SPECIAL REPORT

 

Dear Friends,

 

This is a special edition of our prayer letter.  We wanted to report on the intense weeks of ministry in Vidin and the orphanages in NW Bulgaria. You can visit our special web site to view photos and stories from the two VBS of summer 2003: (http://kmission.netfirms.com/vbs2003)

 

In this issue:

• The Light—the theme of the VBS challenges us and the children
• Two different dynamics in the two VBS
• Two Bulgarian Christian fellowships give financially to the project
• Team building as hard as ministering to the children

Also:

• The visit to Wales, the Antioch church, and prophetic conference
• A new season in the Gathering and the concept of team ministry

 

 

VBS (Belogradchik, June 30-July 4; Novo Selo, July 7-11)

The theme of the Vacation Bible School was God’s light shines and we respond. The ministry teams were focused and ready to jump into a schedule that was quite demanding: waking up early, a half hour of prayer with the team, breakfast, classroom preparation and then 3 hours of drama, workshops and interaction with the kids.  We had  five workshops/centers where five groups of 4 kids visited for a period of 20 minutes each.  The ministry team members led in crafts, recreation, snacks, music and science in relation to each day’s theme.  We had about 20 children from each home participate, ages11 to 19.  In the afternoons, we held an hour of sports activities and ended with a half-hour of reflection and discussion about what was learned during the day. 

 

The most popular centers were, of course, the music and the snack tables. The kids love to dance and sing! It was also a real treat for them to play with food items such as: spray whipping cream, peanut butter, coconut, chocolate sprinkles, and ice-cream. Some of these items the kids had never seen before – I think we had to explain a hundred times what a coconut was and where they come from!

 

In the daily team briefings, we shared the challenges we faced with the children and with each other. The team was made of Teresa, myself, Yavor, his wife Maria, and six volunteers from our churches in Sofia and Vidin.

 

On the third day of the VBS in Belogradchik the Lord spoke to me to call the kids to a decision.  So that  afternoon I gave a clear explanation of the gospel and called the kids to follow Jesus and to come forward if they so desired.  This was a classic alter call and 7 boys and girls responded.  The Spirit of God was moving and touching these young lives!

 

Yet we had to expel two of the students from the VBS for bad behavior a day later.  These were not easy decisions.   However, after consulting with the team we felt that after all the other steps were taken this was best for the children’s own interest.

 

In Novo Selo the situation was the reverse—we had no serious discipline problems with the students.  The children were open to what we had for them.  Often, in the times of reflection I felt free to take them straight into the words and teachings of Jesus.  Some of them would ask pointed questions.  Ivan, a 16 year old, would ask:  How do I know that God hears me when I pray?  Why can’t I see God, how do I know that He is real?  The music was again a hit center in this VBS.  At the end of the VBS the group warmed up and it was obvious that the themes of the day had sunk in, although, the kids were older in this home, and supposedly more skeptical.  But that was not the case.  Even the discipline was not an issue.

 

The point of challenge in Novo Selo turned out to be the team. Many of the volunteers in this second week struggled with issues of love for money (imagine that in a low income area as NW Bulgaria!). We had to deal with lack of understanding of the process of forgiveness and responsibility, hyper-spiritualizing the relationships with God within the team and covert attitudes.  During our times of debriefing the day and the work often there were tears and an attempt at searching one’s own motivations and heart.  One of the issues was that some of the workers were presenting a legalistic God to the kids.  Another issue was an unwillingness to solve a conflict between two of the ladies after all of us inviting them to do so as soon as possible.  As Teresa put it:  God wanted to make sure that we do not minister to the children something that we did not live out ourselves!  After all, the theme of the week was “God’s light shines—we respond” and He made sure that we responded indeed!

 

The time of emotion and attachment with the kids was mixed with times of probing our relationships and motivations in the ministry team.  The two small churches—in Sofia and in Vidin—which the team members came from supported financially, according to their abilities, the VBS.  Although the inner struggles in the team made the ministry challenging, the support of the churches, which is something unusual for the Bulgarian church, was very encouraging.  Teresa and I believe that although these were the two toughest weeks in the year for most of us—emotionally and physically—we all touched the Kingdom of God and learned valuable lessons.  I remember how I prepared the team before the start of the schools by telling them:  “For one or two weeks of this ministry you will learn more about God and your walk with Christ than in a whole year.”  It came out to be a prophetic statement.  One of the volunteers, a judge from the court of appeals in Sofia, had joined our team for only half of the first week.  Later he told me:  “I was dramatically touched by the work with the kids for these 3 days.  God speaks to me now.  Before I had nothing to write down in my diary.  Now I write in my diary every day.”  I have no doubt that the team members for the VBS were touched, some convicted of their state of heart.  And although it is hard to measure the level of change in the hearts of the abandoned kids we came to bless with what God had given us, I am sure that the seeds sown in obedience will bring good fruit in their broken lives.  Because God loves them.

 

Prayer requests:

·         Please, pray for a difficult situation in the leadership of our house church in Sofia.  Please, pray that Viktor will apply God’s wisdom for the proper adjustments in the leadership of our fellowship and yet help the healing of the heart of the person he needs to find unity with.

·         New home for living/ministry: God gave us a specific instruction not to borrow money through a word shared with us by a friend.  Yet, while trusting God, we feel the need to move in this new direction.

·         We still need financial provision for the goals of the ministry since the drop of the US dollar vs. the Euro remains a point of weakness in our support.

 

Immediately after the VBS Viktor spent a week in Wales with another church member visiting Liz and Stuart Watkins and their church in Llanelli.  We were part of a prophetic conference and had a good time building relationships with the saints in Wales who are interested in the revival of the Christian faith in both Wales and in Bulgaria.

 

This week we will leave for a 14 day vacation at  the Black Sea.  We feel that such a time of rest is long overdue for us.  Of course, true rest is only in Jesus and His promise to give a rest that this world cannot provide.  But it’s good to receive that blessing at the beach near the water, as well!

 

Thank you once again for your prayers and for your support for our work in Bulgaria!  Your prayers support us through times of trials and hardship.  May God’s blessing be with you,

Viktor and Teresa Kostov

 P.S. Please, check some photos below (only in the PDF version of the newsletter).  For more pictures go to our website http://kmission.netfirms.com/vbs2003