Town of Straldza

Town of Straldza, Bulgaria

building in Straldza Bulgaria

Bulgaria

building in Straldza Bulgaria

The Columbia District Council on Ministries has entered into an agreement with World Methodist Evangelism on behalf of the Local congregations of the district to sponsor a new church start in the country of Bulgaria. This is through the World Methodist Connecting Congregations program. We have been connected with the Village of Straldzha, Bulgaria. The pastor is the Rev. Vesko Zuev, his wife is Dessislava Zuev. Their District Supt. says, “they both work with great devotion. A connecting congregation for that church will encourage so much the congregation which is 30 people. We can start building church there if we buy a plot of land. The village mayor and the villagers have the congregation in high esteem.” Dessislava, an English teacher, writes, “the church in Straldza consists of 30 adult members and several friends of the church who are interested. There’s a Sunday school of about 15 children. Several Teenagers are also part for the church. The church works among Turkish, Gypsy and Bulgarian people.” Straldza is located on the eastern side of Bulgaria, about 130
miles from the Black Sea. The population is about 6,000 persons. The Cost of this connection is $5,000 a year for 3 to 5 years. It is hoped that churches in the district will include this project in their missional programs for the next couple of years. Funds may be sent to the Conference Treasurer tagged as Columbia District mission support. Support for these mission projects can be sent to the conference treasurer accompanied with a remittance form. The account name is The District Missionary Account and the number is #23-415-52275. Material for the above from the The Columbia Connection, January 2008 issue. Please refer to The Columbia Connection for the latest news about this ministry.

The town of Straldza is the administrative center of the municipality Straldza which consists of 21 villages with population of 15,553 people and rural area of 676.3 km². The town of Straldza is a very little town situated in the eastern part of the Thracian lowlands, south-eastern part of Bulgaria. It looks like a big country village and the areas around it are mostly farming agricultural fields and vineyards. Straldza has got an ancient history - there are some remains of Thracian and medieval settlements. Nowadays, the population of Straldza consists of three ethnic groups – Bulgarians, Gypsy people and Turks. Most of the people are former members of the Communist Party which ruled the country for over 40 years. Many of them are still atheists, esp. the Bulgarians. So, it’s a rather hard soil for the Gospel, but yet with God’s calling nothing is impossible.

Here are some pictures of our ministry in Straldza. Greetings in the name of the Lord! The Methodist Church in Straldza.

The church members are mostly women.

full house

pastor vesko zuev

Vesko Zuev - the Local Pastor

Children's ministry (some of the kids with Dessie the pastor’s wife)

please help
There’s a special prayer request for this little boy. The capillaries in the area of one of his legs burst and the doctors said that they couldn’t do anything here in Bulgaria for him and he needs a special operation which can be done in Germany or the U.S. A. Now the purple area of his leg is getting smaller and smaller. Please, join us with prayer for that kid.