This generation of elderly in Bucharest was born into, educated, worked, and raised their families under a brutally oppressive communist regime. Some older people perceive things are no better, and decry the secularization of culture, corruption, and the sad fact that the social pension for a retiree in Romania was lowered last year. (lower still for women and people classified with a disability--Ministry of Labor, Family, and Social Protection http://www.mmuncii.ro)
Elderly Romanians may be disillusioned by dramatic social changes with a tendency towards pessimism, depression, and withdrawing from society. Some follow religious rituals that do not provide any assurance of salvation. Communism has been described as the "enemy of friendship" because of the way it drew people into reporting and trusting only the state.
- Pray that elderly people in Bucharest will be reconciled to God before the end of their life.
- Pray that more retirees will know Christ as Savior, receive His righteousness, and use their influence and time to demonstrate joyful faith in Him.
- Pray for Christians to lead the way in reconciliation of whole families, especially that older people would not hold grudges but take the first step to peacemaking.
Hospice Ministry
Romanian children and adults with serious and incurable medical conditions may be abandoned when it seems that nothing can be done. Sometimes, as was the case with 9-year old "Danny" the incurable condition is a result of a substandard medical treatment.
- Pray for the peace of God to overcome fear, anxiety, loneliness, and isolation for patients near the end of their life and their caregivers.
- Ask God to guide Romanians to a Biblical view of God's ways in sickness and pain.
- Pray for a society that reflects God's values in assigning dignity to each life, for the whole life.
- Thank Him for the work of Casa Sperantei “Hospice of Hope” to bring medical, nursing, social, and spiritual care into this situation.
- Pray for fundraising and awareness events and a growing volunteer base that includes many Romanians who do not turn away from suffering but share hope in Christ.
"But God raised him from the dead, freeing him from the agony of death, because it was impossible for death to keep its hold on him. David said about him: ‘I saw the Lord always before me. Because he is at my right hand, I will not be shaken. Therefore my heart is glad and my tongue rejoices; my body also will rest in hope, because you will not abandon me to the realm of the dead, you will not let your holy one see decay. You have made known to me the paths of life; you will fill me with joy in your presence.’” ~ Acts 2:24-28
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