A village, a film and the hope of Christ.....

Every weekend that we can, we pack our things and head to the village on Saturday. This Saturday was no different as we packed clothes and teaching materials for the weekend away, however this weekend had excitement in the air for it was the weekend we were showing the Jesus film in a new village. Several things were necessary to pack for this project and Cameron had already been hard at work making a large base to hold up the projector's screen.

Unfortunately we had searched all morning for our generator with no success. We needed to travel with it so that we could use it for the electricity but unfortunately it was missing. We assumed that perhaps it was stored at the church while we were in the States over the winter and decided to look for it there. Before we left the guys needed haircuts and I quickly trimmed them up. I opened the balcony door to sweep out the hair and accidentally forgot to shut it. Boots, the gray kitten went to explore and fell off of the balcony!

Yes, if you've read our blog you are familiar with our last cat, Snappy dying after falling off of the same balcony. We have since had a "no cats on the balcony" rule and I was crushed that I had so foolishly forgotten to close the door! We were scheduled to leave the city by 2 so that Cameron could hold a Bible study that evening with a group of guys in the village, but now I was rushing to the animal hospital at 1:30. The cat was alive but had bleeding in his chest and would need to stay at the clinic until x-rays showed he had stopped bleeding. This was not the way we wanted to start the weekend but we left Sofia with no generator, a hurt kitten and sad hearts.

The next day we had a great time worshipping with our friends in the village of Gulyantsi. One of the boys after church caught this amazing lizard and we all had fun taking pictures.

Even though we searched every corner of the church, we still could not locate our generator and only hoped that we could borrow someone's electricity in the new village. We drove to Pleven to purchase another long extension cable (also missing) and then made a pitstop at a gas station about 5 minutes away from the village. As we ate our snack, the large gray rain clouds approaching the village's skies began to push away our hope that the Jesus film could be shown that day. Cameron called our contact in the village and more disappointing news arrived that he wasn't even home. The man who had asked us to come and show the film was in Sofia and now with no generator, the approaching rain and no person of peace in the community we were left to consider rescheduling for another time. The rain began to fall as we passed the village but to our surprise there were large groups of kids in the fields despite the rain. We turned around and decided that if they were standing in the rain waiting for us then how could we not give it a try.

I have never experienced in Bulgaria large groups of children running behind the car and beside the car with cheers and excitement like we did that day. It was unexpected to see people coming out of their homes waving and smiling as we entered the community. Cameron rolled down the window and asked if our person of peace had arrived back from Sofia and they said yes! Supposedly someone was borrowing his phone when we called and did not realize he was home when they told us he was in Sofia. We are so grateful we turned around because we were unaware that so many had been waiting and expecting our arrival. All the excitement in the world could not stop the rain though and running an extension cord in the rain isn't the way we wanted to introduce people to Jesus :) But if you know Roma, you know they are quick to problem solve with materials they have laying around and before we knew it, tents were set up, blankets brought out, clothes pins were going up everywhere, benches were being set down and the Jesus film was ready to be shown!

Cameron and Stefcho (Stefcho is a Roma believer that desires to be a pastor one day. He travels with us most weekends and helps me with children's church and works beside Cameron with starting new groups) gave introductions and testimonies and then the film began. I sat down in the front on the ground and two little girls climbed into my lap. I silently prayed that the rain would stop and that hearts would be open to see God's love for them. As I was praying a finger poked me in the cheek and a woman who had sat down next to me whispered in my ear "You're a liar. You are a liar. You don't believe in God!" Shocked, I immediately assumed I had misunderstood her and whispered for her to repeat what she said. Again she poked my face and said in an evil sneer "You are a liar! You don't believe in God." She continued to poke my face with each question and accusation "Do you pray to Mary?" "Who do you believe Mary is?" "You don't believe in God." "You are a liar" "Do you believe in Mary?" Like I said, I had two little girls in my lap and the film had stared so I was trying to remain very calm but also trying to keep her hands off of my face. She became more and more aggressive with me and I could tell she was drunk. She grabbed my face like a parent grabs a child's face and squeezed my jaw and again began sneering, "you are a liar. You don't believe in God" Immediately I told her in the name of Jesus to not touch me again and yelled for Stefcho to come and talk to her. As you can imagine, it was a pretty big distraction from the film but praise God for Stefcho because he handled her so well and told her that she was welcome to come back next weekend to discus her beliefs but she had to be sober. She left and a little later a car came by revving their engine over and over until some in the group told them to leave. Afterwards the restaurant next to where we were watching the film turned up their music full blast and drowned out the movie. Some of the guys from the community went over and had the restaurant stop. It was clear from beginning to end that satan was at work but the rain couldn't stop it, a flying kitten who thought he was a bird couldn't stop it lol, the woman didn't stop it, the car didn't stop it, miscommunication didn't stop it, lost materials didn't stop it, restaurant music did't stop it, and at the end of the night Stefcho was surrounded by men wanting to know more and a guy who wanted to know how he could be a follower of Christ. As we packed up, the children sang a new song "Jesus rose from the grave! Hallelujah! Hallelujah! Hallelujah! Amen!" Even though the sky was dark in that little village as we drove away, a light was sparking in the hearts of men, one that the gates of hell will not prevail over!

