Hello from Bulgaria! I arrived in Atlanta, Georgia on June 29th for Launch, which was a time for our entire squad (46 racers and 3 alumni squad leaders) and 3 other squads to receive practical training, worship together, and be “launched” into God’s Kingdom beyond the USA. You could really feel the tension at Launch, the readiness to move and get the show on the road. It was a fun few days getting amped up with 200 other crazy people about to experience God across the world. We left ATL on July 3rd and experienced our first World Race “travel day.” 48 hours later and a few travel hiccups, we arrived at our first World Race ministry site for this month.
This month our team is traveling across Central and Southern Bulgaria, working with several ministries along the way. Our primary focus is serving the local community and building relationships in order to share the gospel. It’s one of our team’s primary goals to especially bless and encourage the local missionaries we encounter and leave a lasting impact in each place.
In just a few short days, we have had the opportunity to do and experience so much. The first two days, we spent time playing with Gypsy children in a dangerous neighborhood referred to by locals as the “Gypsy quarter.” It’s really a different world here. This community is very poor. Many of these kids are beaten by their parents and abandoned for months at a time while their mom and dad gamble and drink or leave to go work in nearby Greece 2 or 3 months at a time. Even as early as age 5, these little boys and girls are expected to step up and be the ones to go down to the market to get bread and food for their family.
Scripture says that the eyes are the lamp of the body, and I truly saw that those first days. As I looked into their eyes and saw the smiles on their faces, I knew who their Creator was. I could see Jesus in them. Most of these children only speak a form of Turkish/Gypsy or Bulgarian, which was challenging at times, but what has really amazed me was seeing how God’s love requires no translation. I saw first hand how love is a universal need. Even when you can’t speak somebody’s language, it doesn’t matter. Everyone, and especially kids, need love, they need hugs, they need someone to play with them, they need to know they matter. On Sunday for church, we worshiped with the children in their own language, and acted out a skit on the Good Samaritan with a teaching, and sung our own worship songs in English. We capped it off by laying hands and praying for individuals needing prayer.
