When was the last time you were faced with a difficult choice? 

Ready to set sail even when staying on the dock seemed more comfortable?

Faced the pressure of others looking to you to decide? 

That was me!

A Difficult Decision

One of the most difficult decisions I had to make early in MOPS Albania was this: 

Which local church would be the host church for the initial MOPS group?

At the first MOPS meeting, at least five local churches were represented!  The women from all of these churches seemed enthusiastic about MOPS. I wanted all of them to feel encouraged. 

Others were ready to give me their thoughts, yet they were looking to me to choose. 

How would you choose? 

For me, the easiest choice would have been to start MOPS at the church I was at—this was where I grew up. This would have been expected of me. No one would have had questions. No complaints. If I had continued living the story that my parents and so many others wanted to write for me, I would have done this—I would have done what I was expected to do. I would have tried to please others. I would have avoided conflict. 

Can you tell by now that I wasn’t writing that type of story anymore? 

God was helping me write a new chapter in my story.

“A place where any mom would be welcomed and loved”

I didn’t want MOPS to become yet another ministry where a pastor or a church leader made the decisions and then told women what he wanted them to do. 

I dreamed of MOPS being a place where any mom would be welcomed and loved—single, divorced, remarried or widowed. I wanted it to be where a woman like Chelle Stire could speak openly about “Keeping Romance Alive.” And I also wanted MOPS to be a place where we could sit with widows in their sadness and pain. (I will tell you these special stories soon!) 

I wanted MOPS to be a place of courage. I wanted women to step out of their comfort zone, and I realized this was a chance to step out of mine.

Bringing People Together

Dr.  Eric Mason, one of my favorite speakers from the MOPS International conference, says, “The gospel is supposed to bring people together who wouldn’t naturally be together.” That was the type of community I wanted.

“I want the women coming to MOPS whose voices hadn’t been heard in the past to experience that their voices mattered,” I told my cousin Blerta and the team members.

“I wanted women to step out of their comfort zone.”

For women who had never been trusted, I wanted to entrust something to them. 

For women who hadn’t been recognized, I wanted them to be seen.”

I wanted women to step out of their comfort zone. I realized this was a chance for me to step out of mine.

I made the decision. 

After praying and talking with some of the women who had been attending MOPS from another church, we met with the leader of their church and asked him if their church could host the MOPS group. He said, “Yes.” Soon after starting the first group, I met leaders from another church. “Would you consider starting a MOPS group?” Again, they agreed.

I had no idea how these conversations would become catalysts for life-changing work across Albania.

Your Difficult Decision

What about you? 

What difficult decision have you faced?

Are there people you might bring together that wouldn’t naturally be together?