The
LeFevres
Missionaries to Eastern Europe
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LeFevre Biography
Meet the LeFevre Family:
Hello Friends!
Concerning the ministry here, we are glad to report that the Lord is doing great things. Our little family has had the honor of working with 8 other American families, in the furtherance of the gospel, among the Turks in Eastern Europe. As we look back we have seen God's hand leading us every step of the way. It is because of Him, that we are where we are today. From childhood, both of us (Zachary and Verity ) have had the opportunity to be in Christian homes, and were in churches where the gospel was preached. Where we were able to come to be saved, and experience God's redeeming grace. Even before we had met, both of us had the desire to be used in God's work... wherever He would lead us. So, upon meeting and marriage, we sought the Lord's direction. And the Lord led us here... Our work is mostly with the Turkish people in Bulgaria. They are the POOREST people in Bulgaria. They are a rough and tumble group of folks, who are outcasts in their society. But they are receiving the gospel, and are being brought to salvation, and the knowledge of Jesus Christ. We are thankful to be a part of the work God is doing here, and look forward to many more years in His service. Zachary LeFevre Below are some of our mission letters.
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Dear Churches and Praying Friends, January 2024
Now the end of the commandment
is charity out of a pure heart, and of a good conscience, and of
faith unfeigned: From which some having swerved have turned aside unto vain
jangling; Desiring to
be teachers of the law; understanding neither what they say, nor whereof they
affirm. 1 Timothy 1:5-7
I thank God that I have found the end of the commandment: charity. While others may rant and rave about the law and commandments, I continue walking down the old road of preaching the gospel and loving sinners. We are seeing souls saved and lives changed, new converts baptized; young believers sing the hymns every chance they get, and love to hear the Bible preached. The Lord keeps supplying the needs and adds blessing upon blessing: love, joy, peace, answered prayer, fellowship, new doors of opportunity opening, sinners coming to church and hearing the gospel, and then, more joy. James tells us that "Pure religion and undefiled before God and the Father is this, To visit the fatherless and widows in their affliction, and to keep himself unspotted from the world." James 1:27 A great part of the work in Bulgaria is ministering to the widows and fatherless - people who suffer in poverty. Sometimes their situations are heartbreaking. But, praise the Lord, the poor have the gospel preached unto them! Christ came to the poor and needy, to sinners. If the son of God came not to be ministered unto, but to minister, should not we minister to the same people? Most Americans miss one of the greatest blessings of heaven: that its citizens will hunger no more, nor suffer from heat or cold. The poor saints appreciate it. Our ministry is not to provide heaven on earth by providing their necessities, but to give them the invitation to the great marriage supper of the Lamb. The master has said unto his servants, "Go out quickly into the streets and lanes of the city, and bring in hither the poor, and the maimed, and the halt, and the blind." Luke 14:21 Charles Wesley sang it this way:
Come, sinners, to the gospel
feast; Let every soul be Jesus' guest;
Ye need not one be left behind, For God hath bidden all mankind.
Come, all ye souls by sin oppressed, Ye restless wanderers after rest;
Ye poor, and maimed, and halt, and blind, In Christ a hearty welcome find.
While we go to the heathen preaching the gospel, we
remember the poor by all means, but the gospel is our message. Seeing children
fed or clothed warms our hearts, but seeing sinners reconciled to God is
glorious. Nothing cheers this preacher more than seeing sinners come to church
and hear the gospel for the first time.
Brethren, pray for us. Pray for the sinners in Bulgaria. The Lord is supplying
every need. He supplies the spirit through your prayers. We desire the spirit's
aid, and it is given through your prayers. Please, keep praying.
In Christ,
Zachary LeFevre
(A printable PDF version
with pictures is available here)
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Dear churches and Praying friends, October 2023
As we have therefore opportunity, let us do good unto all men, especially unto them who are of the household of faith.
(Galatians 6:10)
Greetings in the name of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.
We trust this letter finds you rejoicing in the promises of God and serving him continually. We certainly thank God for your continued support of the ministry here in Bulgaria. We think about you and pray for you often. Certainly, the heavenly father has you also on his mind. He is not unfaithful to forget your work and service to his son, Jesus.
I would like to share a few pictures of the ministry here. (A printable PDF version with pictures is available here)
Our chief work is in the village churches where we preach on a weekly basis. We had eight people saved and baptized this year, due to the national pastors serving faithfully.
As you know, each winter we distribute one hundred pounds of flour and five liters of cooking oil to each family in the churches here. This past winter the total amount was over 76 tons of flour. In a place and time where there is little work to be found the flour and oil are a tremendous blessing!
For over twenty years we have been feeding children in the village churches. Recently there was a young lady that came to a prayer meeting and got saved. She said "when she was little she used to eat at the church and would watch the others pray over the food, but she never prayed herself until that day when she asked Jesus to save her. We thank God for the seeds sown in the hearts of these children which continue to bear fruit.
