We are His hands and feet

At one of our team meeting's Skip shared with us this poem

Do you know oh Christian you are a sermon in shoes
Do you know oh Christian you are a sermon in shoes
Jesus calls upon you to spread the gospel news
So walk it
And talk it
Live it
And Give it
teach it
And preach it
Know it
And show it

This couldn't be more fitting for our day. We spent the morning putting shoes on the children of a baby home. The joy you see in the eyes of a child when you find that perfect pair of flowered shoes, or those sandals that are blue. It was pure joy on the faces of these children as we put on socks and shoes. We then had the opportunity to place a blanket on each child's bed. Each blanket was made with love and continued prayers by our quilting ministry. What a blessing it has been to share those blankets with these beautiful children.  We are his hands an feet, carrying boxes up and down stairs, putting socks on feet, finding shoes for prosthetic legs; we are doing the work of The Lord.  And we pray that they will know we are Christians by our love.

Pray that we are a sermon in shoes.

Shine Jesus Shine

       Our last day in Berkovitsa! Another glorious morning as we traveled to Georgi Damyanavo. We went to the preschool home where we got to color, sing, and play with the children. We acted out David and Goliath. Skip, our Goliath, was the crowd favorite. Every child wanted to be hoisted in the air and then crash to the ground. After only 2 days here, it is amazing to see the impact we have had on the children and the even greater impact they have had on us. The class size was small today, only 10-12, because all other children were in school (Praise The Lord).
      After Georgi, we headed towards Sofia. There we stopped at the warehouse to unload our supplies and pick up shoes and socks for Friday. After lunch we were able to tour Sofia with our translator. She showed us a beautiful Methodist church where we met the pastor's wife. Children were there from the ONLY Christian school in Bulgaria to perform a concert. It was such a special moment for us to see God's work here through a sister church. After touring Orthodox churches, both Russian and Bulgarian, we visited some famous sites of Sofia.

Again we ask for your continued prayers for the children, Paul and Judy, our team, and this country.

As Judy says... Shine Jesus Shine

Surely there will be Dancing in Heaven

      Today was the beloved pizza party for the sweet members of Berk 4 (the orphanage for the disabled). It was King and Queen themed.. We began the morning by party prepping and LOTS of decorations. We have spent the last 2 days working in our "tutu sweat shop" making eat little girl a tutu to wear for this party. We blew up balloons, put crepe paper on absolutely everything, decorated crowns, and made gift bags for each child. Bus by bus the children arrived and the room was overflowing with genunie happiness and excitement.

        Not only did we eat pizza and dress like royalty, we danced the afternoon away. Seeing the light brought to the lives of these dancing children we know that surely there will be dancing in heaven. It was absolutely heart warming to see the joy that we could bring just by singing Rocky Top and doing the chicken dance (a crowd favorite). Words cannot express to you how much of a difference human interaction and love makes in the lives of these children.  Once again we can say, surly The Lord is working in this place. 

        Not only did we have a wonderful pizza party with Berk 4 today, we were also able to share in some very special moments with some of the training center young men. 5 young men finished professional course work in cooking, carpentery, or care giving. We were able to celebrate their "graduation" and distribution of diplomas. The most touching part was that the young men asked Judy to wait to do graduation when "the Americans" came. Sharing in such a special event, one that most young people in Bulgaria NEVER experience, is such a blessing to us. We are so thankful for The Lord's work at the training center and the chance for us to be a part of it.. 

      Once again we ask for your continued prayers for safe travels, open hearts and minds, and the people of Bulgaria.

God is Love. 

Tuesday in Beautiful Bulgaria

Talk about a day filled with adventures. We started off the morning heading to the training center in Borovtsi to prepare for the day. We then headed to the preschool just down the road (maybe 3 American blocks). It is amazing the difference in the children of an orphanage and preschool. These precious children at the kindergarten taught us how to count to 10 in Bulgarian. Ten sounds like "That's it" to us! Two of the workers from the training center have children in this preschool, one of which is Steven. It was Steven's birthday and they have a wonderful celebration for him including a cake and candy!
At the preschool we set up stations to work on fine motor skills. We had stencils, puzzles, blocks, paper folding, and coloring. The children were absolutely marvelous; we were all very impressed. Special  children stole each of our hearts there. Once again, Dr. B did physicals with Katie (an Australian missionary Doctor who lives in Bulgaria) and Dr. Tom performed eye exams. We taught the children Slava Na Boga (Hallelujah, Praise The Lord), performed Daniel in the Lion's Den, and sang a multitude of  Christian songs. The children each picked out a stuffed animal and were given gift boxes. We were all so touched when they presented us each with a hand made construction paper flower. Those are the moments when we realize that maybe God brought us here to be changed and blessed.
After the preschool, we ate lunch at the training center and finished up work in our "tutu sweat shop". We then headed to Rakovitsa, the gypsy village. With over 4000 people, Rakovitsa village is a huge opportunity to spread the word of God. We traveled up to the school and were able to tour a classroom full of children. Then we walked through the village like the pied piper, gathering children all the way to the church. We put together a mini Vacation Bible School for these sweet children including Daniel in the Lion's Den, songs, the incredible enlarging maching, and crafts. We set up 3 tables of visor decorating, hand tracing and butterfly making to engage the children. It is so apparent how very little praise or validation they receive for their good works.

