Eastern Hungary Prayer Partner Updates

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Carolyn & Gary Miller
Field address:
Gary and Carolyn Miller
4002 Debrecen
Nagy Mihály Kert 67/C
HUNGARY


Email address: gcmiller@pobox.com
Websites: www.hope4ehu.com 
              www.xanga.com/gcmiller2hu

 

 

 

Sent Tuesday, December 21, 2010   12:43 AM

Dear family, friends and faithful prayer partners,

What a wonderful time is Christmas when we celebrate the coming of Christ!  We could not get to God so He came down to us and dwelt among us.  He is still Emmanuel, God with us. 

Thanks for supporting the work the Lord has sent us here to do; it is not our ministry but His.  We are thankful to get to serve, and thankful for all who support us in prayer, encourage us with cards and letters, and give to see His kingdom grow for His glory.  We want to especially thank the Southern Baptist churches who support us through the Lottie Moon Christmas offering for international missions.  Your generous giving provides for the majority of our ministry needs.

This year has been a year of great change for our team.  Holly and A.P. both finished their journeyman assignments and returned to the States.  We appreciate their years of service and pray for them as they continue their ministries in the US.  Stacia is a little more than halfway through her two-year assignment and will be with us until the end of summer 2011.  She organizes our student outreach and mentors several girls in their Christian walk.

Seth and Aubree came this fall as volunteers to serve for a year between high school and university.  Their musical talent has been a wonderful blessing as they lead the music for our new English group that meets Sunday morning, play for the Hungarian church plant in Tiszafured, and provide background music for the coffee house ministry.   They are also prayer walking in the other towns where we are trying to plant churches.

2010 saw five volunteer teams come to help proclaim the true grace of God.  Four of these teams were bands.  It was interesting to see how God used the different styles of music and lyrics to touch different people in different ways. The other group was from our church in Texas; they held the English camp in Hajduszoboszlo for the third straight year.  The camp has grown  a lot over the past five years ago, this year having close to 70 participants ranging from 5 to 60.  The Bible stories used to teach English are often the first real exposure to Scripture for many who have come. 

The weekly coffee house ministry continues to be a wonderful opportunity for us to connect with people from around the global in a fun, friendly atmosphere.  The theme and entertainment changes every week to attract new people.  Attendance continues to range from between 20 to 40 people.  It is hard to get an accurate count because some come for the entire two hours, while others just drop by for a quick visit.  Every week sees new faces along with some of our regulars, but whether regular or first-timer, everyone is sure to get into a good discussion and leave feeling loved.

We are now setting goals and developing plans for 2011.  The number of opportunities to partner with national churches and others is greater than ever before.  It is often said that one of the most destructive forces in missions is doing good things, because good things will always take the place of the best thing. We seek God’s guidance and wisdom to know which ministries to continue, which ones to cut out, which new opportunities to accept, and which ones to turn down to make the best use of our time.

There are some that we feel sure about keeping.  Coffee house will continue to be a main outreach.  Stacia,  Aubree and Seth will keep working with the Four Senses Theater, a student outreach on the university campus.  We committed one year to the church plant in Tiszafured, starting in September, and we will fulfill that commitment.  The national pastor we work with is needing to change the night of the week.  It has been a struggle to arrange schedules but the work is in God’s hands; if we need to rearrange the time then we are confident that God can work out the schedule. 

One new thing that we have already committed to doing is organizing the Timothy Leadership Training Institute’s first classes in Debrecen next June. TLT uses very practical inductive teaching methods to help church leaders better equip their members for service in the community.  It doesn’t tell people what they should do, but lets examples from Scripture guide the pastors to design their own six-month plan for their ministry context.  At the next seminar, the pastor reports about how the plan worked and adjustments needed.  He then makes another plan for the next six months of ministry.  Churches where the leaders work the plan average a 22% increase in average attendance in the first year.  Our goal is see an increase in the number and effectiveness of believers touching their friends, families and neighbors for Christ.

A couple of other new things we would like to be able to add to our schedule are an English Club in Nadudvar, helping a national pastor start a Bible Study in that same town, and an afterschool program in Puspokladany.  Each of these would of course mean cutting something out of our current schedule.  Pray that God will make it clear which ones we need to participate in.

