Tuesday 22 November 2011

Meeting a group helping Albanian churches

With my interest in Albania I am fascinated by the number of missionary societies I am coming across working in that country.

I had never heard of Eurovangelism before so while I was in Bath the other weekend I went to meet their new director, the Rev Andy Drake, at their offices in Bristol.

Andy, pictured below, who was born and raised in Australia, is a dynamic leader. He planted a youth congregation at the age of 18 and is a Baptist Minister, leading three churches over the last 15 years.


He was previously the National Ministry Director of Christian Vision for Men before moving to Eurovangelism.

The mission has an amazing base at 1 Holdenhurst Road, Kingswood, Bristol, BS15 1HL. 

At the front is a detached house in a residential area and then you walk into the back garden where there is a huge modern office with seven people working in it.

Eurovangelism is a charity founded by Dave Foster in 1965 to support local Christians in parts of Europe where they were being persecuted by oppressive communist or fascist regimes.

Today they have partners stretching from Russia to Portugal and from Albania to Poland.

Andy says of Eurovangelism: “We help local churches as they work to transform their villages, towns and nations from the inside with God's love and power.

“As members of those communities our partners are best placed to know their neighbours’ needs, how to meet them, and the most appropriate ways to tell them about Jesus.

“As a result our partners are engaged in a huge range of projects including: caring for the poor, church planting and development, training and education, medical help, the Alpha course, working with children and emergency relief.”

I am hoping with my interest in Albania and voluntary work with the European Christian Mission to link up with Eurovangelism, who are working mainly in the capital Tirana, in future.

For more details about Eurovangelism go to www.eurovangelism.org.uk

For more details about ECM's work in Albania see God's Secret Listener , published by Lion/Hudson/Monarch.

To order a signed copy of the book for £6 plus postage contact John@jbutterworth.plus.com

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