Connections Archives
April 10, 2013
by Giovanni & Fiorella Greco
Italian church planters in Termoli, Italy, serving with VMM in an approved ministry
God is good! We have been living in the Vasto/Termoli area for 12 years and we are thankful to God for what He is doing here. When we first arrived to Vasto, the church had been established almost twenty years but was almost dead. There was no young group, no actual ministries, and little biblical foundation. After some months we gathered some young people, believers’ children in the church and discipled them. Most of them were not born again; that’s why it was quite difficult to start a youth group …
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April 9, 2013
by Caleb Benner
VMM worker in Lezhë, Albania
At Lezha Academic Center in Albania, we believe that we have been called to make an impact on the spiritual life of each student. Emerging from centuries of atheism and isolation under communism, most of the Albanian people lack an understanding of faith and have not truly encountered Jesus Christ. By modeling a consistent and loving approach to the community, we are beginning to break through barriers and reach the students. Last year served as a foundation for building relationships and trust along with a foundational understanding that faith in …
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April 4, 2013
by David Stutzman
VMM/Mennonite Mission Network worker in Bammental, Germany with his wife Rebekka and son Immanuel.
Mennonite means different things to different people in Germany. Sect. Heritage. Irrelevant. Faithful. Traditional. Since arriving, we have been in a process of learning what the label means to those who are from a Mennonite background, those who were, those who are not, and those who have nothing to do with Christianity. Part of what we do is spend time getting to know young people in their 20s and 30s, who grew up Mennonite, but have moved away from their home community to study or work in other parts of …
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April 3, 2013
by Lois King
Veteran educator who has served in volunteer teaching roles at LAC in Albania. She attends Morning View Mennonite Church, Singers Glen, Va.
It was more than just an ordinary afternoon of coffee, cake and conversation as ladies gathered recently at Lezha Academic Center (LAC). Instead, it was another stepping stone in principal Klementina Shahini’s vision of sharing God’s love with the women of Lezhë, Albania. Chatting together around the cafeteria tables were mothers, students, church members, the pastor’s wife, and LAC principal and teachers, support staff, cook and custodian. Supplementing the LAC cook’s trademark banana cake were goodies brought by guests. One senior’s contribution of a specially ordered tres leches cake was …
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April 2, 2013
by Chris Riddle
VMM worker in Bari, Italy, with his wife Melody and sons Micah, Adam and Isaiah.
If we wanted, we could be full-time English teachers here in Bari even though we have never had a single lesson on how to teach English! Our mother tongue has opened doors for us to be able to share our faith with many people in our community. A little more than two years ago, we began helping at Micah’s (and now Adam’s) middle school with conversational English. One of the most important things this work has accomplished is to build trust between our family and the community and also between …
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March 28, 2013
by Loren Horst
President
An interesting dichotomy has been argued in Christian mission. Should the Christian’s mission in the world focus on verbal witness, or should acts of care and compassion be our priority? Word or deed? I answer the question with a resounding, “Yes…both!” Jesus illustrated a seamless concern for peoples’ hearts, bodies and relationships and the early church understood Jesus’ intentions to embrace all of human need and humanity in its entirety. No longer could any credible argument be made for separating either Jew from Greek, or separating word from deed. We …
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March 27, 2013
by Nancy Marshall
VMM/EMM worker in Orange Walk Town, Belize
Are we there yet? I remember the annual summer trip to our grandparents’ home in Maine. Even though my mother entertained us with car games, fifteen hours in a car as a child was long. My sister and I enjoyed pestering my parents with, “Are we there yet, how much farther?” every hour or so. It made us all laugh. I came to Belize seven and a half years ago to plant a Deaf church and train leadership. I asked God to identify who in the group should I be …
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March 26, 2013
by Kaitlyn Bontrager
VMM worker in Lezhë, Albania
My experience in Albania has taken me on a path very similar to the road that two disciples traveled after Jesus’ death, seven miles from Jerusalem to Emmaus. I learned two valuable lessons on my seven-mile journey that drastically changed the way I trust God. God is at work even when we can’t see Him. Teachers have the difficult job of imparting knowledge while simultaneously striving to shape students’ attitudes. I’ve often wondered how I can incorporate God’s love into my lessons even on the most difficult days. Many times …
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March 25, 2013
by Eve Knepp
VMM worker in Top Hill, Jamaica, with her husband Rodney and children Maya and Micah.
When we lived in the US, I thought I trusted God fully, but I’m finding now how much I didn’t. You see, living in rural Jamaica, there are no ambulances to come if something bad were to happen. The nearest hospital, which may or may not offer comprehensive care, is 45 minutes away and as for emergency care on the weekends, one needs to drive to the hospital! The police don’t always come when you call and often want bribes. I have realized that back in the US, I put …
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February 28, 2013
by Janet Blosser
VMM Italy Field Director
On December 27, VMMissions held a celebration for Willard and Eva Eberly for their forty years of ministry in the Mediterranean region. After a worship song led by Shawn Green, Janet Blosser presented a slideshow reflecting on their 40 years of ministry. Their initial assignment included planting churches in Sicily; later they became Mediterranean Regional Director and Assistant, expanding the work to include Albania and the Balkans. The Eberlys not only touched the lives of many Italians and Albanians, but opened their hearts and home to many missionaries who came …
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