December 18, 2019
In the life that God gives to us, there are many great blessings, but none so good as the friends that He binds together with our hearts. Such is the case with Jessie and Carolea Scott, who started out as good friends to John’s parents, Jim and Carole, as soon as they moved to Angleton in the 90’s, but soon became good friends to us as well, and supporters of our ministry in Moldova, and later, to our ministry in Bulgaria with T&F International. They have blessed us with loving hearts and good advice throughout the years. Last week, Jessie went home to be with his Lord and Savior. We want to honor the memory of his quiet, but faithful heart for the Lord and loving concern for His people. Pray for comfort for Carolea and their children and grandchildren as they miss him dearly.
December 3, 2019
As you pray about giving on this Giving Tuesday, consider the ministry to pastors and their families in Bulgaria, who are a thin line of faithful watchmen standing in the gap for their congregations and their country. Consider giving to T&F International by clicking here.
November 6, 2019
Two weeks ago, John began a training for preachers and Bible teachers here in Sofia. Fourteen members of the Christian Baptist Church – Mladost are participating in this two-day seminar with an extra day of sharing their messages with feedback. This Saturday will be the third meeting where each seminar student will present their biblically-based sermon or teaching. Pray for these as they prepare this week. And pray for them, as they learn how to do this method, that they will make biblically-based messages the staple of their teaching and preaching.
October 17, 2019
On Sunday, John spoke in the small town of Krupnik, with a new friend (and interpreter), Mitko Angelov. Mitko works with Youth With a Mission Network. We went into depth on God’s call to repentance, both at the beginning moments of our faith in Jesus, and then throughout our daily walk as Christians.
~ Pray for this church in Krupnik and for their pastor, Emile, who is recovering from exhaustion.
~ Pray that we all will live lives of repentant faith.
September 29, 2019
On Saturday, September 21st, we joined about 3000 Bulgarian evangelical believers for the National Day of Prayer in Bulgaria in the city of Varna. For three hours, we all lifted up the needs of the nation, of the church in Bulgaria, and for reaching the world for Jesus Christ. It was good to see so many of the pastors that we visit and work with participating in leading the people. And as always, it is a great day to see so many Bulgarians believers together in one place, but, moreso, to join together in prayer to the Lord God for His mercy, help, and presence with us. We thank you also for your prayers, advice, and gifts that allow us to minister to the wonderful people in Bulgaria!
September 20, 2019
John and Victor Makarov visited the city of Lom last weekend, teaching the doctrines surrounding Jesus Christ. It was the first in a series of seminars to be held at Second Baptist Church, Mladenovo, pastored by Nachko Zaikov. The focus is not simply knowledge of the truth, but application to one’s own heart – that is, discipleship. Pastor Nachko wants his leaders in the church to both know and be transformed by God’s Word. Pray for this church and for all God’s people in Bulgaria who want to grow in the true faith and love for God.
September 13, 2019
Tomorrow John and our friend and interpreter, Victor, will travel to Lom in the northeast of Bulgaria. We will meet with pastors and leaders in their churches to begin a seminar on the basic doctrines of the Bible, entitled, “Pressing On: To the Higher Calling of My Lord.” We will begin the quarterly series of discussions with the doctrine on Jesus Christ. Please pray for these pastors and church leaders, that they may truly confront their own need for the sound doctrine found in God’s Word. Pray also that they may turn to their brothers and sisters in their churches to aid them to learn God’s genuine truth and to seek a deeper relationship with Him.
August 28, 2019
We just finished our five-week Bulgarian language course! Thank you for praying for us as we studied hard while the Bulgarians went on holiday. We do believe that we have moved up to the next level in our study, particularly in being able to converse with people – and that’s important! We do want to thank our instructor, Violeta (far left), and our classmates: Nadya, Stas, and Niki. You can try your own hand at learning a bit of Bulgarian with the following tools. Then come to Bulgaria and help us!
July 23, 2019
This past weekend we visited Burgas, Bulgaria, where we held a sermon preparation training for twenty-five pastors and Bible teachers. Using seminars and workshop discussions, these men and women worked through the material to create their own sample sermon based on a passage from the Letter of James. There are a variety of preaching methods used by pastors in Bulgaria, not all of which conform to the essential role of a sermon: to teach the primary message God has given from His holy word, and to do so through effective communication to the hearts of today’s people. Pray that those who preach in Bulgaria will, like Jacob, cling to God’s message until they know and experience His blessing. Then pray that they will turn around and share all that they know with others in a way that will makes sense and give the opportunity for heart change. Pray for us as we continue to stand with God and His Word, and that we will effectively communicate all that He has taught our hearts.
