A Building

The Point of Hope Development Center

 

According to dictionary.com, the definition of a building is as follows:

build·ing

[bil-ding] 

noun
a relatively permanent enclosed construction over a plot of land, having a roof and usually windows and often more than one level, used for any of a wide variety of activities, as living, entertaining, or manufacturing.

But if you know about the Point of Hope Development Center in Tarnaveni, you would say that it is so much more than just a building. The building that is the Point of Hope is a place of refuge, a light in the darkness, an image of redemption, an out stretched hand. You might be wondering how a building can be so much. When I returned from Romania, I began telling friends and family about my trip. I would tell them about the Point of Hope and how the building was rebuilt to be a school with several rooms still under construction. Almost instantaneously it dawned on me that the building is so much more than "a relatively permanent enclosed construction," instead it is an example of how Christ is making all things new.

The unfinished area on the 3rd floor. Also known as the dungeon.

The Point of Hope used to be a hospital. In fact, it even had a padded door in one room. Yikes! While working there this summer, we labeled the area of the third floor that is unfinished, the dungeon. I'm sure we weren't the first ones to call it that, but the area is quite rough around the edges, literally. The concrete walls boast thick chipped paint in mint green hues and the doorways have pieces of bricks sticking out of them. Little by little these rooms are being redeemed and renewed. They are being given new life. Christ is making them new. He is turning a building that was a place of sadness and sickness in to a place that is filled with light and life. The children and families in the area know that there is something different about this building. They know that the building radiates joy and offers assistance to those in need.

Revelation 21:5 says, 'He who was seated on the throne said, "I am making everything new!"' He isn't just working in the lives of people. He's using buildings to spread His message of hope too. There is no greater gift than to see Christ at work. In this case He's using a building. I've been blessed to witness the work going on in this building, both in the construction process and in the lives of the children and families who enter its doors. It gives me such hope! If He can use a building that has an area that we labelled the "dungeon," then surely He can use you and me! I am so thankful that He is constantly making all things new!

One of the renovated classrooms on the 2nd floor. What a big difference!

Did you know that the Another Child Foundation is currently raising money to further their work, both in Tarnaveni at the Point of Hope Center and in Targu Mures at the group home? Wouldn't it be awesome to be a part of what God is doing in the lives of all that are touched by ACF? Well the cooler part is that when you donate by September 7th, your donation will be matched! Yes, you heard that correctly! If you give $25, then it becomes $50. How awesome is that? I'm pretty darn pumped about it! Learn more about how your donation can be matched by clicking here! Then click the green band that says, "Click here to get matching funds!" to donate. Make sure that your donation is designated for the 2012 Golf Marathon, so that it will be matched!