This morning I woke up, slowly, and crawled out from under the covers of a wonderfully warm bed in a beautiful and temperature controlled house. I made my way down the hall and into the kitchen to make some coffee (and lets face it to eat some Halloween candy). As I stood in front of the sink cleaning the coffee filter for the single brew coffee machine (oh how I covet my neighbor when it comes to this machine) I felt a, not cold, but icy breeze blowing in through the window in front of me. It stunned me. Stopped me in my tracks.
I realized, had I been in my own home in Albania, and the temperature was near freezing as it was here, that I would have had to sleep with two pairs of socks on. I would have a hot water bottle in my bed to try to warm up the sheets before and during sleep. I would not even want to get out of bed to use the restroom, because in the time it takes to do that, your bed gets cold again. I might have even slept in my hoodie, had the house been cold enough. Oh, and don't even mention showers, in a cold house, in a room made of concrete and tile. Sure, I turn on the electric heater for this task, but it does very little to actually cut through the cold.
While thinking on these things, I remembered something that happened last night as well. As I came home from Trick or Treating in the neighborhood and at church with my ADORABLE nephews and niece, I was told that there were hamburgers in the kitchen. Having not eaten dinner, I quickly went to task building myself a burger. The first thing I went for was, of course, the hamburger buns. Upon touching them I was SHOCKED at how soft they were. You see, Europeans for the most part make GREAT bread, but soft is never really a word you would use to describe it. I enjoyed every bite of that burger, soft bun, cheddar cheese, real ketchup and all.
As I pondered on these things this morning, the thought dawned on me that most people might think I am off my rocker. I mean, why live in a place that is so hard to live in? Truth be told, I wouldn't have it any other way. It IS hard to live in Albania, not just for these reasons, but for a multitude of others. Being a female in a male dominated society, for example. This is changing, but it takes time to turn the Titanic. Also, just simple tasks like paying the bills can be very stressful due to crowds with no real lines. Still, Albania is my home, and I miss it now more than ever before. I've been told that is a good sign. For me, its just who I am. It never ceases to amaze me how God will create a person to do a specific task on the Earth and as they do that task, it fulfills the very person He created them to be. Its an intricate pattern our Creator weaves.
So, what IS my point in all this? As I stared out that window feeling the icy breeze this morning, I realized, again, how thankful I am for each and every person who makes it possible for me to do what I do. From the bottom of my heart I could not be more grateful for you, and the faith you put in God, and the faith you put in me to be enablers (a positive term in this sense) who trust me to do what God is asking ALL of us to do in the earth today, just in a totally different place. I wasn't called to be a lawyer who reached the supreme court justices with my version of the Gospel. I was not asked by God, yet, to be a politician who changed a community for Him. I was called to live in a tiny nation, across the ocean, that may seem insignificant, but is not insignificant to me or, more importantly, to God.
Thank you for enabling me to do what I do every day. I promise you, the best is yet to come and I am very excited about the plans God and I have for Albania in 2015.
Thank you, partners. Thank you.
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