As you can tell from my previous post we have been here for one whole year. It has been a great year, and we are starting to really see God move among people we know here. Yes, it took a year for this to happen, but I praise Him for His timing and grace in even letting us be here. We have many friends who have started to ask us some great questions about the Bible. We even have a few who are interested in starting a Bible Study! :) However, coordinating times for this is another story. I want to share the opportunity I had just yesterday to share with a friend of mine.
She speaks great English, but we meet once a week so she can help me with my Bulgarian. I have really enjoyed getting to know her and she has an adorable little girl that is in love with Eli. So very cute! Anyway, I have been meeting with her since October and while I always speak biblical truths into our conversations, I hadn't had a good chance to share the Gospel. This all changed a couple of weeks ago when she began asking me about who we work for, and what we will really be doing here in Bulgaria. I was able to tell her we are looking at starting bible studies in the villages. She lit up and said, " This is wonderful! Bulgarians don't know what the Bible says." We then started talking about baptizing babies. I told her that while I understand it is a tradition in many churches in Bulgaria (and America as well), the bible never mentions baptizing infants. She was intrigued and shared an interest in being able to read the Bible herself to find out if this was true. I told her I could get her a Bible in Bulgarian and in English and she was extremely receptive. Our meeting ended and we planned to meet the next week. Well, we just met yesterday and she came armed with questions. She was excited when I told her I had a Bulgarian Bible for her and that my father-in-law was bringing her one form the states in English. I then showed her the verses about Jesus' baptism and explained this was what we based our belief in baptism on. I told her that while many churches do have the tradition of baptizing infants, the Bible tells that the only way to Heaven is through Jesus Christ. So, how can a baby understand that. She agreed and had many other questions about the Bible, such as, what is the difference between the Old and New Testaments. I explained and through that was able to tell her the plan of salvation and why God sent Jesus. It was just getting good when her boss called and was very upset she wasn't in the office. So, we had to quickly finish our lunch so she could get back. I know that time was ordained by God, and I pray He will continue to give me opportunities to share with her. For her to be genuinely interested is extremely rare in Bulgaria, and I praise God for this chance! Please pray that her thirst for biblical knowledge would continue, and that when she receives the Bibles she will be excited about reading them. Also pray that God will give me wisdom on how to answer any questions she might have. But, most of all, REJOICE with me in the work the Holy Spirit is doing in her life!!!
Thursday, March 1, 2012
Saturday, February 25, 2012
Our first year in Bulgaria
Wow, I have been anticipating writing this blog for months now. I have thought about all the witty ways I would tell about how great our first year on the field has been, how God has sustained us through some very big challenges, and how we are more excited now than when we first got here about what God is doing in our lives. Now the best way I can think to get it all down and not write a book is to simply list the many things we experienced in shortened versions.
Our year of firsts:
1. We lived in an apt for the first time with 3 kids
2. We experienced and conquered public transportation in the capital city
3. We traveled by train.
4. We found ourselves able to only communicate with a small handful of people
5. We enrolled our children into Bulgarian schools
6. We learned to lower our voices in public so we didn't stand out as the obvious Americans
7. We have gone without decent beef for 1 whole year
8. Stacie learned many creative ways to cook just pork and chicken.
9. Steven learned that in the winter the ice is very, very slick
10. We experienced our first white Christmas, as well as the lowest temps and most snow Bulgaria has had in decades.
11. The kids got to go sledding
12. Audrey built her first snowman (it was as tall as she was)
13. Steven preached for the first time
14. The kids flew on a commercial airline
15. We worship as a family in a foreign language
16. Stacie visited a doctor, who told her not to ask any more questions
17. We will be having baby #4 not on Texas soil
Through it all we have experienced God's grace and guidance and give Him all the glory for a great first year here.
Our year of firsts:
1. We lived in an apt for the first time with 3 kids
2. We experienced and conquered public transportation in the capital city
3. We traveled by train.
4. We found ourselves able to only communicate with a small handful of people
5. We enrolled our children into Bulgarian schools
6. We learned to lower our voices in public so we didn't stand out as the obvious Americans
7. We have gone without decent beef for 1 whole year
8. Stacie learned many creative ways to cook just pork and chicken.
9. Steven learned that in the winter the ice is very, very slick
10. We experienced our first white Christmas, as well as the lowest temps and most snow Bulgaria has had in decades.
11. The kids got to go sledding
12. Audrey built her first snowman (it was as tall as she was)
13. Steven preached for the first time
14. The kids flew on a commercial airline
15. We worship as a family in a foreign language
16. Stacie visited a doctor, who told her not to ask any more questions
17. We will be having baby #4 not on Texas soil
Through it all we have experienced God's grace and guidance and give Him all the glory for a great first year here.
Monday, December 5, 2011
It's in the everyday
Let me preface this post with a warning: This post is going to be about my amazing husband and how much I love him dearly for how his life is a testimony to the love of Christ. So, if you are not in the mood to hear a wife go on about her great husband, you might need to read this post at another time.