Words cannot described how touched our hearts were today. We ask for your prayers for change in Rakovitsa, acceptance of God's love and our giving spirits, compassionate workers at the schools and orphanages, and most of all that these incredible people come to know The Lord.

Ciao again from Borovtsi!

Finally up and Running!

The blog is finally up and running! Sorry for the delay we have had some technical issues logging in.

 Over the last few days we have had such an amazing and blessed
ttime in Bulgaria- we can tell that The Lord is working in this place.

Sunday May 26th-
        We were able to worship with a church in Vurshets. Skip preached, Lee Allen played piano and sang a solo, we sang English & Bulgarian songs  and were able to have some meaningful interaction with the church members. We gave away the crosses we wore to members of the church. They gave us homemade food and cookies. The church windows face the gorgeous back drop of Bulgarian mountains (who needs Stained glass when your scenery is so picturesque).
       We ate lunch at Klisurski monastery and toured there. We then spent the afternoon working at the training center with the boys preparing for the days ahead. Dr. Tom did eye exams and now one of the sweet boys is called "Harry Potter's brother". These boys are all over the age of 18, either homeless or from orphanages. Most are gypsies, which is seen as negative and lowly here in Bulgaria. They are so hardworking and absolutely hilarious. Ivan the Curly (because of his curly hair) renamed everyone- Mark is now Justin Beiber! Judy is doing such amazing things with them there; we are so thankful to be able to interact with them and pray for them. Lee Allen led the devotion; the boys loved singing and playing instruments together with us.

Monday May 27th-
      What a touching day filled with so much love. Our morning started out at  the orphanage for the disabled. It is amazing to see what joy and life it brings them just to interact with people. We sang Jesus Loves Me in Bulgarian, Father Abraham, Hokey Pokey, This Little Light of mine--all while they played instruments and danced along. We acted out the  story of Daniel in the Lions Den and then they did (costumes and all). It is amazing how they remember the returning trip members-such an instant connection. We each fell in love with different kids, all of whom now hold a special place in our heart. Upon leaving, we took the time to pray for these special children and those that care for them. They are so deprived of human contact and love; we ask your prayers for them, the director, and the workers there.
    After lunch at the training center we went to the preschool orphanage. We brought gifts, played, danced, sang and acted out bible stories. Daniel and the Lions' Den is a crowd favorite. Mark is Daniel, Reagan and Kay are Lions, Tom/Lee Allen alternate being king, Cindy is the angel, and Midge, Jane or Phyllis tell the story. Dr. Tom checked every child's eyes and Dr. B did all the children's physicals.  Again we ask for you continued prayers for these precious children of God. Good news-- three brothers are being adopted by an American Family!!
    The orphanage staff are continually amazed that "professional" Americans would lower themselves to the level of a child and play on the floor. Pray for these workers that their hearts may be softened and changed by the love of Christ.

Ciao from Borovtsi

Safely Home

We made it back it back home safely.  Thanks for following along.  We'll try to get some pictures up later this week.

A Visit to Plovdiv

Well, we're at the end of our trip, so today we took an excursion over to the city of Plovdiv, which is just under a 2-hour drive.  It's the second largest city in Bulgaria after Sofia (the capital) and is an old Roman city.  There are three Roman amphitheaters in town that are still in use today.  Paul gave us a walking tour of old town, and we also took a walk down the main pedestrian shopping street in the new town.  It's a sophisticated city and much more like a western European city than Sofia.  We had an enjoyable lunch in an outdoor restaurant in old town along the city wall.

We came back to Sofia for dinner with Paul and Judy here at the hotel restaurant.  We ended the day with a debrief of our trip, our evening devotional, and a time for prayer.  We got all the suitcases sorted and packed for what stays in Bulgaria and what goes back to the States with us.

We leave bright and early in the morning for a 7:15 flight.  Hopefully we'll have better success at getting home than we had getting here!  Our intended route is Sofia - Munich - Charlotte - Knoxville.

It's been another great trip to Bulgaria and the orphanages, and we hate to leave.  We'll look forward to coming again next year.

Thanks for following us via this blog and for praying for us.  You're very much part of our team in doing so.

Shalom,
Team Bulgaria