Hi Friends and Family!

(I know this is a long update, if you do not have time to read the entire thing please don't miss the prayer requests at the bottom)!

Jet lag has taken its toll and I am left with great memories and experiences of the trip over the last week. The week went by so fast it seemed like dream. It was great to be back in Lithuania.

We arrived on Friday in Vilnius and were able to attend a professional ballet with Milton and Lara. It was a unique experience. We all tried Lithuanian Hot Chocolate, which is rich chocolate melted into a creamy dessert.

On Saturday Lara, Judy, my parents, and I made our way to Alytus. The city was barely moving until about 2 pm when people started appearing on the streets. We were able to go in several stores that the locals were. Lara was able to communicate with a couple of people about what we should see while we were there and where we should eat. We went and ate lunch and then made our way back towards Vilnius that night.

Milton, Judy, and I drove to Silute Sunday morning because Milton was filling in for Rimas who was away at a conference. The worship in Silute is always filled with joy and a pleasure to be able to attend. The wife of one man who accepted Christ at Easter was there and has been coming for the last several weeks. Please be praying for her salvation. After church we went to eat with Dangoulie, Laima, and Gintare. It was a special time for us to be able to share with those ladies.

After lunch, Milton, Judy, and I drove to Kaunas where we lead service that night. It was a great joy for me to be able to see old friends from the summer, and meet new friends who have started coming. We returned to Vilnius that late Sunday night.

Monday through Wednesday we spent our time in Alytus. We prayer walked and sometimes prayer drove the city. We were able to see many places where the locals spend there time (shopping venues, an outdoor market, and coffee shops), we were given a tour of an art technical college, and we were also able to look in two different museums which told us about the history of Alytus. In the museums we met 4 different individuals who Lara was able to talk with and explain why we were in Alytus. All seemed open to our mission.

On Tuesday on our way to the outdoor market we stopped in a building that looked like a shopping mall, and walked into a furniture store. We were looking around for a restroom when Lara saw nativity sets. Nativities are very difficult to find in Lithuania. Lara and Judy began asking about the nativity and had the opportunity to tell the store clerk that we were there be cause we are evangelical Baptists and want to start a church there. The girl very excitedly told Lara that she too is a Christian! We rejoiced in finding a sister in Christ already in the city. It is amazing how God works, we were looking for a restroom, and found a sister in Christ!

Throughout the week we were able to come in contact with and share our purpose for being in Alytus with 8-10 individuals. Alytus is a growing city. There was construction going on at every street corner. The city is largely an industrial area with many factories and businesses, and two technical colleges. The city has just completed a soccer (football) field which is an outdoor arena that seats about 5,000 people, and is currently working on expanding a state of the art sports complex which will be one of the venues for the 2011 Euro Sports Basketball Championship. We were given a tour of the complex by the vice director of sports for the area and this complex will be large enough to have two professional basketball games going on at the same time.

We left Alytus on Wednesday with an excitement about Alytus and how God will use Gloster Baptist to share His name in the city.

On Thursday Milton took my parents and me on a "tour" of Vilnius. It was my father's first time in Lithuania since 1999 so we were able to show him the great growth Lithuania has gone through over the last 11 years. Lara and Judy stayed at the house and cooked a traditional Thanksgiving meal for everyone. Milton and Lara had invited the members of the Kaunas and Vilnius church to Thanksgiving dinner. It was such a joy for me to be able to fellowship with the members of those two churches. They each have a special place in my heart.

After dinner one lady who had been in a depression all summer had come and she was so excited to see me. When she was about to leave she called me over to her and she took out her earrings and put them in my hands. Holding them in my hands she told me that she had nothing else to give me, but that she wanted to give her earrings to me so that I would never forget her. She told me that she loved me and was praying for me. It was a special moment that I will remember for the rest of my life.

Please be in prayer for each of the churches in Lithuania (Silute, Klapedia, Kaunas, Vilnius).

Pray for the cities that have recently been adopted and where Milton and Lara are working (Panevezys, Alytus, Siauliai, Saugos/Silute)

Pray for the cities that still need to be adopted (Mazeikiai, Marijampoles, Trakai, Druskininkai, Jurbarkas, Kretinga/Klaipeda

For each of the churches pray that:

Barriers (physical and spiritual will be defeated)

Persons of Peace- Pray that God would lead Milton, Lara, and Groups to people who are open to the gospel, or who are already saved who will help aid in starting a church in the cities

Places of Worship - Existing ones- that in Catholic churches that as scripture is read it will speak to the peoples hearts, that God will reveal himself to those caught in cults and other false religions and bring salvation to them

Pray for Milton, Lara, Preston, and Peyton- Pray that God would grant them favor as they go into these cities to speak God's name, pray that they will renewed, pray for Christian fellowship for them.

