9/28/2006 - Martin's Update
Dear Friends and Family,
I hope that this letter finds you and yours well. I know that it has been quite
some time since I last sent an update, and I apologize. I haven’t written
anything, because I didn’t really have a whole lot to tell you about what was
going on here, and to go on about the whole difficult situation here would only
sound like whining. However, we are now coming out the other side of the
wilderness with the victory! I will try very hard to keep this letter short!
For starters, when last I wrote I had closed the soup kitchen due to lack of
funds, and had cancelled the work contracts of the employees. From there final
day of employment hey have a two month period where they have the right to sue
if they feel that they were wrongfully fired. There were threats of lawsuits
against us from wrongful termination to social oppression. Praise the Lord, the
two month period ended the first week of September, and there were no lawsuits!
During those two months of waiting I didn’t just sit around and twiddle my
thumbs. I have had to be in Lovech at the beginning of each month to pay rents,
salaries, and other bills, but I have been free to do other ministry.
I have preached nearly every Sunday since the VBS mission team was here for
three weeks in June in cities across Bulgaria, and in Romania and Hungary! I
have not been sitting still. I even went to Ukraine for a week to see some
friends, and go to the Black Sea in Crimea for a couple of days.
In July, I was sitting in my apartment one Monday evening when I had the strong
sense that I should go to Romania and help my friend, Jackie Ramsey, who is a
missionary near Arad. The feeling was so strong that I immediately got up, and
called her. She was sick, and she asked me to please come, so I did. Her leg had
gotten punctured by a rusty metal pipe when her foot went through a warehouse
floor, and to make matters worse her leg went into standing sewerage. The wound
got very infected and went septic. Jackie pastors/oversees four gypsy churches
in northwestern Romania near the Hungarian border. She also has a widows feeding
program, a gypsy school, and provides assistance to some children’ homes for
mentally retarded children. She has been raising a gypsy boy for the last
several years, who is now 17, and is also raising her two granddaughters (ages 6
& 8). She has two dogs, fifty chickens and a duck! Needless to say, I didn’t get
bored while there helping Jackie. I have never before fed chickens, or tried to
herd them back into the pen! Too bad I don’t have pictures! I filled in at two
of her churches, and got to do a teaching session with some young missionaries
that she is discipling. I also did a children’s program in a city park with
stories and games. It was quite fun.
Being there with Jackie was very good for me personally as well. We were able to
talk and pray, and she really encouraged me concerning the very difficult and
painful situation here in Bulgaria. At the end of my time there, she told me
that she felt that she should buy me an airline ticket to somewhere I wanted to
go, and that she believed that when I returned from that trip that I would have
the direction that I needed. (Up to that time I was really at a loss at what to
do next. I had some ideas, but didn’t have any peace about any of them.) So she
bought me a ticket to Kiev, Ukraine.
I returned to Bulgaria for a couple of weeks, and on Aug. 12, I flew to Ukraine
where I got to see some dear friends, and then I took a train to Budapest. I
went back and forth between the cities of Budapest and Debrecen for ten days to
spend time with my friends in those cities. During that time I got to really
fellowship, pray, and get some more good counsel from seasoned missionary
friends of mine, and God gave me the peace that I needed to take the next
step--move the ministry from Lovech to the city of Sevlievo.
Why move, and why Sevlievo? The reason that I am moving is to get the ministry a
fresh start. Frankly I made a lot of mistakes in the way that I set up the
ministry here; namely, I found a person that was well qualified and had a lot of
ability to be the director, but I did not put in an adequate system of checks
and balances. The director helped me gathered a good, qualified board of
directors, but nobody spoke English at all except for her. I was completely
reliant on one person. This turned out to be a huge problem. I also established
the foundation in the director’s home town. When all the problems arose with the
director, there was nobody that I could talk to here. I did not want to hurt her
reputation or diminish her influence. These problems were so serious that my
lawyers suggested that I file criminal charges against her, but I am sure that
there was no criminal intent on her part. She just didn’t to do what she was
told, did what she wanted, and resisted accountability. I have learned my lesson
there. I need leaders and directors that I can communicate with on my own, and
not just through someone else, and build on a team—not on a team built on an
individual.
A second reason for leaving is because of personal relationships. Strangely
enough, I have not made the close, strong friendships here as I normally do.
Except for a missionary couple and a taxi driver, I only have a few friendly
acquaintances, for the most part things have been strictly business. I am a
people person, and I need some regular positive human interaction to thrive. I
can be by myself, and I can handle pressure, but I have really missed having
friends here. Thank God that Ron and Michelle Smith came back three weeks ago
after being gone since May! They have been a breath of fresh air!
Why Sevlievo? First of all personal relationships—I have a number of friends in
that area. We call one another. They invite me to their homes. We have gone on
outings together. They introduce me to their friends. A network is developing
there, and that is very positive. Secondly, there is room for my ministry there
in a local church. I have preached there four or five times since May. They have
also asked me to work with their children and youth, and that is the whole
reason that I came to Bulgaria in the first place. It was at the Turkish
outreach of this church that we had a biggest VBS—90 children! Since then they
have had a Kid’s Bible Club there every Friday with 40 to 70 in attendance each
week! This is in a Moslem neighborhood! Thirdly, I was unable to find enough
people in Lovech who were willing to be on my board of directors here, but there
are more than enough in Sevlievo with some extra alternates. Fourthly, American
Standard is there. Yes, the sink and toilet makers American Standard, is there.
There is land on the outskirts of Lovech that I would like to get. Actually, I
want American Standard to donate it to Obedient Life Ministries to build an
orphanage on it, and we are far more likely to be seen by them in Sevlievo than
in Lovech 25 miles away. I am planning to make my move in October. I signed a
lease for an apartment today.
This email is already longer than I wanted it to be, so I will send the other
details in a second email in the next couple of days. There is so much happening
now so quickly, and I can so much see the hand of God in it!
Just a short preview…when a friend in Sevlievo found an apartment for me we
didn’t know who the owner was. It ends up that my landlord is the head of
American Standard! That is only the tip of the iceberg! Tune in next
time!
We certainly appreciate your prayer and financial support. They are much needed.
If you would like to make a donation to Obedient Life Ministries you can send
your tax exempt donation to Obedient Life Ministries at P.O.
Box 267, Clarion, PA 16214, or you can make a donation from our PayPal link on
our website at www.obedientlife.org
Be blessed in Jesus’ Name!
Martin Sutton