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Alexander is a young man who lives in Skopje, North Macedonia. He is legally blind but has achieved in everything he tried. Here is his email of gratitude to the board and his story, The Apprentice. We had the honor of sponsoring his doctorate program of three years in Aberdeen, Scotland.

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Dear Vula and Macedonian Outreach Board,

I hope you are well and looking forward to a great festive season.

The last few days have finally brought the end to a crucial chapter in my life. My degree certificate has finally arrived in the post. It gives me great pleasure to share these glad tidings with you and the board of Macedonian Outreach. Looking back, I also feel extremely grateful for the opportunities to think and relax in Litochoro, the clothes on my back and the outstanding generosity of those who have partnered God in making my dreams come true in ways I could not have imagined.

As a small token of gratitude, I attach a short story which sums up the role you and MO have played in my life. I hope that it may be an encouragement to others. I also attach a few recent photos.

Blessings,

Alex

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The Apprentice

In this time of major uncertainty, it is difficult for people to find reasons to be thankful. Many would be delighted to see the back of this taxing year, an altogether sorry and disorienting chapter in many of our lives. Yet, I am delighted to be able to reflect on the end of another chapter of a story to which you all have contributed a lot.

The weekend had finally arrived. A teenager got out of bed at the crack of dawn. He did not have any pranks in mind. He was not going hiking either. His exploratory expeditions were of another kind. Having prayed, he sat down at what he imagined to be his writing desk. While his friends would construct little forts, he would surround himself with books as if they were his dry mote. He had a burning passion for unlocking truths that few now bother about. He told himself that he was writing a Bible commentary, an obscure genre of literature that was as familiar to his parents as Haggis is to people in the Balkans.

The time for professional decisions came along. His friends went on to pursue careers in law, medicine and the arts. He had grades good enough to study whatever he desired. His mentor told him then that he was one of a handful of people who could study any discipline he chose and succeed in it. but his only fascination was with Scripture and theology. He longed to follow in the footsteps of Jeremiah, his hero who had shown him what a faithful youth could do, of Job, who taught him not to mince words when telling God of his pain and suffering, and of Silas, who was a model of a believing and practicing intellectual to him.

Five years of hard work followed. He mastered such obscure things as Biblical Hebrew and Greek. He deepened his knowledge and appreciation not only of Job’s frank talk with God but also of the psalms and of Jeremiah’s prayer life. He developed an interest in the discernment of wise intellectuals who expressed their deep convictions about the effects of a Spirit-transformed mind through their sharp-eyed, penetrative and thought-provocative observations. Like Job, he wished to share his wisdom with others. Like Jeremiah, he had doubts about the relevance of what he had to say. Like Silas, he sought to use his knowledge to make others better.

Thus God added a third string to his bow. Having gifted him a perceptive mind, a healthy dose of curiosity about Scripture and a love for the written word, God now added the charge to teach others. But the apprentice felt deeply uneasy about it. He was aware that he would require further training in a country of which he new nothing about.

An arduous journey into the unknown followed. Like Abraham, he was compelled to lean on divine guidance and trust that his everyday needs will be met. When he was growing up, he had been taught that whenever God calls people, God also equips them for their calling. His journey into the unknown demonstrated once again that God would meet his every need, from finding a good church to join and contribute to, to seemingly banal things like a Sunday lunch, a cinema ticket or numerous free rides, to a coveted University scholarship and a living allowance from people he had never met before. Indeed, there were times when the far away country did feel like home for a season.

The would-be researcher, writer and teacher could thus spend three years doing what he loved best, what God had put on his heart during the quiet hours of prayerful reading many Saturdays ago. His scanty teaching experience had brought a problem to his attention. this was a time when the Bible had never been more available that it is today. Yet, it was also a time during which it was read or understood by so few. The apprentice longed to explore ways in which he could let those who had never read Scripture read it in culturally appropriate, yet faithful, ways. So he explored ways of reading his favourite book of Jeremiah and its numerous depictions of reading, writing and intellectuals together with modern novels and movies about reading, writing and intellectuals. His contribution was deemed to be impressive by his examiners, leading scholars and committed Christians.