We continue to print and hand bind Bulgarian and Turkish New Testaments. These are distributed free of charge throughout Bulgaria. Also, we are working on putting the Turkish Bible on the internet both in text form and audio. Currently, a reliable translation of the gospel of John can be listened to by Turkish speaker’s worldwide, and has been heard over a thousand times.
In the village of Avren we continue to work on our church ministry building. The Bible work room is finished, along with one room where we meet for church. The main room for the church, and the kitchen remain unfinished, but slowly, the work continues.
All this is by, through, and for the good God that we serve. Please continue to pray for us in this ministry that we might reach as many as we can with the gospel, and so that Christ would receive the worship of those he died for.
In Christ,
Zachary LeFevre (A printable PDF version with pictures is available here)
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August 2023
"Blessed be God, even the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the
Father of mercies, and the God of all comfort; Who comforteth us in all our
tribulation,
that we may be able to comfort them which are in any trouble, by the comfort
wherewith we ourselves are comforted of God." (II Cor. 1:3,4)
Greetings in the name of our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ.
Brethren, we want to thank each of you for your continued prayers and support as we continue serving the Lord in Bulgaria. This summer has been full. First, we were able to return to the states for just a short time to be with our daughter, Maggie, as she graduated high school. She will be living with her sister in South Carolina; the Lord has provided her with a job, and even a car. A dear pastor friend in Virginia gave her his car. What a blessing that is! Seeing the Lord bless your children is a great joy. We were also able to visit with our son, Isaac, who is studying for the ministry. Bur, alas, our time of departure has come, and once again we say good-bye to our dear children. Our Lord told us that, he that loveth son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me, And he that taketh not his cross, and followeth after me, is not worthy of me. He that findeth his life shall lose it: and he that loseth his life for my sake shall find it. It's not easy to forsake all for Jesus, but he told us again, Verily I say unto you, There is no man that hath left house, or brethren, or sisters, or father, or mother, or wife, or children, or lands, for my sake, and the gospel's, But he shall receive an hundredfold now in this time, houses, and brethren, and sisters, and mothers, and children. As we said good-bye to one family in America, we were greeted by a larger family here in Bulgaria - those who have come to know and love the Lord Jesus through our service here.
Also, last month Verity's father passed away. He was 83, and ready to go. He had lived a long life in service to the Lord and brought many people to the knowledge of salvation. Even at his death and funeral there were more testimonies shared of people who had come to know the Lord through his witness. We thank God for such a goodly heritage.
Here in Bulgaria we stay busy preaching in churches with our national pastors. This month we're baptizing. There's been several new believers baptized, and several others still waiting. Some of our people have moved to western Europe for work and found churches to attend, but they want to be baptized in Bulgaria.
In the village of Avren we have had a building for some time where we produce Bibles and hymnbooks. This year we are fixing up the old house which was falling down. The new roof is on, but the interior of the house still needs a lot of work. When it's finished it will provide rooms for church, and a fellowship hall, as well as a small apartment. Ralph Cheatwood, our senior missionary, had wanted to have church for three different groups in this village - Bulgarian, Turkish, and English. We've already had Turkish and English meetings here, and we've had some interest among the Bulgarians. Our desire is to finish this building for the glory of God and have a place where the local people can come hear about Jesus. Would you pray that the Lord would send in the funds that are needed to finish this work?
Thank you all for your continued prayers and support.
In Christ, Zachary LeFevre (A printable PDF version is available here)
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Dear Churches and Praying Friends, April 2023
"If he offer it for a thanksgiving, then he shall offer with the sacrifice of thanksgiving unleavened cakes mingled with oil, and unleavened wafers anointed with oil, and cakes mingled with oil, of fine flour, fried." (Leviticus 7:12)
Greetings in the name of our heavenly father and of his son, Jesus Christ. The Lord has been good to us, here in Bulgaria. We have just finished our annual feeding. This year the Lord provided funds for us to distribute over seventy-six tons of flour and over seventy-five hundred liters of oil. Each year this is possible through the many gifts that you all send. Giving an offering of flour and oil is as old as the Bible itself: it was one of the offerings God commanded the people to give in the Old Testament. When you gave to feed the poor saints in Bulgaria, you were actually giving unto the Lord! He told us so in Matthew 25, For I was an hungered, and ye gave me meat...Then shall the righteous answer him saying, Lord, when saw we thee an hungered, and fed thee?... And the King shall answer and say unto them, Verily, I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me.
This feeding is something we do once a year in obedience to the apostles' desire for gospel preachers to remember the poor. Throughout the year, though, we preach Jesus, the bread of life, in the Turkish speaking villages all over eastern Bulgaria. This is that meat which endureth unto everlasting life. We thank the Lord for the national pastors which he has raised up to do this work. One of them, pastor Alish, is turning eighty years old. He still preaches in four villages a week.
