"For as the earth bringeth forth her bud, and as the garden causeth the things that are sown in it to spring forth;
so the Lord GOD will cause righteousness and praise to spring forth before all the nations" Isaiah 61:11
Our praying friends and family in the Lord,
Spring has arrived in Bulgaria. A revival is taking place. The deadness of Winter is giving way to new life. Flowers are appearing, sometimes springing up in the most unlikely of places. The birds have regained their song. The fields, sown when everything was gray and dreary, are now green and lush. In every village the conversation centers itself upon what has been planted, how it is progressing, how to maintain it, and what remains to be done, all in earnest expectation of harvest. So too goes the work of God.
Since late Winter I have been attending meetings with Alish the younger. We traveled together four years ago, when I first arrived, and it is good to return to his meetings. Presently Alish is pastoring fourteen churches. A couple of years ago I wrote about his church in Staro Oryahovo; about how they needed to build an additional room due to increased attendance. Well, wherever the Lord is blessing the enemy is sure to fight. The family in whose house the church met, assumed preeminence over the pastor, and consequently splintered the church. Alish was devastated, naturally. He went from having a thriving church, with the need for additional meetings to accommodate people's hunger, to not even having a home for the faithful handful to meet in. One of his number volunteered to open a room to make due for the next service. At that service another member volunteered their home for a service. And so it continues to this day, except, it is no longer just meeting a necessity, believers are clamoring to have the church meet in their home. The woman of the house we met in last week, stood, testifying with tears in her eyes, how thankful she was that the church had come to her house. So thankful are the hosts and hostesses, that in many cases, to show their appreciation they fix a meal. What the enemy had thought would be their ruin, God turned into their blessing.
On Sundays, Bro. Cheatwood, our senior missionary, travels with us, and preaches at the meetings. He is 76 years old. Years ago, when the work began here, Bro. Ralph said it was his desire to take the right word in the right spirit to the people of Bulgaria. Bro. Ralph's advice for missionaries? Love the people and learn their language. He has given his life to the translation of the bible into Turkish. He works day and night, pouring himself into this labor of love. It is therefore both a blessing and privilege to watch him at work in the meetings, to hear him preach, to see his love. A few weeks back, after the last service of the day in Goren Chiflik, a woman who had attended the meeting invited us back to her house. There she confessed she wanted to be a believer but was fearful. For an hour Bro. Ralph addressed her fears, and witnessed to her one on one of the saving grace of the Lord Jesus. At the conclusion of his efforts, he told her we'd have prayer for her, and invited her to give her fears to God. We all knelt and prayed, and watched as a woman found a comforter. Thank God for faithful words and a loving witness.
Pray earnestly for us. We love and miss you all. May God continue to richly bless you for Jesus' sake.
Because of a living Saviour,
The William LeFevre Family
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