Merry Christmas!

An amazing project, an amazing year, all because of our amazing God!

I've sat down several times to write this update on the Scripture distribution in Nádudvar, but I just can't seem to find words to describe to you what happened (without writing a whole book about it!)  It was truly amazing...I really shouldn't be surprised, because I know God is totally able to do above and beyond anything we can imagine.  He is so good!  

First of all, we weren't working alone...we had the help of Hungarian believers from three different churches:  Istvan from our church here in Debrecen, Pastor Tibor from Hajudszoboszlo, and Janos from Puspokladany.  We got to Nádudvar at 5:45 and set up while it was still dark. We had a great location in the market, right next to the entrance.

Janos, Istvan, Pastor Tibor and Gary

We had been concerned about the weather since the forecast had called for snow, but although the streets were slick when we got there, when the sun came out it melted off and was a beautiful (though chilly) day. 

The first Bible we gave out was to one of the vendors who had seen us before at other markets.  After we set up our table, Gary began to prayerwalk through the market, praying for the other vendors who were preparing for the day.  As he was walking by one couple setting up their booth, the man greeted Gary and asked, "Do you still have any of those Bibles?"  Gary said that's what we were there for--we were having another Bible distribution.  The man said, "I'd like to get one this time."  He went on to say that he'd tried to read the Bible before. He said he got up to the point of Noah and couldn't understand why God wiped out the whole world, which triggered a discussion on the sinfulness of man. The man was full of questions; things like, who was Noah anyway?  Why did God choose him?  Why was he special?  After talking with the man for a while, Gary went and got the Bible.  He  and Pastor Tibor went back to deliver the Bible and to see if he had further questions.  The man just greeted the Hungarian pastor...he had already used up all his hard questions on the American missionary, and all he had left for Pastor Tibor was, isn't the weather nice? 

Among the first people who received a Bible at our booth was a lady who accepted it in wonder and disbelief, saying that she'd always wanted one; she left hugging it to her chest lovingly as if it were a little baby.  That encounter alone made the whole thing worthwhile!  Here in the town that everyone had been calling a "tough nut" because of the strong communist influence, person after person happily accepted a Bible and promised to read it.  There were some who passed by with bitter words of rejection, but they were very much in the minority.  In fact, the response was so fantastic that by 10 a.m. we had run out of whole Bibles and had only New Testaments left to distribute. 


Pastor Tibor talking with a man who had a lot of questions.  The little girls in the background are eating langos [LAHN-gosh], a delicious, puffy, greasy fried bread with your choice of cheese, sour cream, garlic, or all three.  Gary had garlic and cheese, so the Hungarians told him he couldn't talk to the people after that.  I was very restrained and spiritual, however, and had only cheese!



Pastor Tibor and Janos in conversation with another man who had interesting and strange questions and comments about the Bible.  Even here in this small town there is influence from the cults and other religions.  I was so glad we had Hungarian believers there with us who could deal with this so much better than we could as foreigners!



One man signs his commitment card to try to read the Bible through, while another man chooses which Bible he would like to take home.

We had asked people to pray that we would be able to give out all of the Bibles, and the response from the people went above and beyond what we had hoped.  After we ran out of whole Bibles we had more people stop by who really wanted one, so we came home with several names and addresses; we'll be either mailing or taking one to them as soon as we can.  In all we gave out 194 whole Bibles, 65 children's Bible's, and 65 New Testaments, for a total of 324.  Praise the Lord, that's the most we've given out in a day's time all this year!  As we close out the Year of the Bible in Hungary, we are still amazed at the power of God, at how He loves each of us and wants us to know Him and live in relationship with Him. 

Special thanks to those who give to the Lottie Moon Christmas Offering and the Cooperative Program, which provide the funding that keeps us here on the field; we also want to express our appreciation again to those individuals and churches who gave special gifts to make the purchase of the Bibles possible--you gave above and beyond what we had prayed for, and the Lord used it to multiply the seeds of Scripture that we have sown all around the area this year!

And last but not least, thank you to all of you who have been praying for the Hungarian people, and for us as we serve here in eastern Hungary.  God bless you, and Merry Christmas!

Pray for Nádudvar / Christmas program in Püspökladány

Hello, everyone.  Please pray for the city of Nádudvar, where we're going to do a Scripture distribution in the morning. We'll be setting up a booth in the open market and giving away Bibles for the last time during 2008, the Year of the Bible here in Hungary.  Pray that we'll be able to give away all the Bibles, and that they will go to people whose hearts the Lord has prepared to receive His word.  Also please pray for opportunities for us to share with the people about who Jesus is...He's soooo much more than the "Jezuska" (little Jesus) who brings the children their Christmas gifts!

