Transforming lives in Albania!

How can you feel at home at once – perhaps there are similarities with India where I lived for a couple of years and admittedly I have traveled a lot in southern Europe but still quite strange that you can immediately feel so at home. It is enriching to belong to the same faith family.

At the end of February, I had the privilege of accompanying Ingrid Lilja, one of the church’s experienced Bible teachers, to Tirana, Albania. A trip that leaves deep traces of godliness and a wonder of God’s goodness and tremendous power! It becomes clear how important Albania’s history is and that the country has played a key role in the spread of Christianity in Europe. As many know, the country is home to both Skanderbeg and Mother Teresa. However, Albania today faces major challenges. Many young adults of working age are looking outside the country for work and a better life. There is pressure from many quarters to make Islam the dominant religion in the country and thus a Muslim country. In the midst of this reality, I met young people whose lives and life goals have been completely transformed by meeting and believing in Jesus. One young man told me that before he was saved he looked for ways to leave the country. He could imagine working at almost anything as long as he got out to another country. But when he came to faith in Jesus, he experienced a calling to stay and build the Kingdom of God. It redeemed him when he shared this. How beautiful when men and women stand up for God in their local context. There were also many great meetings with Bible school students, they had different backgrounds, had come different far in their faith walk but all had in common that they were hungry for more of God and to know the Holy Spirit. In His goodness, God met these students with His manifest presence and several were baptized in the Spirit. Wonderful!

“For the eyes of the Lord range throughout the earth to strengthen those whose hearts are fully committed to him. You have done a foolish thing, and from now on you will be at war.”” -2 Chronicles 16:9

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The Balkans Need Our Prayers!

We landed at Alexander the Great Airport in Skopje at 1:00 a.m., half an hour later than scheduled. The flight had gone well, but the landing was rather hard, waking all of us up with a jolt. We were a small team of three people who had come to join our missionaries in North Macedonia for a prayer journey. The call from Acts 16:9, “Come over to Macedonia and help us,” is just as relevant today as it was in Paul’s time. And as we landed in Skopje, I carried in my heart thoughts of this very trip that had been growing there for several months.

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Back in Ukraine

At last, I am back in Ukraine for an extended journey across the country. The intensity of the war has increased rather than diminished since my last visit, and so has the suffering of the civilian population.

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