Okay, if you are reading this you have been warned. So my story starts with the wonderful news that we finally have a cell phone plan here!!! This was a major feat because we had to wait until we had our one year visas, to get our Bulgarian ID cards that are needed to purchase any kind of long term cell phone plan. Up until this point we were using prepaid phones, and that can get pricey. So, Steven had been doing his research as to what plan he thought would best fit our family. He went to the stores, spoke with people and came home armed with info to throw at me. I told him the decision was up to him and that it really didn't matter to me what kind of phone I had, if it had internet, I just needed to be able to talk with people. A few days later we went to the store together to ask a few questions. The girl that had helped Steven was working there again, and her English was pretty good, so she helped us find what we wanted and was setting everything up for us when I got into a discussion with her about family. I told her we had 3 kids and that I was pregnant. She was shocked and said," That is to many." I told her we love kids and that Steven was a great husband and dad and without him I couldn't do it. She became very serious and said, " I noticed that when he came in the other day. I thought it was very neat that he told me he had to talk about it with his wife before he made a decision about the phones. This is not common. I want to have a family like this. My parents are divorced and I want a good husband." I was so proud that my husbands love towards me was demonstrated in such a way that it caught this young girls attention. I was then able to tell her that is was only because of our understanding of God's great love for us that we were able to have such a great marriage. She agreed, that God needed to be at the center, but I went on to explain that we firmly believe what the bible says about marriage being a commitment, and what it says about family and how husbands and wives should relate to each other. It was a wonderful moment of getting to share the love of God with a young woman obviously seeking true love. Shortly after this her manager came up and told her it was taking to long, and that upset her and threw off the conversation. However, I am praying that when we go to pay our bills, we can continue conversations with her. The main thing God showed me in this situation, was that it is was my husbands love for me that caught this girls attention. It was also the loving relationship we had that greatly appealed to her. This is not something Steven was even conscious of, but as I said in the beginning of this post, that is why I love him so much. His love for Christ is made evident in all his relationships and most of all in his relationship with me. Not saying our marriage is perfect, far from it, but with Christ at the center it gets better every day.
Okay, if you are reading this you have been warned. So my story starts with the wonderful news that we finally have a cell phone plan here!!! This was a major feat because we had to wait until we had our one year visas, to get our Bulgarian ID cards that are needed to purchase any kind of long term cell phone plan. Up until this point we were using prepaid phones, and that can get pricey. So, Steven had been doing his research as to what plan he thought would best fit our family. He went to the stores, spoke with people and came home armed with info to throw at me. I told him the decision was up to him and that it really didn't matter to me what kind of phone I had, if it had internet, I just needed to be able to talk with people. A few days later we went to the store together to ask a few questions. The girl that had helped Steven was working there again, and her English was pretty good, so she helped us find what we wanted and was setting everything up for us when I got into a discussion with her about family. I told her we had 3 kids and that I was pregnant. She was shocked and said," That is to many." I told her we love kids and that Steven was a great husband and dad and without him I couldn't do it. She became very serious and said, " I noticed that when he came in the other day. I thought it was very neat that he told me he had to talk about it with his wife before he made a decision about the phones. This is not common. I want to have a family like this. My parents are divorced and I want a good husband." I was so proud that my husbands love towards me was demonstrated in such a way that it caught this young girls attention. I was then able to tell her that is was only because of our understanding of God's great love for us that we were able to have such a great marriage. She agreed, that God needed to be at the center, but I went on to explain that we firmly believe what the bible says about marriage being a commitment, and what it says about family and how husbands and wives should relate to each other. It was a wonderful moment of getting to share the love of God with a young woman obviously seeking true love. Shortly after this her manager came up and told her it was taking to long, and that upset her and threw off the conversation. However, I am praying that when we go to pay our bills, we can continue conversations with her. The main thing God showed me in this situation, was that it is was my husbands love for me that caught this girls attention. It was also the loving relationship we had that greatly appealed to her. This is not something Steven was even conscious of, but as I said in the beginning of this post, that is why I love him so much. His love for Christ is made evident in all his relationships and most of all in his relationship with me. Not saying our marriage is perfect, far from it, but with Christ at the center it gets better every day.
Friday, November 25, 2011
The long awaited post
Yes, I do realize that I haven't written on our blog in a month, but there is a reason behind that. We were waiting for the right time to announce the news that we are expecting Cooke # 4. We found out in Oct. that I was pregnant, but wanted to wait a little until announcing it. So, there it is.......our last child will be born in a foreign country. I like the thought of that.