Last night Gary and I went to the Christmas program at the little Baptist church in Püspökladány.  It was great--lots of old friends were there, plus people from the community.  Pastor Tibor read a Christmas story, the young people from Kaba sang and did a puppet show, Gary gave a short message, and then the church handed out shoeboxes of gifts that had been donated by some believers in England.  The Gospel message was clearly presented several times; please pray with us that it will take hold in the hearts of the hearers. 

Great news and some updates

Great news!  I heard back from Pastor Tibor in Hajduszoboszlo, and he said the youth (and another Tibor, an adult who works with them) are praising the Lord for how well it went during their program at the Reformed church in Kaba on Sunday.  They said the Lord strengthened them in their service, and that they were well received.  They sang and played instruments, gave testimonies and did skits, and there was preaching (by Tibor, I believe.)  Pastor Tibor says they were guests and of course don’t know what happened inside the hearers, but that we can continue to pray that some will come to Christ from what they saw and heard.  Thanks for being a part of it through your prayers!

I took these pictures of the youth group in July of this year so they're a little old, but this way you can see who it is that you're praying for.  These young people - and their leaders - are very talented and have a great desire to serve the Lord.

In other news:  Praise the Lord, A.P. got her residence permit today!   This is no small thing. 

We continue to prepare for this Thursday morning’s Christmas get-together with the students of our outreach English course in Hajduszoboszlo, so please pray that there will be opportunities to share about who the Christ-child was (and is!) 

Carolyn with the beginners' class

Gary with the intermediate learners

 

Holly with the advanced students

A nationwide train strike and strike by airline workers here in Hungary is complicating matters for our team members and others who are trying to travel this week, so please pray that it will be resolved quickly and that everyone will safely reach their destinations.

Thank you!

Great news about Hedi!!

Thanks SO MUCH for praying for little Hedi, the Hajduszoszlo Baptist pastor’s 2-year-old daughter.  The cardiologist’s testing showed that her heart murmer is not dangerous; they said she just has to have it re-tested before she starts school in a couple of years.  They also said that she was very good and calm through all the testing, and that she didn’t cry or resist at all (unlike some of the children that were ahead of them in line!)

 

Pastor Tibor said that they had been praying and told the Lord that whatever His will was regarding Hedi they would accept it, but they are very thankful He answered in this way.  He thanks everyone for their prayers.

 

He also asked that we pray for the youth group of the Kaba church (which he also pastors) as they are presenting a program in the Reformed church in Kaba tomorrow.  It’s a great opportunity for them to reach out and to share their faith.

God is so good!   

Special prayer request for little Hedi

Hey, all you praying people!

 

Please lift up little Hedi (Heidi in English), 2-year-old daughter of Pastor Tibor and Marti in Hajduszoboszlo, Hungary. These are good friends of ours, and we have also done some ministry projects together...they're very sweet people.  For a while now the doctors have been noticing some kind of a heart murmer in Hedi, and tomorrow she has an appointment with the cardiologist.  The doctors think this is not one of the kind of heart murmers that little ones often have and then outgrow, and they said that she has to get it checked.  Pray for wisdom and skill for the doctors and technicians, and for healing, peace, and strength for Hedi and her family.

 

Scroll down to our Nov. 18 post to see a picture of the family.

 

Thank you so much for your prayers!

Tibi and Tibi

Lots going on with two of our favorite Tibis...

Tibi Rezmuves, who has been working  for a temp agency in Holland to try to support his family, has been laid off and is back home until at least after the New Year.  This is good in that the family is together, but is very hard because they now have no regular income.  Tibi and Marian came to see us yesterday with their youngest (the older girls were in school), and we got to spend a little time together.  Please pray for wisdom and provision for this family, and that their faith will be strengthened through all this.

Tibi, Marian, and little Mirjam.  She just got up from a nap
and wasn't sure about all the picture-taking that was going on.

The other Tibi, Pastor Tibor Komaromi from Hajduszoboszlo, called Gary today to let him know that all four members of the family have been sick; their youngest daughter, Hedi (Heidi in English), is currently in the hospital because she got dehydrated.  A picture of the family is posted on my entry for Nov. 18.  Pastor Tibor said that we will be going ahead with the English course tomorrow even though his family is in the midst of this difficult time.  Please pray for strength and health for the whole family, and especially for healing for little Hedi. Also pray that during the English course tomorrow morning we will be able to share the love of Christ with the students along with helping them with their language skills.

