God is good!

Friday, Al and Diane Mellinger came up to Kyustendil with a new member of our team named Mark that just came to Bulgaria Dec. 29th from Michigan.  He plans to be here for 7 to 8 months.
Saturday, Al and Chance went to Samokov to have a meeting with many of the Roma pastors from all around the region to set the teen conferences and pastor trainings schedule for this year.
Sunday, Peggy and her husband and son came up to help us translate and Al took us to a Bulgarian church (which we found out is a stone's throw from our house) and introduced us to the church members there.  Our three teenagers and Mark went back to the Bulgarian church for their teen activity that afternoon at 3.  I have explained before how the two (Bulgarian and Roma) don't usually do many things together.  While the teens were there, they explained how they had to leave at 4:30 to be able to go to the Roma service that evening and Jessie explained how to her, "God loves everyone the same."
So we get a text from Catherine telling us that several of the teens would like to go to the Roma service that evening and asked if they could go with us.  We said, "Certainly!"  So our group of 12 met them on the street corner and they (being 8 of them!) followed us to the church.  So our group of 20 joined the Roma service last night and we all (Roma, Bulgarian, and American) worshipped the Lord of Lords and King of Kings together last night.  It was powerful and amazing!  Sometimes all it takes is for an outsider to come in and bridge the gap...and praise the Lord for teenagers to come in and show God's love.  His love is cross cultural and breaks barriers!
Monday (today) was Diane's birthday and we went to brunch together to celebrate.  We are now home and our company has gone back.  We are going to rest after having company and cooking 3 meals a day for 9-12 people for 3 days.  Whew!  It was so good to have them here...it is good to have a feeling of family here while we are separated from ours back in the states.
We are basking in His goodness and thanking the many others that have gone before us to pave the road that we are walking.  Many seeds have been planted in Bulgaria over the many years before us, and we are seeing God's growth due to those that have gone before us!  Thank you to all of those who pray for us and keep us lifted up...it means so much!

Great day!

I was very privileged to get to speak today to two classes at a local high school.  Their high school goes from 8th-12th grade.  The first was a class of older students, and they understood English very well.  Their high school is a language high school, so that is what they concentrate on mostly.  The second class was of 8th grade, so they have only begun studying English the last few months.  They both did very well in listening and asking questions in English.
Some background information in how this came about was that our translator and friend introduced me/us to one of her students and she helped me by taking me to get my first haircut in Bulgaria.
The lady that cut my hair is also an English teacher at the high school.  She teaches English in the morning and cuts hair in the afternoon.  She asked if I would come to her classes to speak English and let them hear and also to tell them why we are here in Kyustendil.
I told them that we were here to serve and help the poor.  That seemed to open a door to why we would even think of helping the gypsies because in their words, "they are dirty and nasty and thieves and they want to be that way."  I had obviously opened a can of worms.  I explained that in my faith I believe that God is no respecter of persons and that we all bleed the same.  We all have a spirit, soul and body.  That if we love God with all of our heart, soul, and strength, then we cannot help but to love our neighbor.  To help those that are less fortunate.  This became quite the discussion and I truly pray that I gave glory to God and tried to open their minds a little bit.  This new generation yearns for change and all that is American and western. They know the other countries in Europe look down upon Bulgaria as being less than they are, so why then in human nature do we turn around and do it to others, when we know how painful it is to ourselves?  I believe it's that ugly thing called pride.  We put others down to bring ourselves up...it becomes a vicious cycle.
I ended with this statement...  the definition of insanity is to doing something over and over but expect a different result.  If you want a new Bulgaria and want a different future for yourselves, begin with yourselves.  Put the past behind and think fresh and new.  To change the world (or country) we must begin only with ourselves.  We are only as mighty as our weakest link.
I also shared some of our testimony on how we were led by the Lord to Bulgaria (which is very strange for them to understand why anyone would want to come here).  We talked about perpective and choice.  I said, "Look at that tree.  What a beautiful tree!"  You may say, "What an ugly insignificant tree...I see it every day."  I said the only difference is perspective and perspective is a choice.  We choose every day how we choose to see or perceive things, life, and people.  They said that we as Bulgarians are very negative...it's the way we are.  I again said,  "That is a choice."
So needless to say we got into more than I can type, but that is the logisics of it.  I came home and read Acts chapter 4.  Peter and John said something that was very cool...they were told to be quiet about Jesus and not to speak in His name.  They replied, "Whether it is right in the sight of God to give heed to you rather than to God, you be the judge; for we cannot stop speaking what we have seen and heard."  It is easier to conform and not to make waves...but God did not call us to be easier and conform.  He told us to, "Go your way, stand and continue to speak to the people in the temple the whole message of this Life." Acts 5:20
This Life is a choice...are you willing to live THIS LIFE? :D

What is a miracle?

