Month of Prayer

Some of those gathered for prayer

For the seventh year in a row, many of the evangelical churches in Debrecen set aside the month of January as a month of prayer.  The first 21 days of the year were designated as a time of prayer and fasting.  Many met together every evening in their own churches to pray.  The following week, the congregations gathered in a different church each evening for worship and community prayer.  We enjoyed participating in this time of prayer for the country, the city and the churches. It was wonderful to be with others and seek God, each of us knowing that God hears and answers the prayers of his people. 

INSTE Group and Kemecse Service

 This is the Inste group Nancy is leading.  Three of us are finishing the third book, Old Testament.  Zoli and Gyula are great students, passionate for the Lord and their families and eager to apply the Bible to their lives.  They are a pleasure to lead.  Our final will be on February 3.  Prayers appreciated!

 Saturday, Mike preached at the Shalom Open Bible Church in Kemecse.  The church was full and we enjoyed the presence of the Lord during the worship. 

Mike preached on living a Spirit-led life.  He used four men to illustrate how a person is body, soul, and spirit and how the spirit of a person can be connected to and led by the Spirit of God and through this relationship can control what his soul and body do, getting victory over sin.  (One man is hidden in the picture behind Misha who interpreted for Mike).  Misha explained on the way home that this concept is a bit difficult for Hungarians to grasp since the same word is often used for both spirit and soul, but Mike's illustration makes it easier to understand.

We truly enjoy being able to serve God in Hungary.  No matter where we are, it is awesome to be able to cooperate with the Spirit of God and minister to people.

Ten Years

Ten years ago, Pastor Misi Gulyás picked us up at the Budapest airport.

This week marks ten years we have been in Hungary.  We arrived in Hungary on January 8, 2008 with our primary goal of getting Hungarian Inste running well. Just look at what the Lord has done with Inste since then:

During those ten years we have seen Inste groups started in many churches and 78 Level One Inste students have graduated.  We have received funds to have all 24 of the Inste Level 2 books translated and 18 of them have been completed.  We now have two pilot groups studying Level Two.  The program has been registered and is functioning as an official religious association in Hungary.  We have a board established that is working well together.  Our goal was not to remain in charge indefinitely, but to get the program functioning and to turn the leadership over to the capable Hungarians.  We are so pleased that a young man has been recommended by the board to be the director of Inste and that he is currently being trained by Tammy Swailes and Mike.

Praise God for his mighty work that he has accomplished in Hungary!  Praise the Lord with us!

New Year's Eve

Part of the group playing the Bible trivia game.

Sunday at church was a special celebration to end 2017 and begin 2018.  After the regular Sunday morning service, there was a delicious meal served to everyone followed by games, conversation, singing, and praising God.  The day ended with a Communion service with everyone encouraged to make a new commitment to follow Jesus in 2018.  Happy New Year everyone and please make that same commitment we did to follow Jesus in 2018.