Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.
Matthew 11:28
Lord we ask for your rest and rejuvenation as Mia continues her trip to the United States. Please give her a chance to heal from exhaustion, and bless her with new strength from remembering your calling on her life. Amen.
“For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.”
Jeremiah 29:11
God we pray today for the many people involved in planning Mia’s visit while here in the States. We pray that you will open all of the right doors to make her speaking engagements and fundraising work go smoothly and be a blessing.
In particular, we ask that you give Joan Castle, the US head of Mia’s Children, encouragement as she hosts Mia and oversees the month-long trip.
Amen.
Happy birthday to you Mia Scarlat! You put the Mia in Mia’s Children.
(Send her your birthday wishes here or on Facebook, and we’ll make sure she sees them!)
A woman begs on the street in Bucharest
France is again returning Roma people back to their home country of Romania, even though the practice has been controversial.
The displacement of the Roma population is at least partly political. Many Roma people have squatted in France and live there illegally in conditions much like a refugee camp. The decision to destroy those quarters and move the Roma back to their home countries began in late summer of 2010, as part of French President Nicolas Sarkozy’s plan to crack down on illegal immigration and crime.
Regardless of my views on France’s action and the immigration issues that surround it, one question that stands out to me is, “Who will love these marginalized people?”
France claims that the Roma live on the outskirts of society. But whether they are in Romania or in France, they are blocked from employment. They receive little to no education – often because the parents will not encourage school attendance, but sometimes because they are denied access or bullied by educators once there. They have almost no path for moving up in the world. Without the encouragement and opportunities to learn to read and write, it is very difficult for them to integrate into any community.
When Mia’s Children first started, one of the biggest tasks was ensuring that all of the kids would get an education. Roma students who were willing to attend school were treated badly by their teachers and ignored. Mia would have to tutor them for hours in the afternoon, because essentially they were not given any attention in class compared to the other students.
The problem continues to this day. Mia has found it very discouraging trying to get education for Roma children who were born without birth certificates. The country does not recognize such children as people (without a birth certificate, you obviously were never born!). And as non-persons, they can not be in school.
Mia has managed to open a path for these students by teaching them herself. God bless her.
Who else will love these unloved children? Will you? Will I? Is it acceptable to say that a child found in a trash can with dark skin is less a child? The Roma people are looked down on as nomads and criminals, but when a person is blocked from all employment crime becomes normal. It is a terrible cycle that can only be addressed through Roma children becoming properly integrated, educated, faithful men and women who know they are loved.
There are many problems inside the Roma population. As much as Mia cares for the children, she doesn’t deny the many generational sins that burden Roma families and affect their reputation as a people group. But love can reach through darkness and save a person from anything. Love never fails.
Even as Romania and Western Europe fail the Roma, love will not fail them, and neither should we.
– Joanna Miller
Please continue to pray for Mia. She has returned from Italy and is doing fine. The trip went safely and was informative, but now she will need further testing and possibly more medical attention later.
We’re sorry we can’t give more details but we want to wait until we know with more certainty what is afflicting her and what will need to be done.
In the meantime, we ask for your prayers in three ways:
Thank you for your support! If you would like to send a message to Mia or to Mia’s Children and want to make sure it gets to them, just leave a message in the comments and we’ll pass it along.
Mia is flying to Milan today to see a doctor about some problems with her ear that might be very complicated. She has seen numerous doctors in Romania to no avail, and now she has the chance to get a firm diagnosis through a specialist.
Our great thanks to friends from Switzerland who took it upon themselves to find a doctor and fly her to Italy!
Please pray that the doctors will know what to do and how to help her. Please also pray for Costi and Oana – Mia’s son and daughter-in-law – as they temporarily lead the mission while Mia is away.
Mia is in great spirits. She writes, “Through faith we are confident that His plan for us is beyond what we can imagine, and even through pain and suffering His glory is perfect.”
Our winter newsletter is on its way, and in it we’ve included pictures of the new headquarters, along with a few remaining needs for the building.
Many needs have already been met by volunteers in Romania and donors in the United States. One particularly large end-of-year gift went to cover 40 sets of dishes and a video monitoring system for the building!
One of the biggest needs still unmet is a set of fire alarms/smoke detectors. The building is so big that we need 10! Including installation, the cost comes to $700.
Will you consider giving to this effort? We are praying for seven $100 gifts, ten $70 gifts, or twenty $35 gifts. On our right sidebar we’ve added a fundraising thermometer that we’ll keep updated as together we reach this goal!
Please pray for Mia Scarlat as she battles some health problems right now that might be serious. She has recently gone in for some tests and is waiting for results.
We expect to have more details very soon and will keep you posted.
Thank you for joining with us in supporting Mia.
Mia’s Children
From Mia Scarlat:
Beloved friends,
Happy Independence Day to you!
May always the hand of God be with America!
You are such a wonderful example for the world, for the history of development of the society!
May you always keep your standards up and speak to the world about faith, democracy, liberty!
May God bless America!
We are so proud to be part from your friends. Your help for our country means so much!
Always yours,
Mia’s Children
A few weeks ago Giorgio, an Italian friend of the organization, stopped by Mia’s Children for an authentic Italian dinner. He brought pasta, tomatoes, cheese, meat, and other ingredients along with him.
The children who could be there enjoyed learning how to cook from him and especially liked practicing their Italian and English speaking. Some of the kids could translate what he taught them, but even with translation, Mia reports a dinner of half Italian and half Romanian food!
After the cooking, the group got a chance to pray together, and then have dinner.
Thanks, Giorgio, for the food and good time!