We also just celebrated our fisrt Thanksgiving outside of America and it was interesting to say the least. We invited some bulgarian friends, but for one reason or another, they weren't able to come. So, it was just us, and I think I liked it more that way. I was very nervous about having to cook for lots of people. Not sure if I have mentioned it, but my kitchen is not what I would classify as fully equipped. I'm pretty sure our camping stove was bigger than the stove I have now, and my oven is more like an easy bake oven. I can make it work for our little family of 5, but more than that and it becomes a real challenge as to how I am going to get everything cooked. The kids were watching the Macy's parade while I cooked and it was fun to hear them get excited about the different balloons. I was very glad I could find it streamed live on the internet! It is one tradition I pray we are able to keep. My mom also helped out by sending some invaluable items that I can't get here. Thanks mom!! She sent everything I would need to make green bean casserole, and some evaporated milk for my pumpkin pies. Without those two things it wouldn't have been Thanksgiving at all. No, we didn't have a turkey. It wasn't until last night that I learned you have to ask a butcher for a turkey, and even then you usually can't get one until much closer to Christmas. But, seeing as I am not really into turkey(unless it has been smoked by my brother-in-law, Brian) we had ham. I thought this would be much easier to find, but I was wrong. The only place we found it was in the deli, in the form of lunch meat,so that had to do. We asked for half a kilo, but forgot to ask to have it cut into thick slices, so we ended up with some really great ham, but very thin. It worked though. I made a homemade brown-sugar, honey glaze for it and it was great.
Overall it was a great day. It was definitly a day that I was very thankful for all that God has given me: a great family, three wonderful kids, an amazing husband, the opportunity to live and reach people in Bulgaria, a place to live, food to eat, and the most important thing, Grace! I am most thankful for God's grace that He gives us through His son Jesus.
We also just celebrated our fisrt Thanksgiving outside of America and it was interesting to say the least. We invited some bulgarian friends, but for one reason or another, they weren't able to come. So, it was just us, and I think I liked it more that way. I was very nervous about having to cook for lots of people. Not sure if I have mentioned it, but my kitchen is not what I would classify as fully equipped. I'm pretty sure our camping stove was bigger than the stove I have now, and my oven is more like an easy bake oven. I can make it work for our little family of 5, but more than that and it becomes a real challenge as to how I am going to get everything cooked. The kids were watching the Macy's parade while I cooked and it was fun to hear them get excited about the different balloons. I was very glad I could find it streamed live on the internet! It is one tradition I pray we are able to keep. My mom also helped out by sending some invaluable items that I can't get here. Thanks mom!! She sent everything I would need to make green bean casserole, and some evaporated milk for my pumpkin pies. Without those two things it wouldn't have been Thanksgiving at all. No, we didn't have a turkey. It wasn't until last night that I learned you have to ask a butcher for a turkey, and even then you usually can't get one until much closer to Christmas. But, seeing as I am not really into turkey(unless it has been smoked by my brother-in-law, Brian) we had ham. I thought this would be much easier to find, but I was wrong. The only place we found it was in the deli, in the form of lunch meat,so that had to do. We asked for half a kilo, but forgot to ask to have it cut into thick slices, so we ended up with some really great ham, but very thin. It worked though. I made a homemade brown-sugar, honey glaze for it and it was great.
Thursday, October 13, 2011
Day of Prayer for European Peoples
October 16th is the Day of Prayer for European Peoples so I thought I would give you some general facts about Europe.
- European population in 2010 was 857 million (Wikipedia)
- Population growth is comparatively slow, and median age comparatively high in relation to the world's other continents. (Wikipedia)
- European countries have experienced a decline in church attendance, as well as a decline in the number of people professing a belief in a god. (Wikipedia)
- There are over 500 unreached and unengaged people groups (UUPGs) among European peoples worldwide. These are population groups that are less than 2% evangelical and have no one with a plan to tell them about Jesus.
May not be what you thought about Europe, but in reality it is a very dark place spiritually. Many of the people that live here are agnostic or cling to the rituals passed down through heritage. There are millions who have no idea what it means to have a relationship with Jesus Christ. I spoke with someone just the other day that said they had no idea what was going to happen after they died, and yet they claimed to be "Christian" based on their orthodox background. Then there are the other people in Europe who don't want to even listen to the "Good News". They shut down and get a glossed over look in their eyes when you begin to tell about Christ love for them. Yet, God is working among these people. Every year He is calling more people to work in this field and more churches to partner with European people groups. We are seeing mighty things happen. Please pray for the millions of European people and the missionaries who serve among them.
- European population in 2010 was 857 million (Wikipedia)
- Population growth is comparatively slow, and median age comparatively high in relation to the world's other continents. (Wikipedia)
- European countries have experienced a decline in church attendance, as well as a decline in the number of people professing a belief in a god. (Wikipedia)
- There are over 500 unreached and unengaged people groups (UUPGs) among European peoples worldwide. These are population groups that are less than 2% evangelical and have no one with a plan to tell them about Jesus.
May not be what you thought about Europe, but in reality it is a very dark place spiritually. Many of the people that live here are agnostic or cling to the rituals passed down through heritage. There are millions who have no idea what it means to have a relationship with Jesus Christ. I spoke with someone just the other day that said they had no idea what was going to happen after they died, and yet they claimed to be "Christian" based on their orthodox background. Then there are the other people in Europe who don't want to even listen to the "Good News". They shut down and get a glossed over look in their eyes when you begin to tell about Christ love for them. Yet, God is working among these people. Every year He is calling more people to work in this field and more churches to partner with European people groups. We are seeing mighty things happen. Please pray for the millions of European people and the missionaries who serve among them.
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