The Roma people in eastern Europe are treated like outcasts.  In Bulgaria they are hated for just being in their country.  Bulgarians think of the Roma as thieves, beggars, and anything else negative you can think of about people in general.
Yesterday we helped one of the local Roma pastors load up toys and some of his congregation in our van. We made a couple of trips, some 10 km away, to a  nearby village.  This pastor decided to give some of the toys he receives for Christmas to an orphanage in this nearby village.  The pastor could give these toys to other Roma churches in his area to make himself popular with his fellow Roma pastors, but he gives them to the local orphanage.  In this orphanage there are Bulgarian and Roma children that have been given over by their parents.
Yesterday we got to see the heart of God.  A Roma pastor with little or nothing to give (a widow's mite) and persecuted in his own country, gave to a group less fortunate than himself...now that's a miracle.
As our family comes against mindsets that have been formed over hundreds of years, pray for us to be a part in starting some bridge building.  We truly believe that the seeds and giving spirit of this selfless pastor are why God guided our path to live in the city of Kyustendil.
So in conclusion, it's a miracle that the Roma are sewing into those less fortunate, it's a miracle we are here in Bulgaria, and it is a miracle that we got to go and witness this in person.  This is the miracle season...go out and love someone less fortunate than yourself...spread the miracle.

Amazing Grace

Everyday is a new day to learn about the world God has created.  We are having to learn about food, culture, climate, and language.  Each day we have Bulgarian language class with an instructor from Kyustendil.  He teaches us a language that over 300 million people already know (Russian, Poland, Ukraine, Czech Republic, Bosnia, Estonia, Lithuania, Belarus, Latvia, Serbian, Croatia, Bulgarian, Slovenia, Macedonia) which are those that speak Slavic languages.  As our instructor said this morning,  "You are learning how to communicate to a whole new group of people."  Wow!  Isn't that amazing!

I am watching my daughters working in a teen conference in Samokov, and also connecting with many teens in different parts of Bulgaria.  I see Mitch connecting with basketball players and playing basketball in a city league that plays in different places in Bulgaria.  And yes, this is more than amazing!

I just wanted everybody to know the two most amazing things that happened to me this week.  I watched as over a hundred teens signed a song (Shout to the Lord), and you could feel the Grace of God in that place.  As the boys signed right along with the girls in Praising the Lord with hand motions.  I had the opportunity to speak to a Roma church about knowing God, that He loves them, and to teach about God's grace.  The Holy Spirit was at work and many of us began to weep.  At the end of the service, many testified about the love of God.  Now that is amazing!

What a wonderful week in the Amazing Grace of God!

Chance

God's grace going before us in Kyustendil

One week ago today, we were leaving for Bulgaria from Atlanta, Georgia.  Since that time we have traveled over 6,000 miles by airplane, bus, and car.  We now live in our flat in Kyustendil, Bulgaria, and have started to get settled in as best as we can.
We are so thankful for the ground work laid before we arrived in our new country.  Without the help of other missionaries like Al and Diane Mellinger, and interpreters like Joe, Vladi, and Peggy, we would not be where we are today.  We have now a Bulgarian bank account, a flat, two cell phones, and a God appointed city to live in.  We also have picked out a van and should be going to get that soon.  We are starting to learn where everything is located around us from grocery store to the dollar (leva store).
One thing that has been a constant though the whole process is God's presence.  A quick example of that is just after signing the contract to occupy our apartment with our landlord here, he brought us back and showed us all the things he had gifted us with like:  sheets, pillows, comforters, glasses, silverware, pots and pans, pictures, clocks, vases, decorations, and even a hair dryer!  We were amazed at the outpouring of gifts.  These are things we were going to have to get ourselves.
I realize the scripture in Ps 118:26 that says, "Blessed is he who is coming in the name of Jehovah."  We have been blessed and the Bulgarian translator that came to help us stated, "You have been blessed by God's provision ahead of you."
This is a remarkable place in which we live.  We are 20 km from Macedonia and Serbia.  The history in Kyustendil dates back thousands of years from Roman occupation to Ottoman control.
We are waiting to see what the Lord has in store for us concerning the next step.  We visited the gypsy church last night in our city.  They are located on the ourskirts of Kyustendil in population of about 10,000 we believe.  The pastor there is very nice and welcomed us and has helped us along the way.  He has a church of 60 adults and we look forward to working with him and helping out any way we can.
Our devotional gave us great wisdom that God gives us what we need for today and if we are constantly concerning ourselves with tomorrow, it takes the energy God has given us for today and we are left with less for this day.  We are living off the manna from heaven for each day's provision.  We know by His grace, though our faith, and in His Name, we are here to do His will and His work.
Please keep praying for His grace to continue to abound toward us.

