Revival BULGARIA
M3: Mobile Power for the Ministry
After traveling almost 4,000 miles, I am finally at the 2010 BibleTech listening to Antoine’s talk on mobile technology in the ministry. Antoine is the main guy behind the Mobile Ministry Magazine and a great friend, but I am sitting in his lecture for more than just the code and the algorithm. I am a practitioner in the ministry.
Thousands of Bulgarian speaking people across the globe rely on our team every day to receive a verse from the Bible via SMS. Our Bibliata.TV website has become the Bulgarian GodTube with over 10,000 daily visitors, 1,500 active uploaders and hitting a half petabite monthly traffic in video exchange. So, I am more than just a listener – I am here for the power of the experience.
I met Antoine last year at BibleTech in Seattle. I shared with him our ministry in Bulgaria and abroad, and he offered to help us. Not long after the conference, I received in my office a Nokia 5800, which according to Antoine had more than one advantage over the iPhone, but the one that concerned me the most was the uStream app.
Speaking at the Leadership Development Institute earlier that year, I mentioned uStream but being busy with other projects never paid too much attention to it. Now, I had a reason to try it. No more than five minutes after opening the FedEx package I was broadcasting LIVE on a dozen of our ministry’s websites. Five more minutes and people were actually watching. Hundreds of them.
WOW! I stopped for a pause, because my heart was racing. The potential of one small mobile device applied to the ministry of the church was overwhelming and I needed to pray.
A week later I had convinced two Bulgarian churches to broadcast their services via uStream. Two more joined on the following Sunday, one of them being a Bulgarian speaking congregation in Chicago. A Bulgarian minister from Spain began broadcasting on Thursday nights as over 50 people were logged in and ready to watch 30 minutes before his broadcast. We then put LIVE online the annual conference of Bulgarian churches in North America. Then the Global Day of Prayer from downtown Sofia was watched by 35,000 people LIVE on our Bibliata.com website.
Before we ever returned for our ministry term in Bulgaria, we had over a dozen churches broadcasting LIVE services on Sunday alone plus additional LIVE services on every night of the week except Monday. We received hundreds of emails with testimonies of dramatic healings and life transformations. And this has been going on for over one year now. All because of a small portable telephone that can fit on the palm of my hand and travel with me oversees in the pocket of my blue jeans. I guess I can say it like this: this phone was made for preaching!
John Maxwell says that while training followers adds to your church, training leaders multiplies it. I call this the G2 effect – the growth of the church in a geometrical progression. Like the story of chess boards (2, 4, 16, 256, etc). But the use of mobile technology in the ministry multiplies its effectiveness tridimensionally, adding to it a mobile dimension as a Rubik Cube. I call it M3 – a mobile motivational ministry factor that is unprecedented. And this is something the church cannot afford to miss if it wishes to remain relevant in postmodernity.
Lecturing at the University of Nebraska
Christmas in Bulgaria: Appreciating the Simple Things in Life
Roasting chestnuts over an open fire and Jack Frost nipping at your nose is a comforting carol which brings many pleasant feelings around the holidays. These are two features, which are not only common to the States, but to Bulgaria as well. This is the season of chestnuts being roasted, however it is not like we picture being over a cozy fire place in a warm home. In Bulgaria it would be on the street side to sell in order to bring in some income for your family. And the Jack Frost is not just a nip for some, but it is a bone chilling cold due to not being able to afford the electric bill.
For some, there will be no gift under the tree and for others there will not even be a tree. This is not said to bring you sorrow, but for you to appreciate the simple things in life. Enjoy family, friendships, a warm home, a hot meal, your health. Enjoy the time the Lord has given you and use it for his Glory and not for bickering or complaining over the small angst.
Don’t loose sight of the true meaning of Christmas. Christmas is not about the material, but it is about the spiritual. It is about the birth of our Lord and Savior even though our politically correct society wants to get ride of the “Christ” in “Christmas.” If it were not for His birth, He would not have been able to die for our sins. This remission of sin is the ultimate gift this Christmas season for it is through this act that we are able to have eternal life if we only ask.
So when you wake up on the 25th begin your day not consumed with what you didn’t get or what didn’t happen to your liking, but in silence remembering the silent and holy night over 2000 years ago. Remember those less fortunate in order not to take for granted with what you have been blessed. And most of all thank Him for His gift to you. Let these thoughts bring you comfort this holiday season.
Merry CHRISTmas 2009
From all of us in Bulgaria!
Fresh Revival Fire in Yambol
After the storm in Plovdiv quieted down some, our team returned to one of our bases in the city Yambol for a special service with Bulgarian Church of God Roma Bishop Iliya Panov. As his praise band from Sofia’s Life Church of God worshiped the Lord and ministered the Word, the Holy Spirit fell with power over the Yambol congregation. Some hundred people came to the altars raising their hands toward the heavens, crying and praying. They pleaded with God for a spiritual revival in a way that we have not seen in Bulgaria since the early 1990s.
While this mighty move of the Spirit was literally being absorbed by the people, the director of our regional ministries gave a call for prayer for the baptism with the Holy Ghost. Immediately, prayer groups were formed around the people who raised their hands for prayer and only minutes later several received the baptism and were speaking in heavenly languages. People were crying and praying all over the church house now transformed in a heavenly sanctuary by the presence of the Holy God. A lady with a spiritual gift reported seeing a vision of the Holy Spirit descending as a cloud over the church during the service.