Recently, the Lord has provided us a way to publish the Turkish Bible. In the modern age of technology, it is no longer necessary to distribute literature in person; this can be done via the internet. Our goal has always been to put a Bible into the hands of each believer. Although we're still not ready to print Bibles, we have found some believers in Turkey who can put the Bible on the internet, both in text form and audio! Not only will our believers in Bulgaria, who are for the most part illiterate, be able to listen to the Bible, but any of the eighty million Turkish speakers in the world. This is a big project, and will cost several thousand dollars. Thankfully, the Lord has already provided the funds for the New Testament, and that part of the project is nearing completion. The Lord gave the word: great was the company of those that published it. (Psalm 68:11)
Thank you all again for your continued prayers and financial support in this great work.
In Christ,
Zachary LeFevre A printable PDF of this letter is available here.
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Dear Churches and Praying Friends, November 2022
"Now thanks be unto God, which always causeth us to triumph in Christ,
and maketh manifest the savour of his knowledge by us in every place."
(II Corinthians 2:14)
Greetings in the name of the Lord Jesus. We thank the Lord for his continual blessing upon the work here. Most of our village churches are full. Recently, in our little village we had a young woman come for the first time. On my way into church that day I overheard another lady telling her how to be saved. That day at the meeting she gave her testimony. Like everyone else in our village she had heard the gospel before, but never acted upon it. Several weeks ago she began to suffer from anxiety and panic attacks. A friend gave her some medicine which turned out to do more harm than good. She ended up in the hospital, with her life in danger. After her recovery she went back home and lived in seclusion from her family for a week. Finally, she cried out to God that she couldn’t go on like that. Later she got out her phone and searched for a Christian hymn in her language. She listened to a hymn about Jesus and gave her heart to him. That morning at church she wanted to make it official that she was a Christian.
For several years now we've been using a Turkish new testament that was translated by Ralph Cheatwood. Brother Cheatwood worked for 30 years to translate the King James Bible into modern Turkish. This translation has borne fruit all over Bulgaria and Romania. For the last year or so we have been praying that we could record the Bible and make it accessible on the internet. Many of our believers here are illiterate, so being able to listen to the Bible would be a great blessing. This has been our prayer and heart's desire. Recently, on a trip in Turkey I was able to meet an American brother there who had received one of our new testaments years ago and loved it. He is now in the process of having it professionally recorded. They have already posted the book of John! Unbeknownst to us, this whole time we've been praying, the Lord has been getting the job done!
Again, we thank you all for your continued prayer and support. (a PDF of this letter is available here)
In Christ, Zachary LeFevre
Sent from: Prayer Baptist Church, 855 Edwin Westland, MI 48185
Support & Mailing Address: Charity Baptist Mission, P.O. Box 692 Bristol, TN 37621
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August 2022
"After these things the Lord appointed other seventy also, and sent them two and two before his face into every city and place, whither he himself would come. Therefore said he unto them, The harvest truly is great, but the labourers are few: pray ye therefore the Lord of the harvest, that he would send forth labourers into his harvest… Luke 10:1,2
And he turned him unto his disciples, and said privately, Blessed are the eyes which see the things that ye see: For I tell you, that many prophets and kings have desired to see those things which ye see, and have not seen them; and to hear those things which ye hear, and have not heard them."
(Luke 10:23,24)
Greetings in the name of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, who has called us by
his grace into this ministry.
In the passage above we see how the Lord had sent these seventy before him to
every city and village that he himself would go. Later, they returned with good
news of all the things they had seen. The Lord told them not to rejoice as much
in the miracles that they had witnessed, but rather to rejoice that their names
were written in heaven. In the end, though, he did tell them what a blessing it
was to have seen the things with their eyes that they had seen. Today we see the
Lord working in a similar fashion. He does not go himself to every city and
village in the world, but rather, sends his missionaries out to preach his
gospel. Those who hear the message of the missionaries and receive them, also
receive the Lord; his spirit enters into their hearts to dwell. The preaching is
done by men, but the power to save is only from God. As missionaries, we confess
that we are but small vessels to be used of the Lord; our greatest joy is not in
our works, but that our names are written in heaven. However, it is a tremendous
blessing to be able to see and hear the things that we do.
Recently, one lady testified that they had been without electricity for six
years. Their home was old, and run down. She, her husband, and their daughter
got saved. One evening they were reading the Bible by candle light when they
came across the verse "...and they shall call his name Emmanuel," her daughter
asked, "What does that name mean?" The mother said, "I don't know. I've never
heard of it." Then they kept reading, and the verse said, "which being
interpreted is, God with us." She told her daughter, "Look, God is with us." I'm
glad that the poorest of the poor, the people that sit in darkness can read a
Bible and know that God is with them. Thank you to all who have helped us print
Bibles.
One of the pastors told the story of how several of their churches were started.
