Al & Diane Mellinger's Missionary Adventure

Our Meeting Location!

November 5, 2009 - Well last week I said I would tell you more about the Petrich Church group and the our new meeting location.  It has been the goal for a while to go a bit more public with our meetings, but we have been waiting for the local folk to want that to happen.  We have suggested it and ask them to look this month it clicked.  We have a great little room (and rest room) that will work for the English Clubs and Bible Study and hopefully a few more events to reach out and serve the community.  It is right across the street from the City Soccer Stadium where there is lots of space and room to have activities for youth.  (And we have a parking lot we can use too!)  Below is a photo of the location and the inside.

We have found 20 chairs that are sturdy and comfortable and have a list of others things we are looking for.  We want to get a cabinet for the coffee and tea things as well as some lockable cabinets for things we need to secure.  

This week pray for the work here – we are going to start meeting there on November 18, 2009.  Until then we are getting it ready.  In Early December we want to have an Open House for the community to come and see. I will let you know when that will be. 

The Petrich Church Plant is an Extra Mile Project and you can give to it if you want to help us with getting this started – That can be done on line through our web site www.almellinger.com click on the giving link and follow the online instructions or a check can be mail to our mission Board – (email me for the address)

Also, this week pray for the Church Leaders Conference that will be taking place next week in Budapest, Hungary.  This is a gathering of all the missionaries and church leaders that our mission organization works with in Europe. Pray for this gathering as plans will be set for the next ten years.

 

 

Fall is Here and that Means Change!

October 29, 2009 - This week those who read this in the states will be changing the clocks back 1 hour. For those in Europe we did that last Saturday.  The changing of the clocks means fall is here and winter if coming soon.  We have had a great fall - it has been busy with travels and training and planning.  Just how we like it.  The leaves change their colors and that is another sign that autumn is here. Change is good and it can be hard.  There are some changes coming for the work in Petrich (I will tell you about that in the coming weeks).  Pray for the church here as we go through some change.

This weekend I will be teaching a group of about 40 pastors in the center of Bulgaria.  Pray for us as we travel and teach that God's word and truth would change the Pastors and how they do ministry.

We have been hearing back from many who are taking on the Virtual Christmas Gift Box Project for this Christmas - Thank You - We are needing the funds turned into Free Methodist World Missions Office by Nov 30 to get the funds here for us to use.  (I have been asked so I thought I would tell everyone) Click here if you want more information on this Extra Mile Project!

Witness at McDonalds?

October 22, 2009 – Last week as I was traveling to Sofia to head out to England, I stopped of at McDonalds (It’s not to bad and it is quick).  I went in and order the Big Mac Menu (that is we call the value meal in the states).  After I ordered what I wanted in my broken Bulgarian – the gal said (In Bulgarian but I am going to put it in English) “you are a Christian aren’t you – you came to my church”  I said yes I am what church do you attend?  She told me and I had indeed been to her church several times.

Now what does that say about your witness?  I was all by myself just passing through McDonalds quickly and yet people know you and watch you. I guess I have now been here long enough and been to many places that more people will know who I am than I know who they are. 

I have to be on guard even at McDonalds as folks are watching what we do, how we act and whether or not we live what say.  You are always a “Witness for Christ”  you are never “Off Duty”  Following Christ is a 24/7 365 day a year thing.   How we behave when we are not preaching or teaching might be the sermon that they remember.

Just something I was thinking about this week.

Praise God for a great and productive time in England.

Praise God for a great Bible Study here in Petrich this week

Pray for the plans for the next Love Bulgaria Catch Fire Festival (www.lvbulgaria.com)

 

Bits and Pieces

October 15, 2009 – Last Friday (the day of our last post) we traveled to a region of the country near Plovdiv (second Largest City) to visit the church of a pastor who had attended a training we held recently.  He took us to meet another Pastor in another village.  Both Pastors had a hugh love for God and a desire to see the lost come to know Christ.  They have a small network of Pastors there and during our conversation they requested training for these Pastors – so before we left I was schedule to return on October 31, 2009 for a day of Training. It amazes me how God continues to network us to accomplish the task God has sent us here to do!  Pray for this training day in 2 weeks.

Our Catch Fire Festival for November still needed a place for us to hold it and we asked you to pray – well this week God answered that prayer – a Church called Blaga Vest is building a new place and is opening it in November. They offered to let us have it there – we will be the first outside group to use it!  We are so thankful and very excited as we partner with this church to reach and work with teens. They too were excited about the entire training and want to send there group to the Summer Conference as well.

Monday we picked up or residency card and are legal for another year!  Thanks for praying about this – getting paper work through Government agencies can be a bit problem and we did hit a few bumps they were easily fixed. 

A few weeks ago I shared about my son’s car.  The transmission went out and it was less than 3 years old – well because of prayer and some help of people who know people – Honda agreed to fix it at a reduced rate.  Instead of $4,500 (which it could have been) they fixed it for $1,450 – which is still a lot of money but much less.  And with the kind gifts from a church and some folks he had about half of that given to him.  We are amazed and humbled by the generosity of God’s people.  Thanks for pray and helping when we couldn’t.

This weekend I (Al) am traveling to England for meetings with RIN BG and Renewal Christian Center.  They are a church that we work with to do a lot of the training.  It is always nice to go.  This trip we will be working on the budget for next year as well as the schedule so please keep this in your prayers.

We again want to thank all who partner with us and remember us in pray and with financial support.  Some folk due to job loss or cut backs have had to stop giving we understand and are praying for them.  If you could encourage others to help and give to our support we would appreciate it.  If trend continue as they are we might be between $8,000 and $10,000 short on our personal support.  We would appreciate prayer for this.

Catch Fire Festival – It was a God thing!

October 7, 2009 – Last Saturday, we held the first of our Catch Fire Festival (www.lvbulgaria.com)  in Bulgaria for teens.  They are a follow up day event to the Summer Love Bulgaria Conference.  The purpose is to again gather students to challenge and remind them about their roll and opportunities to share Christ in their world.

Our first one was to be in Ruse, Bulgaria (this town is about 7 hours from where we live).  They had a group this summer of about 20 from that area attend the conference so we wanted to go to where they were.  We hoped that we would have 40-50 students attend.  WE had 140+ students attend.  Many now want to attend the Love Bulgaria Conference next Summer.  We also were able to connect with new Pastors of Churches who express interest in more training like this for Pastors too!

 

Our guest speaker was Brad Hawkes – International Coordinator for New Gerneration (www.newgenerationuk.com) - a ministry that helps train and equip young people to take their faith to the schools!  Go to their website to learn more.

Brad did a great job and the teens had lots of questions.  They really do want to share their faith in Jesus and are so hungry to learn how.   It was a reminder that teens are wanting to make a difference if we will let them. 

I am a dreamer and am always looking at what we can do next and so we are praising God because He keeps doing things that we do not expect and yet they are what we want to see happen.  God is great and He is reaching this generation and we are a part of it and you through your prayers are too!

The plan is to have two Catch Fire Festivals this fall (Next one tentatively scheduled for November 28, 2009) and some more in the spring.  So expect to hear more about these events!

Pray for all those who attend last weekends Catch Fire Festival – that they would do something that they learned.

Pray for the plans for the November Catch Fire Festival – lots of detail to work out on this one yet.

Pray for the plans and the committee we want to assemble to organize next summers Love Bulgaria Youth Evangelism Conference. (July 19-24, 2010)

Also our latest Newsletter is now posted on line click here to read or print it.