Unokáztunk

Unokáztunk! (We played with the grandchildren!) Today we went to McDonalds and played. Papa encouraged the almost-4-year-old to climb all the way to the top and go down the big slide. Everyone had so much fun! Now it's time to leave and begin visiting churches again, this time in the central United States. We stayed an extra day with the grandkids, though, because of a snowstorm that came through. Friday and Saturday we are driving back to Des Moines. Happy New Year, everybody! Boldog új évet kivánuk mindenkinek!

Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas from one very chocolatey "Official Present Opener." We hope you are all enjoying Jesus' birthday party as much as we are!

Over the River and Through the Woods

One of the perks of being in the US to itinerate is being able to spend holidays with family. Tomorrow we are leaving for Montana to spend Christmas with our son and his family there. We are so excited to be able to watch our grandsons open their presents in person! We're thankful that we have been able to join in on the fun via Skype the past couple of years, but this is even better! Merry Christmas, everyone!

INSTE Testimonies

Below are testimonies from three of our INSTE students in Hungary. Before we left Hungary to come back to the US, we asked some of the students who could speak English to share what INSTE means to them. The quality of the video is not very good (I apologize for that), but we wanted you to hear from the students themselves how INSTE is impacting their lives and the churches in Hungary. This is why we are in Hungary!

Hungarian Car Joys

Thankfully, the car we are using here in the US is back from the shop and running well. Last month, however, we heard from our friend and helper Misha that that our car in Hungary was having troubles. We had left the car covered in the enclosed yard of our apartment building in the hopes that it would be okay for the time we were in the US. However, during a storm in late summer, the cover was blown to shreds. Then, when Tammy Swailes was visiting, she went out to run it for a little while, it wouldn't start. Bless Misha's heart, he was able to get the battery charged and was able to run it for a while. But, he discovered that the unusually humid weather this year had caused some mold on the back seat! Misha was able to get the mold cleaned up. Then he found a large package of the stuff they put in electronic packages to protect them from humidity and placed that in the car. That should keep the humidity down and keep any more mold from growing.

The best news is, Misha was talking with the neighbor about our car challenges and he said the garage he owns there was available to rent. (All the apartment's garages were full when we left for America.) And he offered it to us at an excellent price! Praise the Lord! Our car is now safe and secure in its own little space.

Wow! Thanks, Misha, you are invaluable to us!

Can You Hear Me Now?

Remember the Verizon ads where the people on the Verizon cell phones are followed by a host of people who support the network and make their calls possible? That's a good picture of being a missionary. We are the ones on the phones, making the calls and being visible. But behind us stands an army of people who support us with their prayers, their financial gifts and their encouragement. Plus, we are blessed to have the International Ministries staff here in Des Moines (Vince McCarty, Delores Winegar, Julie Patten) who send us out, give us direction, and handle the details of life including processing donations, handling reams of paperwork, and helping with emergencies like lost wallets. Then we have the INSTE personnel like Nick and Leona Venditti, Tammy Swailes, and in Hungary Misha Tovtin. And there are even more behind us that we won't take the time to name.

Get the picture? We are totally blessed to have many people join with us in the work of making disciples in Hungary. Thank you to all of you!

INSTE Bible College Christmas Party

We were honored to be invited to the INSTE Bible College (USA) Christmas staff party. We had a wonderful time eating, talking and enjoying each other. We also had a good time taking pictures. This is Nick Venditti taking a picture of me taking a picture! We got to spend time not only with the staff members, but their families, too.

Here are the members of the staff who had their picture taken in front of the Christmas tree. Right to left: Drs. Nick and Leona Venditti, Caleb and Claudia Pahl, David del Valle, Cindy Senephansiri, and Stephany Reeves. Thanks, INSTE Bible College, for including us in your fun!

Update on Baby Levi

Our little two-month-old grandson Levi is making progress overcoming the challenges he was born with. Here is an update on how he is doing so you can pray with us for him and his parents.

Paul and Kate took Levi to Mayo Clinic yesterday for a full day of appointments. Overall, it was a very encouraging day! Here are some highlights Paul told us about.

The persistent diaper rash Levi has had is almost gone! Now his parents have one less cream to apply.

The follow-up on the surgery on his "little pooper" was encouraging. the healing is progressing wonderfully. Now there is one less dressing to apply! And they don't have to wake him up every night at 2 a.m. to change his diaper and dressings anymore. If he wakes up on his own, they will change them, but if he sleeps through the night, they can let him!

Surgery on Levi's cleft lip is scheduled for December 14. This will include just a 2- to 3-day stay in the hospital. The downside is that Levi is not allowed to touch his lip for three weeks! That means that when no one is right there to keep his hands away from his face, he will need to be restrained. (I'm thinking baby straight jacket, but I hope not.)

Since Levi is not permitted to have tummy time (the wiggling on his stomach could irritate his exposed bladder), he always lies on his back. This has made a flat area on his head that the doctors said would be best to correct now. This is optional, but recommended for Levi. So, soon he will be fitted for a helmet that he will wear for the next three months.

Levi will see the urologist about his upcoming bladder surgery the end of this month. The current plan is to have the surgery in late January.

Levi is growing and he is smiling more now! Thank you for your prayers. God is not healing Levi as quickly as we would like, but He is healing him a little at a time!