We are looking for graduates to spend a gap year, or people who have taken early retirement, to serve for a year in Albania or Kosova as part of the ministry. They should be people with initiative, and open to the possibility of a longer-term call arising from their year. They need to be able to take up and develop a ministry they are asked to become involved in, if it should be appropriate. We are not offering a rigidly imposed programme, rather there is flexibility to develop your ministry within the existing structure of the missionary team or the local church. The work might include youth work, teaching English or computing, ministry in a university, open-air evangelism, practical help with such events as children’s or youth camps (cooking, electrical set-up, music...). There is a wide variety of possibilities, and work would be undertaken alongside a missionary or pastor. |
 |
The main towns where possibilities exist are Korçë, Gjirokastër, Prishtinë, Prizren and Mitrovicë. They range from a small church-plant to a flourishing church with several nearby church-plants and a medical clinic. People interested in applying would be invited to join the Mission’s Director on an exploratory trip, without commitment on either side. Summer Camps 2008 Would you be interested in joining a team of helpers at our summer camps in Borsh, Albania? The following article about the 2007 camps might help you to make up your mind. The AEM summer camp for young people in the beautiful, coastal location of Borsh is an established, annual event. That there can be spiritual benefit in such an exercise has never really been in question, although who gains and how may vary with the format. For 2007 Shaun and Jennifer Thompson planned three camps: a family week was to be followed by a camp for Christian young people and their non-Christian ‘guests’. The final week was focussed on younger teenagers. An important innovation in 2007 involved approaching English teachers in Gjirokastër and Tepelenë. Their students were invited to join us for a week of language study in an explicitly Christian context. This was also to be an opportunity for a ‘team’ of people from the UK (and, as it turned out, Germany) to be able to volunteer their holiday time to support Gospel work in Albania. In all, eight young Christians with a burden to serve the Lord contributed to the evangelistic camps. The results of such endeavours are impossible to quantify but the blessings felt by each group involved can be discerned from their comments. For the Albanian Christians, the joy of Godly fellowship, especially for those who come from areas barren of Christian churches, was immeasurable. Shaun writes: ‘Another big positive is that camp gave believers in isolated situations an opportunity for fellowship. This is especially true for the girls from Mallakaster district, where there is no church at all. Among those was Flutura, who is a nurse at her village hospital. She brought her brother with her to camp and has since written a message to say that he is now much more open to the faith.’ With the added benefit of Will Niven’s daily ministry in the Book of Jonah and an evening programme of testimony and worship, the camp provided a spiritual fillip for all those who attended and are seeking to walk with the Lord in Albania today. For the ‘Guests’, the opportunity to be amongst Christians and witness the daily consistency of their lives made a powerful testimony to the work of Christ in the soul. Most refreshing was their willingness to engage in the times of worship, preaching and discussion while their frankness in raising spiritual questions and personal concerns would be almost unheard of in Britain. That many have already expressed a desire to return next year is encouraging. It would be wonderful to be able to say that some were converted during the week. Such claims require caution but reports which have so far come back from Fier and Memaliaj indicate that the positive influence of the camp has remained with many of the young people who came. For the ‘Team’ who had very different starting points in their knowledge of Albania, the experience was undoubtedly eye-opening. Again, the universal cry on departure was, “I’ll be back next year”. At least one member of the group was thinking beyond the short-term commitment of the camp towards a more permanent involvement in Gospel work in Albania. We cannot say how the Lord will lead each of these young people as their lives unfold but it is sure that Albania, its people and in particular, new friends in Christ are imprinted indelibly upon their hearts. Their presence, unity of purpose and hard work was much appreciated by all and allowed aspects of the camps to go ahead which would otherwise have been impossible. One of the group was Kristin from Germany. She had previously lived in Borsh while working with an Operation Mobilisation (OM) team. Kristin writes; ‘When I was in Albania in 1992 for the first time, the name of JESUS was not known to many people at all, and there were only a very few born again Christians in the country. For me now to see so many young, Albanian believers from very different parts of the country, coming together, eager to learn more about the Lord and being united in praise and prayer really touched my heart and made me very thankful to the Lord.’ For the younger language students, what for many of them was their first experience of Christians and the Christian message seems to have stayed with them. Saimir, a teacher from Memaliaj and member of the church there, reports that the children were even singing the choruses and songs they had learned as they travelled home. Imagine a bus, full of teenagers, lustily singing ‘Go tell it on the mountain’ and ‘Because he lives’. Shaun tells us that the English teacher from Tepelenë wants to send 50 children next year. For Shaun and Jennifer and those who work constantly to proclaim the Word of God in Albania it would be presumptuous to try and summarise the blessings of the camps. Their messages indicate an appreciation of the help given and the fellowship and support which went with it. They are now planning to follow up the contacts made, particularly in towns like Tepelenë, where there is currently no church fellowship. We should also remember Memaliaj, home to many of the ‘guests’ and the focus of much prayer on behalf of the efforts of Geni Dogani and his small flock.
Interested for 2008? If you are, contact Paul Davies: blackdog.house@talktalk.net or on 01359 231522. Tell us a bit about yourself and we'll keep you informed as the plans come together.
For more information on any of the above opportunities please send us an email office[@]aemission.org (please note that the square brackets need to be removed from the address line before sending an email, this is to avoid large amounts of automated spam that we have been receiving) |
|
