Macedonia – how I miss you more and more everyday. I just wanted to take a few minutes to pay tribute to my favorite month of the Race so far with some of the things I will miss about Macedonia! Hope you enjoy my list!
1) My Macedonian Brothers
Kire, Krste, Robert, and Vance
These men have some of the most incredible testimonies I have ever heard. They instilled so much wisdom into us and we had so many good times together filled with worship, and laughter. These men are truly furthering the Kingdom in Stip; especially for people who are drug/alcohol addicts. The heart they have for this population comes from their history. I miss them so much, continue to pray for them!
2) Stip Church Family
We met some of the most welcoming people at church. We were welcomed and loved on instantly from the first day. It was truly the first month I felt truly welcomed and a part of the community. We were encouraged and sometimes even invited to people’s houses: like Alkesandra’s family! We spent a wonderful evening with her family (husband and 2 beautiful daughters) at their house! I miss the love of the Stip community.
3) The Language
I tried so hard to learn a lot of the Macedonian words and sometimes felt that I could understand it! It was beautiful and I hope that if the Lord calls me back to Macedonia I will be fluent one day!
4) The Worship
This month I kind of fell into the role of worship leader. I actually picked up the guitar again since Sookie is still out of commission; first time since leaving the States. I was super rusty, but loved being able to play and sing a few songs a couple of times a week! Abby (muy little) even helped me for Prayer Service our first Thursday night in Stip!
5) The Food
We had some great food while we were in Macedonia – some our team cooked for ourselves and some was traditional Macedonian meals. (Sorry I don’t have any pictures)
6) The many dogs of Macedonia
Meet Shawty; our team’s almost pet that we were going to take care of and travel with! Our team fell in love with SO many dogs in Macedonia and the dogs LOVED us. I miss the many pups we had to say goodbye to!
7) Coffee Lab
Coffee Lab became our team’s favorite coffee shop. I think our littles were there everyday! My drink of choice was the caramel shake with coffee = would highly recommend!
8) Our Littles
Abby and Renata; I miss you both SO much! Thank you for jumping into the craziness of the Race with no hesitation. Thank you for being vulnerable and for sharing all of the wisdom y’all have! Team Uplift is not the same without the 2 of you! Thanks for loving and challenging us! (Y’all will have an official goodbye blog coming soon!) Love you ladies so much!
9) The Flag
No offense America; but Macedonia has the best flag I’ve seen so far! It’s a SUNSHINE; IT’S SO HAPPY AND BRIGHT! Hence why I got a tshirt with the shape of Macedonia and the flag design inside it (see Coffee Lab picture). I wear that shirt with pride everytime.
10) The Adults With Disabilities Program
We got the privilege to work with these wonderful adults twice while in Macedonia! The first time was the dance party I wrote about a few blogs back. The second time was we got to do a craft project with them. They only meet twice a week and have little to no funding. People with disabilities are looked down upon and truly misunderstood in Macedonia. I pray that changes or maybe even God brings me back to help educate people about the Special Ed field!
Oh Macedonia, what else is there to say other that you truly have stolen a piece of my heart. I haven’t felt the same since leaving you and miss you more and more everyday! It was my hardest and most tearful goodbye thus far. I pray the Lord brings me back someday to work within the Special Education field (huge need; 1% of the population has Autism with no programs set up by the government is just one example) or with the women of Macedonia through ANA (stay tuned for a future blog about ANA,) or just to work with my Macedonian brothers at the church! Macedonia, I’ll love you forever!
Our final dinner with the guys we celebrated “Christmas in July,” where we gave them personalized coffee mugs (they’re all addicted to coffee) with candy and notes for them all! It was a fabulous evening that will be hard to forget!
Another picture of my brothers because I couldn’t decided which picture I liked better!
