My Journey in Albania

Ministry in Albania this month has been so good. We are living in a very beautiful city called Pogradec surrounded by many mountains, Lake Orhid and tons of coffee shops. I am so grateful that God has opened this door for us to be able to serve in an European country. It has been such a blessing to be here and it’s been wonderful partnering with this ministry. The people we met are so welcoming and kind. It’s also been an honor to serve with Pastor Erion. He has so much wisdom, a heart of compassion and loves God so much. I’m so excited to share with you all about all my experiences and ministry we’ve been doing. 

Everyday we would start ministry around 10am so our mornings were filled with prayer and quiet time with God. This month I grew a lot more in intimacy with Him and spending more time in the word. We also had a lot of time to grow more together as a team and were intentional with one another with bonding, vulnerability, fasting and deep conversations. We also had many group prayers and worship together. We took our time wisely to do this and pressed into spending it with God. We also watched sermon series about fasting together as a team and fasted once a week. I’ve been so grateful for this time to draw even closer to God and to know him better through the word and for God to grow more boldness in me throughout this month. 

During our first couple of weeks in Albania we had the great opportunity for ministry to share hope and joy in the villages by delivering Christmas gifts, food packages and school supplies to the children in the communities. We visited different churches, had conversations and played games with the children in other villages as well. I stepped out of my comfort zone and into boldness when I shared my testimony at one of the villages. It has been so rewarding to be able to share my testimony with others and give encouragement through it. My team also had the opportunity to lead the children’s program at the church. During one of the programs I stepped out in boldness again as I led the Bible story. After the Bible story we had all the children to do an activity where we split them up into small groups and they would act out the story of Samuel and Eli. It was so good and the children loved it and all participated in it. The staff all enjoyed us leading the children’s program and said we did a good job. 

We also had the opportunity to celebrate Christmas in Albania. It was so much fun. My team and I made a delicious Christmas brunch and dinner. It was so nice spending time with my team and being intentional with one another. We also went to a Christmas service that evening which was really good. The children sang some songs and did a skit for us. Also during the service my team sang Joy to the World. Everyone was so happy and enjoyed it. Since we are serving in the middle of the holiday season our ministry has had a lot of down time, so we had ample amount of time to ask the Lord what other kind of ministry to do and be creative with creating our own ministry. We really pressed in to ask God for guidance and wisdom. One day we had the idea of passing out bags with treats/chocolates and Bible verses during the Christmas season. Another day my team and I wrote out words of encouragement to other people in our squad. We also did prayer walks in the community and prayed over the city while sitting at the lake.

We had the chance to meet a team of young adult missionaries from YWAM (Youth with a Mission). We went out with them for coffee and desserts one evening after church to get to know them and hear their stories. We also had a night of worship together and we prayed over each other. This was a powerful night of worship, prayer and encouragement.

Pastor Erion also asked us to paint a mural in the room where the children’s program was held. It was so much fun be able to serve in this way of making the room more colorful and inviting. On one side of wall my teammate painted the six days of creation and I helped with painting the other side of the wall of different shapes around the cross. It turned out so beautiful and created a space more welcoming for families and children. 

We also had the opportunity to share our testimonies at the women’s Bible study on Thursdays. The women really appreciated us sharing and were encouraged. One Thursday night during the women’s Christmas celebration was a time full of laughter, joy and dancing. It was so much fun being able to connect with the locals, dancing to traditional Albanian music and sharing joy.

My journey this month in Albania was amazing,  especially growing a lot more in boldness and intimacy with God. Having these precious moments to sit in his presence makes me want to keep diving deeper in relationship with God to know him better every day and really pressing into being in tune with the Holy Spirit. Being able to have ample amount of time to spend in his word has been so good and much needed. We saw so much of God’s goodness while serving in the villages, through sharing testimonies, leading the children’s programs and the encounters that we had. God has been moving in so many great ways in this ministry and doing wonderful things in Albania. I have been so blessed and grateful for my journey in Albania and all of our opportunities to share the love of Jesus, encouragement and hope.