It is a privilege to get to introduce new team members to you.  It looked like the EHU team was going to be back down to two people by mid 2011, but Darrel and Kimberly Hathcock, along with their three wonderful girls, Arianna, Abigail and Sophia, are expected to transfer to the eastern Hungary team from Kiev.  They are currently on Stateside Assignment but should be moving to Hungary next June.  They will complete a year of language training in Budapest before moving to Debrecen.  We have known Darrel and Kimberly since our appointment service as career missionaries in 2002.  We look forward to working with them in the future.

We want to again thank everyone for all that they do for us and for God’s Kingdom.  We wish you and yours a very merry Christmas and blessed new year.

For the Eastern Hungary Team,
Gary


www.hope4ehu.com

 

 

Sent Thursday, May 20, 2010   10:40 PM

Dear Praying Friends,

Thank you to all of you who are praying with us this month during our annual 31 days of prayer for eastern Hungary.  We want to give you a mid-month update for both praise and petition. 

Praises - A new opportunity opened up for the Grain Game children's camp to partner with the Karcag Baptist Church to offer a camp the last week of June.  This is a great church that works hard at reaching out to the community.  We are thrilled to see this new opportunity to help the church teach the next generation about God's Word. 

Another door we saw opened up is the possibility of getting our volunteer music groups to perform at the holding facility for older teens awaiting trial.  I had begun working with the prison ministry a couple of years ago before it was discontinued by the prison administration.  Now God is opening up new possibilities to get the Gospel to these young men through music at a time when they so desperately need a message of hope, love and redemption.   

Petition - In addition to the listed requests for the May Madness volleyball tournament please pray that God will give us favor in the eyes of the local officials so that they will grant our request to use the school gym for free.  We scheduled the tournament for Saturday, May 29 based on a number of factors, but the school's volleyball coach's input weighed heavy in that decision.  He has been very helpful and enjoys creating more opportunities for his teams to play.  He did not, however, have authority to grant use of the gym.  The coach saw nothing that should hinder us using the facility so we filed the proper request at city hall and continued with planning.  The man who has to make the decision had been traveling overseas and now has come down very ill.  He likely will not even see the request until Tuesday, May 25, just four days before the tournament.  Rather than changing schools we have decided to continue praying that God will give us that gym.

Thank you again for prayers and support.

Love in Christ,

Gary for the Eastern Hungary Team

 

 

Sent Friday, April 30, 2010   12:16 AM

Dear friends, family and faithful prayer partners,

Thank you for your continued prayer support and encouragement.  This year marks the 8th annual 31 days of prayer for eastern Hungary.  It has been amazing to see how God has worked during these prayer emphases.  Even though we change the format and requests each year we always look forward to seeing what God does.  In the past He has opened doors that we felt were locked.  We have seen people come to Christ.  We have seen new opportunities created to share the Good News of Jesus Christ with others.  Even though it has been very difficult lately we go into this special time expecting no less this year than in times past.

Some of you will receive the printed version after the month of May has already begun.  We apologize for the calendar being late.  We moved the first part of March just before going to the US for our son’s wedding.  We ordered the phone and internet change before we left, but as it turns out we will not have either until the end of June.  This slows down how quickly we can get information out and new things onto the website but we will have an electronic copy of the prayer calendar up by the first of May.  Our team Website is www.hope4ehu.com.

To give you a little more information to know how to pray more specifically for each team member, we will give some information regarding each person’s main responsibilities.   Gary is Team Strategy Leader and directs the IMB work in eastern Hungary, plus now is working to bring helpers into the harvest in northern Serbia and Transylvania.  A major part of his work is coordinating IMB work with that of other organizations trying to pair needs with resources. 

Carolyn is the team prayer coordinator.  She maintains the information for the prayer network along with her sister Nancy, who is the stateside prayer coordinator.  Carolyn also develops media projects, coordinates communications, and maintains several websites. 

Holly is our student ministries coordinator.  She is active in trying to reach and disciple university students, teaching English at the Euro school, and planning events for coffee house.  She finishes her three-year term August 6. 

A.P. is our sports program coordinator.  She takes the lead in scheduling and planning the volleyball tournaments and other sports outreaches.  She also substitute teaches at the Euro School and leads the English club in Hajdúszoboszló.  She finishes her two-year term July 29. 

Stacia joined us on the field in September of 2009.  Her main responsibilities also lie in the area of sports, but she supports all of the current ministries and teaches at the refugee camp.  She is preparing to take over the sports program after A.P. returns to the U.S. 

