Merry Christmas! Gezuar Krishtlindjen!!

  Merry Christmas to all and a Happy New Year!

Gezuar Krishtlindjen dhe Vitin e Ri te gjitheve !

This week has been a busy week preparing for Christmas. On Wednesday we went to the old home and delivered our socks, hats, and gloves. The residents were very excited to get them from us. Stefanie also played Silent Night and Angels we have heard on High on the flute as all sang. The residents said thank you to all and God bless. On a sad note we lost two residents this past week. The lady I wrote you about that was in the hospital passed away and also her roomate. We are glad that they aren't suffering anymore but we will greatly miss Nene Tana and Nene Mereme!

After our visit to the Old home we went to the children. The children were so excited to worship God today! Qamili was even raising his hands as he sung! Arian also read them the story by Max Lucado called The Crippled Lamb, about the lamb who was one of the first to welcome Jesus into the world. The children were in awe of the story and excited about the message of Christ. At the end of our lesson we were able to give the children things that we have collected. McDonough Christian Church sent socks and First Christian Charlottesville, VA sent stuffed animals for them all. We thank you for your donations for them! We also had collected used clothes and some shoes. They loved picking out things for themselves and their family. With your donations we were also able to buy the families food for Christmas. On Christmas eve they will be able to go to the local market and pick up bread, meat, cheese, fruits and vegetables for their families. We are thankful for the local market owner Lira who is able to work with us to make this happen! 

Member Spotlight: 

Marsida is one of our precious children from the kids club who is 9 years old. She is one of 4 girls in her family. Last week she asked if she could have a bible. When she was walking home she was so excited that she read the bible all the way home. This week we gave her some Christian books for children for her to study and read. We are excited about her enthusiasm for Christ! We hope that more children will follow her lead. Pray for the Holy Spirit to open her eyes to Baptism. 

Update: We have a new video showing lots of pictures and all aspects of our ministry on youtube. You can view it at:  http://youtu.be/ip0aNPNrFOk

Praises/ Prayers: 
* Pray for the residents of old home during this cold winter.
* Continue to pray for Klara as she waits for surgery. 
* We thank God for growth in the Church, four new people in the last month!
* Pray for continual spiritual growth in the church. 


We would love to hear from you! God bless!
Serving in His name, 
Arian & Stefanie Kosta
kkdurres@gmail.com
Address: L3 Rr Skenderbej AP:1043 Durres, Albania

Winter is Here!

Every Wednesday we visit an old home in Kavaje.
The residents live there because their family lives far away or that they don't have any children to take care of them. It is Albanian culture to take care of your parents so there aren't many old homes in Albania and people come from miles around to live here. In this home there are about 50 men and women. Winter is especially hard for them. They have no heat in the building or in their rooms. Today in Kavaje it is 3 Celsius (37 F).  Last Wednesday when we went one of them were in the hospital and we went to visited her. The residents wear many layers of clothes and wrap up in thick blankets but it is still very hard for their old bodies. We have found support for them for Chistmas. We will be able to buy them all thick socks and a hat for the winter. They will be very grateful for these things. Please pray for the old home and that God will give them the strength to make it through the winter. 

Thank you, Thank you, Thank you! We had a some responses from our blog last month about food for the children of Kavaje. Thank you for your help! If you would still like to donate to help feed the children and their families for Christmas please email us. God bless! 


Member Spotlight:
This week I would like to tell you about a very faithful member of the church. Her name is Shpresa which means Hope. Last year Shpresa lost her mom and was without a home. We prayed hard to help Shpresa and found her somewhere to live. Shpresa is a very active helper in the ministry. She comes to every bible study, helps with the youth, worship and even helps us in the ministry of Kavaje. Shpresa leads a bible study for Sabina and Lina. Shpresa loves being around people and talking to them about God. Shpresa is always laughing and full of joy. She is happy no matter what the circumstance. Her birthday is at the end of the month on the 30th. Shpresa is looking for what God wants her to do next. She currently is without a job. Please pray for Shpresa and some kind of income for her. 


