The last few days in Vlora were a whirlwind. The most memorable day was when a group of children from the village came to the city for the day. We were able to spend a few hours with them and bless them. My team and I met them at a local greek restaurant along with our Airbnb host, who drove them to the city from the village. We had prepared a day at the beach (since we were in a city near the Adriatic sea), a few fun activities, and a few little treats. Unfortunately, those plans were thwarted by the weather. The large gray clouds were looming and threatening to rain on our fun day. So, to avoid getting a bunch of children (and adults) wet and running to the nearest overhang we thought about maybe going to the local amusement park and have fun there. But again, the weather got in the way. Turns out the amusement park was an outdoor park and was closed because of the possibility of poor weather. So, our final plan was just to take the budget we had planned for the day and bless these kids with some new school supplies and toys. What was amazing was how gracious these kids were. They really wanted to spend the day exploring the city that they very rarely visited and have some fun at an amusement park and instead they spent most of the day inside a restaurant and then a coffee shop waiting around for something to happen. I thought that these kids were going to be bored and complain about how disappointing the day had been but, instead they were amazed that there were people that wanted to spend time with them. They were so happy to see us and while the day was not smooth sailing it was still so much fun for them to have a car ride to the city. These kids were an amazing example of what our faith is supposed to look like. They were grateful for every minute of that day and my team and I got to be a part of it. A part of me thought they were going to be filled with disappointment because of all of the changes we had to make but, instead they were just so excited to see us and be away for the day. Our faith is supposed to look child-like. In Matthew, Mark and Luke it says just that.
(Lucas, our Airbnb host, and some of the children from the village)
In Mark 10:13-15 it says, “And they were bringing children to him that he might touch them, and the disciples rebuked them. But when Jesus saw it, he was indignant and said to them, ‘Let the children come to me; do not hinder them, for to such belongs to the kingdom of God. Truly, I say to you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God like a child shall not enter it.’”
God wants us to have an innocent, child-like faith and the day with these kids was an amazing example of that.
(A rainbow on the day the children visited the city)
The last few days in Albania were filled with goodbyes. We spent an entire day scheduling different meetings with a few of the locals that we had invested in that month. We were able to say all of our goodbyes by the time we were getting onto our bus to make it to our next country. Some goodbyes were harder than others but they were all sweet and we hope to return some day to say hello again.
(This is a 13th century monastery we got to visit in our last few days with the teacher we had met in the village)
Albania was not an easy month. We were on our own for ministry and there were a lot of very stretching moments but it was also filled with great moments. I am looking forward to what the Lord will continue to do with me and my team during our time in our next country, Kosovo! Stay tuned for many blogs about my next country…Kosovo!