Two more new names on this year’s calendar are Aubree and Seth.  They are planning to spend a year serving overseas between high school and college, and will be very active in our coffee house ministry.

Even with the difficulties of moving and getting things ready in the new place it is nice to be out of an apartment and into a house with a yard.  Our new mailing address is

Gary and Carolyn Miller
4002 Debrecen
Nagy Mihaly Kert 67/c
Hungary

Thank you all again for your prayers and continued support.

Love in Christ,
Gary
for the Eastern Hungary Team

www.hope4ehu.com

 

May 2010 Prayer Calendar for Eastern Hungary

Sunday

Monday

Tuesday

Wednesday

Thursday

Friday

Saturday

 

“Look among the nations! Observe! Be astonished! Wonder! Because I am doing something in your days -- You would not believe if you were told."  Habakkuk 1:5

 

 

“Rejoice always; pray without ceasing; in everything give thanks; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.”

1 Thess. 5:16-18

1 Thank God for the Bible studies and new ministries that have begun this past year.

2 Pray for a church plant in Balmazújváros and for the English camp

in Hajdúszoboszló

July 5 – 11.

3 Pray that those attending the Experiencing God Bible Study will truly experience Him.

4 Pray that the stories studied at the Hajdúszoboszló English Club will take root and grow.

 

5 The Four Senses Theater – Pray for continued good relations with the University.

6 Coffee House – Thank God that after many years of being just a dream, the coffee house started last October.

7 “Grain Game” Children’s camps Hungary : 6/21 - 6/25 Romania : 6/28 - 7/9

Serbia : 7/12 - 7/23

Ukraine : 7/26 - 7/30

8 Thank God that volunteers are still coming in these hard economic times.

9 Pray for a church plant in Nádudvar and that Helen M, Steven F and family will come to Christ.

10 Pray God will use the volleyball practices to reach teammates.

11 Pray that those attending the women’s discipleship group will grow strong in Christ.

12 The Four Senses Theater – Pray students will continue coming.

13 Coffee House – Pray that God will give us creative ideas and send the entertainment we need.

14 Pray for the teachers and students at the Euro School where Gary and Holly teach English.

15 Pray for the musicians & singers coming to hold concerts this fall, and for the Euro School radio project.

16 Pray a new church plant will start this fall in Tiszafüred and for the Ball and Sender families’ salvation.

17 Pray that God will use the refugee ministry to take the Gospel around the world.

18 Pray that deep discussions will take place at the Hajdúszoboszló English Club.

19 The Four Senses Theater – Pray the students will think about the eternal consequences of their actions.

20 Coffee House – Pray that strong friendships can be built.

21 “May Madness” Volleyball  Tournament May 29

- Pray that God will bring all the planning together.

22 Pray that Rita B, Tommy B and their family will come to Christ.

23 Pray for Debrecen Baptist Church ’s mission in the Tócóskert area of the city. 

24 Pray that Tammy, Dianna, Timothia, and Bobbi will become strong followers of Christ.

25 Pray that those in the discipleship group will become faithful sharers of the Gospel.

26 The Four Senses Theater – Pray for new skits that are culturally sensitive.

27 Coffee House – Pray that during the fun times we can still touch lives at their greatest point of need.

28 “May Madness”

- Pray that all the participants will be touched.

29 “May Madness”

Pray that God will give wisdom to the EHU team as they share.

30 Pray for Debrecen Baptist Church ’s mission in the Pac area of the city.

31 Pray for EHU Team members: Gary , Carolyn, Holly, AP., Stacia, Aubree and Seth.

“Finally, brethren, pray for us that the word of the Lord will spread rapidly and be glorified….” 2 Thess. 3:1 NASB

The IMB Eastern Hungary Team appreciates your prayers!  Learn more at www.hope4ehu.com, or email us at information@hope4ehu.com.

 

 

 

Sent Monday, March 8, 2010   12:05 AM

Dear Friends and Family,

The Eastern Hungary Team is going through some busy times, and we appreciate your prayers very much.  Gary and I are moving to a new location here in Debrecen and will pack up the computer today, Mar. 6, so this update will be brief. 

Praise the Lord, the spring volleyball tournament went well yesterday.  Four teams played—a high school team, a university team, a team from Debrecen Baptist Church youth group, and a team of two high school students aided by Holly, A.P. and Gary.  Everyone had a great time; information about what we believe and invitations to youth meetings and upcoming concerts were included in their packets.  Please pray for wisdom for our team in what the next steps should be to follow-up on the new relationships that are being developed.

