Bradley: Durres, Albania

The week of Sept. 19, we began a new school year and a one-year program of biblical studies from Genesis to Revelation at the Albanian Bible Institute (ABI). All our classes this year are being held at night so students who work in the daytime can attend.

This change is already paying off. Last year, we had only three full-time students in our residential program. On Sept. 19, 11 new students joined us for night classes. So far, no one has quit. These students leave their jobs at 4 or 4:30 in the afternoon and come to the school for two hours and 45 minutes of classes on Monday, Tuesday and Thursday nights. Our students are also high school students, factory workers, call center workers, English teachers, and there is even one army officer. All of them are involved in some ministry role in their churches, including people who serve as children and youth workers, deacons, church treasurers and worship leaders. Maybe with this biblical training that we are giving them, these lay people may hunger for more training and even feel a call to pastoral or missionary training one day in the future. The need for pastors in our country is great, as many congregations have no trained or even any untrained leader. In many churches, pastors are overworked and overstretched, some nearly to the point of breaking. If they don’t get help, what will happen to them? What will happen to their churches? The biblical teaching we are giving our students can lay the foundations for these people to rise up to the next level and to meet this critical need of more pastoral leadership.

Our change from teaching full-time students to teaching only part-time students is merely a change in methodology. Our mission of equipping Albanians for life, ministry and world impact is not changing at all. We respond to changing circumstances with different approaches and an unchanging commitment to biblical teaching. Thank you for making it possible for us to fulfill our mission. Please keep praying for all the staff and students of ABI. Pray that we will all bear fruit for the glory of God during this school year.  

Lee Bradley
Durres, Albania