David and Julee Schoch and their four children wrote in November 2007:

Bona - Our Neighbor

“Oh Julee!” I heard as I scrubbed away at a pile of dishes.

“Hyda,” I replied, which translated, means come on in. My neighbor Valbona, or Bona for short, was coming for her daily visit. Tears streamed from her eyes as she told me her son had decided to quit school.

“What can I do? He doesn’t even listen when I talk to him.”

Bona went on to pour out her worries for her children and her feelings of helplessness. My heart went out to her. It’s so very difficult for Roma children to stay in school; harassment, cultural pressures and economy make it almost impossible. Redi, her son, was ready to give in and call it quits.

When we moved to this house seven months ago our hope was that by being here in the midst of the people group we were trying to reach, we would be enabled to be a part of their lives. By participating in daily interaction we could create real friendships. My relationship with Bona is just the sort of outcome we were hoping for. I see Bona everyday. I am getting to know her family and they are seeing how we live.

Bona tried to kill herself a couple months ago. Because I was right next door, I was able to be of help. God sent me to her house at exactly the right time. She had taken poison and I was able to get her to the hospital and have her taken care of. I have started a Bible study with her and we are right in the middle of the story of Abraham. We will be going through most of the major stories of the Bible so she can get a firm foundation before moving on to the climax of Christ. I have high hopes that I will also get to meet and create relationships with her extended family as well.

It’s amazing to me how much Biblical knowledge I take for granted. I grew up in a Christian family, as did Dave, and Bible history almost seems like my own family history. Even non-believers in our society are influenced by the scriptures though they may be unaware of it, as much of our values and beliefs have been based upon Biblical values. As I work with individuals who don’t know any of the stories, I am hit with the fact of how blessed we are. The scriptures build on each other, the Old Testament laying the foundation of the knowledge of God, our sin, our need for Him and the promise of salvation. The New Testament lays out the means of our salvation in the person of Christ and how we are to live out our lives in Christ. It is for this reason that when doing an evangelistic study we start at the beginning and go all the way through instead of just starting with Jesus. When people do come to know the Lord, our hope is that their decision would be more grounded. Yet it is still a long haul. Even after someone like Kadriu comes to know the Lord it still amazes me how long the discipling process is. Concepts that I think should be common knowledge are not nearly as obvious to him as they seem to me.

Please pray with us …

SUN … Pray as parents, that we would be diligent to teach our children the things of God so that when they are grown they will not depart from them. Praise God for the blessing of knowing Him from an early age. 

MON … Pray for the Lord to continue to work in the hearts of Kadriu and Fatosi, his brother-in-law.  Both have expressed a belief in the Lord, but only Kadriu really seems to be growing.   Pray that God would help Dave to disciple these men, being patient and persistent to teach and encourage them.

TUE … Pray for the members of Malibu Presbyterian, Julee’s home church, as the church building burned down to the ground during the recent California fires.

WED … Pray for Rachael. She has been having a hard time emotionally and is quite fragile right now. Pray that God would give us wisdom in discerning what is the cause and what we can do to help her.

THU … Pray for Valbona, her husband Nazif, and two sons Redi (who’s Matthew’s age) and Eri (who’s the girl’s age). Pray for our continued relationship with them, and their salvation.

FRI … We are currently focusing on a Godly prayer life in our team Bible studies. One of the keys to powerful prayer is having a heart that resembles God’s. It is our earnest desire to have a heart like God’s. Pray that God would be transforming our hearts everyday to be more like His.

SAT … that God would help us maintain a healthy balance of ministry and family.
 

CONTACT US … WE’D LOVE TO HEAR FROM YOU!

Thank-you all again for your concern and encouragement,

God bless,
Julee for the Schochs

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