My Resolve

Hello, friends!  I apologize that it has been a little while since my last post.  Sept. was quite the crazy month and all seems to have settled a little.  After going to Washington and submitting the visas and having some paperwork issues, the Bulgarian consulate said they would accept our background checks, "Praise the Lord!"  The only issue was that it could take up to 40 business days to process the paperwork.  The rest of the month of September we travelled to Panama City Beach to visit my aunt's condo and have some family "down/reflective" time and then drove down to visit Chance's parents that live north of Tampa for a few days.
When we got back to Columbus, we had our Commissioning Sunday at Christ Community Church and many family and friends came to support us.  We are so thankful for you all (more than words...).  We then prepared to leave the house, stepping out totally by faith, because at this point we had no buyer.  At one point we had a "For Sale" sign and a "For Rent" sign in the yard.  We would take what we could get.  We knew we did not have a mortgage payment in the budget when we left for Bulgaria.  We had many days of waking up and "walking by faith and not by sight" by packing the house, giving away items and then having an estate sale and having Valley Rescue come get the left overs.  I also had a day or two of, "the righteous cry and the Lord hears and delivers them from all their troubles" days of weaping before the Lord and coming to the end of my strength.
We decided to move out of the house on the 23rd and spend a week getting the house cleaned up.  Some of our great friends allowed us to stay in a mission house while we worked on it.  The Tuesday before we were set to leave, I woke up and wrote what God had put in my heart, which is the title of this blog, My Resolve.  It is my private devotion from the Lord that I never intended on making public, until God asked me to a few weeks ago.  (Yes, it has taken me a few weeks to obey.)
MY RESOLVE:
To walk in strong weakness.  In my daily walk, I resolve to know the Peace that I have and know the bigger picture.  To not measure success or failure BY successess and failures.  Those are OUR measuring sticks, based on OUR plans and OUR measures of success (or the worlds).   This life is not about that at ALL, but to walk in the blessed assurance that I am His and HE is mine.  He is the lifter of my head.  We make plans in the earthly realm, but we do not walk there.  In that is carnality.  We walk above it in the spiritual realm.  We walk in the Peace that is above all things.
Ultimate sacrifice is to give one's life (martyr).  We should be laying down our plans and life down here everyday and choosing to live life above all things.  HE will judge our life as sucesses or failures, and HE ALONE.  I will not judge myself nor allow myself to be judged.  "There is therefore no condemnation."  I will not bring myself down to earthly matters, I will walk in the spirit only as one going into the coluseum to lay down my life.  I will listen only to HIS voice, and only He will I follow...ONLY.
It is in the earthly matters that you are moved.  I will not be moved!  I will rise above circumstances.  I will walk my daily walk and attend to His voice and follow His guidance, and rise above.  My life is not determined by my circumstances, they are temporary and subject to change.  I am above it in heavenly realms.  I choose to walk here with Him.

That afternoon we got a call about selling the house.  God is so amazing and He wants a life surrendered to Him.
We left the house as scheduled on the 30th after much cleaning and help and hard work by my kids and some AMAZING! friends (Kristy Jones and Beverly Pope).  We attended a family wedding, then drove up to my parents house in the mountains of north Georgia.  We drove back down last Tuesday to close on the house.  We were scheduled to leave for Bulgaria on the 7th of October.  We received a call last Tuesday that a Roma/Gypsy leader had killed a 19 year old Bulgarian and that racial unrest was happening in the country.  The worst in more than a decade.  Our visas did not come in as scheduled and we were not able to fly out last Friday.  I am now reminded again of my resolve and that He is in control and will guide our every footstep.  Please help us pray for peace and racial healing in Bulgaria.  We LOVE you all and know we could NOT be doing this awesome walk with the Lord without our amazing partner support.  We will talk to you soon and keep you posted on the new travel dates.  God Bless!

Washington, D.C.

Well, friends, it has been a long road of American paperwork and Bulgarian translations, diplomatic governmental redtape and, finally, with all of our "homework" completed to the best of our ability, we went to apply in person at the Bulgarian consulate in Washington.  We received our paperwork back from Bulgaria all translated and ready to hand over.  These papers that had just travelled in the last two weeks to Bulgaria and back, arrived at our house Monday at noon and we were on the road by 3 pm.
We six packed in the car and headed out on our journey.
In Washington finally and excited to get all of this "work" turned in, we rushed into the office and handed over our paperwork.  All was in order except for one background check that wasn't to their specification.  We were a bit disappointed, but we decided to spend the rest of the afternoon roaming around the Lincoln Memorial, World War II Memorial, Washington Monument, and several of the Smithsonian Museums (they are all free and very worth it if you are heading there, but parking in DC is a nightmare).
We have come back home, searched for the correct background check and are hoping and PRAYING that the one we have now is sufficient.  I just went to Atlanta today to get the apostille seal on it, and we will be faxing it to the consulate tomorrow.  Our advocate (in Bulgaria) will also be calling them in the morning to explain our case, so PLEASE help us pray that we find favor in the eyes of these officials.  We also need these visas approved and returned in the next four weeks.  We have heard that this is difficult, but we KNOW nothing is impossible with God.  In my time this morning I read this scripture in Phil. 2:19-20, "For I KNOW that this shall turn out for my deliverance through your prayers and the provision of the Spirit of Jesus Christ, according to my earnest expectation and hope, that I shall not be put to shame in anything, but that with all boldness, Christ shall even now, as ALWAYS, be exalted in my body, whether by life or by death."

Please join with us in agreement that these things will work together for our good because we know Phil. 2:13 that, "it is God who is at work in us, both to will and to work for HIS good pleasure."