Tetovo, Macedonia, where my team of five and I, spent our first month of the World Race, was a place of major contrasts.
Our eyes met beautiful landscapes, with green mountains in every direction. There was a river that flowed through the city and signs of the past were visible with aged landmarks and fortress ruins ready to be explored.
People from the nearby villages lined the sidewalks selling everything from produce and honey, toys and clothing, to electronics and home-goods.
Young kids walked around the city unsupervised, giggling and ready to see what they could get themselves into with their friends. It was refreshing to see this: to see children allowed to be out with other kids, with little worry about their well-being and safety. They were fully capable of crossing streets, riding their bikes around town, buying snacks from the many convenience stores and simply rationalizing and making decisions on their own. All things that seem to be fading from the American culture.
There was a constant maze of vehicles driving around, with little order to their chaos. Cars and motorcycles were parked everywhere; it didn’t matter if it was a sidewalk, a park, a place of business, or a busy road, if someone wanted to park, they simply parked.
The beauty and simplicity of Tetovo crashed with contrasts. This beautiful landscape was filled with litter and graffiti; the river, brimmed with trash. Everything from appliances, to furniture, to clothing and bottles, made this river toxic. Open dumpsters with wheels were on every block, with stray cats and dogs waiting to see what scraps they could find for food. The very air was infused with a bad odor, and in fact, holds a #5 ranking for the most polluted air in the world.
A snippet of the trash accumulation in the river.
The two main people groups that live here are the Macedonians and the Albanians and their relations are rocky. Racism between these two nationalities was prevalent and often took place in very real and obvious ways.
Male dominance was also ubiquitous. The amount of men out and about in the city, greatly out-numbered the women. There were places of business that women were not allowed in. In the cafes, groups of men were clustered together, seemingly enjoying each others company; to see women doing the same, was rare and almost unthinkable.
The atmosphere and vibe of the city, was gloomy. It lacked a sense of joy and peace. There was a heaviness I could feel subtly pressing down on my spirit and shoulders.
Our ministry efforts were pioneering and grass-roots, as there is currently no church in Tetovo. Out of the 70k population, there is not a single believer. There are less than 10 missionaries here, from other countries, who are basically carrying the weight of spiritual warfare and prayer for the people in this city.
Being a missionary and “converting people” is illegal in Tetovo, so talking about Jesus openly was not recommended and tends to carry a revolutionary and occultic reputation.
Our biggest job was to simply be present and pray.
We prayed over the city, over buildings, over vehicles and over people. We prayed outside the mosques and during the calls to prayer that can be heard throughout the whole city. We prayed in restaurants, on the benches at the bus stop and in the parks where children play.
We prayed for breakthrough, revelation, courage and hope.
We also spent much of our time hanging out with locals and building relationships. Some of these people we knew through our host and others were total strangers we met on our own. Whether we were taking them on a hike or to a cafe, our focus was to be the light of Jesus to them- whether they knew it or not.
We wanted to show them what love and joy look like. Whether our conversation was about the history of the Balkans, music, relationships, occupations or what life is like in America, our goal and purpose was to show them what community and living in freedom is like.
There is a reality that in my lifetime, I will never know what the harvest of our seed planting looks like. Many days we felt discouraged, as it seemed like our efforts had no effect or were useless. There are many people in the Bible who worked and prayed for a purpose, but were not able to see the fruit of their labor or the fullness of promises. Look at Abraham and Moses: Abraham did not personally see the fruition of all the nations and Moses did not see the promise land. Was their prayer and work useless? Did God cheat them? Absolutely not.
We had to constantly remind ourselves that this is ok. Seed planters are necessary. It is hard and tiresome, but it is ok.
1 Corinthians 58 says that no seed planted for the glory of the Lord is wasted, that there will be eternal results of our labor for Him; and that is the promise I am standing on. I KNOW that everything, from our kind gestures and words, to our prayers, to our hugs, to our conversations, to our feet walking on dark ground, will one day produce fruit and a great harvest will overflow in Tetovo.
I am thankful He would give me the opportunity to knock on heavens door and ask that a church would be brought to them. That He would trust me to seek and beg for their revelation, justice, hope and joy. Until then, I will keep praying for that city, and am honored that the Lord would allow me be a seed planter for their future.
