23rd September

 

We are in the final days of our visit here.  We have had some amazing contacts, and God has used us to encourage, comfort, and pray for many out here in Kosovo.  Last Sunday we were in Gjakova, and attended Eternity Church, a vibrant Albanian led fellowship, with many young Christian believers.  At the service we were able to give greetings from St Johns, and we took some photos of the folk there, which we hope can be added to the web site.  There was an enthusiastic wave from the folk gathered as a greeting to all at St Johns.  One final request for prayer - for Joy as she leads a retreat day for the ladies on Thursday (10 am to 3 pm).  The venue is at the AIM suite of offices in Prishtina, which has a pleasant lounge area, and small rooms for personal reflection and ministry.  The theme is "HOPE - that is not just a word!".  Quite a few are travelling a long distance to be at the retreat.  Please pray that the day will bless and encourage those who come, and for Joy to have the anointing to bring God's word for these ladies.  Thank you all for your interest and prayers and personal messages of encouragement for us.  Blessings from Dave and Joy

 

 

9th September

Latest from Dave and Joy

Last Sunday, Joy and Dave met with student outreach church in Prishtina (The Church of the Nazarene).  We were made very welcome and we brought greetings from St Johns.  Please pray for these young Christian belivers who are first generation Chritians in Kosovo.  From left to right in the photo - (back row): Fidan, Alban, Atdhe, Imir, Astrit, Dren, and Dave, (frot row) Marigona, Jeanette, Blerina.

Today (Tuesday 8th Sept.) we met with some of the missionaries at the AIM office for the regular prayer meeting.  It is so good to spend time listening to the folk here share what is happening and to pray with them.  From left to right in the picture are: Mazie and Caroline from Nigeria, Agnesa, Joy, Lola (Agnesa and Lola are Kosovars), Joel from Nigeria, and Joshua from Korea

1st September: From Dave and Joy;

Thanks for everyone's prayers, our trip to Kosovo went well, and we have settled in to our accommodation well.  On Saturday we took a bus to Gjakova and visited our friend Val, who is flying out this week to USA and getting married next week.  We wanted to give her our best wishes.  On Sunday we attended the special church service of the new church building in Prishtina.  See the photos -01 Fumi welcomes guests.  02 Interior of the church.  03 Moment of dedication.  04 prayer by the children.  then we went out for Pizza with Leah who is a teaching missionary hear. photo 105.  Today we met at the AIM office and shared in a prayer time with staff and missionaries.

We will keep you up to date as the days pass

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LACEY'S SUMMER NEWS - August 2009

During the summer we have two families that regularly pay us a visit around daybreak, and they bring us huge delight. the Sparrows and the Tits.  They charm us with their antics and cheer us with their chirping.  And this morning they jogged my mind into a train of thought: When I consider.... (Psalm 8).   Someone said "There are two ways that we miss things - when it goes by too fast, or when we go by too fast".   Today, God reminded me of the value of considering "the works his hands have made"; ie spending time with him enjoying in his creation.  For this we need space in our busy lives, to draw on the God given capacity to be in awe a wonder, and to allow him to re-evaluate our lives according to his perspective.

And in July, through the kindness of some friends, Joy and I enjoyed a week in France at a lovely Christian holiday park. We relaxed in a heated swimming pool, we had outings to attractive places and had great fun and fellowship, but the most special thing was to have space to hear from God. Our worship and teaching leader was Chris Bowater (favourite of ours) and during the sensitive and powerful worship God spoke two clear words we needed to hear. One was regarding my (Dave's) health issues.  I had a clear picture of the Lord reaching out and grasping my hands to steady my trust in him.  The other was a reminder of the promises God has given to us regarding our family.  So through these encouraging words, coupled with the evidence of God's healing touch on Jill and Steve (Jill is now almost at full recovery from her operation), we feel God is giving us the green light for our next planned visit to Kosovo.

