Monday, October 31, 2016

Tiszafüred Day of Thanks

Thanksgiving has always been one of my favorite holidays in the U.S.--coming together to remember the blessings of the year, praising God for who He is and all He's been doing in our lives.  Hungary doesn't have this national holiday as we do in America, but in many of the churches a day in the fall is set aside for giving thanks.  The church plant in Tiszafüred invited us to come back and visit for this special celebration on October 30, and we loved the opportunity to join them.  Along with the church plant friends, we also enjoyed getting to spend time with brothers and sisters in Christ from other churches in the Karcag church circle from surrounding towns.

Carolyn with two dear church plant friends, Jutka and Zsuzsa

Gary and Carolyn with Pastor Csaba and his wife Andrea

Church circle friends celebrate with the Tiszafüred church plant (photo by Sándorné Bögös)
Praise the Lord for the Scripture and testimonies that were shared, and for the encouraging fellowship that took place!  Pray with us that the Gospel seeds will take root and produce fruit in the lives of those present who haven't yet come to Christ, and that those who do know Him will soon follow in baptism.  Ask for God to give strength and wisdom to Sanyi, who comes each week to lead the church plant, and for Csaba, the area pastor.  Gary and I are praying and discussing with them how we may be able to provide encouragement and training to help initiate growth in the group.

Sunday, October 23, 2016

60-year anniversary of the 1956 Revolution


In Hungary October 23 is always a day of solemn remembrance, a day of looking back on the 1956 Revolution against Soviet-imposed rule.  This year marks 60 years since the traumatic events.  Great hope had swept across the country, dreams of a new way of life; but the popular uprising was brutally crushed after only thirteen days.  As Hungarians gather to remember their heroes, martyrs, freedom, and freedom lost, pray their eyes will be opened to Christ’s sacrifice for them, and that they will come to know the freedom that can never be taken away.

Here's an interesting account of one who lived through that time: http://edition.cnn.com/2016/10/23/europe/hungarian-revolution-escape/

Monday, October 17, 2016

Meeting with partnering ministry organizations


We had the pleasure of hosting a meeting with some partnering ministries recently in our home, where ideas for future work were discussed (along with a little clowning around).  Pray for wisdom in how we can best partner in the work, and for these friends as they continue to reach out to a world that needs the Good News.




(Left to right) Péter Miklósváry, Head of Grain Game Hungary; Chip Riley, The Grain Game founder; Valentin Nehro, head of Association of Hungarian Baptists in Ukraine, and his son.

Wednesday, October 12, 2016

New stage of ministry

Thank you to all of our friends who have been praying for us over the last months even though we haven't been staying in touch very well (sorry!)  We have been going through some difficult things in life.  Praise the Lord for His mercy and faithfulness no matter what life brings!

We are back in Debrecen, working on refreshing our language skills and doing a big reassessment of demographics and ministry--where are people in Hungary now spiritually, where is outreach now being done by others, where are the places most needing ministry started, etc.  All of this information is useful in prayerful consideration of where and how to focus time and resources of the IMB Eastern Hungary and Budapest teams over the coming years.

We have been meeting with a lot of national partners, leaders of other organizations, and individuals that we have worked with in the past.  Please pray for us as we learn and as we make plans for strategic ministry.  We want to clearly hear the Lord's voice and follow His leading in everything, so that we will walk on His path, not our own.

"In their hearts humans plan their course, but the LORD establishes their steps." Proverbs 16:9 (NIV)



Gary in after-dinner discussion about ministry with a Hungarian believer.  
Pray for "Z" as he learns more about effective outreach and church planting.