A Heart for Worship: Our Support of the Songwriting Retreat in Albania

At the end of February, we had the privilege of supporting a songwriting seminar led by Aurel Duro in Albania. This retreat brought together around 30 participants who share a passion for creating music that glorifies God. Thanks to the generous support of many, including a special contribution from Jeff, we were able to help make this event a reality.

Held in a peaceful and inspiring setting, the retreat was a time for worship, creativity, and fellowship. The goal was to inspire participants to write biblically grounded worship songs, sharpen their gifting, encourage collaboration, and ultimately be a blessing to the Albanian Church.

Here are a few highlights from the retreat:

New Songs Written: By the end of the retreat, participants in small groups had written 15 new worship songs. It was amazing to see these songs come to life and to perform them after each songwriting session.
Testimonies: Many attendees shared how the retreat ignited a fresh passion for writing songs, and how the atmosphere of the event was both welcoming and encouraging. The retreat created an environment where people felt inspired to continue writing and to look forward to future gatherings.

This retreat was just the beginning of something even bigger. As we move forward, we plan to organize follow-up gatherings, record some of the new songs, and share them with churches and the broader Christian community.

Below is a message from Aurel, where he shares more about the retreat and the impact of the support we received:

Dear Jeff

We hope this message finds you well. We are incredibly grateful for your generous support, which played a crucial role in the success of our recent songwriting retreat.

The retreat brought together about 30 participants with a shared passion for creating music that glorifies God. Held in a serene and inspiring environment, the event was a time of worship, creativity, and fellowship.

The primary goals of the retreat were:

To inspire participants to write meaningful and biblically grounded worship songs.
To sharpen their gifting
To encourage collaboration among like-minded individuals.
Be a blessing for the whole Albanian Church

Some of the Highlights on retreat were

New Songs Written: By the end of the retreat, participants in groups had written 15 new worship songs. After each songwriting session we performed the songs.
Testimonies: Many attendees shared that the environment in the retreat was welcoming and encouraging, how the retreat ignited a passion for writing more songs, and looking forward to coming back together for more of this.

Impact of Your Support

Your generosity helped us cover costs such as accommodations, meals, workshop materials. Because of you, we could offer this experience to many aspiring songwriters.

Looking Ahead

The retreat was a strong foundation for a growing community of worship songwriters. We plan to organize follow-up gatherings, record some of the songs and share the new songs with churches and Christian community.

Once again, thank you for partnering with us in this mission. Your support has sown seeds that will bear fruit in worship and praise to our Lord.

With gratitude,

Aurel Duro

On behalf of THUR Albania