Praises/Prayer: 
*Klara goes to the doctor on the 19th and will have surgery on January 9th. Pray that all goes well to help her. 
*Juli will be home for Christmas Dec. 22nd. He is very encouraged and having a great time at school. 
*Stefanie's mom's surgery went better than expected and she is doing great! 
*Pray for all to know the true meaning of Christmas around the world.


We would love to hear from you! God bless!
Serving in His name, 
Arian & Stefanie Kosta
kkdurres@gmail.com
Address: L3 Rr Skenderbej AP:1043 Durres, Albania

Happy 100th Anniversary Albania!

This week has been a great week of celebrating Albania's independence. We started off on Sunday with a dreke (lunch) at the church. We had lots of great food and fellowship. We even had some new faces at the church this Sunday that stayed and ate with us. It is amazing to see the patriotism of Albania. The buildings and apartments are littered with Albanian flags! I wish that all Christians would have the same pride in their God as they do in their country.

Rudina and Laura

Arian, Shpresa, Vito and Vangjeli

Limani

We are asking for a special request. Every year for Christmas Arian buys food for the children and their families in Kavaje. This year it is especially hard for the children and their familes because the governement has moved them. They have had to leave their homes and start over from scratch. They are building their houses of whatever they can find cardboard, scrap wood, rocks, etc. They don't have electricity, water or bathroom. We are looking for $10 sponsors. $10 will give food for 10 people. All total we need to raise enough for 160 people ($160). Please consider helping a family have food for Christmas. Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me. Matthew 25:40 If God has blessed you to help please email us. God bless!

Magdalena

Member Spotlight: This week I want to tell you about a member of our church. Magdalena is 91 years old and the oldest member of our church. She is still full of the joy and spirit of our Lord! Magdalena was one of the first teachers in Durres and she loves to read and teach people Italian. She tells Arian every Sunday that she will see him the next Sunday unless God takes her home. We are very glad that Magdalena is a part of our church because she is a blessing to us!



Prayer/Praises: 
* Continue to pray for Klara and her family as they wait for surgery.
* Praise: Juli is doing great in school. Continue to pray for him. 
* Pray for continued growth in the church more are asking about baptism. Praise the Lord! 
* Please be in prayer for Stefanie's mom, she will have surgery today on her throat. 

We would love to hear from you! God bless!
Serving in His name, 
Arian & Stefanie Kosta
kkdurres@gmail.com
Address: L3 Rr Skenderbej AP:1043 Durres, Albania

Sabina's Baptism!

Sunday was a blessing! One of our youth who has been growing in Christ was baptized. We were very excited that Sabina confessed Christ as her Lord and Savior! Sabina is such a cheerful girl and now she has the joy of our Lord. Arian baptized Sabina in the bathroom at church where all could see. The whole church rejoiced in this blessed event! Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. Acts 2:38

Every Wednesday we go to the old home in Kavaje. I (Stefanie) enjoy this time very much. The old people are so sweet and loving. We get lots of kisses by the residents of the home. I have been adopted by a new grandmother. Now I have an Albanian "gjyshe" grandmother. She calls me her "besa" granddaughter. She always gets so happy when we come to visit her. She is in her 80's and she is always working on something that she is knitting to give to others in the old home. Sabina was able to go with us this week to the old home as well. She made some fast friends with the residents. Sometimes I am hard on myself because I don't speak the language very well even though I am learning. I know that a smile goes a long way and the joy of Jesus in my heart shows more than I could ever speak! 

Prayer Requests/Praises: 
* Praise: We heard from Klara and she is doing well and waiting for surgery the beginning of January. Continue to pray for her and her family.
* Pray for Juli while he is in school and support for him to join the ministry when he gets out of school in May. 
* Pray for continued growth in the church. 
* Praise: Stefanie went to the Doctor this week and all is going great with the pregnancy. Praise God! 