Update on the Hajduszoboszlo English course

We had a really good turnout on Thursday, 18 students!  There are two more who will probably be coming this week, too.  So if we don't have any dropouts, then we'll have an even 20.  We don't want the teacher-to-student ratio to be very large, so 20 would be excellent.  

Except for one brave young man, it was all ladies…their ages range from 20-something up to one in her 50’s.  And yes, I asked my students their ages.  Not to be nosey, but so we could practice numbers (but hey, I told them mine, too, so it's totally fair!)   I had the beginners, Gary had the intermediates, and Holly had the advanced ones.  We were all so busy getting started and teaching the classes that we didn't get any pictures, but I'm going to try to get some this week.  Pastor Tibi seemed really happy with how many came and how well it went.  Good new relationships are being formed, and since the students are very motivated to learn, I'm sure their language skills will rapidly improve.  The English will be useful for many of them in their professions, and some are wanting to learn so they can visit relatives in the States.

Thanks so much for praying for us and for the students who're taking this course...please keep it up!

Outreach English course in Hajduszoboszlo

We're gearing up for a new venture...the little Baptist church in Hajduszoboszlo is offering an English course to the community this semester, and our team will be teaching (real, live native speakers of the language!)  This last week while we were on vacation, Holly heroically went and represented us at the introductory meeting for those interested in the course.  Hurrah, Holly--way to use that Hungarian!  Information was presented, placement tests were administered, and about 20 students have said they intend to come.  Lessons will be based on Bible stories, and we pray that opportunities to share our faith will open up as relationships are formed with the students.  Tomorrow we'll be having a planning meeting, and Thursday morning will be the first class.  Please join with us in lifting up this exciting opportunity!

Pastor Tibor of Hajduszoboszlo Baptist Church with
his wife Marti and their daughters, Kamilla and Hedi.

Please also remember our new teammate A.P. as she studies Hungarian at a language school in Budapest this month.  Anyone who has encountered this language knows that it's not an easy one, so don't forget to pray for her!

Malta!

Our vacation trip to Malta was fantastic!  It was a beautiful place, and we had a wonderful time.  THANK YOU to all our friends and family who surprised us with the shower of cards and letters...we were totally surprised and overcome when we saw the pile of mail on our bed when we came back to our room after dinner.  All of your encouragement and prayers mean so much to us!

I've posted a bunch of pictures so you can see what it was like there on the island .  If you ever have the chance, do go and see it for yourself. 

The Scripture distribution was fantastic, but evening presentation wasa no-go

We're super busy again, but I want to quickly let you all know what happened in Balmazújváros on Oct. 26. 

Our team (Holly, A.P., Gary and I) plus István, a friend from the our church in Debrecen, went to the open market in Balmazújváros while it was still dark and set up the pavilion.  It was pretty chilly out that morning!




At first not many people were around, mostly just other vendors setting up, but we were ready.



Pastor Füstös Gyula from the Hajdúböszörményi Baptist Church came not long after that with his daughter Imola and a guy from the youth group (Zoli, I think.)   Pastor Gyula had agreed to do the presentation in the evening at the culture house, but brought the young people to help with the Scripture distribution, too.  He himself couldn't stay very long that morning since he needed to get back to his church for the Sunday morning service. 



The young people were unsure of themselves at first, but quickly got very excited about inviting people to the event and letting them know that they could receive a Bible as a gift if they came to our table.  When they met vendors who wanted one but couldn't come to us since they were working, they started sort of a Bibles-on-wheels program!  Well, not on wheels, but it was a mobile operation.  They found out which size Bible the people wanted, then took it along with all the information to them at their booth.  Each person who received a Bible signed a statement promising to try to read through the Bible...it was a promise made to themselves, and the signature part of the sheet tore off to become a bookmark for their new Bible.



We had a great response from the people, and at the end of the day Gary found that we had given out 154 total pieces, including whole Bibles, New Testaments, and children's Bibles.  We also had several people indicate on the response card that they are interested in a small-group Bible study!  It was an exhausting but exhilerating morning.

