Barretts in the Balkans - Picture Update

Bonus Six Months

I, Meredith, am wrapping up a Bible study on the life of David and recently read 1 Chronicles 28 where David presents his meticulous plans for the building of the temple to Solomon, his heir and the newly crowned king. In addition to readied plans, he had also secured the funding and materials necessary. All that remained was for these plans to be set in motion and followed through by his son. The author of the Bible study linked this story with Paul’s words in Ephesians 2:10, “For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.”

Like Solomon’s task of completing the temple, we are called to complete the tasks that God has prepared and laid before us. How do we do this? Through seeking the Lord, using wisdom, and the equipping power of His Word (2 Timothy 3:16-17).

During our “bonus six months” in Albania - as we like to call this extra season following the delay of our return to America - we, along with our church family have found an abundance of “shovel ready” projects that “God prepared in advance for us to do.” I wish we had more space to share all the stories of how God has paved the way for us to love and serve during this unique season!

Below are a few snapshots of some of these opportunities and an update of what ministry is like for us these days. We've also thrown in some picture of the kids.

COVID Disclaimer

We are keenly aware that most people in the photos below are not wearing masks or social distancing. A few quick comments on this:

1) Our small church has decided to treat each other like family and not abide by all recommended health precautions when with each other. We had the choice to either completely disengage from church life or lean in while taking precautions in other spheres of our life. We chose the latter.
2) This is not our preference, leaves us conflicted, and we often encourage church members to take appropriate health precautions.
3) Not wearing a mask or social distancing is not a political statement here in Albania as it can be in the US. The choices of members of our church related to COVID do not reflect a political point of view nor do our choices in this regard.
4) Upon our return to the States, we will be quarantining, taking COVID tests, and following all recommended health precautions.

With all that being said, please enjoy some pictures of the past couple of months!

We kicked off this ministry year with a baptism! Ola is a young woman in our church who accepted Christ soon after the church was planted six years ago. The sudden death of her mother a year and a half ago and the difficult events of this past year have led to a vibrancy and fervency in her faith that has been inspiring to everyone around her. We are thankful for Ola’s sweet presence and servant’s heart.

Meredith is teaching a Jr. High age ESL class this fall. For a variety of reasons outside of our control, we have fewer kids than we’ve had in the past. This allows for a better quality class for the kids, however, and a safer health environment so we aren’t too disappointed. Most of the kids are also attending a Friday night Bible club at church.

The flyer pictured above represents the launch of a new LinkAcross project - one which has kept Jeff quite busy over the last few months. The project is focused on training and coaching small and medium businesses in the agricultural, light manufacturing, and tourism sectors in Albania and North Macedonia. Our ultimate goal is to develop long-term trusting relationships with the owners and managers of these influential businesses and through these relationships to share the Gospel in both word and deed.

We have continued to provide food for about 15 families in our community and are investing in relationships with them. A couple of weeks ago we held a women’s event designed to show some of the women receiving food that we love and care about them. We drank tea, made a craft, several of us shared how God has changed our lives and we listened to the women’s stories. One woman in our church did manicures and we all pitched in money to buy each woman a small gift, which included a small bottle of scented hand lotion. A couple of women had never tried a luxury like hand lotion, much less owned a bottle of their own! At church a couple of days later they proudly showed off their manicured nails and softened hands with the biggest smiles that we’ve seen from them. Sometimes God’s love comes packaged in a $1 bottle of lotion! Please pray that these women would also have softened hearts to the good news of the Gospel.

Meredith has had the opportunity to mentor a teenage girl who has been attending our church for about a year. They’ve been meeting for a weekly Bible study and have formed a special bond. We have reason to believe this young woman is at high risk of falling victim to trafficking so Meredith has been working through a special curriculum with her designed to help educate young women on the risks of human trafficking and how to learn how to make wise and discerning decisions in relationships. Please pray that this sweet young woman would make wise and safe choices as she approaches turning 18 and that she would place her trust in Christ.

It has been refreshing to return to the normal rhythms of church life after months of lockdown: Sunday morning worship followed by a long, leisurely coffee, Wednesday night Bible study, monthly meals together after church and day trips together out of the city. We will sorely miss our Albanian family when we are on home assignment!

Speaking of home assignment - we are less than two months away from our return to the US! We will share more about what our time in the US will look like in future updates. We appreciate your prayers as we strive to finish well with ministry here while making plans and preparations to depart. We are thankful for the responses of so many of you to our last newsletter and our request for help with housing and household goods. We have secured a place to stay and are well on our way to furnishing it! God is good!

Meredith and Olivia were recently at a coffee shop when they realized that Olivia had drank hot chocolate at the exact same coffee shop 5 and 1/2 years earlier when we came to Albania for a week-long vision trip. She's changed just a bit! Olivia is thoroughly enjoying 6th grade and continues to love baking, reading, and hanging out with her friends.

Jude and Liam are both thriving at school and enjoying 4th grade and 1st grade, respectively. Jude loves playing video games with his friends and reading. Liam continues to stay active through Tae-Kwon-Do and has made lots of new friends at his new school. The picture above was taken recently after a hike through a canyon outside of Tirana.

As always, we are incredibly thankful for your interest and support of our ministry and family.