Meanwhile, during August, we had the privilege of welcoming some more of our missionary friends from Kosovo to our home. Trish and Mark Edwards work in Lipjan, a medium sized town with substantial Albanian and Serbian communities. Their role is to encourage interaction between the ethnic groups, and they have just completed a successful summer camp with over 200 children and young people meeting together. –English is the lingua franca that allows the kids to share as equals.  Then each home receives a visit from the camp team, and some wonderful encounters occur. So, in a gentle and loving way healing is coming between ethnic groups that were just a few years ago in conflict.  This is truly God's work.

We are now in the planning stage for our next Kosovo trip - 28^thAugust to 24^th September. We go at the request of AIM (Association of International Missions - a networking organisation supporting evangelical missions in Kosovo).  Our role is to be available in a pastoral capacity to the missionary community, and our home church (see www.stjohnsfareham.org.uk ) have adopted us as part of the Parish outreach initiative.  The visit is entitled "Days of Encouragement" and our objective is to be available to any who have pastoral needs. These vary from those who just need a hug, or a listening ear, or those who are going through trying situations and are very stressed. Sometimes there are opportunities for teaching or seminars.  And we often get to meet up with some of the local Albanian believers. We offer prayer and encouragement, and generally have a full diary - we already have requests in hand.  One special occasion - we are hoping to attend the opening ceremony for a new church building in Prishtina on the Sunday after we arrive.  And we normally attend local prayer and fellowship groups and sometimes lead, for example, the prayer group on each Tuesday morning at the AIM office in Prishtina.

We have been engaging in these annual Kosovo pastoral ministry trips for about five years now, and we find they are a means of real blessing to the missionary community and local Christians as well.  So your interest and prayers for us are really appreciated, and we will try and send you a few updates through the trip.

Thanks again for all your interest, support and prayers. Love from Dave and Joy Lacey.

Dave and Joy Lacey 94 Highfield Ave. Fareham Hants UK.  PO14 1HX    Tel.  ++44(0)1329281253     e mail davjoy@uwclub.net     Skype: davjoy1

PS. One special prayer request is for our friends Clive and Ruth Doubleday. Clive is the director of SMILE International (see www.smileinternational.org ), and it is through Clive and Ruth that we were first introduced to Kosovo and the needs there. Clive is currently undergoing chemotherapy for non-Hodgkins lymphoma - please pray for total healing.  Thank you.

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Kosovo KonneXions.

Visitors from Kosovo during May 2009

Dave and Joy Lacey have been making pastoral visits to Kosovo over the past eight years. The visits were initiated by AIM (The Association of International Missions in Kosovo) and which also arranged the pastoral itinerary for us. Recently these visits have become part of the ‘missions’ focus of St John’s, so that, when we go, we represent the St John’s Church Family.

Also, St John’s Missions Board have been pleased to support AIM and have encouraged a partnership between St John’s and some of the missionaries we minister to. This has included financial support, but also to welcome some of the missionaries working in Kosovo to Fareham, and to meet the congregation at St.Johns.

Through the month of May, we have had several visits from Missionaries working in Kosovo. Here is an introduction to our visitors.

Don and Marti Denham. Came for the weekend 1st - 5th May. They shared about their work in Kosovo at the evening service on Sunday 3rd May

 

Thank you for making these guests feel welcomed among us at St John’s.

Dave and Joy Lacey

 

Don and Marti (from left 3 and 5) sharing with supporters at a garden party Don and Marti are from the USA and have been working in Kosovo since 1999 following the conflict. They have a fascinating story of getting alongside Albanian families who suffered death - husbands and sons were murdered; destruction of homes and equipment; and devastation of their lives. This is a wonderful story of the Christian faith touching a whole community.

Fumi Onodera - enjoying a day out at Wisley RHS gardens and enjoying a 200 year old bonsai tree.

Fumi Onodera, (who many of us know from previous visits), arrived 13th May and stayed until 22nd May. Fumi was in church on Sunday 17th May, but also agreed to be the speaker at the Christian Aid lunch after the morning service and updating us about her work in Prishina.

The Kubasek family enjoying a day out at Hill Head.

Kevin and Barb Kubasek and their children, Becka and Tommy arrived on 22nd May and stay until 3rd June. Kevin and Barb are Canadians and work as part of a Church planting team in Kosovo, and are here to rest following a demanding period of ministry. We will be introducing them to some enjoyable ‘English experiences’.