Sunday in Bulgaria

Today was our first Sunday in the country and our team split up for the morning service. Pastor Chuck and Lynda, along with Joey, Barbi, Linzi, and Kenne went to the Blagavest church here in Sofia where Pastor Chuck taught. The rest of us drove out to Elin Pelin and attended church there. After worship, all of the teens introduced themselves and spoke briefly to the congregation. Then Vance and I were given the opportunity to teach. Finally, Pastor Niki delivered some closing remarks. The amazing thing was, without any collaboration, all three of us spoke about the same things. It really is exciting how God works to speak what He wants to His church!

Afterward, the church fed us a huge meal of shopska, kufte, and kebapcha followed by dessert snacks and coffee. We were so amazed by their generous hearts and desire to bless us. I told them that even though we had come to serve them, they were teaching us how to serve. We finally waddled out of there, stuffed with food, and headed back to Sofia to rejoin the group!

We wrapped up the afternoon with a meeting between our teens and the teens from the Sofia church. After getting to know each other and praying together, we spent an hour or two preparing materials for the camp at the Black Sea. We had a great time working and fellowshipping together. While spending time with old friends, it was also a chance to meet many new teens as well.

Tonight, after a short break, we're cleaning our apartment top to bottom and packing everything we need for the Black Sea. Hopefully, we get to bed early because we wake up at 5:30 tomorrow morning to meet with the buses of children and then its off across Bulgaria to Albena for camp. It may be a few days until I update again, depending on internet availability there, but I will write as soon as possible to share all the new things God is doing.

In the meantime, keep us in your prayers and stay in touch. Many of you have been in contact through Facebook and Skype and the connection with all of you at home really helps alot! Also, feel free to leave comments here on the blog (as some of you have done) and I will make sure to read them to the entire team.

Finally, if you have a Facebook account, add me as your friend (Mike Kern) and take one of our "How Well Do You Know the Bulgaria Servant Team" quizzes. They are funny and informative and you will hear about some funny things that aren't mentioned here in the blog. Thank you for your support and God bless!