“Wow! This is amazing! I think all of these ideas would be wonderful for the community. I would love to spread the word about this.”

We have spent years learning about the felt needs of the people of Albania, but in preparing for our center of influence, we decided to fine-tune our approach. We want to start off strong, serving the community in ways that will bless them the most. We put together a survey that lists the programs, seminars, community-service opportunities and courses we would like to offer and then asked people in the community to mark the ones that interested them. We also encouraged them to write in their own ideas. We collected the names and phone numbers of respondents in order to invite them to any event that might interest them.

The response has been tremendous! In fact, our church members have told us that some of their acquaintances at the bazaar were awfully disappointed when they ran out of survey forms. They made them promise to bring more forms the next day so they could give their input.
While handing out surveys, we met many interesting people, including a man who is a director for youth projects at City Hall. He was quite enthusiastic about our ideas and wanted to know how the city could work with us to promote our programs.

Besides the courses, programs, seminars and projects in the community center, we will have a juice and smoothie bar where people can socialize in a wholesome environment and learn about what the center has to offer. Our church members will have great opportunities to connect with the community and a separate space to meet for prayer, Bible study and worship.

One of the most surprising things we learned was that many people want to volunteer their time to help the disadvantaged. This is wonderful news! It is evidence that God is already at work in their hearts. Please join us in praying that we will effectively lift up the One who will meet their deepest needs and draw them to Himself.

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