July 18, 2019
Tomorrow, Friday, July 19th, and Saturday, the 20th, we will conduct a sermon preparation seminar in the city of Burgas, located on the Black Sea coast. We are doing this at the request of a Methodist pastor named, Erdjan. The group of twenty will be primarily Turkish-speaking pastors and Bible teachers from several denominations. We have based our material on the book, Scripture Sculpture, by Ramesh Richard. Please pray for us as we go and teach these seminars, that our words and the ideas will be clear in the interpretation into Bulgarian, and that the pastors will welcome the ideas and be able to use them to enhance their own preaching. Pray that God’s Word will be proclaimed from pulpits all around Bulgaria!
June 30, 2019
Our first Women’s Conference was a great blessing to over ninety women from Lom and the surrounding area this weekend! God’s truth was taught, hearts were encouraged, and a deepening sense of unity among the ten churches represented was recognized, even by the husbands and pastors, as the women related their time afterward. Thank you for praying and giving to this moment! As you view the photos below, know that each name tag represents a face in the crowd, and though you may not be able to read the names, believe that God knows each name, each face, and each heart, and ask Him to transform each one, more and more into the likeness of Jesus. It is a wonderful blessing to take part in God’s work in the lives of others!
June 15, 2019
OK, yes, we have been quiet for a while, but that does not mean that we have not been working. Some ministry is loud, like leading worship, or speaking in a church or on the street. And some ministry is kept to simple conversations with pastors and their wives that can range between quiet counsel and uproarious laughter. But some ministry is simply quiet with almost no sound or words spoken. That is what we have been doing for the past few weeks as we prepare all the materials and promotion necessary for the coming women’s conference in Lom, Bulgaria, June 28-29 (which, you can be assured, will be QUITE LOUD!). We have been doing a lot of preparation of materials: both creation and translation of seminar talks with their accompanying workbooks and PowerPoint presentations, as well as promotional posters and fliers, and gifts for the attendee such as bookmarks, key-chains, journals, and gift bags, all designed to encourage the women to take up the full Armor of God each day and stand firm with our God against the enemy of this world. Please pray as we work to complete all that is necessary to make this conference one that will be used of God for His glory and for the blessing of the women of Bulgaria.
May 30, 2019
On June 28-29, we will hold a women’s conference for the city of Lom and the surrounding villages in northwest Bulgaria. Sylvia has been working together with the pastors’ wives of the area to prepare this gathering. The theme of the conference will be “The Armor of God,” based on Priscilla Shirer’s book and video series. Sylvia herself will be one of the key speakers, along with Dr. Katie Patterson, an Australian missionary, and Katya Raichinova, a Bulgarian friend working with Young Life in Sofia. Please pray that God will lead and protect the leaders as they prepare all that is needed to bless the women of the area. The pastors’ wives find this teaching as necessary and timely for the women of Bulgaria, even for themselves. Pray that these women will come to know and use God’s spiritual armor in their daily lives.
May 9, 2019
This past week, we visited the Stara Zagora region of Bulgaria, plus a side trip to the city of Burgas, each a completely new area of ministry for us. We had the privilege to meet about 20 new pastors and their wives. Among those were Rumen and Tinka (seen above) a young couple who have been living and working among the people of the town of Rozino. We met them on Saturday afternoon, on the day when Rumen was being ordained. John was privileged to preach the pastoral challenge to Rumen. It is clear that their godly influence in the town is impactful. As Stilian Mihailov, the bishop of the Bulgarian Churches of God in that area, asked the 50+ people of the church whether Rumen met each of the 1 Timothy criteria for being a pastor, there were shouts of affirmation. Even the woman in charge of the public community center, where Rumen and Tinka work with children and youth, had glowing praise for Rumen’s community leadership. It is pastors like this, filled with God’s love for His people, whom God is using to bring Christ to the people of Bulgaria. Please pray for such pastors, their wives, and families, as they share God’s love of His people throughout Bulgaria.
April 28, 2019
We had the great blessing to be invited to Constanza, Romania, to visit our good friends, Daniel and Felicia Fodorean. Daniel had worked with John’s father, Jim Putman, for many years, before becoming our friend as well. Daniel invited John to give the challenge message at the General Assembly of the Baptist churches in and around Constanza. This was extra special since it marked the 10th anniversary of T&F International ministry on April 9, and Constanza was the site of our very first mission trip after forming the organization.
