Retirement home visit

Above: One of the open doors we have in December is to bring our choir's Christmas presentation to a retirement home in the neighboring village of Rozsaszentmarton, the same town where our youngest daughter attends middle school. "Aunt" Gizi (pictured above) had struggled with anger and bitterness for years before meeting Jesus through our church and being set free through Jesus' love. After being a faithful member of our church body for many years, Gizi has since had to move from our area to live with her family in another area. But she made sure to visit this day and once again share encouragement and joy with all of us.

Christmas Worship Service

Above: One of our youth group teens, Eli sharing a poem she wrote in relation to our last advent reflection on God's love.



Above: We had a great turn out for our Christmas worship service. We were thankful to reconnect with some families that we hadn't seen for years. The youth group did a great job presenting a drama focused on a creative presentation of the Gospel. And after service, instead of people rushing out, we were thankful that many stayed for a significant time to connect.

Volleyball tournament

Above: We continue to remain connected with youth through volleyball. We held a tournament in late December which had a mix of many kids that had served as helpers in the past in our VBS, those from our youth group ministry and others who just joined in through the invitation. Having multiple places of interaction and friendships allows for more opportunities to share our life of faith and invite those who are interested to take more steps toward faith in Jesus.

New Years Gathering

Above: At New Years, we have our worship service later at night and then invite members and guests to stay after for fellowship, games and praying in the new year (and of course fireworks). It was a pretty tight fit in Miki and Erika's house for the number of people who stayed, but we enjoyed the cozy family atmosphere.





Above: Zsolti (pictured top left) is a young man that has been attending youth group for many years. Just recently he shared with the leaders that he decided to put his faith in Jesus and he has also begun attending church. Zsolti has been at the center of ridicule and bullying at his school as he doesn't fit in as one the cool kids. Soon after his decision of faith, he had an incident where kids at school took his phone that he had saved up for months to buy and smashed it. In youth group he shared how sad he was, but also how he was praying for them. That kind of heart attitude is an obvious work of the Spirit and a sign of new life that Jesus has given Zsolti. Please pray for our youth to continue to grow up in Christ as they trust Him and follow His example of a life submitted to the Father.

Bridge building Small Group

Once a month our Hungarian partners Miki and Erika host a bridge-building small group for parents who's children have attended VBS. As I shared previously, one parent that began attending (Zsuzsa pictured above), has since recommitted her life to Jesus and is continuing to grow in her faith. In our last time together, we discussed the topic of consumerism and motivations behind acquiring the things we possess in life. We turned our attention to Jesus' teaching: “Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing?” (Mat 6:25)
We also discussed how life was ‘more than’ just the accumulation of worldly possessions.



Above: One amazing answer to prayer is Viktor (pictured above center). His wife Noémi first stepped into our church a year ago because her young daughter Panna made a decision at VBS to begin attending. Noémi and Panna regularly attended this past year and have become more involved in ministry and the life of the congregation. In the past Viktor has come to multiple family days at the end of our summer VBS and joined in our VBS small group discussion where he heard testimonies and the gospel. Noémi had been praying for her husband Viktor but never directly asked him to attend church or come to the bridge building small group. Her attitude and approach reminded me of 1 Peter 3:1-2 "Wives, in the same way submit yourselves to your own husbands so that, if any of them do not believe the word, they may be won over without words by the behavior of their wives, when they see the purity and reverence of your lives." Praise God that Viktor has recently been taking steps on his own initiative to attend church and for the first time attend this bridge building small group. Please pray for Viktor to come to know Jesus personally as His Lord and Savior and that their family would be unified in following after Jesus.

Romani in Bogács

Above: Szimonetta is usually the first to shout out my name and run for a hug when I step into Maci and Imi's house each week in the village of Bogács.



Above: And I also get to hold Maci and Imi's latest addition, Jenny who was born in December.



Above: Each week I bring a printed out Bible passage that we read through and discuss together.

Visiting the Roma each week in the town of Bogács seems to always be mixed with joy and sadness. The Roma families in this village are very interconnected which can be challenging for those that are seeking to choose a different way of life as they follow Jesus. They are surrounded by others who have been generationally involved in sinful lifestyles as the norm. Every week I hear the sad stories of relatives or other family members who are cursing one another, fighting, stealing or doing drugs. Just last week, Maci's younger brother Krisztian, who lives next door, was taken away to prison leaving his wife and two young boys to try to make ends meet.



But in the midst of this there is joy that God continues to be at work in Maci and Imi’s life. What a gift of God’s grace that the door is open to study God’s word together each week. We’ve been studying through the book of Matthew and most recently the sermon on the mount and how Jesus calls us into a new way of life led by His Spirit.

A few weeks ago Imi (with tattoos, and a body-frame larger than mine) came home from work towards the end of our study and began pouring out his heart. Imi was in tears. He said that he knew that God was the only way for Him to have hope. He was dealing with anger and anxiety and depression and he confessed to me how all these things were eating away at his soul. Imi said Jesus was the only one who could change him and we spent some time praying together. The following week I was able to witness how God answered our prayers and Imi shared about how he felt as if the depression was lifted away. He said that we was now able to have a right perspective. There were so many things he could be thankful for that God has done and God has provided in their lives instead of being stuck focusing on the problems of life. Would you pray for Imi and Maci and their two children, Jenny and Szimonetta to continue down the path of a new life in Christ and not be pulled back into living without dependance and faith in Christ.

