White Noise Project Albania

You're invited! The Albania Missions team and other volunteers are working to plan a high-fashion benefit event to support the 2008 Albania Venture.

Here are the details:

Saturday, April 19 at 7:00 PM
The King’s College Student Lounge
EMPIRE STATE BUILDING

The event will feature students from The King's College as models, and the work of two fashion designers Ezra Wine with a men's line and Rebecca Landis with a casual women's collection called BELMAR. Last year the event was a huge success and drew in many guests from outside the college. White Noise Albania raised a couple thousand dollars for Albania missions last year through a dress auction and other donations.

White Noise Albania II is also hosting the second annual "Guy Auction" at The King's College. The 3:1 Girl/Guy ratio works in this event's favor as men from the college will be auctioned off to a crowd of TKC gals. Last year, guys planned elaborate dates to treat their buyers, or offered to do manly chores or even bake cookies.
Here are the details:

Wednesday, April 9, 2008
7:00pm - 9:00pm
Student Lounge
The King's College

Prayer Needs: For those planning the event, for participation and high attendance.

Training Underway!

The Albania Team has been meeting every week this spring semester to prepare for our mission this May. We've discussed Albanian history and culture, learned a little of the language (C'kemi!), planned fundraising events, prayed for Albania, and begun preparing our presentations about economics, religion, and politics. Some of us have contacted Albanian students who are presenting to us, and are already starting friendships by email.

Through the course of the training, we have worked on formulating personal stories of how God has worked in our lives so we can share our faith with Albanians. We've learned how discussions about politics, philosophy, and economics can transition into a conversation about God. This week, each team member is outlining God's story in a way to which Albanians can relate, and working on articulating it using our personal stories to give it life and meaning.

Every training session, we spend time sharing stories of how God has been working to provide financially for each member of the team. These stories are only more confirmation that God is faithful and is preparing the way for us in Albania.

One staff member, David Leedy just returned from Albania a couple of weeks ago where he met with staff at UNYT to sort out the details of the trip. He reported that the staff and students in Tirana are incredibly excited about our arrival and students are required to go through an application process to be chosen to join in on the presentations and debates. There are many receptions with diplomats and Albanian leaders in the works, and several TKC professors have been invited to speak in their area of expertise.

Prayer Needs:
As training continues, please pray that our work and school schedules will allow us to invest time in our presentations and in spiritual preparation for the trip. Pray also that the email exchanges with Albanian students will lay a foundation for fruitful relationships when we meet them in person.

Our Mission

About 20 King's College Students and staff are traveling to Albania in May to meet with students at the University of New York: Tirana. Our mission: To spread the gospel through building relationships.

We King's students study Politics, Philosophy, Economics, and Business; and this trip is specifically tailored to utilize the education we are receiving at the college. When we arrive in Tirana, we will spend our days engaging in presentations and discussions with Albanian students about economic policy, religion in society, and political philosophy:

What role should foreign investment play in the economy of a developing nation like Albania?

How should religion interact with political life?

How important is citizen character to the success of a society?

What is the basis of human rights?

Through these debates and discussions, our team hopes to build relationships with our Albanian peers, and create a context to share the gospel.

Albania has only just emerged from the world’s most severe form of Communism 15 years ago. Under Communism, Albania was walled off from the world as an Atheist nation. Religion was completely suppressed. When the walls came down in 1991, Albanians found themselves with new freedom, a new system of government, and new opportunities to ask questions about God. Missionaries entered Albania and Christianity began to gain a footing.

Today, 15 years later, much remains to be done. Islam and Atheism have a strong hold on the Albanian people, and the population is only about 1% evangelical. The Gospel has not touched most of the nation’s leaders and institutions. Our aim is to interact with the current and future leaders of Albania, and show the light of Christ. By engaging with these leaders, we can influence the nation. Our team will work face-to-face with top leaders in the Church, government, and business about issues shaping Albania.

This blog has been set up to alert our supporters of our prayer requests, provide updates on our training, and tell stories of how God is working when we go to Albania in May.

To everyone who is praying and who has donated financially to make this trip possible: You are each a part of this ministry. Thank you for partnering with us!

The Albania Missions Team