The new village

"2My soul longed and even yearned for the courts of the LORD; My heart and my flesh sing for joy to the living God. 3The bird also has found a house, And the swallow a nest for herself, where she may lay her young, Even Your altars, O LORD of hosts, My King and my God. 4How blessed are those who dwell in Your house! They are ever praising You. Selah.…" Psalm 84.

Last weekend we shared about a new village where no current church meets and the man, "Nick" whom Cameron had met the weekend before. This is the village that "Nick" said had no believers nor church in his community. This weekend we visited the village of "Nick" as a family. As we turned onto the rocky dirt road a man approached our car. He happened to be the brother of "Nick" and was very friendly after he understood our motives for entering the village were pure. The family took the children's Bible from my hands and looked over it and then said a group of children would be interested in hearing the stories next Sunday. Today the family was busy skinning a large sheep before the rain clouds approached and ruined the outside work. Our boys were eager to watch this process and got out of the car for a closer look. The kids from the house came and giggled in amusement as they watched Ben and Micah who showed such fascination with the dead sheep.

The impending rain made our visit quick and we continued on our drive up the road to our new friend "Nick"'s house. As we drove down the road people smiled and gave welcoming head nods. "Nick" has four children and they took the convincing of several hand games to open up to me while Cameron talked to their dad. By the end of Cameron's conversation with "Nick" seven kids were giving me high fives and loads of laughter. When presented with some options, "Nick" asked for us to show the Jesus film in his village and we will prepare to do that this Sunday. We also feel this will be a good way to give an overall idea of why we are studying the Bible, Who we are studying, and what Jesus did for us. This open door is one that we walk through with excitement but also with great prayer. We know that if no believers are in this community, we are not blind to know that satan will want to keep it that way. This will be a battle and we would be wise to covet your prayers and be lead by the Holy Spirit as we enter this community. So as always, we seek to remind you that your partnership of prayer is huge in anything we do and it's never overlooked. Thank you for your support! Like the scripture above, may this community find her place in the Lord's house and offer praise to their Mighty King.

Doors

This picture about sums up life most days. Each day is a series of open and closed doors that we walk through, wait to open or walk away from. This weekend was no different except there was expectation of doors being opened that no longer were unlocked. Cameron travelled with a friend who is a fellow missionary to the village. Unfortunately I had a virus keeping me in bed. (Viruses do not respect doors!) This village had three families asking to study the Bible prior to us going back to the States, but unfortunately those doors were closed this weekend. One lady expressed that her desires have simply changed and she's not interested. Another point of contact continues to be out of the country and the nephew of another man said "My uncle is drunk right now but you can talk with him if you want to." That's an open door that Cameron walked away from. You can pray for this village and for the doors that were opened and for those that remain open to be places that can be entered for God's Word to be studied. On the way back to Sofia, there is a roma community we always see and desire to enter but have not had the right timing, the peace, or the courage to go into it as a family. Today Cameron had the perfect opportunity so he and his friend stopped. The whole community was heading to a wedding and the community was alive with activity. Cameron and his friend began talking to a man who explained that there were no known believers in the area and no church. It's rare to find someone to not immediately claim to be a Christian and say "all the right things" but this honesty gave Cameron the opportunity to ask if they would be interested in studying the Bible together. Praise God he said yes and gave Cameron his phone number. We will begin to meet with them on Saturday or Sunday. Please be praying for this weekend. I admit that though this open door is exciting, it is where my insecurities battle within me most. I know my weakness is the bulgarian language and it is the required factor in communicating God's Word. These two things collide within my heart and mind but God always transforms the moment to be deservingly about His glory and not about my abilities or my inabilities. It is always with great astonishment that I get to see His hand move in the lives of others despite how well I feel I spoke or how miserable I butchered the language. Please pray that again His hand moves and draws this community to one day proclaim "There are many believers here!"