Prayer Requests

Hi everyone! As you probably know now I am finally in Macedonia. I don't have a lot to write about or a lot of motivation to come up with something, I can't figure which, but I wanted to request special prayer for some things.

1) The Muslim fast of Ramadan starts tomorrow and will go for 28 days. Please be praying for this area because a good percentage of its population is Albanian Muslim or Roma (gypsy) which are nominal Muslims. I am working with a guy that works with Albanians so we'll be in the middle of it. Pray for the people that God would reveal himself to them.

2) I still don't have a place to live and am currently living in a small apartment at one of the churches. It's nice and everything but it'd be nice to be able to have my own place. Unfortunately the US dollar has weakened since we made my budget and it seems I'll be cutting it very close, especially in the winter to have an apartment. Pray that God will provide!

3) My body is getting used to everything here. My physical body is adjusting to the time still (naps are a very splendid thing!) and my stomache is adjusting as well, to put it lightly. It's not that the food is bad or anything, it's amazing. It's not even that different or spicy or anything like that. I can't tell you the exact cause but I think it's just recovering from the travels that I went through a few days ago. Pray that my body gets to a more normal state soon!

4) I long to understand what people are saying so I can communicate with them as well. There's been plenty of interaction with English speakers so that's been a blessing, but I really want to learn the languages. Yes, I did say languages. It is imperative that I speak Macedonian, but I'd also like to learn at least some Albanian. Pray that God opens my ears to hear and understand these languages and that he touches my tongue to be able to speak it as well.

That's it for now! I'll try to take more pictures so it will be worthwhile to post them soon! In the meantime, keep me in prayer and feel free to contact me if you have questions. I'm doing my best to keep up with emails and comments etc.

Last Newsletter from Stateside

Newsletter: August 2008

Greetings in Christ!
Writing this letter brings me much joy, but I’ll get to the reasons for that joy later. First, I’d like to thank all of you for supporting me in preparations for Macedonia. Thank you for your prayers and your financial contributions. You have all been very encouraging.

From Home
Earlier this summer, Rebecca and I decided to break off our engagement. It has been a very joyful event because of our reasons for breaking up. We both desire to pursue and focus on God’s plans for our lives with everything we have and God is calling us to separate places so this is the only real option. God has blessed us in this decision, there has been no heartbreaking and we are both very much at peace.

What About Macedonia?
I finally received financial clearance and have purchased my ticket to leave for Macedonia. Praise the Lord! I am finally on my way! My ticket is for a flight on Lufthansa airlines on Wednesday August 27th from San Francisco at 1:00 PM. I’ll have a layover in London, another flight to Vienna, and finally a flight to Skopje, Macedonia. I’m scheduled to arrive there at about 3:30 Thursday afternoon. Brian will be in the states until late October so I will be getting settled in with another American missionary, Mark Orfila. I’ll be focusing on learning the Macedonian language and culture until Brian gets back.

Prayer Needs
1. Pray for me as I transition into the Macedonian culture. I have already felt anxiety and restlessness. Pray that God will give me rest and confidence.
2. Pray for Macedonia and the countries surrounding it. Pray for the missionaries and churches there as they continue to grow.
3. Pray for the church in Shutka that I’ll be working with. Pray for the church in Shutka to be completed and for the Bible school in Skopje to be completed and to open soon.
4. Pray for my finances. I am already going on a reduced budget. Pray that everyone that pledged will honor their commitment and allow me to stay once I get there. Pray that I will have just enough to do the work that God is sending me to do.
Thank you all for your support! This letter will probably find you after I’m already in Macedonia, but please remember to pray, and please remember to keep up with your financial contributions. You can still contact me via email as well as through my blog site which are both listed below.

Yours in Christ,

Christopher R. Parkinson
P0 Box 1012
Redway, CA 95560
Christopher.Parkinson@ma.agmd.org
www.crparky.blogspot.com