The evening event didn't go off so smoothly, however.  In fact, it didn't go off at all!  About 35 people came to the culture house where the presentation was to be, most of them from the Hajdúböszörményi Baptist Church, but unfortunately the guy with the key to the building never did show up!  It was a really difficult experience to go through, standing in front of the building unable to get in.  We tried to contact someone to help us but never were able to get ahold of anyone who could do anything about it.  We visited with those who had come, made a couple of important contacts, and after waiting for some time everyone went home. 

The next morning the director of the culture house called and apologized profusely...he was mortified that such a thing had happened.  They refunded the deposit that we had made on the rental of the room and said that our next use would be free.  Although it hadn't turned out as we had hoped, Gary and I both left from the meeting with him praising the Lord....we believe that He has something even better in mind than what we had originally planned.  Now the facility will be at no cost, plus we will have more time for planning and advertising it to the people of the city!  Gary is talking with Pastor Gyula about an event during December, possibly a Christmas program.

Please pray that those who received Bibles will read them and come to know the Lord, and that we will have wisdom in planning the upcoming event there in Balmazújváros.  We would love to see a church planted in this city of about 20,000, which currently has no evangelical church.  Thanks!
 

Project in Balmazújváros this Sunday

Please be praying for our project this Sunday in Balmazújváros.  This is a city of about 20,000 people, no evangelical church, and only a few known believers.  We'll be setting up a booth in the open market and giving away Bibles to those who are interested and who promise to try to read it.  Pray that the Lord will bring those  people that He has been preparing to receive His word.   We're also planning a presentation at the community center in the evening on the subject of the reliability of Scripture.  Still a lot of important details to iron out before Sunday!

The pictures below are sort of a "before" and "after" of the spot where we'll be setting up our booth.  The first one shows it empty, like it is during the week.  The white building on the far left is the train station; you can see it in both pictures, which is about the only thing that looks the same between the two!  We've been coming here and prayerwalking in preparation for the Scripture distribution...our space is going to be there on the right where you can see the white marks, just before you get the little driveway.   Every Sunday morning this whole road is filled with booths of goods, and shoppers come and go with wicker baskets and plastic bags to hold their purchases.  Many of them come on bicycles.

The second picture shows the same spot as it is during the weekly Sunday morning market.  The blond lady in the pink hat is a friend of ours, and when she found out that we needed a spot for our Bible booth she offered us hers...she won't be here this Sunday and so her place is available. 

   
Please remember to pray for this special project, that the Lord will use it in a mighty way in the lives of the people of this town.  Thank you!!

The Spandex for Jesus Video!

If you haven't seen it yet, now's your chance...

The video features our summer work from 2005-2007.  If you're interested in joining us this summer, just let us know!

Rain, rain, go away!***Now updated with pictures***

Busy times here...both at our house and in Holly's student work.

Please pray with us that today's rainy skies in Debrecen clear up before this afternoon!  The kick-off to this year's student ministries is scheduled for this afternoon at 5:00 (10:00 a.m. CST), and it's an outdoor event.  A traditional Hungarian bacon roast, to be precise (szalonnasütés)...pork fat on a stick, roasted over an open fire, then dripped onto bread decorated with fresh, sliced veggies.  Yummy!  More about that later, but at this point we have no "Plan B," and the skies are gray and drippy, and look like they intend to stay that way.   Hundreds of invitations have been handed out around campus; we are looking at each other, up at the sky, and folding our hands in prayer....

Thanks for joining us!

***********************************UPDATE****************************************

Thank you to everyone who prayed for good weather for the cookout--it cleared up about an hour before the event began, and everything went fine!  We had a great time hanging out with those who came.  It was a great opportunity to get to know folks better, and some good conversations were had.  Here are a bunch of pictures to help you get a feel for how the evening went.

                                 

People and plants

A good friend from out of town dropped by today with her baby.  She had an hour or so between appointments, so we had time for coffee, mutual encouragement, and laughter over the antics of little Mirjam.  Please pray for Marian and her family, as life isn't easy at all for them right now...they need provision, strength, wisdom, and rest in the midst of troubled times.

    

Gary went to a meeting in Poland this week and Holly is on vacation with her parents, so it was very nice to have someone to talk to that's a bit more conversational than my houseplants are!  (Good listeners, but they just don't give much input.)  

Speaking of plants, it's gotten chilly enough here that I've started bringing some of the balcony ones inside.  I've got to figure out what to do with the big, prickly cactus that's out there, though.  It has a tendency to reach out and grab people if they get too close, and I don't know where I can put it inside that will give it enough light without being a danger to passers-by.  It was a gift from a friend just a couple of months ago, so in past years I didn't have this to deal with.   Hmmmm.