Concert information given was regarding the Green Wood band, coming to us from Arkansas later this month.  From Mar. 22 to 26 they will be playing at various locations in Debrecen, reaching out through their music and testimony.  Please pray for the band, for all the logistics, but especially for the people whose hearts will be touched by what they hear and see.  Gary and I won’t be in Hungary when the band is here, so please also pray for Holly as she heads up this project.  We’re sorry to not be here for the concerts, but we have a very important reason for being gone….

There’s a wedding in the family!  :)  Our son Danny and his fiance Nicole Young will be getting married on March 20, so we’re going to the States on the 11th and will be there celebrating and enjoying family time through the end of the month.  We’ll arrive back here in Hungary on April 1, so please excuse us for any time lags with emails. 

Beginning today our Internet access will be intermittent due to our move--we aren’t sure when we’ll have access at our new place. Thankfully McDonald’s provides free Wifi, so we’ll make visits there when we can.  Our new address is (in the format approved by the Hungarian post office):

Gary and Carolyn Miller
4002 Debrecen
Nagy Mihály Kert 67/C
HUNGARY 

Please don’t worry if you’ve recently mailed us something at our soon-to-be former address, because our landlady will collect it for us and we’ll pick it up from her.

Thank you so much for your prayers, and we do appreciate the encouraging notes and emails that we get from many of you. 

God bless,
Carolyn for the Millers

 

 

Sent Monday, December 21, 2009   10:30 PM

Dear praying family and friends,

We wish you all a wonderful Christmas and much happiness in the new year.  The Christmas season is such a wonderful time of year with family gatherings and all the lights and decorations.  It is lamentable that it has become so commercialized, but is still a natural bridge to share the good news of Jesus Christ to a lost and hurting world.  Of all the gifts given and received, the gift of Jesus is still the one the world needs most.

Thank you to all who support our ministry through prayer, gifts to the Southern Baptist Cooperative Program, the Lottie Moon Christmas Offering for international missions, and through special donations.

2009 saw two aviation camps in Romania, a baseball camp in Hungary, English classes in a national church, two English camps, every street of 3 cities prayer-walked, 11 concerts,  English classes begun at a local high school, 10 weekly Bible distributions on the open market, the start of a weekly coffee house, a health fair, and a volleyball tournament.  We also joined with national churches and other organizations to help with their projects, including sports camps, English camps, field days, and orphanage ministry.  To say it has been a packed year is an understatement, but we are so thankful to see God’s Word going out to the people of eastern Hungary, northern Serbia, and Romania.

The good news doesn’t stop there.  We had another team member join us in our work.  Stacia Haley arrived on the field the end of September on a two-year assignment to help with sports ministry.  She joins our other two Journeygirls, Holly and A.P., to expand our student ministry team.  She has already been a great blessing, and we cannot express enough gratitude to God for bringing the three young ladies together.  In addition to helping with the ministries listed above, these girls have started a Bible study for discipling women, a weekly English club, helped start a new weekly student outreach on campus, and regularly meet with students to share Christ with them.

Obviously the list of projects and events is too long to go into detail about in a newsletter.  Carolyn tries to keep people updated throughout the year via our website, our blog, and the IMB Europe site.  You can follow the updates online at http://www.hope4ehu.com, http://gcmiller2hu.xanga.com, and http://tinyurl.com/imbeur-ehu.  She’s also on Facebook.

The economic downturn in the US is affecting missions around the world.  The International Mission Board is struggling and greatly appreciates your prayers and financial support.  The shortfalls came in the middle of a large reorganization, putting even more pressure on the budget.  It looks like 2010 is going to be a very difficult year for missionaries world wide.  We know that many of the people who receive our newsletter are not Southern Baptist.  Most of the organizations with which we have personal contact are reporting similar situations.  No matter what your denomination, the mission work needs your prayers and support.   We know these are difficult times, but it was in the context of supporting missions that Paul wrote, “And my God will supply all your needs according to His riches in glory in Christ Jesus.” Phil. 4:19  

Just as Paul thanked the church for their support, we thank you and pray that God will bless you this Holiday season with a very Merry Christmas and blessed New Year.

Love in Christ,
Gary for the Eastern Hungary Team

 

 

Sent Thursday, May 15, 2009   11:59 PM

Dear Prayer Partners,

Thank you for your continued support this month as we focus prayer on specific ministries that are currently going on or will occur later this year. 