During the course of his studies, the apprentice had been asked to contribute a theologically insightful, yet accessible and culturally relevant, commentary on his favourite book of the Bible. But in amongst it all there was waiting. Waiting for God to open the right doors. Waiting for God to provide the means for the realisation of goals God had asked the apprentice to pursue. Waiting for the effects of an intensive work schedule to go away. Waiting for final approvals before the dissertation could be submitted. Waiting for the right examiners to be appointed. Waiting for lockdown to end. Waiting for the degree certificate to arrive. Yet, the apprentice was delighted that he could realise one of his teenage dreams in the meanwhile. Having travelled to the far away country, he had learned what Haggis is. Now God signalled to him that he was ready to fulfil one of his deepest longings. Now he was equip to pass some of the knowledge he had gained over the years to others.

Thus a chapter in the life of the apprentice came to its God-ordained end. As the artisans of old who used to benefit from popular subscriptions in order to further their professional goals, the apprentice could look back and see many generous hands extended in fellowship and partnership. There were indeed many eager hearts which had been moved to remarkable acts of kindness. The apprentice thought it fitting to thank them by using the words of a great statesmen which he uttered on a momentous occasion: “This is your victory”, he exclaimed. This chapter, then, is a testament to both the predictability and the reliability of Providence when disorienting realities assert themselves at the global level.

Aleksandar Apostolovski
What is impossible for man is possible with God” (Luke 18:27)

Since this year’s VBS outreach was canceled due to COVID-19, we would like to share a story from the 2019 Skopje Roma Children’s Vacation Bible School.

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We are Annie and Robert Ching, members of Gilead Bible Church in San Ramon, CA a city not far from where Vula lives. In the early 1990s, we met Vula at one of our church functions when she invited us to join her on a mission trip. It was not, however, until our retirement in 2011 that we obeyed God’s call and accepted Vula’s invitation and went for a two week mission trip to the Balkans. Since then an annual, short-term mission trip with The Macedonian Outreach has become a vital part of our retirement life. Vula has been a wonderful sister in the Lord, a generous friend, and spiritual mentor to our church families.

In 2017, we included in our mission journey, and every year since then, an overnight trip to the Roma ghetto in Skopje where we run a Vacation Bible School in the afternoon and sometimes an additional morning program before we return to the Ministry Headquarters in Litochoro, Greece. Many children walk a distance to the VBS location for a time of Bible stories, games and lunch. God has blessed us with times of real joy summer after summer. Memories of their singing and laughter are stored deep in our hearts.

Pastor Sokrat and his family, who are the local care givers to the ghetto, have been faithful to teach the gospel truth of Jesus Christ to the children and to care for the well-being of them and their families. Gilead Bible Church thanks God for the opportunity to partner in a small way with this vital ministry of The Macedonian Outreach in Scopje, N. Macedonia.

In the last three years, we taught the stories of Noah, the Lost Sheep and the Colors of the Gospel. As Chinese Americans, we also included some Chinese cultural activities and games to augment and reinforce the Bible lessons. These children and teenagers are very inquisitive and eager to learn! God‘s love knows no language nor cultural barrier. The Sokrat family has been vital in translating for us, in leading songs and organizing activities.

The Skopje experiences have taught us to be humble, grateful, enthusiastic and receptive to the things of the Lord. Jesus said, “Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these.”

We thank Vula for opening our eyes to the spiritual and physical needs in the Balkans. May God find us faithful in bringing many little children to Him.

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VBS Campers

Robert with a new friend

Annie and friends

Annie explains significance of Chinese character for “lamb”

Children praying

Improvised tossing game

Lunch time for the campers!