Over ten years ago there was a village rather far away that had sent a man to
find Brother Ralph Cheatwood and ask him to come start a church in their
village. He went, along with two national pastors, and two churches were started
in that village. Those two national pastors continued to drive there every week
for the meetings.
One day Brother Ralph called the pastors to come look at a map. He told them not
to take the highway to that village, but to take the back roads. That would mean
a longer drive on winding roads in bad condition. When the pastors asked why,
Brother Ralph said that because there were villages along the way that one day
would want a church. Although it was more difficult, and it meant more wear and
tear on the vehicles, they agreed to take those back roads every week. Six
months later they went to church out there, and there was a visitor. The man was
older, and walked with a cane. It had taken him six hours that morning to walk
the two miles from his village to the village where the church was. He had
walked it to ask those preachers if they would come to his village to preach.
Within a year there were six other villages that had opened up along those back
roads. The national pastor said, "From now on, I'm going to do whatever Ralph
Cheatwood says, because he is God's man." Thank you to all who have helped us
buy vehicles for these pastors.
This summer we've already had about a dozen people baptized, and there's several
more who want to be baptized. We continue to produce new testaments and
hymnbooks. Several people have returned from Western Europe to Bulgaria on their
summer vacations. They told us how that during the Covid lockdowns, when no one
was allowed to go out in public, they were able to sing hymns and read the Bible
in their homes with their neighbors. Now they need more Bibles and hymnbooks for
those neighbors.
Thank you to all who pray for this work.
In Christ,
Zachary LeFevre
Sent from: Prayer Baptist Church, 855 Edwin Westland, MI 48185
(a print
ready version of this letter is available here)
Support & Mailing Address: Charity Baptist Mission, P.O. Box 692 Bristol, TN 37621
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Dear Churches and Praying Friends,
May 2022
"Now therefore, our God, we thank thee, and praise thy glorious name." (I Chron.
29:13)
Greetings in the name of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. I thank my God that
he put me into the ministry. It is truly a blessing to be able to witness
firsthand what the Lord is doing for the people over here. He is reaching down
to the dust and lifting up the poor.
This spring we were able again to deliver the flour and oil to our church
families here. Before the prices began to go up, we were able to get everything
ordered. Shortly after our order, the price of oil almost doubled, and was
impossible to buy more than a little at a time. The Lord allowed us to buy
enough for over 1,500 families, and 78 tons of flour. All of the poor people
here received it gladly, and send their thanks to God on your behalf.
Around 100,000 refugees from Ukraine came to Bulgaria; about half of them
traveled through to other countries and half of them stayed here. The Lord has
allowed us to minister to them. We've distributed food, water, clothing,
medicines and other necessities. Our prayer was that we would also be able to
reach them with the gospel. The Lord provided us with gospel tracts and Bibles
both in the Ukrainian and Russian languages, and something even better than that
- a preacher. Last month a Ukrainian preacher came to Bulgaria to minister to
the refugees here, and we were able to direct him to the ones that we had
already been ministering to. He was able to preach the gospel to them in their
own language. Many of the refugees are reading the Bible now for the first time
in their lives. Many of them have told us that now they are believing. Many of
them are amazed at the love that you all have shown them through us. To God be
the glory. It may be that in the ages to come heaven will be inhabited by
Ukrainians who fled to Bulgaria for refuge, but ended up fleeing to God's city
of refuge at Calvary.
Please pray for us as we continue to preach the gospel here in Bulgaria. The
pastors are doing well, and so are their churches. We praise the Lord that he
has provided the funds to purchase vehicles for two of the pastors recently.
In Christ,
Zachary LeFevre
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Dear Churches and Praying Friends, February 2022
"We give thanks to God always for you all, making mention of you in our
prayers;" (I Thess. 1:2)
Truly, the Lord has been good to us in Bulgaria. Since our return we have been able to meet with the national pastors and hear their reports of the Lord's blessings in the different villages. There is still some sickness going around here, but for the most part, it has passed. The people are glad to be back in church again.
I would like to thank the Lord for providing us with a ministry vehicle. It took
some time to get it, as the dealerships here don't have any new cars for sale.
An order has to be made, then it takes between three to six months of waiting
before it arrives. We were able to find a one-year-old Dacia Lodgy that only had
about nine thousand miles on it. It is a seven passenger minivan that gets about
50 miles per gallon.
The needs in Bulgaria are great. There are people here that are suffering, in
need of the salvation that only the Lord can give. Last month we witnessed a
desperate situation. One of our long-time church members asked us to pray for
her daughter. Several times the girl had complained about her husband's cruelty
and violence, until it finally reached the breaking point. She left her husband
and two children for someone she had met on the internet. The man had sent her
money for a bus ticket to come to him, but when she arrived at his house she
found it to be worse than her previous situation. She was kept like a prisoner
in that house, not even allowed to speak to her family on the telephone. The
last message they received from her was to not call her anymore. The family was
heartbroken and seemingly hopeless. So, we called on heaven. Within a week, the
girl was home with her parents! Please remember her in your prayers, along with
her children.
