Gorre, Albania – Nearly 50 young people from one Nazarene church and two other evangelical churches in Lushnje, Albania, gathered the weekend of 18 to 19 March for an interdenominational youth conference.

The youth conference is the latest event to come out of an ongoing partnership between several of the evangelical churches in Lushnje, including the Church of the Nazarene, said Steve Beiler, a missionary in Albania.

Following the themes of worship, love and friendship, the youth participated in Bible studies, worship, prayer times, football and a variety of games. One of the activities focused on helping the youth learn how to have personal time with God for Bible-reading and prayer.

The event, which was hosted at the Nazarene center in Gorre, was designed in part to “help the young people to know each other better and help to create friendships between the churches,” said Elke Kaci, pastor of the Lushnje Church of the Nazarene.

One young person later contacted Ergest Biti, the district youth leader of  the Albania/Kosovo district of the Church of Nazarene, to say that she’s started a more disciplined practice of time with God.

“Many young people asked us leaders if we could make something like this more often and longer, because they liked it so much,” said Biti, whom the partnership members elected to be the youth leader for the churches in the city.

By working together, rather than individually, the churches strengthen their presence in Albania. Several cults have strong activity in the country, and Albanians often confuse them with evangelical churches, Beiler said. The partnership involves the Mennonite, Church of God and Nazarene denominations, as well as three independent congregations.

“Lushnje has been working hard on working together as the ‘evangelical church’ to evangelize and for growth within the churches,” he said.

Beginning this month through June, the congregations are studying discipleship materials together and planning evangelistic activities.

In November, the Albanian government officially recognized the evangelical Christianity, making it the fifth recognized faith after Islam, Catholicism, Orthodox Christianity and Bektashi, a form of Islamic mysticism.

 

 

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