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Pastor Anane
lives in the village of Agighiol with his wife and
son, supporting
his family by working a small plot of arable land as well as bee-keeping.
As the regional pastor for Tulcea county he ordained pastor Cristi of
our Emanuel church here in Tulcea.
His missionary work throughout Tulcea County actually began many decades ago under the
communist regime. Under severe repression he combined his
calling with his official occupation as an electrician. In fact, his
old red Dacia has been serving the Lord for over 25 years, and it is still doing
just that!
When we travel around on our aid-delivery missions I am amazed to see that he
knows just about everybody we meet through the villages! They
are his spiritual
children and he loves and cares for them just like a loving father.
Brother Anane reminds me of saint Paul every time I see him: He lives more for others than for
himself. When he speaks from the
pulpit, I know it is the Holy Spirit talking through him. He is one of few men I
know who has really suffered for Jesus (in the past, under communism).
Miti.
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A
letter from Pastor Anane
26 November 2002
Dear David and Mandy,
.....
Last night I was with Miti and Paula for a time of fellowship. I told them about one particular sacred experience that hapened in my life and
marked me very much.
The area where we live (Agighiol) is prone to drought in the summer season. If
it does not rain, all the maze and wheat crops are lost for the current year.
Nowadays is just the same as in my childhood. For over two years now this
phenomenon has been going on here. It is one of major reasons why so many
families play host to a terrible poverty. So it was during my childhood time,
too:
When it became evident that the crop was lost and people faced starvation they
tried to seek salvation by borrowing from the better-offs in the village. So
my parents used to borrow, - until the next crop when they gave back the amount
of cereals borrowed. There were six of us children at home. On one occasion my
dad had to borrow raw wheat for our survival. He went to the mill to turn the
wheat into flour, and all the flour resulting from the milling process went
into just one sack.
It
was not too long after that unhappy moment when, one evening, an angel knocked
at our door. I could hear him talking to my dad through the half opened door:
"Brother Dumitru, the underground church in Ciucurova have sent me to you
with a sack of flour and a sack of potatoes." I remember both
mom and dad couldn’t speak a word for the tears rolling down their faces.
They were so full of joy at seeing how God’s hand had provided for us when
there was nothing left for us to eat. All this took place 43 years ago.
I think the same thing is happening here today with those of God’s children
who see us at their doors with a sack of flour or a sack of potatoes. Your hard work, as ours, is not in vain.
‘Therefore my beloved brethren be ye steadfast, unmovable, always abounding
in the work of the Lord for as much as ye know that your labour is not in vain
in the Lord.’ (1 Corinthians 15:58)
......
Love in Christ,
Deacu Anane
(By my reckoning,
the events in pastor Anane's letter above occurred 1959, at the height of the cold
war. Dave)
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