Shalom Amigos,
As is expected with a few weeks between blogs, lots of changes have occurred since I last posted. We wrapped up our time in Elbasan with a heartwarming church service spent worshipping the Lord as the body of believers. It was a beautiful time full of repentance, prayer, and fellowship together before we left. Bali, a woman of the church we visited, spoke her thanks to us for being there with them as brothers and sisters in Christ. She was very touched by our presence and encouraged in her faith through how God was moving in us. Bali is a strong woman of the faith and knows where her strength and refuge is, in Jesus Christ. She reminded of both of my grandmas in her devout and humble pursuit of the Lord. She even sang us a song to wish us goodbye and hugged us all one last time. We all shared one last meal together with our wonderful host family before setting out for Tirana.
I will always remember our host family: Bukurie, my Albanian Mom; Nisea and Joana, her daughters; and of course Balo and Chico, our furry dog friends. This family so willingly and lovingly opened their home to us sacrificing their comfort so that we could have a place to stay. The level of hospitality that is so freely given in Albania is truly astounding. They were in the process of finishing the lower level when we arrived so that we could all stay at the same house. The work ethic and desire to serve their fellow brothers and sisters is like nothing I’ve seen before. Living with this family was a beautiful opportunity to see what the life of a God-fearing family looks like in a different part of the world. I think it’s only right to acknowledge that the women of Albania are the backbone of this country, and Bukurie is a strong testament to this. She worked hard starting early each morning in the house, in the church, preparing meals, and still taking time to be there for Joana and help her with her homework. (Joana, if you’re reading this, be kind to your mom. She’s just loving you. Miss you <3) Bukurie did all this and more that I’m sure we didn’t see, yet always greeted us at the end of each day with a joyful smile and disarming selflessness. Nisea is a hardworking first year university student studying English to teach others. She splits her time between three jobs and has an understanding of her identity in Christ that is not very common to the younger generation in Albania. There’s so much more I could write about this family and I truly miss them. I pray for their continued endurance as servants of the Lord and that they will stay strong in faith and love. I could write so much more about all the kind and loving brothers and sisters in Elbasan: Bani and Zamira and their kids, Simon and Iglesia; Besnik, a mentor and dedicated member of the church; the youth leaders, Ryna, Martin, Desi, Serxhina, and Fabiana. It was a blessing to serve alongside them.
We hopped on a bus to Tirana and I was sad to be leaving Elbasan, but excited to be together as a squad for mini debrief. I honestly just wanted to sit and listen to some music as the scenery passed by, but God had other plans. We were later to the bus and had to just find a seat wherever we could. I took a seat next to a guy about my age we’ll call Fabian. I don’t remember how exactly our conversation started, but we got talking about what we believed and he was very interested to hear about Jesus. It was a sweet opportunity to share my faith and some of my testimony and this all happened when we left our ministry for that month. I didn’t expect this at all, but I’m so thankful for this encounter. The phrase life is ministry and ministry is life is often tossed around amongst racers, but this experience specifically helped me to understand what that means practically. Sure, I could’ve just put in my earbuds and not talked to Fabian, but instead I got to sow a seed. As a squad this month we are stepping into abandonment, and I believe the Lord was gently guiding me toward abandoning my preference in this moment. As I write this blog, I’m sitting in a café in Peja hoping and praying for more opportunities to step outside my comforts and get the good news out there. I know God will provide these. All I need to do is speak confidently and act boldly looking to Jesus to fill me each day.
I will have another update before the week is out about my new team, New Creationz! I was raised up as a Team Leader and get to serve my fellow O-Squad brothers as we minister here in Kosovo. Please pray for humility and perseverance for me as I step into this position. I want to thank you all for your continued support (prayerfully and financially). It really is encouraging to have people back home that I know are thinking of and praying for our squad as a whole and for me, individually.
May God be with you,
Nathan Schubert