Last week at the church here in our village we had a good meeting. There was a
good spirit in the church, and some new people have started coming recently.
Right as I finished preaching, before the final prayer, a young man walked in
the door with tears in his eyes and a big, two-liter bottle of beer in his hand.
He came right to the front and set the beer down before us and said, "Save me
from this!" The church got a burden to pray for him. He went home that day and
poured out his beer. This week he was back in church, with the rest of his
family. His mother testified about how good it was to see her son get right with
God. Please remember him in your prayers, along with his children.
Brethren, we give thanks to God always for you all. Please keep us in your
prayers.
In Christ,
Zachary LeFevre
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Dear Churches and Praying Friends, October 2021
On the eighth day he sent the people away: and they blessed the king, and went
unto their tents joyful and glad of heart for all the goodness that the LORD had
done for David his servant, and for Israel his people. (I Kings 8:66)
Greetings in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, the one who loved us, washed us,
called us, saved us, and has given us the hope of eternal life. Again we sit
down to write to our supporting churches and friends, and think about what all
the Lord has done for us in these recent months. Our work this summer has been
traveling to the churches and reporting of the work in Bulgaria. Telling of the
work so often reminds us of how good God has been to us. The work in Bulgaria is
truly a work of God. So many souls have been saved over the years. So many
believers have waded out into the river to be baptized as a testimony of their
faith.
The missionaries and national pastors have traveled to so many villages,
preached so many sermons, distributed so many scriptures, prayed for so many
hurting souls, fed so many hungry, clothed so many poor and given hope to so
many hopeless people. All glory to God! Many times as we are busy in the day to
day work of the ministry we fail to see the big picture of what God is doing,
but on our time of furlough we are able to step back and see how great the
ministry is. What has become mundane to us on the field (preaching in a circuit
of villages) seems extraordinary to many of the believers here in the states.
Seeing people rejoice at our report encourages us.
And now, like the people in I Kings 8:66, we prepare to return to our home. We
are certainly joyful and glad of heart for all the goodness that the Lord has
done for his people. Our son, Isaac, is adjusting well to Bible college. We had
good visits with our older daughters. Our younger daughter, Maggie, has returned
to Bulgaria already with the Blalock family. Next month we plan to fly back to
Bulgaria. Pray for our travels.
Once we reach Bulgaria we will need another vehicle. I recently gave my old car
away to one of the national pastors who was in need of one. Much of the money
has already been given, but we still need about three thousand dollars. There
are other needs as well, but the Lord knows what they are. Please help us pray
about these things. We love you all and wish we could spend more time with each
of you, but there is much work to be done in Bulgaria.
In Christ,
Zachary LeFevre
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Dear Churches and Praying Friends, July 2021
"I Jesus have sent mine angel to testify unto you these things in the churches..." Rev. 22:16
Once more it is our privilege to bring you greetings in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, our soon coming king. I recently finished reading the book of Revelation again. What a blessing it is to know that when it's all said and done, we win! Christ won the victory and invited us onto his team. He defeated the devil, and holds the keys of hell and of death. I'm on the winning side. One day we will join that great number of the redeemed, praising the king of glory in a land where there is no more pain. In heaven we will not only be united with our loved ones again, but we'll meet the redeemed from every kindred and tongue and people and nation. I trust there will be a great number there from Bulgaria and we will again be able to worship together.
The verse above tells us that Jesus wants these things to be testified in the churches. If Jesus likes to testify in church, so do I. It is an honour to be able to travel to so many of the churches that help us and testify to them both of what the Lord wrote to us in his book, and of what he is doing these days in Bulgaria. The Lord supplied us with a vehicle, and we have already travelled over five thousand miles. Not only do we get to minister to others, but we also are ministered unto - we hear some really good preaching.
Praise the Lord that things have opened up more in Bulgaria. The national pastors there are again able to travel to their village churches on a weekly basis.
Please keep our family in your prayers. This time spent in the states is especially important for the children. Our oldest son Isaac is making preparations to attend a Bible college in the fall, then stay here when we travel back to Bulgaria. We're very proud of him, as we are of his two older sisters who did the same thing.
In Christ,
Zachary LeFevre (629) 999-0843
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Dear Churches and Praying Friends,
April 2021
“And they told him all the words of Joseph, which he had said unto them: and
when he saw the wagons which Joseph had sent to carry him, the spirit of Jacob
their father revived:” (Genesis 45:27)
Greetings in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ who hath given to us the ministry
of reconciliation. I thank God for His continued care and support for us in this
ministry. It's been over twenty-six years since we first came to the mission
field. The Lord loves Bulgaria. He has proven this to us time and again. Every
need has been supplied, and he has faithfully blessed the preaching of his word.