* * *
We realize while writing these words how close they sound to the reports of the Azusa street revival from the beginning of the 20thcentury. And having seen the power of God moving through churches and people all across the country of Bulgaria, we cannot remain silent any more. We must testify what our eyes have beheld, that we have seen the glory of God and He is doing a new thing in Bulgaria again.
2009 X Event: Transforming the Status Quo
X youth event, which was held on September 9, 2009 in the city of Samokov near Sofia was a complete success. Six Roma worship teams from the Bulgarian Church of God with special participation of the Elley gospel band from the Central Church of God in Sofia and the worship team of Pastor Iliya Panov participated in this three hour long event, which finished with preaching and prayer provided by Cup & Cross Ministries International. Several thousand were in attendance from various parts of Bulgaria and abroad. Some pastors brought their complete congregations, others attended with family and friends, but we all gathered together ready for a new touch from God.
We named this year’s event “Transforming the Status Quo” for three reasons. First, the date 9.9.9 itself is somewhat controversial and we chose it under the leadership of the Holy Spirit to transform it from a spiritualistic superstition into a spiritual celebration. Secondly, September 9, 1944 is the date when the Communist Revolution took place in Bulgaria, and this year on this very date we asked of God to change the catastrophe of communism to the abundance of blessings for Bulgaria. And finally, our event was held in one of the largest Gipsy ghettos of Bulgaria, where thousands of Roma people were touched by the power of the Spirit.
We are truly thankful to all who partnered with us and made this event possible as part of our annually Harvest Campaign in Bulgaria. This year the Lord allowed us to create the proper environment with a professional stage and lightning, over 50kW of sound equipment, professional cameras and photography crews. The complete event was broadcasted LIVE on the internet and watched by thousands of people in Bulgaria and abroad. But most important of all, the name of the Lord Jesus Christ was lifted up above any other name at the 2009 X event in Samokov, Bulgaria.
Blue Fire
By Kathryn Nell Donev
This past weekend while camping on top of the mountain of Petrohan with fellow believers, the Lord displayed his glory in many unique manifestations. Some people were baptized in the Spirit, while others received a fresh blessing with new direction for their lives. Many more were healed instantaneously, as the Lord’s presence was both glorious and gentle remaining with us throughout the night.
Saturday evening, while in prayer around one of the torches which surrounded the perimeter of the tents, the Lord revealed to me in an ever peaceful way that we are to be “Blue Fire”.
The blue fire is the part of the flame which one does not really consider when thinking about a flame. It is the element, which is at the base of the flame burning closest to the source. Therefore, the blue fire is the part with the most oxygen which allows for complete combustion. It is in this state, leaving no residue, where the flame is the purest. The blue fire is the hardest to blow out and remains light even in the strongest winds. And despite popular belief, the blue part of the flame, and not the red one, is the hottest part of the fire.
The red flame receives its color from the impurities in the air that are being combusted. These impurities absorb heat and are the cause for the red fire not being as hot as the blue fire. Since the red fire is not hot enough to reach the state of complete combustion not being close enough to the source, it leaves a soot residue, which contaminates its surroundings. And when the wind blows it does not remain strong.
We are not simply to be on fire for God with a red flame, but we are to be on fire for God with a blue flame. We are to be “Blue Fire”. We are to be the hottest and most constant of the fire. And it is in doing this that we provide true light to our surroundings and not residue. We are to remain as hot as blue fire in order to be without impurities, uncontaminated by the world. For it is the blue fire which does not to waiver in the wind; and it is the blue fire which remains as one with the source of the flame.
Resurrection in Bulgaria
by Kathryn DonevThe Old Testament reports of three resurrections from the dead and the New
Testament reports of at least seven more, including the daughter of Jairus
shortly after her death, a young man from Nain in the midst of his own funeral
procession and Lazarus, who had been buried for three days.
It was at the very moment of Christ’s death that tombs opened and many who were
dead awaken. According to the Gospel of Matthew, after Christ’s resurrection,
many of the saints whom were dead came out of their tombs and entered
Jerusalem, where they appeared to many. These are the accounts of which we
read in Scripture.
It is true that the same God, who raised people from the dead over two thousand
years ago, still works in the lives of His people today. He is still on
the throne and performs miraculous works including raising his children from
the dead. It is true that He still moves stones.
Last Easter, we reported of a gentleman who had been raised from the dead.
During this past term of ministry in Bulgaria we had the opportunity to
personally meet his wife who prayed for him as he fell dead. She was in
attendance of one of our services and we used the occasion to acquire some
details of the resurrection. She was able to give a full account with the
testimony of her whole family, reporting of the miraculous power of God who
brought her husband back to life. For a neverchanging, all-powerful God we
return to Him thanks.
Ministry Not for Sale
My son, if sinners entice thee, consent thou not (Proverbs 1:10)
Several years ago, while employed with a certain organization, we faced the dilemma to choose between what was morally right and what was financially secure. Regardless of the jeopardy of this predicament, we were able to make the right decision, preserving our integrity and disallowing financial pressure to dictate our moral choices. Soon thereafter, we initiated a healing process which dealt with the internal wounds, restored the lost trust and attempted to recover the invested time and resources. Years past, we forgot the pain, but never forgot the lesson we learned …
Recently, while involved in a global ministry campaign, we were faced with a similar situation. This time, however, it did not involve business partners, but a multitude of Pentecostal ministers. The larger size of the context did not change the problem at hand, but rather intensified and multiplied its harmful effects. We regretfully witnessed how hundreds of men and women involved in ministry were manipulatively forced to face the same dilemma. They had to make a mandatory choice between the financial security of their families and their own moral integrity. The results were accordingly. Read more
