About Happiness and Practicality

(picture by my daughter Monica)

Yesterday I got back home from Sofia. A friend of mine drove me to Pleven and from there I managed to take an earlier train. It was an interesting trip. There was a woman at the compartment who shared anything she could about her life and family within 3 hours. Then, I was able to chat with the other people in the compartment, too. One woman said she was divorced and had two children who study in two different cities in Bulgaria. The talkative woman I mentioned has a son and a daugther, both married. Yet, her son has lived away from the family for 5 years now, and so has her daughter, though they have a 7 year old girl. On the other hand, the son has lived with his girl friend for 10 years or so before they finally 'got a courage' to get married and have a child. The other guy told me he has lived for 4 years in Algeria, away from his wife and daughter. He said he is sorry to have missed so many precious moments of his daughter's life because of his job.

I shared something about the 'important things' in our lives and how urgent things and our quest for 'happiness' often oust them from our lives. When I got off the train I thought to myself that many of the students we work with live in a similar situation: either with divorced, or separated parents. Children of broken families and broken lives, desperate to find happiness and yet looking for it in the wrong places...

By the way, in Sofia and Blagoevgrad, where I went, I had some important meetings. The main reason why I went to Sofia was to take part in the Board meeting. The only point on the agenda was discussion of the new strategy proposed by our new gen sec, Dari. The decision to put practical application of our faith ("projects:") on an equal footing with discipleship and small group meetings. We will see to what extent this will stir the groups into a more active mode, hopefully it will help those who are not so active in their evangelism to consider taking bolder steps into this direction!

And, finally, I mаnaged ot sell our old car. It turned out that the guy who came to buy it had met me at some church gatherings. He is a pastor in a couple of villages near Varna. So, we are happy that the car went in good hands and will be used for God's purposes a few more years!