It is cool enough at night to leave the windows open which made for a nice environment for sleep. Sleep came quickly last night and we both slept very well. This morning we were picked up by Kyle and Jackie and taken to eat breakfast with their friends, Jeff and Amy. These two couples share the missionary role here in Prilep. After breakfast, we took Jackie back home and we went with Kyle back to town. It is required that visitors to Prilep be “registered” at the police station. There was a form to fill out and turn in there and part of the form was given back to keep in our passport. We will “deregister” the day before we leave. Kyle took us to Izgrev, whic means "sunrise", and is the building that is used for outreach efforts that are outside of the church. Kyle said they are blessed with the location as it is just two blocks off of the city center and easy to find. Prilep is a walking city and people spend a lot of time outside of work, sitting in parks, outside of shops and coffee shops just visiting. Kyle oriented me (and Danny last year) to the differences between the Orthodox church and Protestants. There are Orthodox churches here, and people believe themselves to be Christian because they born Orthodox. Kyle, Jackie, Jeff, and Amy are here to tell them and show them that being Christian involves a personal relationship with Christ and is not something you are born into or a label you wear. Kyle took us for a walk around the city center and then we went back to his home for lunch with Jackie. After lunch Danny and I walked back to the apartment for some rest time and time for Danny to prepare for his seminar tomorrow night. We have been reading the book, Shepherding a Child’s Heart, and Danny will give a seminar on it tomorrow night at Izgrev. This book is based on a biblical view of discipline and they have already had a study group on it. We will be sharing points in the book and some of our experiences as they relate to the techniques described. We went back to Kyle and Jackie’s about 5 and went with them to visit with some people in their homes. This is a form of ministry that Kyle and Jackie use frequently. The Macedonians are very social and enjoy having visitors in their home. Through visiting, relationships and trust are established which can lead to opportunities to introduce Jesus as a Savior. The first home we went to was Valentina’s home. She is a good friend and member of the church that has been ill with severe allergies and has not been able to come to church for awhile. I believe our visit was good for her and hopefully lifted her spirits. The second home we went to was the home of Tale’s parents and his brother Martin. Danny met Tale last year when he was here. Tale moved to the United States after Danny left, living in Chicago first and then moving to Ruston, LA. He had some things for his family that we carried here for them. Kyle had only been to Tale’s home once before so this gave Kyle and Jackie a good opportunity to sit and visit with the family and get to know them better. The third home was of the landlord for Izgrev, Borce and his wife Lidija and their children, Ivan and Jovana. I am probably spelling these names wrong, but writing it out helps me remember. It was about 9:30 when we left the last house and arrived back at our apartment. Danny and I ate a light supper of scrambled eggs and toast so we had time for me to do a blog post and Danny to work some more on his seminar talk. We have a coffee date mid-morning with Spire, one of Danny’s Macedonian friends. Until tomorrow….
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