first week report

"Home sweet home" has been my tough lately. 

I've settled into my new apartment in Athens, with my wonderful roommate and husband, and life is starting to get into a routine. Upon my arrival, things were a bit hectic and borderline crazy, but after touching base I have a plan. 

I have begun working with Streetlights daily, thankfully I live only 20 minutes away (walking distance) which has proven to be a very pleasant walk. On my way to the Streetlights headquarters, I walk by the presidents house and the national garden. I cross the street and find myself at "Kolonaki Square" which also has proven to be one of the finest (and expensive) areas. This has all come as a surprise and a blessing.

In the months leading up to my relocation to Athens, I never believed I would receive such a perfect apartment and location to live in. My apartment building, can be seen in the picture to the right. Alcaeus and I live on the first floor (the window above the grafiti is our window). Its a small cozy apartment that appears to be very high-tech! This used to be my in-laws office, so it is very well kept. When I walk into my bathroom I don't even have to switch on the light, it does it automatically for me. 

I still can't believe how much God has blessed my new beginning - both in my marriage and in Athens. Leaving my home in Thessaloniki was hard, and not knowing how everything was going to turn out was even harder. However, faith kept me through all the doubts. An even bigger blessing is to see how God provides and loves. 

I promise to post pictures of the inside of the apartment once everything looks tidy :) 

My daily routine at Streetlights has been pretty basic.  At the headquarters, we have been re-arranging the office and redefining the space area we have.  Currently, Streetlights is planning to include a youth cafe as part of its facilities this year.  A change in need of lots of attention.

Philemon, the leader of Streetlights, is planning a trip to Australia in October.  Most of his time and energy is being place on forming new contacts and planning presentations for his short time there.  Therefore, please pray God looks after him during his trip and that He provides the resources that are needed.  In the mean time, the other members of Streetlights are directed to organize the headquarters.

To the left, is a picture of us at work! For the sake of getting a photo for you to see - we are all pretending to work :) In this room, the majority of work is taken care of and finished.  Most of the videos, montage, posters, etc. are done on these computers.

My job for this upcoming week is to get the Headquarters up and running; therefore, during Philemon absence in Australia, Streetlights will continue to function and produce normally. 

i hope this will inspire you :)

A new life together begins

Here's a photo from our wedding!  We released
doves as an act of unity. 

One of the most anticipated days of my life has come and gone.  On August 17, 2012, Alcaeus and I married.  We said our I do’s and sealed our words with a kiss.  My father, Michael Long, and Alcaeus’ uncle, Stephanos Botonis, preformed our ceremony.  The evening was nothing shy from unique – a word my father used to describe us in the opening speech.

Our wedding was unique.  Most weddings in Greece are traditionally held within the confinements of church walls, but we held ours within the confinements of God’s nature.  We walked on grass, saw the deep blue sky and released two doves to symbolize our commitment to each other.  As my mother often put (before and after the wedding), the whole evening felt like a beautiful fairytale.  And above all, we enjoyed ourselves.

The Monday after, thanks for our family, we departed the mainland of Greece and got on a boat.  We spent our honeymoon on a five-day cruise. 

Since Saturday 25^th, we have been in Thessaloniki spending some time with my family.  On September 3, we will pack my belongings and head to Athens.  The picture to the left is the building we will be living in, more specifically the first floor.  As mentioned in my previous post – Alcaeus’ parents gave the apartment to us for this first year of our marriage.

Once we’re settled in our new apartment, I’ll begin working with Streetlights.  The focal ministry I will be assisting and working in for this coming year.

Currently, Streetlights is focusing on separating into two categories:

1) Business Frontier in charge of creating videos for churches and organizations, a way to  provide funds for the organizations as a whole; and the

2) Youth and Community Work, consists of disciplining new and old participants of 

Streetlights, this will help the team become more efficient and creative. 

My task will be to divide the team into these new categories and to ensure each member finds his/her specific place within Streetlights.  With these changes we hope to bring better productivity and organization. 

Upon my arrival to Athens, I will also work with the young mother’s small group, in developing a night of prayer as well as forming a daycare program for their children.  

We will be living off our wedding gifts in the beginning. Our support is still low. $800 has come in the $2000 needed for start up funds.  $500+ is the level of monthly support.  $1250 is needed. Please pray and consider being a partner.  If you would like to give, you can click here.  

August just began and the excitement is growing.  On August 17, I am getting married.  With so much preparation and so many details, stress is very high, but things are coming together. It is going to be so beautiful.  A perfect wedding on a mountain over Thessaloniki promises to fulfill my dream come true hope.

In September, I will begin my FM Mission one year assignment with the youth mission called “Streetlights” in Athens.  We have been given a place to stay as a gift from Alcaeus’ parents. Now, we are counting on God to provide the funds for living and ministry.

Here is our budget for the year:

Start-up funds:                                 $2000 one time

Living expenses                                $450 monthly

Utilities                                 $190 monthly

Health Ins                            $130 monthly

Ministry Expenses           $190 monthly

Taxes                                    $125 monthly

Tithe                                      $75 monthly

Monthly need                   $1160

Currently for start-up, there is almost $800 in my account and for monthly, promises are at $510.

Please consider making a donation or becoming a monthly supporter. Click below.

https://give.fmcusa.org/kali-long

Thank you very much for investing in this ministry opportunity for God’s work in Athens.

back home

i'm in thessaloniki after all this time.
and it's wonderful to be home, tonight i will be attending a prayer and worship meeting scheduled to take place at our new church building. I'm looking forward to seeing my friends and siblings in Christ.

