Mounds of glass lay shattered on the muddy ground. It looked like someone had taken a sledgehammer to multiple glass doors, creating layers of dirt-covered crystals amidst the uneven terrain. A scene that my mother would have blocked off until it could be cleaned up by adults was instead filled with squealing children jumping straight through the glass without a care in the world. My first reaction was to lean down and try to pick up as much glass as possible to get it out of these kids’ backyard. I bent down and began to throw handful after handful into my trash bag. But after 15 minutes of non-stop cleaning without being able to notice a difference, I began to question if this pile was worth my time.
I scanned the area to make sure every Roma child was wearing durable shoes. They were. I looked at the trash scattered around me that I could easily pick up and see a noticeable difference in the cleanliness of the entrance to this community. There were plenty of other areas to clean. But I couldn’t just leave the pile of glass that could bring harm to these kids.
I kept picking at the glass with care, making sure to not slice through my gloves into my hands. Intermingled in the pile I found an animal jaw bone with the teeth still in tact, a used diaper, and food wrapper after food wrapper. Other teammates would come by and comment on the amount of glass, picking up a bit and then moving on. As I began to feel myself ready to label this a lost cause, I felt God telling me that this broken glass is an image of His people.
We all have brokenness. We have broken relationships. We have broken views on the world. We have broken perceptions of ourselves and others. We can even have brokenness in how we view God.
But He never gives up on us. He wants to bring restoration and purity to our lives.
This month in Bulgaria we are working with those whom society may have deemed a lost cause or beyond repair. In partnership with American missionaries Keith and Margie, my team is doing a variety of ministries in Stara Zagora and the surrounding areas, all with the prayer that God will bring restoration, healing, love, and hope to people groups often cast aside.
We are doing children’s ministry with kids in a Roma (gypsy) community, reminding them that they are loved and that God has great plans for their lives. Last Saturday a group of about 15 kids voluntarily came to the little box-car church at the front of their community to hear us share our testimonies. After we shared, the pastor asked the kids who would like to follow God on a journey like what He has called our team to, and every child’s hand shot up in the air. These children are the future of their community, and it is beautiful to see how they are pursuing God. Margie told us that most Roma children stop going to school between 4th and 8th grade, either due to lack of funds or due to a culture of early marriage and childbearing. Through the church in this community, children are encouraged to read the Bible and pursue education, setting up a new mentality for this culture.
Other days we work with women in prostitution, showing them that they have value and there are ways for them to find freedom from this lifestyle. There is a two-lane highway that circles Stara Zagora, and prostitutes are scattered along the highway waiting for men to pick them up. We bring them coffee, snacks, and conversation, trying to impress upon them that they are important, their lives matter, and God loves them. Margie has shared with us that many girls will leave their pimps and then return to them multiple times, and so it is our job to show them that God’s love is relentless. By Margie never giving up on helping these women, she exhibits the kind of unconditional love that God has for them. It may take a girl ten times of leaving prostitution before she leaves for good, so even if it seems like Margie’s efforts are getting nowhere, she knows that God is still pursuing that woman and He never gives up on her.
Today we went to a home for the elderly to share our testimonies, worship, and pray for each resident. We saw the joy on the residents’ sweet faces as they were given the opportunity to share some of their stories and to receive a prayer of blessing from us. For a segment of the population that is often overlooked, we are able to show them that God still has plans for their lives. By going each week, we hope to impress upon these men and women that they are loved and valued.
In the coming weeks, we will most likely be visiting a nearby refugee camp. Yet again, we pray that God would bring restoration and hope to lives displaced and burdened.
No matter how messy our lives get or how broken we think we are, God has a plan for us. His love can endure picking through the piles of glass, animal bones, diapers, and wrappers that are our baggage. He brings restoration and hope, even when the rest of the world thinks we are beyond repair.
Please join my team in praying for the Roma kids, the women in prostitution, the elderly, and the refugees that we are encountering. Please be praying that God would speak truth and wisdom through us, and that every person we come into contact with will know God’s relentless love.
Thanks so much for reading and praying!