This month we finished the annual flour and oil distribution here. Because of
all the restrictions about public meetings, it was difficult for the pastors to
meet with all of their churches. We have tried to exercise wisdom and caution in
all of our meetings. Most of the churches had not had regular services in many
months. Nevertheless, in most of these villages the believers continued to meet
together and worship in smaller groups in their homes. As we began distributing
flour it soon became evident that the number of believers in the churches had
not diminished in the least, but had actually increased! We actually distributed
more flour this year than we did last year - over eighty tons, feeding fifteen
hundred families. Fear of the pandemic gripped the world, the government forbade
public gatherings, pastors were not able to do their work, but God gave the
increase!
As we travelled from village to village with the truck carrying fifteen tons of
flour, the believers came out of their homes, not rushing to the flour, but to
see us. What a blessing it was to see all of these precious people again! They
rejoiced greatly to see us, and like Jacob of old, rejoiced to see the wagons
full of God's provisions. The leader of another local charity which had sent
relief to the poor in Bulgaria recently told one of our pastors, "We've tried to
help people, but we just can't do it like you all do. How do you manage to reach
so many people?" Our pastor responded, "It's not us, it's our God that does it".
Our family has arrived in the states for a furlough this year. Isaac is turning
eighteen, and is finishing high school. Please pray for him as he seeks the
Lord's perfect will for his life. We look forward to seeing as many of you as we
can, and visiting each supporting church. My phone number is (629) 999-0843.
Please pray for us, and pray for our churches in Bulgaria.
In Christ,
Zachary LeFevre
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Dear Churches and Praying Friends; January 2021
"O continue thy lovingkindness unto them that know thee; and thy righteousness
to the upright in heart." (Psalms 36:10)
With joy in the Lord we greet this new year. Our hope is in Him and His word.
The future is as bright as the promises of God. The King of Saints is just and
true. He's still on the throne, so what could be wrong? Our prayer is that the
Lord would continue to reveal his lovingkindness to his children this year.
Last year was difficult for many of us here. Although we are a small country,
Bulgaria is reported to be tenth in the world with Covid deaths per million. In
November the local hospitals were overrun. Looking back, we can see the Lord's
mercy. Many of our people were sick, but most of them have recovered. I suffered
from the virus symptoms for a week or so; Verity remained weak for over a month.
Our local church and missionary friends proved their love for us during that
time by ministering to our needs. Other believers here have testified about how
much their church did for them. We know it was our father that put it in their
hearts to show such lovingkindness. After our recovery we have been able to
minister to others.
The restrictions here have prevented us from visiting the village churches. For
the first time in twenty-five years we have only had one church service per
week, and that was usually in our own house. The local pastors have been able to
meet with the village churches, though. Everywhere here people are longing for
the opportunity to meet together again. Christ loved the church. We love the
church. Our people here love the church. The Lord indeed is in our midst, even
when there's just two or three meeting together.
And in these difficult days we have seen some unbelievers who, finding
themselves in need of the mercy of God, have reached out to us. The national
pastors here have preached and testified on social media and received a great
response.
Praise the Lord who doeth all things well!
In Christ, Zachary LeFevre
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Dear Churches and Praying Friends,
March 2020
"...our brother, and minister of God, and our fellowlabourer in the gospel of
Christ, to establish you, and to comfort you concerning your faith: That no man
should be moved by these afflictions: for yourselves know that we are appointed
thereunto." (1 Thessalonians 3:2,3)
Greetings in the name of our Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ. I thank God that he
counted me worthy, putting me into the ministry. This year is our twenty-fifth
year of service on the mission field, and looks to be the most challenging.
Currently, our family is happy and healthy; the situation in Bulgaria is
difficult, though. To slow the spread of the virus the government has restricted
any public meetings - including church. Also, they have restricted travel in and
out of the cities, which restricts our access to banks and grocery stores. We're
not sure how long these rules will be in place, possibly three months.
Praise the Lord that we were able to finish our annual flour distribution before
these restrictions were implemented! Nearly eighty tons of flour were delivered
to our church families, along with seven thousand liters of cooking oil. The
Lord takes care of his children.
There is plenty of work to do. I continue to proof-read the Turkish Old
Testament, comparing it word for word with the King James Bible. I recently made
a trip to Turkey where I left several new testaments. The people were thrilled
to have them, as our new testaments are full paged, and large print.
Please pray for our churches during these difficult times. There is such fear
among the people. The Lord is our refuge.
I also would ask for your prayers for our daughter, Maggie. She is in Tennessee
right now visiting her grandmother. She is scheduled to return to Bulgaria on
the 7th of April, but it looks like she will not be able to come due to current
travel restrictions.
Thank you for your prayers.
In Christ, Zachary LeFevre
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Dear Churches and Praying Friends,
July 2019
"The meek also shall increase their joy in the LORD, and the poor among
men shall rejoice in the Holy One of Israel.” (Isaiah 29:19)
Greetings in the name of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. I thank God that he
counted me faithful and enabled me for this ministry. Our ministry is with the
poor in Bulgaria. Our joy is to see them rejoice in the Holy One of Israel.
