Pray for Kosova or Kosovo Province

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Note: We last prayed for Kosovo in 2001. God is answering!

Kosova or Kosovo?

This region of the Balkans, known as Kosovo by Serbs and Kosova by Albanians, has been part of the Roman, Byzantine, and Ottoman Empires. Kosovo became part of Serbia before the First World War and Yugoslavia just after it. Since June 1999, it has been under United Nations administration, following the extreme ethnic violence between the Serbs and Kosovar Albanians, which began in 1998 and resulted in several thousand deaths and numerous refugees. The European Union is playing a major role in its reconstruction; over the past few years, Kosovo has become increasingly peaceful.

Christianity in Pristina

Here is a report from some Christians who visited Kosovo recently: “We spent most of our time with one of the congregations in Pristina, the capital. We were amazed at the hunger for the gospel and the openness to discuss Christ. Wherever we went, we had great freedom to share the gospel and gave out many Bibles and tracts. One brother held seminars at a university campus, which were attended by about 100 people each time. When some Muslim fundamentalists were disruptive, this only encouraged those disillusioned by Islam. Afterwards, Albanian believers shared their faith with boldness!”

Christian Growth in Kosovo

In the last 10 years, one movement of Kosovar Christians has witnessed numbers increase from three people to hundreds (possibly 500) and from one church to over 30. This group started meeting in one room, without a car, with little money, and walked for hours each day visiting people all over their city. They published 60 books and booklets, as well as a Christian magazine, covering many topics, from apologetics to the Christian life.

The Indigenous Mission Movement in Kosovo

Some former Muslim Kosovars have even been involved in missions. Recently, six of them joined a team of Western Christians and spent a week in Istanbul. They walked the streets, handed out Christian literature, and talked to Muslims. The Kosovars were very touched to see that the Turks, who originally brought Islam to Kosovo, were open to the gospel and wanted to know more about Jesus. As God worked in their hearts, the Kosovar believers gave up negative attitudes and were filled with compassion and love for Muslim Turks.

Prayer guide for Kosovo:

* Thank the Lord for the positive things happening in Kosovo.

* New Kosovar believers need teaching and discipleship training. Pray that the new believers will continue to grow in the knowledge of God and become even more effective in proclaiming their faith.

* Pray that the Lord will continue to create an even greater spiritual hunger among the Muslim Kosovars.

* Pray that the Kosovar believers would be filled with God’s wisdom and be a light and source of hope to their people and their land.

Background on Kosovo (World Factbook)

Kosovo has been governed by the UN Interim Administration Mission in Kosovo (UNMIK) since June 1999, under the authority of UN Security Council Resolution 1244, pending a determination by the international community of its future status. In 2002, the Serbian and Montenegrin components of Yugoslavia began negotiations to forge a looser relationship. In February 2003 lawmakers restructured the country into a loose federation of two republics called Serbia and Montenegro. The Constitutional Charter of Serbia and Montenegro included a provision that allowed either republic to hold a referendum after three years that would allow for their independence from the state union. In the spring of 2006, Montenegro took advantage of the provision to undertake a successful independence vote enabling it to secede on 3 June. Two days later, Serbia declared that it was the successor state to the union of Serbia and Montenegro.

Economy of Kosovo

The complexity of Serbia and Kosovo’s political and legal relationships has created uncertainty over property rights and hindered the privatization of state-owned assets located in Kosovo. The majority of Kosovo’s population lives in rural towns outside of Kosovo’s largest city, Pristina, and inefficient, near-subsistence farming is common. Kosovo is one of the poorest economies in Europe, with a per capita income estimated at 1,565 Euro (2004).

About Kosovo

Population: 2,126,708 (July 2007 est.)

Ethnic groups: Albanian 88%, Serb and Montenegrin 7%, Others 5% (Turks, Romani)

Religions: Islam, Catholic, Orthodox

Languages: Serbian (official nationwide); Romanian, Hungarian, Slovak, Ukrainian, and Croatian (all official in Vojvodina); Albanian (official in Kosovo)

Literacy: 96.4%

Ripple effect warning of Kosovo independence - Video

After nine years of UN administration, Kosovo declares independence. But, in the international arena at least, the debate is not over with heated discussion on the possible ramifactions of the breakaway.