THE BENEFITS OF BEING A MISSIONARY

THE BENEFIT OF MINISTRY
There are many benefits to living the life of a missionary. I believe one of the greatest benefits would be doing the work of the ministry. In the midst of our busy days here in Albania, God is blessing! The ministry is going well with always much work to be done. We are so thankful for all the people God has brought into our lives. We have heard that many churches in Albania struggle with the lack of men resulting in poor leadership and the detriment of the New Testament church. However, at New Life we are blessed with a great bunch of men, we are excited to see them grow in the Lord. These men are the future of New Life and will be holding the fort while we are on furlough in 2010. Please pray for their development.

The Baptist church in Priske is also growing numerically, but more importantly it is growing spiritually. I have remained senior pastor of the church, but the church is flourishing under the leadership of national pastor Nardi Elponoria and we are happy to have him and his family as part of our ministry team. In addition to the two churches, our camp ministry in Priske has also served as a great benefit. God continues to open new doors of camp ministry opportunities. Youth retreats and church conferences have been a great way to teach and disciple Albanians molding them to become the spiritual leaders, pastors and missionaries of the future.

"Missionary partnership" is a hopeful future benefit. We are excited about the possibility of a another missionary family coming to work with us, we are praying that this will become a reality in the coming year.

Even though God is working there are those around us that seek to destroy the ministry that God has given us. No doubt there is a spiritual oppression that exists here and many days it is a struggle to see results. The Devil uses people, and what ever means possible to try and dismantle the work of God. But I always claim the verse "…greater is he that is in you, than he that is in the world." The work of God will always go forward and it is a benefit to know that our work is not in vain.

THE BENEFIT OF A CLOSE FAMILY
I am thankful today for the benefit of my family. God has blessed Debby and I with wonderful & talented children who love the Lord. Ben is 17 and in another year he will be going back to the states to attend college majoring in music, we will miss him greatly! He has become a very intricate part of the ministry here. For sometime now he has been leading in worship and playing guitar. He also plays the piano and he has a very good voice. It has been a blessing to see him use his talent for the Lord.

Heather also plays guitar and piano. She has a unique talent in photography and she is very good at it. She is great at organizing children’s activities and helping mom with ladies Bible study group and Sunday school functions. Both Ben and Heather are very active is Tae-Kwon-Do, currently they hold a second degree red belt and will soon be testing up to Black belt. This has been a lot of work and dedication on their part and they have stayed with it, never giving up.

And then there’s Mikayla. When God brought her into our lives 5 years ago we were not sure what He was doing, but Mikayla has truly been a gift. She has brought such joy to our home and has even had an impact on the ministry in some very interesting ways. We are proud of our children. They have had their share of challenges and problems over the years, but God has brought them through it and they are better for it. They are certainly not perfect, don’t claim to be but they are real and true and not hypocritical, they are who they are and we are proud of them for that.

Living on the mission field has brought our family close together. It has built strong relationships within our family unit, I believe this has been the greatest benefit of all.

GREAT COUPLE OF DAYS!

After Christmas Ben and Heather had the opportunity to attend a winter camp for MK's. It was a good time of fellowship with their friends as well as an opportunity to meet other missionary young people. God gave them a great couple of days.

We shared this past New Years Eve with good missionary friends. After a brisk walk to the city center to ride some of the rides and view the festivities Ben and Heather and their friends came back to the house for snacks & games while we waited for the big countdown. Then the moment came! We rushed to the rooftop where we have a large veranda. There we waited for the big fireworks show to begin. As we waited we prepared our own fireworks and boy did we have quite the variety ready to be lit. Then here it came 10,9, 8…3,2,1 Happy New Year! It’s been a great couple of days. We pray God will bless you greatly in 2009.

CHRISTMAS IN PRISKE

Much work went into this years special Christmas service. Both the Tirana and the Priske churches worked together to make this day a success. The service was held at our church/ camp facility in Priske. The service was filled with a number of Christmas carols lead by myself (Mike) and Ben and Diana on guitars followed by the reading of the Christmas story by several of our young people. Right before the preaching we were able to show a beautiful video presentation of the life of Christ from the birth to the death on the cross. The background music in the video was entitled "Mary Did You Know". This was all done in translated Albanian subtitles. God not only used this video, but more importantly the preaching of God's word to speak to the many unsaved visitors attending the service. After the service we had a time of testimonies and more Christmas carols followed by delicious dinner on the grounds. Thank you for praying!

MERRY CHRISTMAS 2008

DRUST LADIES DECORATING NIGHT - Here are some highlights!

As we reflect on this past year we are very grateful for all God has done in our lives and ministry. Christmas is an exciting time filled with visits, gatherings, giving of gifts and special Christmas services, but most importantly the celebration of the true spirit of Christmas. Jesus came to save a lost and dying world. He gave Himself as the ultimate gift, the "gift of salvation". We wish you a very Merry Christmas and a productive New Year! May God bless each of you during this wonderful time of year!

Mike Drust Family

Missionaries - Albania

Now Driving!

It is hard to believe that we have a son old enough to be driving. While in the states for my mothers funeral this past summer Ben had the opportunity to take his driving course and permit test. I thought I had gray hair before, well I guess it will only get grayer from here on out. Actually Ben is a good driver and we are very proud of him.

CATCHING UP

Over the last 7 years Albania has changed greatly. Computers are everywhere, ATM machines on every corner, new highways, these are just a few of the many improvements. But some areas of the technology sector has been slow in its progression. For example until just about 6 months ago only Dial-up e-mail and Internet was available in our area. But now we have broadband high speed and wireless Internet in our house, I still can't believe it. So now after years of having this convenience in America and other places we have finally caught up and we are really excited.

WHERE DO I FIT?

How many times have you heard someone or perhaps even your children say, "I don’t fit in"? This is certainly the challenge for missionaries and their families at a magnified level. There are times I go for weeks speaking the language, mixing with the culture and not even thinking about the fact that I am a foreigner in a strange land. Then occasionally something happens and it occurs to me that, I don’t fit in here. However, when I think about America and the times we are back in the states, nobody really knows us anymore. The friends that we had all those years ago have gone on with their lives and we are strangers to them now. Everything in America is so different, nothing is the same. Then I realize that we don’t fit in America either. Where do I fit? When I think about all that God has done in our family and ministry over the last eight years it is a definite confirmation that I fit right in the center of God’s will, there is no better place to be in the world.