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.
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
No comments:
Post a Comment