Thank you for your prayers. I pray that each of you have a Merry Christmas, as the season approaches and that God would grant you the boldness and willingness to share His name, his joy, and peace in this upcoming holiday season.

Many Blessings,

Elizabeth McLellan

New Trip!

Hi Everyone,

I know this blog was for this summer, but wanted to update everyone on my new trip! :)

After returning stateside I came back to Northwestern and continued my studies, but had certainly left a large piece of my heart in Lithuania. My home church of Gloster adopted the city of Alytus at the beginning of this year and was scheduled to return to Lithuania this past September. Due to scheduling conflicts the church was unable to go and had to push their trip to November. I was approached by my mother to pray about going with them. After much prayer, and consideration, and work to find out if I could miss the two days of school, I decided to go back.

To fast forward, we leave for Lithuania this coming Thursday. We will be there through the next week and will come back to the states Friday after Thanksgiving.

We will be working in the city of Alytus. We will be prayer walking, narrative mapping, and sharing Christ with people as the opportunities present themselves.

Please be in prayer for our traveling, for the work in Lithuania (not just in Alytus), and for our team that as God prepares the way for us we will be sensitive to His promptings.

Last Update

Hi guys!

I finished my last week in Lithuania with lots of good memories. During my last week we said goodbye to our last group, we had a time of fellowship at the lake with a couple from the Vilnius church. On Thursday I had the opportunity to tour the concentration camp in Kaunas. It was very sad to see the conditions that so many were subject to. I was able to see a newly opened part of the camp which was used as a barricade. To enter the area we walked through tunnels that were 140 meters long, had no lighting and were wet and creepy. We then went and had Bible study with the college students in Kaunas which was a lot of fun as always!

On Friday we had some water balloons so Preston, Peyton, and I filled them and launched them off our four story balcony! I enjoyed spending the summer with them and will miss them greatly.

On Saturday I got on the airplane after just a tad bit of trouble and was on my way. On my first flight I was able to share my story with one lady and her son when she asked what I was doing in Lithuania and if I thought their country had any hope. When she was a teenager she sought religion and her mother burned the Bible she had found and beat her for studying it. Pray for her that she would take her new freedom and seek God. It was a long trip but on Sunday afternoon I made it to New Mexico where I am attended collegiate week at Glorietta as a wrap up to my summer. I was able to fellowship with other students who have also served on mission this summer from across the nation.

This summer I have learned so much. From the flood, to meeting the president of Lithuania, to dealing with groups I have learned so much about ministry, my strengths (and weaknesses), and myself in general.

I covet your prayers as I return to life in the states. The transition so far has been difficult for me. Pray that as I get ready to begin school that I would be able to live with the passion I have developed for missions, and people, and especially Lithuania, but that I would be able to find focus and clarity.

Thank all of you for your prayers and messages of encouragement. It has been a huge encouragement for me to know that I have had people praying for and thinking about me. I pray that God has blessed you through these stories. If any of you would like to hear more about my experience please let me know! I love talking about my experiences and would enjoy sharing with you.

Much Love,

Elizabeth McLellan

Women's retreat

The Women’s retreat went really well this past weekend. We had 22 ladies that attended the whole weekend and an additional five that attended the sessions on Saturday. The theme of the weekend was that God makes everything beautiful in his time. On Friday evening we had a devotional time and then sang worship songs in both English and Lithuanian for over an hour.

On Saturday the Bible studies continued and that evening the men came out and we had baptism. We baptized one lady from Vilnius and five other believers from the church in Klaipeda. It was a great time of testimony and worship for everyone. After the men had left we were in small groups talking just having fellowship and three women shard the gospel with two sisters that attended the retreat, both accepted Christ as the personal Savior!

On Sunday morning we traveled to the church in Šilute for worship. Three women shared what the retreat meant to them and how they were encouraged over the weekend. One more woman that had not attended the retreat accepted Christ after the service. It was my last Sunday in Lithuania and qute emotional for me. I said goodbye to many good friends that I will not get to see over the next week.

It is hard to believe my time here is almost finished. Please pray for me in my last week here that I will make the most every opportunity presented to me.

Recap and Women's retreat

Hey everyone!

