In 1991, a young Mexican, Rudy Reyes, crossed the U.S./Mexican border and headed for Oklahoma. He was going to Southern Nazarene University to study on a soccer scholarship. As the second group of volunteers for Bulgaria began forming, Rudy was in his senior year.
Rudy was a very good soccer player. He was also a very good chemistry student. However, in the fall of 1995, neither chemistry nor soccer dominated his thinking. Instead, he began asking: "Can I go to Bulgaria?"
A thousand questions bubbled up: Rudy was not a Nazarene, although he was a very active Baptist. So, how helpful would he as a non-Nazarene be in planting Nazarene churches?
Because he wasn't from a Nazarene church on SNU's educational region, the school's ability to encourage friends to support him financially seemed limited. Where would Rudy possibly get the funds to support himself for a year in Bulgaria? Mexico, his home country, was struggling economically. U.S. newspapers told of the peso's downward slide in value against the dollar. That slashed the value of financial support coming from Rudy's family and home church in Tampico, Mexico.
One day, I mentioned my concern about Rudy's financial support to the other 1995 graduates going to Bulgaria. "Don't worry about Rudy," team member Ted Snoddy told me. "We'll take care of him. We won't let him starve."
Even if Rudy came up with enough support, what about his legal status? Would the Bulgarian government issue a visa to a young Mexican? Would they refuse, fearing Rudy wanted to escape Mexico's economic problems? Would they think he planned to stay on illegally after his visa expired?
Even in the face of these negatives, this Mexican thread was offered to the Lord. From the Bulgarian project's inception, Dr. Gresham challenged students to have a willing heart. He asked for students to trust God and put themselves at His disposal. Rudy met those requirements perfectly.
As the group prepared to go, it began to dawn on people that Rudy might become one of the project's most effective volunteers. That's exactly what it happened. Rudy knew how to learn a new language. He knew how to survive and even flourish in a culture not his own. So, very quickly after arriving in Bulgaria, he moved into effective ministry. In addition, his soccer skills opened all kinds of friendship doors. With soccer being the king of sports in Bulgaria, people looked up to someone who played soccer as well as Rudy.
There was another thread related to Mexico. That came to light one day during the first year. One day, Rob Burgess was sitting in an outdoor ice cream parlor in Sofia with a visiting SNU professor. Suddenly, Rob looked up and said: "If it hadn't been for that mission trip to Mexico, I would not be here today."
Rob's story goes back to his home state of New York. In 1990, three or four SNU students spent the summer in New York working for a Christian camping organization. There, they met Rob Burgess. Rob had dropped out of college after taking only a few classes and had gone to work full-time. The SNU group mentioned a trip they were making to the Huasteca region of Mexico over the New Year's holiday. Rob got excited about going with them. So, after Christmas of that same year, he joined 200 other people on that Work and Witness trip organized by Southern Nazarene University.
There, in Mexico, Rob got turned on to world missions and to getting a college degree. When he returned to New York, he quit his job at the grocery store in New York. He packed up and returned to Oklahoma to major in church music at SNU. In his three and a half years at SNU, Rob's interest in missions was fanned into a flame. As a result, Rob's brief time spent in Mexico contributed to his becoming a member of that initial pioneer team that went to Sofia.
Because of Rudy and Rob, there is a "south of the border" element in the Bulgarian tapestry. The Lord put Mexico into that design!. . . [ continue reading ]
-- Howard Culbertson,
| "Where will we get the money?" students ask as they consider joining this pioneering adventure. None of the young people graduating from college had enough money in the bank to get to Bulgaria and live there for a year. After all, they'd just spent four years in a Christian college. . . . [ more ] |