I have been looking for a new home in Athens, its been difficult to find the right area for the next year of my life. I've spent the last days walking around downtown Athens at night and I've been surprised by the amount of people in the streets. There is an area called exarchia where it seems that the youth of Greece is located at. Alceaus and I were looking at an apartment at 8 at night when we walked out of the house and found two people doing drugs right in front of us. We were in shock thinking this could be our future home and the things we would face there. It difficult to imagine life on my own two feet and having to deal with things like that. The square of the area was filled with about 300-500 people smocking pot and drinking in the local pubs and cafes. It was crazy how much life was right in front of us.

We ended up talking about the area with some friends and they explained how police doesn't enter it but patrols around it. So people basically do whatever they want, I asked if i could ever report people doing drugs in front of my house and I was told "It wound't be possible, no one would come/respond"

We haven't found a home yet, but to be honest. I feel as if I stayed in that area it would be ideal because of what I feel God has called me to do in life. My purpose is to bring light in everything I do, live, give. It's hard to figure everything out yet, but I know there is much work to be done.

please keep praying for the next months, it's challenging and there are a lot of changes for our family and lives.

13 days


in 13 days I will be flying back to Greece.
on my arrival a series of events are planned to take place.


fly out on the 5th of july
see apartments in Athens for rent
register for next year of college
give in my essay's on the 12th of july
meet with florist
see wedding venue
arrange food menu for wedding
work at the cafe


august 17th =wedding day
august 27th move to athens
september = life beggins!


i've been travelling around america this month.
and i have felt it a true privilege to be able to share 
with churches and people. 
I was able to share the vision God has placed in my life
but to those around me.
I feel like my work here isn't finished but 
I enjoyed to see the doors God has opened.






  

From Thessaloniki to Athens

I feel as if the eyes of the whole world have been set upon Greece. At times the domestic affairs of my country confuse. They trigger feelings of aggression that lead to actions of violence which shame my society. It’s difficult to find the “root of all evil” and explain why this series of unfortunate events take place. Many Greeks shout out loud about the injustices brought upon them and the ways that they feel; robbed by compatriots.

 But as a young Greek at times I feel confused about the reason my country has fallen in such a deep well, unable to escape.  Being a hopeful twenty-year-old, the reality check according to my country’s current state could be more than enough in order to either totally victimise me in the present circumstances or send me looking for an alternative life...somewhere far-far away. The unemployment rates are frighteningly on the rise and even if I got a job, there is no guarantee I will be getting my salary regularly or entirely. Today’s situation has left today’s generation crippled and hopeless. 

It’s hard to determine the next step; I’ve been in church politics most of my life and I understand how church functions. The needs of the congregations, the coercions of our belief, and the overall effect we have on society. As time goes by the needs, the coercions, and the effects change. If I was to travel only two hours from my home, I would find myself where those things are interpreted very differently. Each culture holds different ethics, beliefs, and priorities. I can’t even begin to imagine what the needs, coercions and affects, Jesus faced were. I find myself trying to build a bridge to cross a very large river. This culture is nothing like yours. Greece has made its own history and is still writing it. When Paul visited Greece the welcoming was very different to that which he received in Rome.

Why am I mentioning these things? 

Because I believe if we do what we have always done we will only get what we have already got... It’s time for true change.

In 2009 I moved to Birmingham, England for an internship. My responsibilities were simple as this was a gap year of volunteer work. I worked as a youth worker at the local school and my responsibilities were also to the local church as a youth leader. I mainly worked with year nine girls (13 year-olds). This was an important learning experience for me, until that time I had been living at home, going to my parent’s church and homeschooled. Talk about living in a bubble. During my internship I faced spiritual, emotional, and physical challenges. (I personally recommend gap years) During my time there my team and I would attend the prayer centre in the heart of Birmingham. Where we did different group building exercises, we heard lectures from different speakers from all over England, and prayed together weekly. These people showed me true unity. Something that surpassed all words, they even wanted to share the unity they had in hope of true growth. Their hearts were all called to do work all over England, and they took time each Wednesday to gather to teach us in the morning and to pray for the city in the evening.

That is when God truly spoke to me. My heart kept going out to Greece, during the lectures I wished my friends from Greece could hear the things they shared with me. The pure love they had for God and for each other.  I remember one speaker in particular who shared with us one day, he told us about his home town and how there was a study conducted in the U.K. about the worse cities. His hometown came out on the top five if not the second. He told us how they got a reality check from that study, and how the churches gathered together to speak about this issue. They weren’t being effective. Being the church means to be the light. To actually BE the light. For the next month or two they all gathered together, pastors even started locking up their church buildings. The speaker shared with us how God brought them together, unified them in Spirit. I don’t remember all the details of his story, but I remember how he claimed his city, and asked us questions like: who is your target? How many people live in your city? How many churches are there? What is your responsibility? What can you do? He called his city his Jerusalem. Showed me how to love my city and the people God brings into my life.

I left my England a changed person.   

The vision is simple: the fulfilment of the body in active prayer and active participation in community work joined together as one force. No more one hour prayer meetings but prayer that last through the night, prayer in the midst of riots, prayer around the Greek parliament. People joining together in spirit during the Greek crisis to pray for God’s hand over the country. Empowering young adults to become intercessors for the Greek community

Join the vision by praying

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Join by giving: give.fmcusa.org/kali-long