Today.

Today has only been from the Lord. No other could have given me today. I needed today. I needed to be reminded that God......God has brought me here. It wasn't by accident or random chance. God ordained it and did it for a purpose. He is faithful.


Lord, thank you for authority and mentors. Thank you for creating people to need each other. Thank you for correcting and teaching me through others -- others who love you.


He who began a good work in you will be faithful to complete it. (Phil. 1:6)

It's Friday!

My PRIME supervisor arrives this morning! Praying she lands safely and gets over jet lag soon! It's going to be a good weekend!

Last night Rachel and I had our weekly Book study. We only had two show up. It was challenging for a while because of the language barrier. In the past we have had girls come who are more fluent in English and would translate for us but they didn't come last night. I wish so bad I could speak better Albanian! We got into some really interesting discussions last night though. Please pray that God brings more girls and that we are sensitive to His direction.

Busy Week!

This week is going to be a busy one! My PRIME supervisor is coming to visit me this weekend! She'll observe me teaching the Roma on Saturday, teach Sunday school, and visit the family with thirteen children on Monday. This Sunday is also special for another reason. It's the first time we will have served the Lord's supper in over five months. For most people who come to church, this is the only access they have to partaking in this as a family of God. I pray that our hearts are prepared for coming to the Lord's table...

I went with my friend this morning to visit the family of thirteen children. She's such a good translator! I'm so glad I have her! We sat with Bahrije and got to know her and family better (know that I could understand what she was saying). Only three out of her thirteen children are in school. Four of them dropped out because of embarrassment or continuous bullying. There really is no hiding their poverty. Bahrije feels terrible that her children have to live in such poor conditions. Another child of hers, Donika (who is eight), isn't in school because "her brain isn't developed enough." The director of the school told them to wait another two years (when she's ten) to put her in school. She understands everything they say but she communicates improperly (inefficiently?) or they just don't understand her. I'm definitely not an expert as this, but I think she's autistic. I've had several people tell me here that most of Kosova is uninformed about autism and, as a result, they just think their child isn't "normal" and then keep them out of school. It's really unfortunate. I wish I was more educated about this and somehow I could help. One of the benefits of today was better being able to see and hear some of the ways I can better serve them. Thank you, Lord.

Meet the Family!

 

Today I visited the family with thirteen children after my English lesson with the Roma. I'm trying to visit them at least once a week.

 

My goal tonight was to learn all the names of the thirteen kids. I brought my camera so that I could take a picture of each child. I thought maybe a picture with the name would help instead of just the name. Her kids are so cute! Sometimes it was a little hard to tell between the boys and the girls because almost all of them have short hair. I felt a little embarrassed but I had to ask. (I put a "B" or "G" next to their age.) Their family was so nice and friendly to me. I am just amazed how strong the mother is! She is 34 with thirteen children and an unemployed husband and still has her spirits high! I look forward to further developing our friendship.

 

My Albanian friend was supposed to come with me tonight but it didn't work out. The mom  (Bahria) kept trying to find someone to come over to translate for us. My Albanian isn't very good, to say the least. It's such a difficult language to learn.  A neighbor came for a few minutes and then another neighbor joined. Finally they called a cousin, who is studying English, to come over. Eventually we could talk to each other! (lol) God always provides! :)

 

Hope you enjoy the pictures!

 

 

 

 

-

 

Denisi (8 months - B)

 

 

Eliza (1 - G)

 

Zeqir (3 - B)

 

Deniza (4 - G)

 

 

Dafina (5 - G)

 

 

Donika (8 - G)

 

 

Florenti (9 - B)

 

Burimi (10 - B)

 

Diellza (11 - G)

 

Afrimi (13 - B)

 

Gentiana (18 - G)

 

 

 *Not pictured: Besim (14-B) and Enisi (16-B)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

A HUGE Blessing!

 

I have been meaning to write this post for a while now. I'm so behind!

 

 

About three or so weeks ago a small team from Tennessee came to volunteer for about a week. There were three of them: Chad, Becky, and Eric. Chad, who is married to Becky, was a marine and was located here in Kosovo during the war. He has such a heart and passion for Kosovo and has a desire to do kingdom work here. He was here last year and arranged another trip with his wife and friend, who is the children's pastor at their church. One of the main projects they did was help improve our community center, Oaza. They raised all the money to paint, buy new carpet (and rug), put in light fixtures, re-tile the bathroom, replace the toilet and a door, fix the leaking roof, and spray paint the front. I'm sure I'm even forgetting things! Oaza doesn't have a big budget by any means, so this was such a HUGE blessing! It needed a new, fresh look so bad! It also didn't the leaking to stop, which was destroying the walls and ceilings. We want people to feel at home when they're at Oaza! The team went above and beyond and worked so hard all week! We are eternally grateful for all their effort, financial giving and support! They have plans of coming back next year and hopefully starting a camp for children! I'm super excited to see what God has planned! Rachel and I miss them dearly and hope to see them in the near future! They were such an encouragement and motivation for us! Thank you, thank you....

 

 



 

 

Tennessee Team!

(From Left to Right: Eric, Becky, and Chad)

 

 

 

 

 

A Look at the New Oaza!

 

 

 

 

BEFORE

(classroom)

 

AFTER

(I love the mint and cream colors! It makes it feel more soothing and warm.)

 

 

BEFORE

(classroom)

 

AFTER

 

 

BEFORE

(coffee room)

 

AFTER

(I love the touches of the warm mocha colors. We also got an actual light fixture. Before it was just a light bulb hanging from the ceiling. I also love the brown rug that replaced the blue carpet. Looks so good!)

 

 

 

 

BEFORE

(entree way from coffee room to classroom)



 

AFTER

(So much better! It has a "cleaner" look to it.)

 

 

BEFORE

(front foyer)

 

AFTER

(A million times better! Moving the bookshelves to the other side of the room made such a hug difference!)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

"Don't give up."

It's been hard to write on my blog lately. Not only have I been homesick, but I've had head aches (and sometimes migraines) every day for the past three weeks or so. They make my work much more difficult. I've also had a hard time sleeping at night, which makes me really tired during the day. My mind and body want to give up sometimes. I don't know if it's culture stress, team stress, "Joy stress," or homesickness stress. Who knows? Maybe it's all of them. Some days I would just love to get away for a little bit and clear my head. 

I was able to talk with my mom yesterday, which was much needed. Crying and talking with your mama can do wonders! (lol) Thank you, Lord, for moms!!! :)  I needed her encouragement and words of wisdom. I needed to hear someone say, "Joy, don't give up." Such simple yet powerful words.

Please continue to pray for my team. We need it. Pray for unity, mercy, healing, renewal, boldness, change, and sensitivity to the HS.

Tonight I have my two ballet classes, which I am praying go better than the last two weeks of kids and parents being upset about not getting into the class. I also have Coffee House with Rachel from 8-10PM.

Thank you for all your prayers and support. I could not have a better family in the Lord.

One of the "Thank You" cards that one my little dancers made for Fort Wayne Ballet

 



The sky was beautiful the other night!

My Prayer for Tonight.

O Lord,

Help us to love when we have nothing left.  Help us to hope when we have nothing left.  Help us be strong when we have nothing left. Help us repent when we have nothing left. Help us be wise when we have nothing left.

Help us receive Your love when we nothing left.

Amen.