We came to Albania with a new team and a new task. This month was UH or Unsung heroes month and its also manastry month. Which meant that all the guys are together doing ministry and all of us girls split into different teams to do ministry. This month, us 6 girls, were given the task of UH. So we were given the country of Albania, specifically three cities, to research/look for churches, missionaries, and organizations to find new ministries for future teams to come serve and work along side them in the future.
So here we are in a new country none of us had been to before, literally homeless, and told to go out and make contacts. On the first day we were sitting in a coffee shop researching and waiting for the others from our team to come back and tell us whether they found a place to stay or not for the night. Then we get a very excited call from them saying that we found a place for however long we need it while in the area. Such a blessing.
Place after place was provided. It was truly eye opening to see there hospitality and to be loved by them. We met some of the greatest people with such a heart for the Lord and willingness to serve him with all they have. Contact after contact had such a desire and need for teams to come and serve.
The first week or so we stayed with Klement ‘s family. Him and his wife were both from Albania, raised muslim, became believers, and now starting a church in a small town near tirana, Albania. They have opened up their house to be used as a church and youth ministry place.
One of my favorite days was when we had all the girls from the youth come over and hangout. It was so fun. We had cookies, shared testimonies, worship, and just a big dance party! It was probably the best thing ever. They shared with us their favorite songs and taught us Albanian dances. They just really welcomed us and just wanted to be with us. It didn’t matter that we just met them. They wanted to know all about us and wanted to tell us all about them and Albania. They love their country and we came to love it as well.
We had to move quite a bit being the UH team and sometimes we got drop off at bus stations not sure were we meeting our next contact.
Even with the short time that we were in each place it was hard to leave each time. We could have stayed with each contact we met all month. They were so welcoming and just had such a great ministry and just had this overflow of love for the lord.
We met and stayed with the the Dielli family in pogradec albania, they were planting a church there. Them and a two other missionary families had such a heart for the city and the people and just have really invested their lives there. We had the opportunity to join their church and just be apart of the Dielli family. They were so sweet to us and helped us in anyway they could.
Our last place we stopped, was lushnje albania. We stayed at this church with pastor Erion and his wife Annie. They invited us to come and be apart of their ministry for the couple days we were there. Me and two of my teammates went to this village near by, that was a roma community, that had not heard the gospel in over 500 years. Erion and the church in Lushnje were in their first month of planting this church. We went and helped with the kids program there. They have about 15 – 20 kids come and after the program they gave away clothes for all the kids. When this happened more people just started coming in, the children and the mothers of the children just surrounding us reaching and asking for these clothes. There was just this need in their face, you could tell they had nothing and they wanted all they could take. It was definitely heart breaking to see.
What I came out of this month being impacted by was the hospitality we received from all the people here whether they were christians or not they were just so welcoming and loved us being around. The believers were so welcoming and willing to let us into their lives and walk along side them and their ministry. They had no idea who we were yet by one phone call or email would just offer us to stay at their house. That is something that I have never experienced before.
God is so great, and we got to see first hand how he has impacted peoples life. Jesus has completely changed their life and it is so evident by the way they live. They pour everything into church and their ministry and have really encouraged me to be all in all the time in everything we do and how to really show love to others through they way we live.
Here is a picture of our team from this month in Albania.