We would love to hear from you! God bless!
Serving in His name, 
Arian & Stefanie Kosta
kkdurres@gmail.com
Address: L3 Rr Skenderbej AP:1043 Durres, Albania

Bloom where you are planted!

When I (Stefanie) was a child my family moved around a lot because of my dad's job. It seemed as if every time I got comfortable with school and friends, we would move again. My mom would always tell me "bloom where you are planted". I very quickly learned that no matter the circumstances I had to make the best of it. Now we have a scripture above our bed that helps us to remember that God is with us no matter what we are going through. Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances, for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you. 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18. Isn't it amazing that Paul didn't say give thanks in only good circumstances! I realize that the harder you work for God, the more Satan tries to destroy the work that you are doing. Be controlled and alert, your enemy, the Devil walks around like a roaring lion seeking someone to devour. Resist him, stand firm in your faith, knowing that the same sufferings are experienced by your brothers in the world. 1 Peter 5:8-9. I know that we have a very strong prayer support here and around the world that helps us every day! Thank you! 

The Devil will not defeat us! Great things are happening here every day! 

Men's Bible Study

God placed it on Arian's heart to recently start a men's Bible study on Friday mornings. They have started studying about the faithful men of the Bible. For three weeks now 8-10 men have been coming. We are very glad to see Ismail a new man in the church who is from the muslim faith coming to Bible study and asking questions. We pray that God will help Ismail to grow and understand the word of God. 

Sabina, Shpresa, and Lina

Shpresa one of our faithful volunteers at the church has been mentoring two teen girls, Lina and Sabina. On Friday they have a Bible study and a time of fellowship. The girls are confiding in Shpresa and being open to the word of God. This week Sabina started asking about being baptized. If the Lord wills Sabina will be baptized next Sunday. Hallelujah for this blessing! 

Shpresa and Arian Praising God for the Car!

We are very excited about our new (used) car that God has blessed us with! After much praying and searching and with the help of Charlottesville Christian Church and McDonough Christian Church we were able to purchase a van for the ministry of Kavaje. Kavaje is about 25 minutes from Durres and lots of walking from the Nursing home to the children on Wednesday. Now we have a mini van to transport people and get back and forth from Kavaje in the rain and cold! Thank you for your support! It is a great blessing to us! 

We are also very thankful for a group of fourth grade girls lead by Mary Jane Fitzsimons from Fruit Cove Baptist Church in Jacksonville, Flordia who sent hand written letters of encouragement for Klara. Thank you Kensey, Emily, Leighanna, Karley, Abigail, Lindsey, and Izabella! Klara will be excited to know that there are girls her age praying for her in the United States! 

Prayer Requests: 
*Continue to pray for Klara as she is getting treatment in Italy. 
*Pray for continued growth in the church. 
*Pray for Ismail to grow and believe in Christ Jesus as his Lord and Savior. 
*Tani one of our believers who needs a job. 
*Baptism of Sabina. 
*Stefanie's pregnancy (due May 27th). 

Thank you in advance for your prayers! We are also in need of financial support for the ministry. If you or your church would like to support us please email us at kkdurres@gmail.com. 

Serving in His name, 
Arian & Stefanie Kosta

Blessings scattered all around!

Yesterday in Albania many Muslims celebrated Bairam know as "The feast of Sacrifice". People go to the market and buy their best a live chicken, sheep, or goat to sacrifice for Bairam. This festival commemorates the willingness of Abraham to sacrifice his son Isaac as an act of obedience to God. There were lots of people carrying live chickens down the street, on the bus and everywhere we went. There was dancing and music in the streets at times. When I think about this I think about how other religions take things from the Bible and believe them as truth but the actual truth they are missing. There is no need for animal sacrifice because the perfect and spotless Lamb, the Lamb of God was sacrificed for us! 1 John 1:7- But if we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin. We are very blessed for the sacrifice that Jesus paid for us and I am glad that I don't have to sacrifice animals.

