Hello from Moldova: Email Update

Hello everyone!

I am writing this email from an internet cafe in downtown Chisinau, Moldova. I have added a number of people to this email list, so if you would not like to continue to receive emails from me, please do not hesitate to ask me to take you off the list.

I arrived in Chisinau Friday night and was welcomed by my host family, who shared a wonderful meal with me. Since then, I have explored some of the city but have also been resting and spending time with my host family. They are incredibly hospitable and welcoming, so I am very comfortable where I am living. This morning I went to church with Connie (who works for Children's Emergency Relief International) and her husband. I will be meeting with her and others from CERI tomorrow to talk about plans for the orphanage. I am very excited to begin planning and discussing our work there and am even more excited to go back and see the kids! I'm not sure when I will be able to go to the orphanage, but I hope to be able to early this week. My main focus, however, in the coming weeks will be to study lots and lots of Romanian and to spend time in prayer, listening to what God is doing in and around this city as I seek to know exactly where He wants me to be serving.

Email is the best way to contact me for the next few weeks as I do not have a phone or skype in my apartment yet. It may be several weeks until I can receive calls on the 614 number I have listed below. However, I'll let you all know when it is up and running, and I will look forward to hearing from you!

PRAYER REQUESTS:

1) Pray that would be still and would listen to God's voice. I am already finding myself wanting to be "doing" lots of things and getting to work quickly. However, I know that it is more important for me to spend time learning Romanian as much as possible over the next few weeks as well as seeking God's heart for my time here. Pray that I would rest in Him during this time.

2) Pray for the children at the orphanage, that our reunion would be sweet and that I would quickly begin to develop relationships with them. Pray also that God would clearly show me the guys that He would have me disciple.

3) Personally, I am doing well, but pray that I would find strength in God alone. I am definitely going through a time of culture shock as everything here is new and different, so pray for patience and humility as I seek to understand and respect this new culture. One example of this is the focus that people here have on relationships and simply "being" as opposed to "doing." I am finding myself wanting to focus on logistics and schedules, while the people around me are content to sit and talk and drink tea for hours. This is hard as I have many things that need to be done, but I am learning that I must first establish connections with people before worrying about business.

Please check my blog, http://moldova-john.blogspot.com, regularly for updates. I know that I will be learning much in the next few weeks and will be posting on this site more regularly. I also know that many of you have requested about ways to help, and as I come up with ideas I will be certain to pass on this information. If you would like to make a financial donation, please make your check payable to "Rolling Hills Community Church" (NOT John Koon), put a post-it note on it saying "John Koon Moldova Mission Fund," and send it to:

Rolling Hills Community Church
5120 Virginia Way, Suite C-12
Brentwood, TN 37027

Thank you all once again for your prayers and support. You all mean more to me than you know!