Sighisoara, Romania – On Tuesday, January 31, Veritas director Petra Popa was looking for a miracle.

The advisory board for Veritas, a partner Nazarene Compassionate Ministries (NCM) ministry center in Sighisoara, Romania, had realized the organization needed a new building. The compassionate ministries for children, teenagers, the disabled, the elderly, and against domestic violence had long outgrown the former fur coat factory that had served as the Veritas “Family Center” since 1998.

Within a week of their June 2011 meeting, board members found a property for sale that was within walking distance of the Family Center. It would take a miracle for Veritas to be able to buy the new property and to sell the old Family Center. Amazingly, by the end of the summer, both had been accomplished.

The owner of the new property, which consists of several buildings on over an acre of land, gave Veritas the option to pay for the property in three installments over the course of a year rather than securing a bank mortgage. Additionally, the owner accepted the former Family Center as part of the payment, significantly reducing the sale price of the new center.

The first of the three installments was paid at the signing at the end of the summer. The second would be due at the end of January, and the final would be due June 2012.

On the morning of January 31, all the money for the payment had still not arrived in the Veritas bank account. Petra knew that as the director of a Christian organization, she needed to respect her financial commitments without delays. Monetary gifts from various donors in the United States and Great Britain had been deposited, but a large amount already transferred from the NCM office in Bucharest had not yet been received in the Veritas bank account.

Since the funds coming from NCM are processed in dollars, and Petra had to pay in Euros, she was hoping for a favorable (low) exchange rate. She was quite discouraged on the morning of January 31 to see that the dollar was weaker than it had been the day before. It would now cost $1.36 for each Euro. Petra decided to wait until all the money was in the bank before she would exchange it.

In her office at the new Veritas Community Center, while waiting for news that the money from the NCM office had been received, Petra prayed that the money would arrive in time and that they would get a favorable exchange rate.

Throughout the afternoon, Petra kept checking the exchange rate, and it kept getting better – first to $1.33, then to $1.28. Finally, at 4:30 pm, just a half hour before the bank closed, the money arrived from Bucharest. By this point in time, Petra was able to secure an exchange rate of $1.25 – saving Veritas over $1,500 from what would have been received at the earlier exchange rate!

In God’s perfect timing, Veritas was presented with an incredible opportunity to purchase a new center for compassionate ministries.

In God’s perfect timing, Veritas was able to pay its second installment in full on January 31.

In God’s perfect timing, the last money to be transferred was received at a time when the exchange rate was best.

 

“Wait on the Lord; be of good courage, and He shall strengthen your heart; Wait, I say, on the Lord!” (Psalm 27:14)