Living Called
in Korca Albania
What "Living Called" means for us.
What does it mean to live called. It means to live in practice of listening to God's direction and to use our gifts and talents to further God's kingdom. We serve with a church called Word of Life in Korca. Our goal is to make disciples of Christ and to share the hope we have in Jesus.
About Albania
Geography
Albania is located in the Balkans just north of Greece. Albania borders Montenegro, Kosovo, North Macedonia, and Greece. Italy lies just to the west across the Adriatic Sea. The country has a lot of raw beauty. The coast along the Adriatic is very similar to the Greek coast, there are plenty of olive groves, and ruggedly beautiful mountains.
History
Albania has a rich history. It saw many different empires come and go. It spent 500 years under Turkish rule. Shortly after throwing off Turkish rule, it became swallowed by the U.S.S.R. which introduced the nation to communism. Communism crushed the nation for the greater part of a century, finally being overthrown in the early 90's. The nation then went through upheavals and civil unrest for the next ten years. Now Albania is making great strides forward and is striving to join the E.U.
Religion
During communism, religion was outlawed. But now that communism is gone, the nation has seen a return of religion. The largest religion in Albania is Islam. The second largest religious is Atheism/Agnosticism. The third largest is Greek Orthodoxy. The religions all tend to treat each other with respect and kindness.
Ways We Serve
Youth Ministry
We have a weekly youth meeting for highschool and college age youth. We play games, worship, learn about God, and build relationships. The youth are the future of the church, and we are working to build them up. There is are not a lot of activities or places to hang out for youth in our city, so we want to create a fun and safe place for them to come and hang out at any time.
University Student Biblestudy
We have a weekly meeting for university students where we study the Bible and show them how to apply it to their daily lives. Our university group is partnered with International Fellowship of Evangelical Students (IFES), which connects us with other university groups in Albania. Several times a year the groups come together for conferences. This connects students with other believing students around Albania.
Motorcycle Ministry
In Albania there are a large number of motorcyclist and Biker Clubs. As a member of Bikers For Christ (an international motorcycle ministry), our mission is to bring the love of Jesus Christ to those in the motorcycle world.
Our primary mission is to share the good news of salvation through Christ
to the members of motorcycle clubs and others in the motorcycle world and to minister to their spiritual and
physical needs and those of their families.
Our secondary mission is to minister to the spiritual and physical needs of all those in need – prostitutes, orphans, street people, the homeless, the
helpless, the bruised, the beaten, the lost, the last, and the least of society and anyone else the world does not want –
with the good news of Jesus Christ.
Soup Kitchen
The church has an soup kitchen ministry three days a week. Those who are in poverty can come and receive hot meals. Covid hit everyone hard this last year, but especially those who were already on the brink of poverty. This ministry has been essential to many more people this last year.
