October Prayer Letter

I just wanted to post an update with the October prayer letter, and write a little more about what's been happening here in Bologna. I had every intention of posting more information last week, but time has just flown by--we're very busy, but we're beginning to settle into more of a routine. First, here's the prayer letter:

Over the last month or so, our team has attended two conferences and a church retreat, completed an intensive language course, and begun meeting with students. The first conference, Nuovo Inizio, was held in a small Tuscan town called Grossetto. This conference is specifically designed as an orientation for new staff and STINTers. We enjoyed the opportunity to escape the busyness of city life for a few days to learn more about life and ministry in Italy. Our second conference was a fall conference for all of Agape Italia staff. We heard from several pastors throughout the country (Florence, Sienna, etc.) and Agape Italia leadership. The perseverance of these people in the face of all of the challenges to ministry in this country was especially encouraging to me. Many of them had spent 15+ years in prayer for God to move in specific ways before seeing any response. Our director, Franco Basio, spoke a lot about humility. This topic has come up over and over again in the last several months. God continues to reveal to me how utterly dependent I am on Him for everything--for life itself--but how reassuring to know that, while I don't really control anything...He is in control of everything, and He is my Father. 

We also attended a retreat for the young people at one of the two churches, Nuova Vita, here in Bologna. Our team enjoyed the opportunity to get to know some of the believers from our city. The group was small, but very international. At one point, we were able to go around and share testimonies. It was incredible to be hearing from people from all over the world--Italy, Spain, India, England, the U.S.--about how Jesus has changed each of their lives. All of the testimonies were told in either Italian or    English and translated to Italian or English so we could all understand. 

Our language intensive lasted for one week. It's been helpful to have a crash-course on language, as this is something so critical to interacting effectively with students. We will continue to study the language throughout the year on our own and, hopefully, with a tutor or through another class. On our last two days of class, one of our teachers asked that we present on each of our countries (the other students in the class were from Turkey, Khazakhstan, Poland, and several other places). Matt and I were able to present on our states, since we were from the same country--we introduced them to peanut butter cookies (peanut butter is not common in Italy, and, if it is available, it is usually expensive), and I tried to teach them to call the hogs. I wish I had a picture of the looks on their faces after I tried to explain in very broken Italian why we "call the hogs" in Arkansas and how we do this--needless to say, I think they were a little confused and thought it was pretty amusing. 

In the last week or two, our lives have settled into a more consistent routine. We typically spend mornings together as a team--praying, studying scripture, planning and language learning. It's a blessing to work alongside people with such great hearts. In the afternoons, we spend our time on campus. We are currently in the process of talking with students to get a better idea of spiritual attitudes here in Bologna. This has been amazing to me. The lack of hope in this country is so evident, and it is heartbreaking. As we ask students if they ever think of God, and what they think of Him if they do...so many of them have told us that they are either "ateo" (atheist) or agnostic. The statistics that evidence this reality are out there, but it's something wholly different when you can attach statistics to specific faces and names. It has been encouraging, though, to see how many of them are willing to spend time with us, though they don't know us at all. Italian social groups can be somewhat difficult to break into--many of them have known their friends for a very long time. 

On Wednesday nights, we hold an aperitivo event in the city center. This event is more social, and allows us to invite students to spend time with us in a more relaxed atmosphere. We are also in the process of starting a discussion group for students who are interested in spiritual issues. 

In the last few weeks, I have been reminded so much of how my idea of who God is impacts every area of my life. Oftentimes, our life experiences have more of an impact on our idea of who God is than what He tells us in scripture about His character. Right thinking about God can truly transform our lives. 

Here are a few prayer points:

• Praise God for the students that He has brought into our lives. In the last several years, Agape staff  in Bologna were not able to name any students who might be interested in truly getting involved with the ministry. We now have several names.
• Praise God for His continued provision--time and time again He has answered little prayers about everyday life here.
• Pray for the students we are meeting on campus. We have had so many great conversations in our short time on campus--please pray that God would grow relationships with students who are spiritually interested, and that God would continue to ordain conversations on campus with the students He has for us to meet. 
• Pray for the believers on campus here in Bologna. There are only a couple that we know of, but pray that God would grow them in their relationship with Him and use them to witness to His glory here. 
• Pray for the churches here in Bologna that we partner with and their witness in the city, Nuova Vita (New Life) and Forte Torre (Strong Towers). Pray that God would grow these churches and work in and through the members. Nuova Vita has been in the city for about 30 years and is a church-plant from TEAM ministries. Forte Torre is newer in the city--this is the church that everyone on the STINT team has decided to attend. Right now, there are only about 20 or so people who attend regularly.
• Please pray for our events with students--the discussion group and our weekly aperitivo. Pray also for our Thanksgiving outreach with Nuova Vita. 
• Pray for Italy as a whole and the churches and Agape ministries throughout the country--Florence, Rome, Salerno, Milan, Sienna, Sanremo, and Palermo. 

Emily shared this song with our team during our last meeting, and I thought it would be worth posting here, too...

Ciao,

Elizabeth

John 10:10