Written by Trif Trifonov, IM Missionary to Bulgaria
Sometimes God works in unexpected ways. For Mitko, what began as simple curiosity while watching Christian videos online grew into a life transformed by faith, discipleship, and a heart for serving others.
Mitko was raised in an atheist home. Although, like most Bulgarian children, he was baptized as a baby, he knew little about God or the gospel. As a teenager, however, he began watching Christian videos online. Over time, the seeds of faith were planted and took root in his heart.
Eventually, Mitko reached out to a pastor he had been following online, asking him to recommend a church in his hometown of Varna. The pastor happened to be a good friend of our church, so he put Mitko in touch with us. The very next Sunday, Mitko attended our worship service, and he has hardly missed a gathering since.
Mitko has been a great encouragement to our church, especially through his commitment to studying God’s Word. Even before coming to church, he had already begun reading the Bible. A few years later, he started studying dentistry and joined the local Christian student Bible study group. During this time, Trif also completed the Essential Discipleship course with him.
Afterward, Mitko enrolled in the two-year “Radi Tsvetkov” Internship Program, a leadership and ministry training initiative that equips future pastors and Christian workers to lead and plant churches across Bulgaria.
Over the past year, Mitko has begun preaching at our church and has joined Trif in outreach ministry at a local rehabilitation center and in serving other New Life Churches. He also learned to play the guitar and joined the worship team. Recently, he took the initiative to organize other students from our church for several outreach trips to villages around the Varna region.
It has been a joy to watch God shape Mitko into a faithful servant with a passion for His Word and His people. We are excited to see how the Lord will continue to use him in the years ahead, and we believe God has great plans for his life.