Mr. Prickles

The begonias are still doing their part to brighten up my life. 
Gotta love 'em!

St. Stephen's Day and the Flower Carnival

Yes, we're still here...I've just been busy (or procrastinating?) and haven't posted in a while.

Today is a really important holiday in Hungary--St. Stephen's Day.  It commemorates the founding of the Hungarian state in 1000 A.D. by the first king of Hungary, King Stephen.  His name in Hungarian is "Istvan" [EESHT-vahn].  Here are a couple of pictures I took of some of the people in the parade in traditional Hungarian dress:

          



Here are some little flag twirlers:



And some people from an Italian drill team (people come from a lot of countries to participate in the Flower Carnival here in Debrecen):




Finally, here's a little video I took of parts of the parade:

Hungary was founded as a Christian nation way back in 1000 AD, but to most people it is simply a cultural Christianity and not something that touches their everyday lives. Please pray that the people will come to realize that a Christian
heritage cannot take the place of a personal relationship with Christ,
and that Hungarian believers will take this opportunity to share their
faith with those around them. Pray that Hungary will become a country
that is not only culturally Christian, but also known as a place where
the Lord is truly honored in the hearts and lives of the people.

 “Blessed is the nation whose God is the LORD” (Psalm 33:12a).

Another sad happening

Our landlady Erzsike [AIR-zhih-keh] and her family have become our good friends over the years we've lived here in Debrecen, and have always treated us like we were part of the family.  They continually do kind things for us...like turning up the heat for us when we're returning from a winter trip so the apartment will be warm when we get home (doesn't sound so good today, but is wonderful in February!), and leaving a pot of delicious Hungarian food for us to eat when we get home to an otherwise empty refrigerator. 

Today a little before noon our time, "Granny" passed away.  She had been sick for some time, but her passing still leaves a huge hole in her daughter Erzsike's heart, as well as the hearts of the rest of her family.  Today as we sat and talked, Erzsike told me that she has never in her whole life lived apart from her mom; even when her husband was alive, Granny lived with them.  Please pray that the Lord will comfort this dear family and bring them through this time; also pray that He will use it in their lives to draw them to Him.



Me with my friend Erzsike in her home several years ago.  Besides being a professional baker and wonderful cook, she also has an amazing green thumb...her garden is a marvel!

Bear with me, folks, a lot of good things are happening here, too...hopefully soon I'll have time to tell you more of the happy things that are going on.  Lots of pictures of the sports camp, good visits with folks in Püspökladány, plus a trip to the zoo (Levi's first!)

Please pray for our friends

We got some really sad news today - our colleague and friend Teri Tarleton, who serves in Russia, has passed away suddenly from an apparent heart attack.  Please pray for her husband Ed, their kids, and everyone involved.  We don't get to see the Tarletons very often since they live so far away, but they are a very special family who have been faithfully serving the Lord on the mission field for many years.

Baseball day wasn't rained out!

Yay--the baseball day happened in spite of dire predictions of gusty winds and torrential rain!  Thank you to everyone who prayed for good weather.  They actually played softball, but the info sheet they got told the difference.  Gary said they really enjoyed it and want to play some more.  He was so busy working with them that he didn't get any pictures, but we'll ask some of the girls from Kaba if they'll share some photos they took on their cameras.

Tonight Gary will be giving the presentation, and the topic given to him is "Heaven and Hell."  Not very easy information to present in a short amount of time, plus he has to be kind of careful since there are some little kids there who probably can't deal with the more graphic material.  Please pray for him as he prepares today and speaks this evening. 

Answered prayers

I'm so thankful to be able to write that Levi is doing better now...thanks so much for your prayers!  Gary was able to talk to him for quite a while and gave him some Scripture verses printed out in Romanian, Hungarian, and English, so he could compare and study them.  He seems much happier now and is getting involved in the camp activities. 

The "Creation and/or Evolution" presentation went well, with some of the young people asking very good questions.  Tonight's event will be the film "The Cross and the Switchblade."

We got quite a bit of rain last night, but not the dangerous winds that had been forecast, so we're thankful for that.  It's too wet to do outdoor sports, though, so they're using the gym again today.  Tomorrow is supposed to be baseball day (every day is an introduction to a different sport), so please pray that the weather will allow them to play outside.  Gary is taking the equipment and will be helping a lot with the training since he's more familiar with this sport than the Hungarians are.  I think it's wonderful that the local Baptist churches are doing this creative outreach, and I'm glad that we're able to help even a little bit. 