Short trip to the US

Above: In late January, I headed to the US for a few weeks to spend some time with and care for my mom. Over the past year she has had challenges with some health issues as she is now in her 80s. I came just in time for a few major snow storms!




Above: My future nephew-in-law helping clear the snow after the storm. I was planning on seeing some of you at church while I was back in the US, but that wasn't happening in these conditions.



Above: I was able to get some time with our oldest son Ben, who continues to do well since moving to the U.S. last summer. God was gracious to help him with getting his drivers license, buying a car, getting a job and finding an apartment. He has recently been relocated to a new work location in Philly and will be moving to have a shorter commute. We appreciate your prayers for Ben to find his way by finding Christ.



Above: In the short time in the U.S., I also managed to sprain my ankle while playing soccer. Praise God that I only needed crutches for the first day and afterward was able to walk carefully afterwards. It's still in the process of healing, but moving steadily in the right direction.

8th grade waltz

Above: Thankfully I was able to return to Hungary in time to see our daughter Ziva (far left) with her 8th grade classmates and their special dance presentation for parents of graduating kids.





Above: After the 8th graders perform their dance, parents have the privilege to dance with their children. I guess this is practice for future weddings for my girls?



Above: We were thankful that Niki (Ben's girlfriend who lives in Hungary) was also able to come and spend time with our family at the event. Niki has been together with us in the past on family vacations and other special events and we seek to be like family to her as she comes from a difficult background. When you think of Ben, please also pray for Niki as well for spiritual awakening and hearts that turn to Jesus.



Above: Ziva is the last of our children going through this middle school. Sharon did some calculations and we've had kids in this school for the past 18 years. We're thankful that we have opportunity to bring our Christmas and Easter puppet presentation to this school and also have children from this school attend our summer VBS. Please pray for the Gospel to go forth to this town and for seeds to grow that have been planted over the years in children's hearts.

Jászfényszaru Preschool visit

Above: In past years our team and church did many outreaches and even a summer camp in the town of Jászfényszaru. We have a few church members that live in this small town and continue to have a good connection with the local preschool where hundreds of kids attend. We were invited to help with a special day for their kids and brought glitter tattoos and balloons for the kids that already know us from our puppet show presentations.











Above: Kinga (center) recently began working at this preschool in Jászfényszaru. I first met Kinga many years ago in an English Club that we had launched in this town for outreach. Later, we didn't have much contact with Kinga, but her older sister Bogi remained in the English Club that later turned to a study in the book of John (in English) and later Bogi became a believer. Bogi has since moved to Germany and recently wrote some encouraging words about her faith journey:

Bogi wrote: "I was listening to your latest sermon and when you mentioned that you accepted roughly 30 years ago what Jesus offers us, I was reminded of the fact that my baptism took place 10 years ago. What a decade with my Heavenly Father! And I know that He has been in my life long before I chose Him to be the LORD of my life. He sent people to me so that I can hear about Him, so that I can get to know Him before making my own decision. It was also special that you started with the verse 2 Corinthians 5:17 “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come.” I’ve been meditating on this particular verse lately: in what ways my life has changed over the past 10 years, what intense healing and caretaking I’ve experienced since I moved to Stuttgart. With a friend of mine we talk about healing from time to time, we discuss our latest experiences in this respect. And about a month ago this verse came up, supporting me tremendously that I shouldn’t dwell on past losses and things that hurt me in the past. I’m a new creation owing to Christ; my life, my way of thinking should reflect that." — Bogi


Above: Bogi (far left) helping in our 2025 Summer VBS.

Being in church planting ministry for many years, we have experienced our share of ups and downs and had sadness with those who have fallen away from the faith. Bogi always brings such encouragement as we see how she continues to seek God's kingdom first in her life and is flourishing spiritually as a believer sent to another country. I've recently learned that Bogi now has a job developing curriculum at a Christian school in Germany, is on the board for planning VBS ministry at her church, and is involved in leading an Alpha course (evangelistic small group). Would you pray for Bogi to continue to be strengthened and led by the Lord according to His plans of her life and pray for her family members (like Kinga and her mom and dad) to be drawn to Jesus through the light they see in Bogi.

Children's Playhouse Ministry

Above: To keep connection with children that attended our VBS but do not yet attend our church, we began holding our monthly Children's Playhouse Ministry. This is like a miniture version of a day at VBS with singing the songs that the kids have come to love and know by heart, a teaching from God's word, crafts, food and games.











It's always a blessing to see kids joining in on songs about Christ, remembering the motions and the words that we hope will remain in their hearts and minds. Recently I updated our church's website and included the online registration for this year's VBS. Without advertising or letting anyone know about the update, we had over 50 registrations. We look forward to having full camps again this summer!



Above: Sharon and Allen at the spot Allen proposed in Budapest over 27 years ago, but it wasn't THIS COLD :) Thank you all for taking the time to catch up with our family and ministry in Hungary. We thank God for you all and are privileged to have you as partners with us.

“May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.” (Romans 15:13)