Nick, our skateboarder, is here and getting oriented to the city.  We are not letting the wet rainy weather that moved in to greet him dampen our excitement about what God has in store for this very different type of ministry. 

The school changed the location of the baseball camp to a place that is not suitable.  I talked with the principal for a long time and we looked at other places.  She finished by saying we'll work it out somehow.  She then added that we should just show up Monday ready to have the camp.  And that is what we will do.  A Friday night concert has been added.  It will be more of a coffee house type of ministry with a lot of time afterward to have a coffee and talk with people.

The volleyball team will have a game Tuesday afternoon at the same time we have the baseball camp.  Pray for A.P. as she works with the team and tries to communicate with them.

Please pray for the summer outreach schedule.  I had the tentative schedule ready but today I received a request from a national pastor for us to help in a camp.  It is a pastor we hope to work with for a new church plant in another city.  Ask God to make it clear which of the several options we choose.

Last Friday, Carolyn had what we thought was a reaction to a new pain medication.  We made a trip to Budapest so that they could do some tests to insure there was not a heart problem or something along those lines.  Everything checked out fine so it was determined that it was the medicine.  The doctors decided that she should stay and have a full physical with some checks by specialists.  As it turns out there is a new therapist at the clinic that specializes in her back problem.  The therapy is going very well.  They changed her pain medicine and then yesterday (Wednesday) she again had what they think is a reaction to her new medicine.  Please pray that God will bring total and complete healing so we can just eliminate the need for the pain medication altogether.

Also please pray for me as we adapt our current activities and plan for future ones.  It is always difficult under the best of  circumstances but even harder without my better half here. 

Again, thank you.

Love in Christ,

Gary

for the eastern Hungary team

 

 

Sent Friday, May 8, 2009   12:29 AM

Dear Prayer Partners, 

Thank you to all of those who are standing with us in the special prayer emphasis for eastern Hungary.  I would like to update you on what is happening so far.

The aviation camp had to be shortened due to too few students.  We changed the format to a two day after-school program at the church and opened up the classroom time to everyone.  Sixteen different students came.  It was interesting to see ages ranging from 9 to 45 in the class together studying the same thing.  We did not lower the level of the teaching, but it all went very well. 

Due to changes in liability laws, the foundation will only fly with students 18 and older.  Two were able go on Tuesday and the others will be worked in later.  We found out Wednesday morning that two students had shown up out at the campground Monday morning.  They had inquired about the camp earlier but had not officially registered.  The staff at the campground did not know about the other classes and sent the students home.  Two more would have given us enough students to hold a longer program. 

Please pray for the foundation's president, Edmond, and the board of directors.  They are facing major decisions regarding the future of the foundation as they seek a permanent place of their own instead of renting space at other campgrounds.  Also pray for his family and the church where he serves as senior pastor.

The skateboarder ministry in Debrecen has been extended from three weeks to six, running from May 14 to June 24.  We dream of planting a new church for these young people who feel disenfranchised from mainstream society.  Please pray for Nick as he comes to work.  He has experience in planting churches among this generation and we hope that when he leaves there will be at least an ongoing Bible study moving toward a new church.

Love in Christ,

Gary

for the Eastern Hungary Team

 

 

Received Thursday, April 23, 2009  9:25 PM

Dear Family, Friends, and Prayer Partners,

What a wondrous time is spring!  It is awesome to see new life as the trees that looked so dead turn green and bloom.  The Easter holiday reminds us of the new life that Christ died to bring.  We pray that hearts that seem dead and cold will sprout forth with new signs of life as they meet the Life Giver.  

Before I go further let me first give a quick list of items in this newsletter.

● Update on Dec. 23 Scripture distribution in Nádudvar
● Update on student ministries
● Ongoing Hajdúszoboszló English course
● May prayer focus
● Aviation camp
Skateboarding
● Baseball camp
● English camp
● Student fall activities

In our last newsletter we asked you to please pray about the Scripture distribution in the town of  Nádudvar on the morning of Tuesday, December 23.  That was our final Scripture distribution in connection with the Year of the Bible in Hungary.  It turned out to be the best single day of Bible distribution of the year, with 324 copies of Scripture given out.  What made it so ironic is that many had doubted that we should even try in this town, but in God’s timing and calling He is putting a hunger for His word in their hearts.  Pray they will read the Bibles they received and for the work we will have there this summer.

