Hi! My name is Meghan, and I’ve had the incredible opportunity to spend the past six weeks in Romania as an intern with Remember the Children. I’m heading into my senior year at Abilene Christian University, where I’m majoring in Child and Family Services. After graduation in May, I hope to work in case management for foster care and adoption in the U.S., so I was especially excited to learn how a child welfare system operates in a different country and cultural context.
As I reflect on my time in Romania, one conversation stands out as both the hardest and most meaningful moment of the trip. During a week of church youth camp with Bethel Baptist Church and the kids from House of Hope, we spent our days full of energy—playing games, doing activities, and learning about Jonah and Jesus.
One day at lunch, I was talking with a girl from House of Hope Orphanage whom I had grown close to. The conversation shifted to faith, and she looked uneasy as she admitted, “I don’t always trust God.” I smiled and gently responded, “That’s okay—I don’t always either.” She looked surprised, so I explained that trusting God all the time is hard, even for those who believe. I told her that moments of doubt don’t mean you’re not a Christian, and they certainly don’t mean God stops loving you. Still unsure, she looked at my teammate Josie, who was sitting across from us, and Josie nodded in agreement.
This same girl often says, “I’m crazy,” and throughout the week I made it a point to gently challenge that. I told her again at lunch, “I don’t believe you’re crazy. I think you’re amazing, and I love you—and so does God.” But she couldn’t believe that, no matter how many times I said it. Even though I knew she didn’t fully accept what I said, I kept affirming her value and worth every chance I got.
That conversation was one of the hardest parts of the trip. I could sense that someone significant in her life had repeatedly told her she was crazy, and those words had taken root in her identity. It broke my heart to know that my love, or even three weeks of consistent encouragement, wouldn’t be enough to undo that deep hurt. But it was also the most beautiful moment of the trip, because I got to be a small part of God’s work of redemption in her life—to remind her that she is worthy of love and not rejected by God because of her doubts.
Every day since that lunch, I’ve thought of her and how deeply our words can impact others. Proverbs 16:24 keeps coming to mind: “Gracious words are a honeycomb, sweet to the soul and healing to the bones.” Would you join me in praying for my new friend to see herself as Jesus does?
– Meghan, 2025 Intern with RTC
Remember the Children partners with CMF International each summer to host interns in Romania as part of their Reach Program.