Dear Family, Friends and Prayer Warriors,
At times it is hard to believe how God has blessed us with such loving, caring family and friends who stand by us as we serve in a land so far from where we grew up, and many prayer partners who continually lift the Hungarian people before the throne. Many of you fit into all three of these categories. Thank you for your continued prayers and support.
As spring is finally arriving in Hungary, so has the rain. It, along with the melting snow, has caused many rivers to flood; numerous towns and villages have been hard-hit. The cost of evacuating areas and trying to contain the floods as much as possible is about 2.4 million US dollars per day. This is an astronomical figure to the state, and as flooding is expected to continue through May it is projected to use up the entire annual national reserve. The flooding is effecting many other countries along the Danube, too, and they need your prayers as well.
May is the annual month of prayer for eastern Hungary. The prayer guides are online at www.hope4ehu.com/prayer_guide_intro.html, with both a day-at-glance and a scrollable version. They may be copied, printed, and distributed in any format. Due to the fact that we've been blacklisted by several email companies we are not able to send out daily requests via email. However, if you can, please feel free to copy the electronic versions from the internet and send them to those who are interested. Contact us at prayer@hope4ehu.com if you would like a hardcopy version in booklet form.
Many colleagues have asked us why we do a month of prayer, and not just a day or a week. The original goal was not to do a month of prayer, but simply to get the information out regarding the topics we constantly need lifted up in prayer. These needs focused on three areas: bridges into the culture, barriers to the gospel, and influential people. It turned out to be thirty topics. We thought it would be wonderful if people could add just one topic to their prayers daily, then over the course of a month the entire list would be prayed for. At the end we added one day to pray for missionaries working here. May was chosen for this emphasis in order to coordinate with Operation Mobilization's days of prayer for Hungary, and also to saturate Hungary with prayer prior to starting our summer projects in June.
Summer plans are coming along slower than hoped, but are progressing. Please be praying for the volunteers that are coming to help. Due to the Football (soccer) World Cup many people are having difficulty getting airline tickets, and the prices are much higher than normal. Some churches have had volunteer teams cancel. Thankfully, our teams are still coming, but it means they have to raise more funds to do so.
There are two college interns coming to work with us for the summer. We had requested four and are still praying for at least one more, because the work will be very difficult for just two. Pray for them as they prepare spiritually and physically for the long, hard days ahead, and as they raise both their prayer support and their financial support.
In addition to the interns, a couple is coming from Arkansas to help in our summer projects, as well as try to help find what types of student ministries are needed here in Debrecen. They are coming through the new partnership between the Hungarian People Group Team of the IMB and the Arkansas Baptist Convention. Their assistance this summer will enable us to do more evangelism projects with local churches, plus let us get a head-start on student ministries for the future.
Another team is coming through Macedonia Mission Ministries to conduct a multi-faceted project in Puspokladany. They will be prayer walking, conducting a free blood pressure booth, holding a children's program in the park, and a baseball camp at the sports complex. This town is very special to us and we long to see a new church planted there.
We are still praying for two students workers to come for about two years. According to the latest statistics there about 35,000 students in Debrecen. Students have become one of the most responsive segments of the population, so many cults have started targeting our city and turning many hearts to the false hope they offer. We would love to reach them for Christ before they turn to the cults.
Thank you again for praying with us. Without your prayers and support we could not stay and work here in eastern Hungary. Here is a short recap of the main prayer requests, with dates:
| The flooding in Hungary and other countries along the Danube river. | |
| The two student workers that are needed. | |
| May 1 - 31 | Month of prayer for eastern Hungary |
| May 27 - Aug. 10 | Summer interns will be here working. |
| June 10 - Aug. 3 | Couple from Arkansas will be here working. |
| June 12 - 17 | Puspokladany projects. |
May God richly bless you as serve Him.
In His Love,
Gary, for the Eastern Hungary Team
Bem Ter 8, fsz. 3
Hungary