God is doing some awesome work here in Albania and I am glad that I get to be the messenger to share this work with you. 

Juli leaves for school on Monday to Pogradec. Some Brothers and Sisters from England were able to help Juli and pay for his school for another year. We are very thankful for that! Now that Juli knows that his family will have a warm house with the new doors and windows he is happy to go to school. Juli will be in charge of mentoring the 1st year Bible students this year as well as his 2nd year course work. Juli knows this will be a lot of work and he is up for the challenge. He is ready and open to God's leading and teaching in his life.  We wish Juli the best this year and we will be praying for him while he is in school.

Praying with Klara

Klara

Klara, the girl from Kavaje that has been sick, is finally getting to go to Italy to have surgery. Praise God for this blessing! She has thalassemia which is a blood disorder passed down through families where the body makes an abnormal form of hemoglobin. This disorder results in an excessive destruction of red blood cells and causes severe anemia. Klara has to get a lot of blood transfusions and needs a bone marrow transplant. We are praying for Klara and her mom Mara as they arrive in Italy today to get the help that they need. We were able to help Mara pay for travel costs to Italy. She will be staying with her brother. We are praying that the doctors have mercy with Klara and can give her the treatment and surgery at a low cost that they can afford. A couple of people at the church have decided to pray and fast for Klara, they are going without one meal a day. Please join with us and fasting and praying for Klara. 

We just found out one more blessing. Stefanie is 9 weeks pregnant and expecting baby Kosta at the end of May. We are very excited about this gift that God has given to us! Stefanie's parents are very excited to be grandparents for the first time! 

Please join us in praying for: 
* Juli and his schooling this year. 
* Klara's healing. 
* Stefanie's pregnancy. 
* The truth changing the hearts of many Muslims here. 
* Spiritual Growth in the Church. 

Serving in His name, 

Arian & Stefanie Kosta

How important is water to you?

Do you have water? 

Here in Albania there are families that don't even have water. It is something that I take advantage of and don't even give a second thought about. When I turn on the faucet I expect for water to come out. In this blog I am going to focus on a very special family in our church who now has water for the first time in a long time. 

Tani, Mary, Samueli, Merita, Sabina

The Sadiku family has been without water for about 4 years. They relied on their neighbors to give them a little water for cooking or sponge bathing. They had no shower to use nor a sink. The family has a hard time finding work. Tani the father works as much as he can when he finds work. They have two teenage daughters and a 6 year old son. The family is very faithful in church. They are there every time the doors are open. They never ask for anything and are very grateful for everything. Merita the oldest daughter (18) is currently taking a class offered by another church that teaches her how to sew. This will be a good skill for her to find a job. 

A couple of weeks ago Tani decided that him and his friends would dig a well to see if they could get some water. With much success the well has water. Tani came to the church with a prayer need to get a pump and deposit to hold the water installed so that they could use the water from the well. We prayed and the Lord provided. With help from McDonough Christian church (MCC) we were able to get them water and a water heater so that they can have a shower. This family is very thankful to have water. 

Juli

Another family, the family of Juli, MCC helped them to purchase doors and windows for their house. With the winter coming soon a house without doors and windows would be very cold. We went to visit them to see the progress that they were doing on the house. I was a little sad to see that the family didn't even have a shower or a stove. Even though they have very little, the family is very grateful for this help and very encouraging. 

Please contine to pray for: 

* Juli and his family as Juli leaves for school soon and can no longer work  to provide money for his family. 

*Klara the little girl who needs money for an operation and money to get to Italy. 

* The growth of the youth at the church in Durres in attendance and in spirit. 

*Several members in the church of Kavaje who are starting to ask about baptism. Praise the Lord!

Serving Him, 
Arian & Stefanie Kosta