On the student ministries front: Holly is holding regular Bible studies to help younger believers grow strong in their faith.  In addition to that, she and A.P. are helping with conversational English every Wednesday at a local high school. So far it is going very well; they are building good relationships with the students and teachers.  A.P. has started coaching volleyball at the Euro School, which we talk about later.  They both meet for a lot of one-on-one time with individuals, investing time and energy into the students' lives.

The English course in Hajduszoboszlo continues to do well.  As expected, attendance dropped off a little as the semester went on, but there are several faithful students who come and the church does a great job of making friends and ministering in a variety of ways.

It is time once again for the annual 31 Days of Prayer for Eastern Hungary in May.  This year we are asking people to pray for the different ministries that we have either going on or currently in development.  Some of the ministries are taking place in May, so you can pray for them as they are happening.  Others are planned for later in the year, so the prayers are in anticipation of what is going to be done.

The prayer calendar is available in electronic form on the team website at http://www.hope4ehu.com/prayer.html or in print.  It may be copied and shared with anyone who is willing to join us during this special time of prayer.  This prayer calendar is separate from the Heart for Hungary Prayer Guide, which is also available on-line or in booklet form.

During the Millers’ last Stateside they gave out small paper models of a traditional Hungarian house as a reminder to pray for the Hungarian people.  A number of these remain and are available in packages of twenty-five.  (Photo on the "Prayer" page of our site.) They make a great project for missions classes, Sunday schools, or other groups.  We have found they also make great conversation pieces to share about the work here in Hungary.  To request your houses reply to this email or write prayer@hope4ehu.com.  Please note that they come as a flat sheet, ready to be popped out and glued together.  Assembly time is roughly ten to fifteen minutes, most of which is the time it takes for the glue to dry.

Let me give you a quick overview of some of the events on the prayer calendar.  One of the events is an aviation camp in Romania.  Gary is going back to Timisoara to teach at the Angel Wings Foundation’s semi-annual camp.  You can see more about that ministry on YouTube at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mg6uPFkeE_g

After many years of praying and trying to recruit skateboarders, we finally have a skateboarder volunteer coming for three weeks in May. Please pray for Nick as he reaches out to the extreme sports crowd and kids who hang out on the streets.  Pray that the Lord will lead us to the best way to follow through with these young people.

(Note: For security reasons we will no longer put volunteers' last names on our website.)

A team is coming from  Cross Timber Baptist Church’s college and career class to hold a baseball camp May 18-23 in the town of Püspökladány.  This will be the second camp we have organized there.  It will function like an after-school program during the week with a wrap-up tournament on Saturday.  This year we have the added blessing of having help from Good Sports International and the Mikepercs Mosquitoes, the Hungarian little league team they sponsor and coach. Pray that God will use this camp to minister to the kids of the school.

At the end of May our summer interns, Michael and Taylor, arrive.  After a week of orientation they will hit the road cycling for souls.  They will be helping us branch out into Tiszafüred, a new town for us to focus on.  They will also be helping us continue the work in Balmazújváros and Nádudvar.  As an added bonus, they will get to help Good Sports International with a week-long project in an orphanage in Miskolc the last week of June.

A second team is coming from Cross Timber Baptist Church to hold an English camp in Hajdúszoboszló from July 6-12 at the local Baptist church.  This will give the church an opportunity to  further minister and strengthen connections within their community.  Four of the six on the team are returning from last year, which will help establish continuity in the program and form closer relationships.

Starting in September the IMB will help provide teachers for the new Baptist high school in Debrecen.  The school is being administrated by the Euro School, which is an accredited private school here in town; the Baptist program will be the fourth under this umbrella organization.  The relationship is a little unusual because the Euro school is not a Christian school.  Both the Baptist Union and the Euro school administrators think that this opportunity will be a win-win situation; the Baptist church can start their program right away, and the school will have its required native English speakers and religion teacher.  Holly will be taking on most of the conversation classes, with Gary also teaching.  A.P. will be coaching volleyball and Carolyn will sub in the English classes as needed.  

It may seem a little strange on a May prayer calendar to list the “Back-to-School Bash,” but Holly and A.P. have to start way ahead to plan and carry out a large project like this.  Pray that God will lead them not only in planning and executing this project, but also in the student outreach for the entire next school year.

