Thanksgiving Update!!!

I apologize for the length of time between updates. Things are going great in Hungary. Thanksgiving Day was harder for me because the Hungarians don't celebrate American Thanksgiving for obvious reasons and I missed my family. I did however, make up for it by celebrating in Miskolc, a nearby village, on Saturday. I along with others went to an orphanage and celebrated with about fifty children and fifty adults from the community, most of which are unbelievers. The celebration was Texas themed so we played Cowboys and Indians after creating our own head pieces. Morning Star, another nonprofit organization, brought lasso's and a parachute for the children, and we had line dancing. We provided thanksgiving dinner and a worship service, as well as, a time for testimonies of thanks. God has opened many doors at this orphanage and we have been able to share with them the love of Christ.

God has also opened doors for AP, my partner, and me in reaching university students. She and I were prayer walking the campus one day, pleading with God to reveal opportunities for us to share, when we stumbled upon a volleyball tournament. We were able to play with one of the teams that day and were invited to participate in a weekly game each Monday night. Through this we have been establish new connections and start relationships with students we probably would not have otherwise. We have been planning a volleyball tournament for December fourth that will include this team and three others. During this tournament a Hungarian national will be sharing her testimony. Pray that God would give her the Words that will impact those listening and pray that doors will be opened to share His Word with those present.

Another ministry that I have had the chance to be a part of is a "Four Senses Theater". This is a play that walks a blindfolded person through his or her life using only the four senses of touching, smelling, tasting, and hearing. God's presence is evident throughout the drama. Last Wednesday was our first week performing it and we had to extend our time by an hour and a half later than expected and still had to turn people away. God's presences was made evident in those who were exiting the play in tears. God has already started changing lives through this ministry. We will be performing the play every Wednesday now. Last week the play was performed in Hungarian from six to eight. This week we will do the same and add two hours of the play in English from four to six., pray each week that His kingdom will continue to be impacted through this ministry.

I know I missed a lot of time and I apologize for that again, but God is moving and the prayers are being heard! Thank you so much for your love and support.

Orientation

The team has been teaching me many crucial things that will help me with everyday life. I have learned to buy groceries, mail letters, pay bills, buy public transportation tickets, and navigate through town on foot, tram, trolleys, and buses. There are still many things I have to learn, but I am already starting to feel at home.
Another part of my orientation has been driving a van in Debrecen and the surrounding area for a team that has been in town. I had a great opportunity this past week to learn about the preparation, communication, and organization that is involved in working with volunteer teams. The Arkansas team was actually a Christian rock band that worked hard all week playing a concert everyday at different venues. The group was extremely talented musically and did an excellent job at conveying the message of hope through their testimonies. Many contacts were made and a number of doors were opened for future ministry opportunities.
Tomorrow I attend my first language lesson which will be where I focus the majority of my time these next couple of months. Pray that I will be diligent in studying and that I will be able to recall what I am learning. I have not been able to attend a volleyball practice yet, Extraneous circumstances keep preventing me from making practice, but a practice is scheduled for the end of this week, so hopefully that will go well. God is definitely at work in Hungary. Pray that the Eastern Hungary team will continue to meet Him where he is already at work among the Hungarian people.
"We are therefore Christ's ambassadors, as though God were making his appeal through us. We implore you on Christ's behalf: Be reconciled to God. God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God." 2Corinthians 5:20-21

Life in Hungary

I barely made my flight from Frankfurt to Budapest due to a flock of birds on the runway that delayed the landing of my plane. But the Lord was faithful and I made it. I was greeted at the Budapest airport with hugs and smiles from the entire Eastern Hungary team. It was such a blessing to finally meet them all in person. We spent the day in Budapest running errands everywhere giving me the opportunity to see much of the city. I was extremely tired so they graciously let me sleep during the three hour car ride to Debrecen. That, I was extremely thankful for because I could barely hold my eyes open.
Yesterday I was able to catch up on my sleep and unpack. Holly showed me around town and we were able to eat goulash for lunch. The Miller's, my team leaders, cooked dinner for me last night and we had a nice time visiting and getting to know one another. Today the Miller's and myself woke up early to drive to a small town about 30 minutes away to distribute Bibles. I unfortunately had very little interaction with the Hungarian's because I do not know the language yet, but Carolyn was able to share the gospel on two seperate occasions and several others gladly recieved the Bibles with the intention of answering followup questions that we handed out with the Bibles.

Prayer Request:

• Please pray for those who we made contact with today. Pray that they will be faithful to read the Bible's we gave out and that God will use the Bibles to touch the lives of the Hungarian people.
• A team from Arkansas is coming in this week so pray that they have a safe arrival and that their time here will glorify the king.
• As I previously mentioned, I begin language training in two weeks so I need prayer that I will be able to manage until then with the little that I do know and also that I will quickly begin learning the language once my tutoring does start.
• A team member of mine is out of town for the majority of the month of October. I am going to be fillling in for her, coaching a Hungarian, highschool volleyball team. Holly will be joining me to translate and help out. Pray that God will give me the confidence and wisdom I need to lead these practices. The first one is on Tuesday.

Sheep Among the Wolves

This week marked the half way point of my time in Richmond. It has definately been an exciting journey thus far. The amount of knowledge that has been poured upon me has been at times overwhelming. I feel as if I am a completely different person now from when I first arrived here four weeks ago. My relationship with the Father has grown with leaps and bounds and I find myself longing for Him more and more with each passing day.

The focus of the past week has been on the persecuted church. I am finally starting to grasp an understanding of what it means to offer my life as a living sacrifice each day. We have been meeting in small groups on a daily basis and reading through Acts, which gives a detailed account of the first missionaries journeys. It is evident all through out the chapters that they are willing to sacrifice all of themselves for the sake of preaching the gospel, and they do it boldly without fear. This week was challenging in that I heard story after story of brothers and sisters in Christ who have suffered greatly as they proclaim the Truth, but the impact their faithfulness had on the Kingdom far surpassed that which can be imagined. My prayer is that I to will be filled with the same boldness that those who have gone before me have had when the enemy rises up against me.

Getting Focused

Thank you for your commitment to pray for me as I embark on my two year commitment to overseas mission work. I will be living in and ministering to the people of Debrecen, Hungary. You can read more about our teams goals and missions, as well as join the prayer group at http://www.hope4ehu.com/. I invite you to join me on my journey by following my blog.

I have been in Richmond, VA at Field Personal Orientation (FPO) for about a week and a half now. I will remain in Richmond until September 24 at which time I will fly to Budapest Hungary to begin 2 months of language training at a University there. While in Richmond, I will be developing a better understanding of Hungarian culture, as well as, preparing myself mentally and physically for the task that is before me. My day consists of hours of meetings covering a wide range of topics such as spiritual warfare, learning a new language, and sharing the gospel with others. I also have numerous assignments to complete, as well as, books to read. Needless to say I stay pretty busy, especially when I try to juggle developing friendships with others at orientation on top of everything.

One of my assignments is to develope six goals that I want to complete before I leave FPO and I ask that you will pray that I achieve these goals. Mine range from developing a stronger prayer life, memorizing scripture, and developing a boldness for evangelism. One of the sessions taught me how to make these goals measurable and achievable. God has already begun to reveal himself to me in new ways. Another session was a three hour spiritual retreat inwhich I was able to spend time in prayer and meditation. God placed on my heart the importance of prayer and how powerful it is, so I thank you again for your willingness to pray for me.