This summer we've been busy with our village churches, as well as the larger
meetings in Dabravino. Each month we gather believers from villages all over
eastern Bulgaria for a day of worship and fellowship. We've heard many wonderful
testimonies of how God has answered prayer, and enjoyed spirit-filled singing
and preaching. At each meeting, we have at least two worship services, and a
meal in between. This month we'll also baptize in between the services. I
suppose there have been over 500 people come to these meetings, and they all
take back some of the joy to their own village churches.
Preaching to bigger crowds is wonderful, but people are won to the Lord as
individuals. Every new visitor is a soul that needs light from the gospel. Many
come to church with great problems, such as sickness, but we have confidence
that the Lord is able to meet every need. Every village church needs a pastor
that can effectively shepherd the flock, and protect them from the many enemies
of the gospel. The Lord has given us faithful men who love their sheep.
Continue to pray for us as we continue to preach the gospel to the poor. Many
hungry children are still being fed hot meals in our churches. Many Turkish
Bibles and hymnbooks are still being printed and distributed. The thanksgiving
of many still redounds to the glory of God.
In Christ, Zachary LeFevre
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Dear Churches and Praying Friends,
March 2019
"Distributing to the necessity of saints..." (Romans 12:13)
We trust this letter finds each of you resting in the hope given to us God's
holy word. In the dark days that we live His word is still true, and keeps our
souls anchored. Christ still loves the church, and cares for his own.
Over here we see the Lord blessing the work. Last week we finished the flour and
oil distribution for 2019. Each year, as most of you know, we distribute over
one hundred pounds of flour and over a gallon of oil to each church family.
Bulgaria is still one of the poorest countries in Europe. Many of the elderly
subsist on less than one hundred dollars a month. Most of the Millet Turks in
our churches are only employed seasonally; winter is a difficult time for them.
Recently I went to a meeting where the family had just finished their Sunday
dinner: bread and boiled garlic. They are now truly thankful for the flour and
oil, which will provide them with fresh bread every day until the spring/summer
work begins again. Other church members have testified that their winter stores
were depleted, when, the next day the flour truck came to the village. He who
feeds the little birds, cares for his children.
This year we were able to feed right at sixteen hundred families. That requires
a total of eighty tons of flour, and eight thousand liters of oil to go with it.
The Lord again has shown his faithfulness in providing the need. I truly believe
that He enjoys feeding these hungry people. Of course, we realize that these
blessings come from people like you who cheerfully give to the necessities of
your poorer brethren in Bulgaria. Heaven will see a grand reunion of saints.
There they will be able to fully thank you for your generosity. Until then, I
send you their expressions of gratitude.
Praise be to God who sees and meets every need. There are other projects in the
mission work right now concerning Bible and hymnbook printing, church buildings,
and the continual feeding of poor children in the churches. Please join us in
prayer to the Father who giveth to all men liberally that he would remember
these other needs.
In Christ, Zachary LeFevre
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Dear Churches and Praying Friends, November 2018
"But it is good for me to draw near to God: I have put my trust in the Lord GOD, that I may declare all thy works." (Psa 73:28)
Greetings in the name of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. Autumn has come to Bulgaria, and we are again thankful for the time when the summer work has ended and more people are able to come to church. This summer we have been busy working on our building in the village of Avren, and of course continuing with the regular village meetings.
Thanks to the Lord's wonderful provision, we were able to complete the first phase of our building project. The sanctuary and the entryway to the church is finished, as are the restrooms. Our goal was to have at least one church service there by the end of summer. We saw this desire fulfilled in September when we met for English church. A week later we met there again, this time for a Turkish meeting. Alish, the local pastor in that region has since held more Turkish meetings in the building, and we have begun to have regular English church services. We trust that this may be the building where the Lord saves our children, and many Turks. This week, when presented with the need for rugs in the church, the missionaries themselves gave to meet this need. Also, one missionary family volunteered to give their new piano to the church! God is supplying every need. Next month we should be getting a heater for the work room, where we will be binding Bibles and hymnbooks. To complete the next stage of our building we will need at least five thousand dollars. Please join with us in praying.
Last week our local pastor, Brother Alish, lost his oldest daughter. She was fifty-eight years old, and died of cancer. As she lay on her bed, she quoted the Lord's prayer three times, and then she died. A few years earlier she had professed faith in Christ, but this past summer got baptized. It was her desire to honor the Lord at her funeral, and God granted her wish. At the funeral there were over a hundred people present, most of them unbelievers. We were able to sing and preach on the street in their Turkish neighborhood, and many heard the gospel who might not ever come to church otherwise. The seed was sown. Several were interested in the preaching, and one even professed that she had been saved years ago. After hearing the gospel preached at the funeral she declared, "I'm going back to church, and I'm gonna be a Christian until I die!"