One project is not on the May calendar, but we would very much appreciate your prayer.  After the interns head home at the end of July, Gary and Carolyn are going to visit their daughter in Africa.  While there, Gary will have the opportunity to teach a weekend course at a Bible School.  Please pray for safety, for a good time of reconnecting as family and for the week-end course at the school.

Busy schedules often keep us from sending out updates as often as we would like, but those with internet access can keep up to date by checking out our blog at http://www.xanga.com/gcmiller2hu.  Carolyn updates it as often as she can with pictures and news from special events.

Holly and A.P. each have their own blog.  Holly’s is http://hollyshungary.blogspot.com and A.P.’s is  http://web.mac.com/apcrouch.

Thank you again for your prayers and support.  Your encouragement is greatly appreciated.  We are also eager to pray with you about matters affecting your life.  It has brought us great joy to be able to lift many of you up as you have done for us.

In His Love,
Gary for the Eastern Hungary Team


www.hope4ehu.com
www.xanga.com/gcmiller2hu

 

Received Tuesday, February 24, 2009  10:45 PM

Greetings from Debrecen, Hungary!

There will be a health fair this Saturday in Budapest, sponsored by the Jozsef Utca Baptist Church.  A group of Hungarian Baptist doctors will be giving free check-ups, consultations and presentations dealing with the health of mind, body and soul; there will also be a blood drive.  Gary and Carolyn will be going to observe, help, and to talk with them about possibly partnering together for medical missions in eastern Hungary.  The organizing doctor asks that we pray that people will come to receive medical care, but not so many that the doctors will be overwhelmed.

Due to illness, changes in employment, and other life circumstances, attendance has dropped off in the advanced class of the Hajduszoboszlo English Course and has decreased some in the intermediate class; the beginner class is holding steady, however. Please continue to pray that along with the English, the students will learn about the Lord and His love for them.

Journeyman A.P. Crouch is following up on opportunities to interact with youth in some area schools, and has talked with one P.E. teacher about helping coach volleyball.  Pray for wisdom and direction for her in what things to take on, and that she will continue to form good relationships which will lead to opportunities to share her faith.  Also pray for A.P.'s health.

Journeyman Holly McMickle has begun leading a new small-group Bible study for several girls who are committed to going deeper in their faith. Praise the Lord that they are eager for this.  Pray that as she disciples them they will grow strong in the Lord and learn to witness to and disciple others.

We have been approached about the possibility of teaching each week in a new Baptist high school here in Debrecen--native English speakers are required for certification of their English language program. In addition to teaching those students, we would also be working with young people in the secular private school which acts as the umbrella organization for the Baptist school.  Please pray for wisdom for us in making the decision. It would require a commitment of time and energy, but we see great potential for reaching many young people from around the area, as well as forming relationships with faculty, staff and parents.

So far no young people have signed up for our International World Changers (IWC) summer project, and this is the week when the decision will be made which projects to cut due to lack of registered participants.  Please pray that if God wants this project to happen that He will provide the volunteers. IWC volunteer numbers over all are down...please pray for the IWC staff as they make decisions about how to proceed with the summer plans.  (More information about IWC mission projects can be found at http://www.thetask.org/students/default.asp.)

Gary is currently working on our spring and summer schedule, so please pray for wisdom in planning for him.  Pray that interns, volunteer teams, and our own personnel will all be used strategically for the Kingdom, that many will hear and come to know the love of Christ.

Thank you for your prayers! 

God bless,
Carolyn for the Eastern Hungary Team

www.hope4ehu.com
www.xanga.com/gcmiller2hu

 

 

Received Wednesday, December 17, 2008  9:59 PM

Dear Family, Friends, and Prayer Partners,

Thank you all very much for your continued prayer support.  Christmas is such a wonderful time to think about God’s precious gift of Himself for our  sin.  At the end of every year we look back amazed at what God has done, and this year is no exception.  Before I give the details let me first give a quick list of items in this newsletter.

- Special thanks for your support
- Bible distribution in Balmazujvaros October 26
- Update on the presentation on the reliability of Scripture in Balmazujvaros
- First Fridays at Five
- Hajduszoboszlo English course
- May prayer focus
- Have a very merry Christmas!  Our team Christmas card to you is at http://www.hope4ehu.com.

The special thanks is for all who support our ministry through the Cooperative Program and the Lottie Moon offering for missions.  That is where our financial support comes from, and we are so grateful to those who faithfully give through their churches.  Prayer is and always will be what we are  most thankful for, but we want to express special appreciation to those who give sacrificially to keep us on the field.

