EBF Mission Partnership Church Planter: Meet Fatjon Mullxhi
In April, the International Baptist Convention began supporting a new European Baptist Federation Mission Partnership church planter in Albania. Meet Fatjon Mullxhi. Fatjon comes from a family with a Muslim tradition and first heard about Jesus as a seven-year-old when a group of Christians showed the Jesus Film in his village. “At that age, I did not know anything about faith or what it was,” he said.
After leaving his hometown, he went to Tirana to study. There, searching among his books, he found a Bible and began to read the Gospels and Proverbs. It was his first time to read about Jesus.
Like many who visit our IBC churches, Fatjon went to a summer camp in 2016 to learn and practice English. He quickly realized the real goal of the camp was to share the gospel. After a lot of questions and time discussing about God, he said “Yes” to Jesus. After camp, he began going to the Agape Church in Tiranawhere he learned more about God and His love for him.
The next year he invited others to the camp and volunteered at the camp himself. The following year he began serving on other teams at the church and started helping others to know Christ and to feel His love in their lives. “Now, when I look back,” Fatjon said, “I understand that small Bible between my books was not an accident. God used it for me to get to know Him and commit my life to serving Him.”
Fatjon and his wife Anisa are now planting a daughter church of Agape Church in the village of Yrshek, four kilometers from Tirana. This village of 1,000 inhabitants has no other churches in the area.
Like IBC churches, this church plant in Yrshek has been affected by COVID-19 and the resulting lockdown. During this time, the members shared their testimonies via video on the church’s Facebook page. This was not only an encouragement to each other but provided an opportunity for non-believers to hear the gospel. Recently things have opened up a bit, and they have been able to meet together outside and do some outdoor activities.
Pray for Fatjon and Anisa and other members of the church plant as they seek to meet people and share the gospel. And pray as they, too, plan to one day hold an English camp like the one Fatjon attended – where the real goal is to share the good news.
Albania, once declared an atheist state, is now very ripe spiritually although poverty stricken. The Baptist Union of Albania is one of the smallest in Europe but is very missions minded, as the existing churches are being multiplied.
If you or your church is interested in helping Fatjon and the church plant in Yrshek, please contact Building Connections Director Scott Corwin at [email protected].