I lost count, but believe there were at least twenty new believers baptized this summer. I also want to mention that my family is still happy and healthy. Verity schools the younger children at home during the week, then attends a Turkish children's meeting in our village. Our grown daughters back in the states are a blessing to our hearts; remember to pray for them also.
Please continue praying with us and praising God for what He has done and will do.
In Christ, Zachary LeFevre.
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“For I am now ready to be offered, and the time of my departure is at hand.
I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith:” (II Tim 4:7,8)
Dear churches and praying friends, March 2018
Grace, mercy, and peace, from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Lord. As spring comes to Bulgaria, we are thankful for a new season of sowing and reaping. The Lord has been good to us these many years. Here in my office, I have about two hundred Turkish New Testaments that I have bound by hand, and ready to be distributed. Last month one of our national pastors went to the hospital for a week’s stay where he witnessed to all those around him. One man, although unreceptive at the first, said, “Why don’t you give me a Bible so I can read it for myself? Then I might believe.” Last week this same pastor went back to the hospital for a week, and this time he took Bibles with him. In due season we shall reap, if we faint not.
It’s been five years since Brother Ralph Cheatwood purchased a house and small building in the village of Avren. Each year we have worked on preparing the building to be a church house, a workspace for producing Bibles and also a storage facility for the coat distribution in the winter. It is our desire to finish the work this year. Brother Cheatwood was recently diagnosed with cancer in the lungs and kidneys. He has refused chemo therapy, choosing to live the rest of his days in the Lord’s hands. Paul told Timothy, “The time of my departure is at hand.” That’s where Brother Cheatwood is now. After forty years of service on the mission field his departure time is near. He called us missionaries and national pastors together to tell us. “…neither count I my life dear unto myself, so that I might finish my course with joy, and the ministry, which I have received of the Lord Jesus, to testify the gospel of the grace of God.” His last request is that we finish the work on this church house and Bible factory.
I believe the work needed on this building will cost at least ten thousand dollars. Would you pray for this work? Brother Cheatwood has given his life preaching the gospel to the Turks and translating the Bible into their language. Although Paul told Timothy that his departure was at hand, he also gave him some final instructions. Those instructions included bringing his winter coat to him, the books, and especially the parchments. This is Brother Cheatwood’s final request. To prepare a place for the winter coats that we give the poor children each winter; to have a meeting house for a Turkish meeting, Bulgarian meeting, and an English meeting; and to have a place to print and bind the New Testament that he has translated. We believe there are some people who would believe, if only they had a Bible in their hands. Please pray with us about finishing this work.
In Christ, Zachary LeFevre
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But he stood in the midst of the ground, and defended it, and slew the Philistines: and the LORD wrought a great victory." (II Sam. 23:12)
Dear Churches and Praying Friends, January 2018
Greetings in the name of our great Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ. We trust this letter finds you persevering in the work of God by faith. As the New Year rolls around, we always think about what we've seen in the past year, and then what the New Year might hold. Reflecting on the events of 2017 we are, first of all, bound to give thanks to each of you who have supported this work faithfully through the years. Without your support we would not be here. You labor with us in your prayers. We are fellow laborers. Our burdens are your burdens. Our prayer requests are your works of faith. The victories that we see are your victories. Another year now has passed, a year of standing like Shammah in the midst of the ground and defending it, as mentioned in the verse above. Victory is experienced after long battles. Much of our work here is simply standing, refusing to move or leave the battle. Ralph Cheatwood, the senior missionary with whom we work, when asked “what was his greatest accomplishment in forty years on the mission field”, responded simply, "I stayed." During those forty years of staying he was able to translate the Bible into modern Turkish and preach to thousands of people all over Bulgaria. Many of those thousands believed the gospel and obeyed the command to be baptized into the Christian faith.
So, we have stayed another year. Our year has been filled with preaching to little crowds in house churches. The saints have been edified, or built up in the faith. National pastors have been able to faithfully travel to the villages, week in and week out because we've stayed, and because you've stayed faithful. Hungry children have been fed. Had we not stayed faithful, what would they eat? Just today at the children's meeting there was a girl that told my wife, "I don't come here for the food. I come to hear you talk about Jesus." Many poor people have come to church and experienced the blessing of answered prayer in times of sickness and disease. Just today there was a lady that came to our house and asked prayer for her mother who has cancer. Had we not stayed faithful, where would they be? Last year there was a town drunk who started coming to church. He professed faith in Jesus and proclaimed his drinking days were over. Had we not stayed faithful, what hope would he have?
So, we have stayed another year, and the Lord gives a great victory. The victory is in the hearts of the people here. When they see God answer their prayers, when the truth of the gospel enlightens their hearts, when their faith is manifested in the baptismal waters, which is a great victory.
In 2018 we look forward to more battles and more victories.
In Christ, Zachary LeFevre