We also want to thank all of those who have given to special projects this year.  Over the past year special gifts have provided many extras to our ministry efforts.  They have provided over 1200 Bibles and New Testaments, an espresso machine for coffee house ministry, 150 Visual Bible DVDs, new eyeglasses for our Roma “Gypsy” church planting intern, and regular help for a young family in need.  

It is almost unbelievable what God has done.  I haven’t had time to list separately all of the different types of Bibles and DVDs distributed, but the total stands at 1591 Bibles or Scripture portions – almost all with a signed commitment card to read it.  And we still have one more Scripture distribution to go!

In our last newsletter we asked you to pray about the Scripture distribution in Balmazujvaros at the open market October 26, and the presentation that evening.  One of the pastors from our church asked the Baptist church in the town of Hajduboszormeny to help us with it since they were the closest and at one time had an active mission in the town.  The pastor from that church brought two youth to help, and a friend from our church also came.  It was great to see the young people get excited about serving the Lord.  We passed out 154 total copies, most of which were whole Bibles.

The pastor was also the one who was to hold the evening presentation.  As it turned out, however, we had to cancel because no one from the community building staff showed up with the key to let us in.  It was a four-day weekend here that week and the person forgot all about it.  About thirty of us  waited out in the cold for an hour as we tried to track down the key, then finally we prayed and headed home.  The next day the manager called and  apologized.  They not only refunded our money, but we also get to use the building next time for free.  We are talking with the Hajduboszormeny church about the wisest use of this opportunity, and will likely hold a special evangelistic program some time in the spring.

One of the thirty we waited with outside the building was the county president of the Gideons.  They had tried to hold a Scripture distribution in the  town before, but were stopped.  We explained that is why we rent a booth at the market.  There is no application through the government, but instead we  deal with just one person – the market manager.  We approach people by simply informing them about the opportunity.  Those interested can stop, and those not interested can keep going.  It is a built-in “filter” to find those interested in the Bible.  When they receive the Bible they also have the opportunity to sign up for Bible study or can request further information.   

The one remaining Bible distribution this year will be in the town of Nadudvar on the morning of Tuesday, December 23.  This will be the last day of  the open market before Christmas.  Friends have told us that it will be one of the busiest days of the year.  This puts us in contact with hundreds of  people from one small geographical area in a very short period of time.

Volunteers from Kaba, Puspokladany, and Hajduszoboszlo will be coming to help us.  The results of the Scripture distribution will help guide our next steps in planting a church in this town.

Also in our last newsletter we mentioned that our student ministry is growing.  Holly started holding special events the first Friday of every month to give students something to do, and to help us make connections with them.  She has held three so far.  You can read about the first two, a traditional  Hungarian bacon roast and a movie night, on the Heart for Hungary website: http://www.teamhungary.com/spotlight.htm   (Scroll down to the second story on the page.)  The third event was proofreading and English practice held at a local coffee shop on campus.  As we go into the next year we will further develop the student ministries and add more sports outreach. Please pray for wisdom and direction for our team and those we will be partnering with.  

November saw the start of the English Course at the Hajduszoboszlo Baptist Church.  These classes meet every other Thursday at 9:30 AM. Since all 20 of the students are working people, not all can attend every time, but we have still averaged about 10 – 12 per occasion. We volunteer our time so that the cost remains in reach of working families.  The church charges a small fee to cover photocopies, utilities, and the fuel for us to come. The fee not only makes the program self-supporting, but it also gives the people “buy-in” so they don't feel like it's a handout.   The classes will start back up on January 8 and continue meeting through mid-May. Please pray that along with learning English, the students will be impacted by the Bible stories we use in teaching.

It is not too early to start helping us with our 31 Days of Prayer for Eastern Hungary in May.  May seems like a long way off right now, but it will be here before we realize it.  We are trying to increase our prayer support as much as possible; our goal is to eventually have 1000 committed prayer supporters lifting up the work here in eastern Hungary.  With every newsletter and prayer update come the usual bounced emails or returned letters. Since we have not been back in the States for over a year we have not been able to make new contacts fast enough to keep up.  We need your help.  Do you know someone who cares about missions and is willing to stand with us in prayer? If you do, and if that person wants to join our prayer team, please email us their contact information or send it to our Stateside Prayer Coordinator: Nancy Lucas, 3826 Westlawn, