Tuesday April 1^st 2008 MORNING THOUGHT

Good morning. In Mustard Seed our motto is “Your help makes a difference” and during these morning thoughts I want to share with you some true recent experiences that confirm that the help from Jersey is making a real difference to the poorest of the poor in Romania, where Mustard Seed is working.

One of Mustard Seed’s most successful recent projects is the Adopt-A-Granny sponsorship programme, whereby we link someone in Jersey to assist a needy and vulnerable pensioner in the Bihor county of Romania. Some sponsors assist just during the winter months when the need is greatest, others assist throughout the year. During my last visit some of my most poignant memories are of time spent with the elderly sponsored pensioners.

Let me tell you about Ana, one of the sponsored pensioners I visited. She lives in a single room. She has a handicapped grandson who sat silently in a corner of the room while the social worker translated what Ana and I said to each other. Ana’s life was difficult as in that one room that was only a little larger than my lounge she had 4 members of the family all living, eating and sleeping there; because accommodation is difficult and expensive in the city of Oradea. As well as the handicapped grandson 2 nieces or nephews also often lived in the same room. Ana has a problem with her hips and moves with difficulty and pain. She is also going blind as she has cataracts and cannot afford the £300 needed for the operation. Sadly she explained that within the year the remains of her sight will probably disappear.

When I got back to Jersey I was able to report back to all the sponsors. I am thrilled to say that when Ana’s sponsor heard about the need she responded by donating the £300 needed to pay for the cataract surgery. Ana was due to have the operation yesterday on 31^st March. Nelu the social worker wrote “She has a big smile on her face – she could not afford that operation and now it is possible”.

If you believe in prayer then please do remember Ana in your prayers – just last week her over-crowded room became yet more crowded. I quote what Nelu the social worker wrote to me just a couple of hours before I recorded this morning thought. Nelu wrote “Ana’s 5 grandchildren have come to her now because they were badly beated by their father - he is alcoholic,  Now They are living 7 people in 20 square meter. I was there yesterday in the morning and I hadn`t enough space to sit down in the room. All her income is 50 pound per month.”

As our motto says “Your help makes a difference”. For people like Ana it makes a huge and very tangible difference. In Mustard Seed we thank God for the opportunities and the privilege to be used to make that difference.

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