Here we go!

The first American team came Saturday and we are filled with excitement for the next five weeks, but a little bit of sadness as we realize it won't be the same. What I mean by that, is that we have walked into this summer with an incredible chance to disciple the girls in the youth group here. There are about 10 regular girls who we have grown to love. Yesterday we went on boats in the lake with them as a last goodbye. We will see them again when we do camps here in Pogradec, but it will not be the same as it has been this past month. I cannot believe how great our conversations have been with them. The few who can speak English have been a great blessing in that the depth of our conversations with them and the girls who do not speak English have continued.

Here is a schedule of the next 5 weeks, 4 for me as I will return to school early for RA training

Week one: Korça tent camp (Jr High)
Week two: Korça day camp (High school)
Week three: Pogradec Day camp
Week four:  Korca tent camp (High school)
Week five: Pogradec tent camp (High school)

Tent camps mean that we take 60-80 Albanians and the American team and travel about 45 minutes away to a forest area. We are basically on a small field that we cleaned up last week. There are tents for girls and boys and there is a stage (just built). There are now a few showers and some bathrooms and as of 3 days ago, they were able to access water, which is an answer to prayer!

The American team that just came in from Southern California will run the 3 hour English lessons each day and the games. There will be a sermon each night and we are presenting the Gospel through the life of Paul. I am so excited for this week because there are some kids who will come who have never heard of the name of Jesus. Never. Please pray for us as a team as we love them, talk with them, play games with them all in effort to share the love and good news of Jesus! They are Jr highers so there will be a ton of energy and a ton of fun.

Becaue off the brief window I get on wifi, I will just share some pictures of the last few weeks!

This is the volleyball court at camp and the filed behind it is where some of the tents will be.

This is Bethany with three of the girls at the Pista, which is a restaurant on the water, where we go for Albanian dancing 

This is a picture of the old men form Pogradec who can be found playing chess all day. I love this picture.

                                                Lake Ohrid with the Pista in the background

                                         The Albanian graduation we attended last week

                                                              The beautiful graduate

                 A man fixing the basketball court at the school behind are house. Cracks me up!

Some of the girls who made cupcakes for Saturday youth group 

One of the girls little brother's is learning English and wrote this in the sand. He was very proud of it!

Prayer:

For camp: safety, fun, energy and most importantly that the hearts of these kids would be opened to the gospel. 

For the girls we have spent time with here in Pogradec, that they would continue to ask hard questions, wrestle with truth and that they would seek out the counsel of Kristine and Melodie.

We are so excited for the crazy weeks ahead! 

Camps are coming!

Camps start in 2 weeks from today and we are so excited and working hard to get everything ready!

Last week, Bethany and I got the opportunity to travel three hours to Greece for a few days, where we got the chance to see the Acropolis and sit on Mars hill while we read Acts 17. It was incredible to sit where Paul sat and read about his defense of the faith. Sadly, the city of Athens was quite corrupt and ugly. It was fun to imagine what it would have looked like in Bible times, but  sad to see what it looked like at the moment.

Typically, at the end of summer, Josiah Venture interns get the chance to go on a debrief trip for a few days with their team leaders. Because, we are doing six camps that take us right to the end of the summer, Cory and Kristine suggested that we take a few days in Greece to prepare for camps and see Athens. It was a great opportunity, but by the last day, we were so ready to be back here in Pogradec. I am thankful for the time spent relaxing and preparing for the camps, but I am so glad to be back.

   The girls made cupcakes for Youth group, which is switching from Friday nights to Saturday nights

Daily, we have been meeting with 20 or so kids. Cory and Erion (the Albanian pastor here in Pogradec) have led them in studying the Bible and leading VBS and festivals for the nearby villages. As we have gotten to walk through this with them, it is evident that the Lord is changing hearts and deepening desires to know him and to know truth. For some, it has been difficult to understand, but they have been vigilant in their questions. I am having coffee with a girl tomorrow who has about fifteen questions written down and who wants to read the Bible together. One thing about the youth here, is they understand that there is a cost to being a christian and that to know Christ is to have a different life, so they often say something like "This is new for me, I want to believe, but I have questions." I cannot belive that I get the opportunity to study the Bible with them, to point them to Christ and to love and pursue these kids!

Quick Story: Two nights ago we had two girls over for dinner. One speaks great English and the other understands some, but doesn't speak much. Despite the language barrier, we were able to enjoy panckes and laughs and talking about what we had heard that day about Jesus being fully God and fully man. One precious moment was when we asked the girl who speaks little Albanian to pray, she was nervous, but said okay. After her prayer (in Albanian) she started to cry. She said that she had never prayed in front of people, but that is so glad that she did. Yesterday, this girl Facebooked Bethany and I and asked if both girls could come over again. After a long day of planning for camps, we only had time to grab some chips and gummy bears at a stand right down the street. (In Albania, it is customary to have some sort of food to offer your guests when they come, so we got what we could! :))

So over BBQ chips and gummy bears, this girl shared with us that after praying last night for the first time, she knew we were a safe place. She continued to tell us how she gets made fun of by her famiy for leaving to go to Bible study, or project or youth group. She said her brother told her parents that she was sneaking out to go be with a boy, when she was really going to Bible study. Through this time, we listened and prayed and read scripture. She said she was sick of being lonely and not having a family who wants to read the Bible. It was a new experience for me to feel so helpless, yet want to help so badly. I am beyond thankful that the God we serve is personal God who goes with us and meets us in the scary places and in the lonely ones. Please pray for this sweet girl and her family.

 I want to thank for for your faithful support. Thank you for allowing me to come here through financial donations and for supporting me through prayers. I am humbled and oh so grateful to be here.

Prayer Requests:
Please pray for our team as we finish last minute details for camps.

Please pray for the American teams that are coming to run camp. Pray that they would have servant's hearts and energy to enjoy each moment

Please pray for the youth here as they learn about the gospel and share it at home. It is no easy task for them to explain to their parents.

With joy,
Kate