The last two weeks Milton and a group have been working in Siauliai (shaw-lay). They had great success. They prayer walked, and narrative mapped the city. They also were able to find a building to rent for a church when they are ready to begin having services.

Back in Vilnius Lara, the kids, I had the chance to meet a new family in Vilnius Steve, Rebecca, and their six year-old son Owen have come to Lithuania. Steve will be teaching Philosophy at Vilnius University. We have taken them shopping to help them get everything for their new home.

Lara, Preston, and I worked on making Bible Study booklets and a God's Promise booklet of scriptures for the ladies retreat which starts this Friday and will go through Sunday at noon. The group from Florida left today and a new group arrived today.

Please be in prayer for the Women's retreat (this Friday- Sunday). Many of the women that are attending have not accepted Christ. Pray that all of the women's hearts will be ready and attentive to the call of Christ on their lives.

Pray for our energy. This is our third group with no breaks in between.

Good News!!!!

This week we have a group from Daytona Beach Florida working in Ŝiauliai (Shaw-lay). Yesterday they were prayer walking and just discovering the city when they stopped for ice cream. At the booth were they stopped the lady working had two friends visiting her. Milton was able to share the plan of salvation and all three people accepted Christ right there. We are very excited about this God event. The group will be here until the 29th. They are working to discover the city of Ŝiauliai. Please pray that God will open more doors for them in the city.

Lara and the kids and I stayed here in Vilnius due to vehicle shortages. We are busy preparing for a women's retreat that will be held the first weekend in August. Please pray that everything will come together smoothly. The group is actually arriving a week earlier than expected so we are shuffling schedules and reservations to get everything in order. This week is another very hot week. The temperature is in the low to mid 90's, which is really hot with no air conditioning.

Youth camp, 21st b-day, and Prayer Requests

We just got back from youth camp yesterday afternoon. We had a great camp. We had 33 people attend. Two teenagers got saved and four others made other specific decisions. All week we were studying about relationships. We emphasized that the vertical relationship (between each person and God) is the most important, and that when our vertical relationship is in order our horizontal relationships (between each person and others) fall into place.

Each day we had morning worship and then the girls would have Bible study and the guys their separate Bible Study. The leaders from Sulfur each shared their testimonies during the Bible studies which really made an impression on the youth.

We also had a lot of fun at camp. I taught everyone how to do the cha cha slide and cupid shuffle. Preston and I also taught them how to do the “lawnmower dance”. The Lithuanians all really enjoyed dancing. On Wednesday night we had a Country band come to the camp and give a concert. We did the cha cha slide, the cupid shuffle, and footloose to many of the songs. We enjoyed the music and expressed our joy. We advertised all through the town about it and drew in many people from the community. In the middle of the concert we took a break from the country music and we led in several worship songs and Milton shared the gospel. After the concert finished we handed out tracts to everyone as they left the camp grounds and shared the reason for our joy.

Thursday was my 21^st Birthday. They helped me celebrate with the Lithuanian tradition. Instead of birthday spankings they seat the birthday person in a chair and raise them above their heads for each year plus one to grow on. After the age of fifteen they start cheating a little, which was okay with me since I get motion sickness. I also had a traditional Lithuanian birthday cake which was very good. That night we had a talent show which I performed a skit with Preston and Christina. We made fun of the differences between American and Lithuanian cultures. Everyone had a lot of fun and laughed the entire time! Later on we had a bonfire and sang songs. The stars were out and very magnificent I was caught in awe at the beauty of the sky.

On Friday we said goodbyes to everyone and packed up and drove to Ŝilute (sha-loo-tey). We went sight seeing Friday night. On Saturday we took a two hour boat ride to Nida which is an island. We hung out at the beach and had a sand castle building contest and just enjoyed the sun.

On Sunday we led the service in Ŝilute. One lady came forward and accepted Christ as her Savior (praise the Lord)! On Sunday we drove back to Vilnius and had worship here. After worship Milton and Peyton attempted to drive two of the ladies home because it was raining horribly, but the roads were all flooded, so they returned and the women walked home. The group from Sulfur also had to walk to their hotel. The group left today (Monday) and our next group from Florida also arrived today. We will be working in another city called Ŝiauliai (Shaw-lay). We will be prayer walking, doing narrative mapping and looking for possible places to rent.

Prayer requests

Pray for good weather as we work in Ŝiauliai over the next week.

Pray for the group – Their leader was unable to make the trip due to last minute circumstances, pray that the group will not be distracted from the work.

Pray that God would provide safety in traveling.

Pray for our energy that God would provide the strength to do our work and be focused.