Mission Maranatha in Yambol, Bulgaria

For the past three years Mission Maranatha has been labouring in seven of the churches in the area of Yambol, Bulgaria. Two of them were started by the Home Mission Team of Life of Christ Church of God United, where we served as the associate pastor in 1996-97. The humble work with the two small congregations has continuously grown to be a network of seven churches; five of the churches are newly founded and two are in villages where there has never been a Protestant church before. This has been possible through the powerful outreach ministries to orphans and widows that has touched both individuals and communities in a time of deep economical, political and social crises in Bulgaria.

Since none of the seven churches has a pastor, the itinerary of the small team of people comprising Mission Maranatha contains a minimum of four weekly trips to different areas. They often hold up to twelve services a week, and are always open for new opportunities for ministry. Their church meetings are always accompanied with miracles and healings, which has drawn many new converts.

Naturally, the magnitude of the work has drawn much opposition as well. It comes predominantly form Eastern Orthodox authorities, who are part of the traditional religious background in Bulgaria. Acting completely against the laws of Bulgaria, a nationalistic political organization, which deliberately opposes Protestantism of any kind condemning them as sectarians, has brought number of threats against the outreach work of the seven churches. The difficulty of the situation calls for our prayers.

Despite the numerous external obstacles and financial difficulties, the work of Mission Maranatha is continuously growing. The members of the team are regularly interviewed by Christian and secular newspapers informing of their work. They are also often asked to speak at seminars and church meetings. Mission Maranatha holds weekly program called Pentecost Today on the local radio station.

This is only a minimum excerpt of the work in Bulgaria. More detailed information will be soon sent to you from Mission Maranatha. Again, thank you for your continuous prayers and gracious support. May the Lord richly bless you.