Not an easy time

Good morning, everyone.  Please pray for Levi...things have gotten very tough for him and he's WAAAYY out of his comfort zone.  Differences in customs, culture, language, etc., have hit him upside the head this week, and he's not having such a good time anymore.     The preparation days are over and the actual sports camp begins today, so now he'll be dealing with other campers in addition to the church folks who have been there getting things ready.

There are about 19 people taking part in the camp--high-school and college-aged.  About half of them are not believers.  They're at varying levels of spiritual interest, all the way from "seeker" to self-acknowledged atheist.  Plans for the camp have been rapidly changing because of logistical issues and bad weather; this morning I saw on the news that a storm warning has been issued, calling for strong winds and rain.  Gary said they plan to have the sports time inside a gym today.  Hopefully this front will move on through quicker than the forecast calls for and outdoor activities will be possible again after all.

Each evening of the camp there will be some kind of presentation.  Tonight's subject is "Creation and/or evolution."  This will be interesting for the young people, because most of them have never heard anything other than the teaching of  evolution that's given to them in the schools and they don't even know that other views exist.  We appreciate everyone's prayers for Levi, for the camp, and that the possibly dangerous storms that have been forecast will not come after all.  Thanks!

People responding, 312 Bibles distributed!

I'm at home now, so I'm going to try to catch you up a bit on what's been happening these past few days. I'll try to keep it short, but so much has been happening that it's going to be hard!

Our booth Friday (July 18) at the Püspökladány open market was a busy place.  We gave away Bibles at the long table, and there were free blood pressure checks at the small table. Things started off a little slowly to begin with, but pretty soon we had plenty of people stopping by, talking, accepting a Bible or New Testament, and getting their blood pressure checked.  Each person signed a statement promising to try to read the Bible through; this was printed onto a book mark for their Bible, which we hope will serve as a good reminder to them.  It was great to get to continue some relationships that we had made in previous projects in the town, as well as making new friends.  And what a blessing it was to work alongside the local Baptist church folks, from Kaba and Hajdúszoboszló as well as Püspökladány.



On Saturday we had our Bible booth at a park in Püspökladány next to the big tent the church had set up for their family fun outreach days.  Once word got out that people could get a free Bible, we kept very busy!  Over the course of the weekend we gave away 312 Bibles/New Testaments!  We're so excited to have such a great response!  In this same town in a previous year, over the course of a December  project where we spent 6 days in the market doing a Bible distribution project, we gave away only 32 -- we believe this is one more sign that the Lord is really working here.



In the picture below you can see Levi and Gary with one of our new friends. This gentleman came by and talked to us quite a bit, and gave us his address so we can get together again in the future.  Please pray that the Lord will continue to work in his life, as well as in the lives of the many other people we came into
contact with during this project.



The church also had children's programs, with music, Bible stories, and games.  You can see some of the kids here having a great time
tossing water balloons from sheet to sheet.  It was a beautiful day to be outside!



The youth from the area Baptist churches provided music for the evangelistic services held in the big tent, and they did a great job.



On Sunday afternoon a psychologist who works at the drug treatment center in Debrecen--and who is a believer--came out to the park and gave a talk about drug dependency, alcohol, smoking, and other addictions.  He was a great speaker and really drew his audience in, getting people to interact with him.  He talked a lot about the reasons people turn to drugs of all kinds, and brought in the spiritual aspects.   Afterward he spent a lot of time answering questions and talking to people both in the group and one-on-one.



Both on Saturday and Sunday there was a 6 PM evangelistic service.  On Saturday Gary spoke, using stories from his experiences as a flight instructor back in the States to illustrate spiritual principles.  He really got the people's attention when he talked about a dangerous situation when a student's error sent the plane hurtling straight down toward the earth; in that moment it was imperative for the student to immediately give total control over to Gary as the flight instructor, who could correct the situation.  I believe the listeners got the point he made...that in our out-of-control lives we must yield ourselves to God, who is able save us.

Pastor Tibor preached on Sunday evening, and it was great--he really told it to them straight, and the people sat extremely still, just listening. At the end when he asked for a response, two people said that they had accepted Christ!  I believe that many more folks there were deeply affected, though, so please pray that the Lord will continue His work in them.

The church in Püspökladány is about to begin their outreach sports camp, which will be going on from Wednesday through Sunday, so please keep praying for this little town and the people here.  Thanks!