Finding “Unsung Heroes” isn’t quite as easy as it sounds. It requires a lot of faith and confidence that the Lord will provide and show us where to go. I have faith for sure, but it’s hard NOT to doubt that the Lord will provide ministry contacts and accommodations when you arrive to a country and don’t know anyone or speak the language.
I doubted that my team was supposed to be in Vlorë, instead of Tirana, particularly because our voyage to Vlorë was not an easy one. It was filled with sickness and transportation drama, but we journeyed on and made it to our unfamiliar destination per God’s request. Our new Albanian friends greeted us with kindness and generosity as they showed us to our new accommodations: dorm rooms at the local university. I was pretty excited about our large room filled with comfy beds and a beautiful view from our balcony plus hot showers and squatty potties (well maybe not super excited about these, lol).
God provides awesome accommodations. CHECK.
Later that night, we met their group at a café and continued our conversations as they gave us a tour of their city. (Let me just tell you this, God DEFINITELY showed up in those conversations to cast out any of my remaining doubts.)
[Tangent — It’s not one of my strengths to just start conversations with random people and get to know their hearts. I’m much better at holding conversations once someone else has broken the ice and has made the situation less awkward. My teammate Sara, for example, just jumps right in and has a God-given strength to become best friends with EVERYONE. She is drawn to people and has a supernatural ability to make them feel beautiful without even speaking their language. — End Tangent]
After inserting myself into Sara’s conversation with the wife of our new Albanian host and hearing her story, I felt instantly blessed by her presence. This woman, Denisa, has such a beautiful heart for the Lord and his people. She is passionate about youth ministry and art. She willingly serves the city that is unfamiliar, unfriendly, and faraway from her hometown to be with her new husband and listen to God’s calling for her life. She tells us about her husband’s ministry and all that they have planned for the city. Her commitment to experience the uncomfortable is reassuring and familiar.
God provides incredible future ministry partners. CHECK.
I was too enthralled in my discussion with Denisa and Sara to pay attention to what was being said with the people that would soon become our Albanian family. The only thing I heard was from Denisa’s husband, Ermal, and he said “We have been praying for people like you to come to our city and to our church.”
God confirms this is in fact where we are supposed to be. CHECK.
LIKE WHAT?! Well, that’s incredible. We’ve been praying that God would guide us to a place that was in need of future World Racers. We leave our comfortable hostel to come south to a church we found on Google AND these people have been praying for a team like us to come to their city. We prayed to go to a place that was in need. We prayed that God would provide accommodations within our WR budget. I prayed that I would have one home cooked Albanian meal. He answered all of our prayers instantly (P.S. Albanian meal was DELICIOUS).
Alright God, I’ll stop doubting.
The Holy Spirit is definitely moving in Vlorë. Although there are only 100 Christians in a city of 300,000, he is going to perform in miraculous ways. He will provide the church with a larger facility to worship and the funding they need for their ministries. He will bless the youth and student ministries. He will capture the hearts of the non-believers, particularly those in the government.
He will make his presence KNOWN throughout Albania. CHECK.
