact on these children and teenagers, their families, their churches, their community.
• 22:31
  Speaker 1: I would love for us to be a part of saying that message back to that pastor who said don't forget us.
• 22:38
  Speaker 1: We are not forgetting you and, more importantly, god never forgets you.
• 22:44
  Speaker 1: He knows you right where you are and he knows how to care for your needs.
• 22:47
  Speaker 1: So appreciate anything that you want to give towards that goal.
• 22:52
  Speaker 1: One other announcement I'd love to make is we are going to be hosting Road to Ruach in Memphis, tennessee, on May 18th, that's a Saturday.
• 23:00
  Speaker 1: Registration opens up at 9 and we'll start at 9.30 and we'll be done around 12.30 that day.
• 23:07
  Speaker 1: It is going to be a great time for you to understand more of who God is and who you are in Him and how you can enjoy that deep, abiding relationship between Father, son and Holy Spirit and your spirit, soul and body.
• 23:20
  Speaker 1: So we would love to have you there.
• 23:22
  Speaker 1: If you sign up before May 10th, you get an early registration discount, so you definitely want to take advantage of that.
• 23:29
  Speaker 1: We're going to provide you with all the coffee and tea and refreshments that you need to get yourself going in the morning.
• 23:35
  Speaker 1: There are going to be giveaways, and we're also going to have a book table at this event with prices that are lower than what's on our website.
• 23:41
  Speaker 1: So it's a great time to come check out the resources of the Father's Business.
• 23:45
  Speaker 1: But, most importantly, we are designing this day to be a day where you hear from your father.
• 23:52
  Speaker 1: You are a beloved child of a loving father and he longs for you to know him better, and that is our goal for our time together.
• 23:59
  Speaker 1: He longs for you to know him better, and that is our goal for our time together.
• 24:02
  Speaker 1: So you can go to our website, wwwthefathersbusinesscom and click on events and register for Road to Rock.
• 24:10
  Speaker 1: It is a great way to get yourself ready also for our fall event, when we're going to be meeting up in Maryland at a gorgeous retreat center for Ruach Journey, level 2.
• 24:18
  Speaker 1: So more information will be coming about that soon, but we look forward to seeing you at an upcoming event.
• 24:24
  Speaker 1: I want to thank you for listening to the Father's Business Podcast.
• 24:30
  Speaker 1: This podcast is made possible through donations by people like you.
• 24:38
  Speaker 1: To donate, go to wwwTheFathersBusinesscom.
• 24:43
  Speaker 1: Be sure to follow us at the Fathers Biz on Instagram and Facebook.