So, theEDGE and I made it to our permanent ministry location in Tirana on Wednesday. This is where we will be serving the rest of the time we are in Albania. We are working with a local Nazarene church that has somewhere in the neighborhood of 50 members. The church is located in Kombinat, an impoverished neighborhood on the west side of Tirana. We will be assisting in various ministries that the church is involved in.
One area that I know I will be serving in is music. I will be teaching free piano lessons to people at the church. Luckily, our team has people talented in guitar, piano, ukulele, and singing. We will be using these talents not only to teach, but also to help lead services. We will also be teaching English to kids, and we will also be sharing our testimonies during Sunday services. This week we are doing more manual labor. We painted the whole church, and some people on my team are helping the pastor with maintenance at his house.
It has been challenging because we haven’t had a regular schedule yet, and most of the time we don’t know what we will be doing until we get to the church each day. I struggle with this, because I am someone who likes a plan and a schedule. However, through this fluidity, God has taught me to just go with the flow, and trust that God will have us doing what He requires.
Besides our ministry, our team has been exploring, as well as learning how to live life on our own. We are responsible for buying and cooking all of our own food. This has gone quite well, as everyone has pitched in shopping, cooking, and cleaning up after meals. Some of our meals have been: personal pizzas, french toast, and lots of rice and beans. We have also been getting to know the people around here, both adults and children. I have also befriended a stray dog that hangs around the church. His name is Ruby. He has a tag on his ear, which means he has been fixed and vaccinated by a sort of animal shelter nearby. He follows us around, as a sort of guard dog.
It has been a major adjustment going from a community of 50 people to just 8. It is a lot quieter, and I have a lot more personal time. I miss the rest of the squad a ton, and can’t wait to see them again in about a week and a half. But right now, I am focusing on following God’s every lead, a task which I could use prayer for. I miss everyone back home, and am incredibly grateful for all the prayer and support. God bless!
