“Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.” ~Matthew 28:19-20
We have had an unusually cold and rainy few days here in Ruse at the beginning of June. However, despite the damp weather, we have been feeling encouraged, especially as we rejoiced in celebrating the first baptism at our church this past week, which was by far the highlight of the month, if not the year for us.
It is hard to put into words the immense joy that we experienced by being able to worship together with our church family on the special occasion of the baptism of our Pastor’s daughter Vera. Not only were all of our regular members and attendees present at the service, but several families from our mother church in the south of Bulgaria also came, and other family members and friends of our Pastor and his wife. We had a total of 55 people present, the largest gathering our church has had to date, and seeing our little church filled to brim brought both joy to our hearts and tears to our eyes! Vera’s baptism was such a beautiful testimony to us and all who attended of God’s goodness, the blessing of being a part of the global church where we can have so many brothers and sisters gather to celebrate together, as well as God’s faithfulness as he continues to encourage and grow our congregation. Since we were not able to attend or play at the Easter service this year due to our quarantine, we were also thankful for the opportunity to have extra musicians join us for the musical worship as a part of the service. Even a week later, seeing the pictures from the baptism and talking with Vera’s parents, our dear friends Iliya and Christina, is emotional for us.
Together we PRAISE God for this wonderful celebration we had together. We PRAY that Vera’s baptism is just the first of many for our congregation and that God would continue to encourage and work in the hearts of all who attended, whether they are long-time believers or those still seeking.
On a more personal note, and certainly not as exciting as Vera’s baptism news, Sarah played her last concert with the orchestra on May 22nd. We took advantage of a few free days after that for a getaway to the mountains to rest and be together before Sarah heads back to the states at the end of June. We both love exploring God’s creation, especially when mountains are involved, and we were very thankful for the opportunity to see some new parts of Bulgaria and enjoy a low-key vacation during the off-season before the summer crowds arrive.
We ask for your prayers in this transition. Specifically:
- That we would be able to wrap up and hand off our work here well
- That Sarah would receive a negative PCR test before her flight and that all her travel would go smoothly back to the states
- That Kevin’s residency documents would be approved and arrive in a timely manner
- For God’s direction as we make plans for the future and discern where He is calling to work/serve going forward
As we finish this season in Ruse, we continue to be blessed and encouraged by the many ways in which we see God moving in Bulgaria and going before us both in terms of ministry and our personal lives. We cannot wait to share more updates about our music program and other news in our upcoming newsletters, and thank you for your continued prayers and support.
Kevin and Sarah Pfister are NALC Global Workers, serving with Operation Mobilization, in Bulgaria. To learn more about the Pfister family or to partner with them in ministry, please visit: https://thenalc.org/partners/kevin-sarah-pfister/