Besides speaking at the assembly, we visited an outreach ministry to Turkish-Muslim children in a district called, Ali Baba. The children are taught Bible stories and do crafts together. They have as many as 80 children in one large room and you can imagine the commotion! Pray that God’s Word goes to them and does not come back void!
On Sunday, John also spoke in three church services and we were able to meet with the pastors and their wives. All of them invited us to move to Romania! Surely we can return and help in some way, but our call and our heart is in Bulgaria. Pray for Daniel and Felicia. Daniel is retiring from his ministry in Constanza and will now be the Vice-President of the Baptist Seminary in Bucharest, the Romanian capitol. They have much to do in the next few months to make their way to God’s new ministry for them.
April 5, 2019
Last week, we took an extended trip to Varna on the Black Sea coast. We left on the overnight train Wednesday evening, visited pastors and their families Thursday through Saturday, spent Sunday with the New Life Church pastor, Trif and his wife, Vania, then returned by overnight train, arriving in Sofia Monday morning. One special moment occurred at the Sunday morning worship service, when Dr. Pece Aleksovski, delivered the sermon. Pece had gone through the sermon preparation training that John had directed last July in Varna. Everyone recognized that he did well in his first sermon and the congregation applauded as he finished!
We praise God that he is taking our efforts and using them for His glory in Bulgaria! In our talks with pastors, we discussed strategy for church planting, education for church leaders, women’s ministry, training for new pastors, and evangelistic efforts. Please pray for all those you see here. Pastoring, and spouses working alongside in ministry, is hard work, with little reward, and often very lonely. Varna churches do have a good network among themselves for encouragement, but the “field” there is very often stony and thorny soil. Pray that the gospel seed will take deep root in the good soil of people’s hearts.
March 14, 2019
Ministering in worship services in Bulgaria can take the whole weekend. While in the Lom area visiting pastors, and preparing for the women’s conference to be held in June, we were invited to participate in worship services in two wonderful, but very different churches. On Saturday evening, we visited the Church of Prophecy, in the city of Lom, with Pastor Boris Alexandrov and his wife, Fila. There were over 100 people and the service was filled with a charismatic energy. On Sunday morning, we visited a Baptist church in the town of Yakimovo, held in the home of the pastor, Sviatoslav Slavkov and his wife, Galina. In this meeting there were 20 people (up from 4-5 last summer) and the service was simple and prayerful. The churches are different sizes and with different atmospheres, but Christ is given glory in both! God is working among the Bulgarian people and shows Himself strong in support of those whose hearts are completely His.
March 10, 2019
This weekend we visited Lom in northwestern Bulgaria. Sylvia led a group of pastors’ wives in a quick study of the Armor of God in preparation for leading a conference for the women of the churches of the area, June 7-8. Please pray for this event and consider donating to help a woman to attend.
John also visited several pastors in the area. With each time we meet together, there is a stronger, deeper relationship developing. Questions are being asked; counsel sought. Pray for these men, their families, and their churches. They really are doing very good work among the believers in Lom!
February 28, 2019
Pray for us as we make our way north to the city of Lom on the Danube River just across from Romania. Sylvia will be leading pastors’ wives through Priscilla Shirer’s The Armor of God material as they prepare for our first women’s conference. The ladies will be determining all the details, including when it will be held, but probably in late May-early June. Meanwhile, John will be meeting with the pastors individually, and speaking at some key meetings. Pray that God will bless all involved and that we will continue to be helpful to these servants of God.
February 16, 2019
Two weeks in and we are back to our regular routine… studying Bulgarian, visiting with friends, and planning for this new year of ministry. Please pray as we set up appointments for ministry with pastors and their wives and families. Pray also for a women’s conference that Sylvia is preparing for in late May. We hope that 150 women will be able to come and learn how to use God’s Spiritual Armor. And pray as John prepares a ministry aid for pastors who need to disciple their people into leadership for their churches. We look forward to this great new year serving our Lord in Bulgaria!
January 25, 2019
Well, YES, we have been in Texas for a while, but next Wednesday, we shall depart for Bulgaria to start a New Year of ministry. We have been sharing the great experiences of what we have witnessed God doing through our ministry among pastors and their wives and families with anyone who will listen. We especially want to thank Alamo City Church and Strong Tower Church in San Antonio, and Northway Baptist Church in Angleton for allowing us the time to share with those who pray for us, give to the needs of the ministry, and (soon) will join us by taking their own ministry trips to Bulgaria. God bless you all who have made our time in Texas blessed! We need your prayers, gifts, and service as the Lord Jesus opens more doors to bless His hard-working Bulgarian servants in the year 2019.
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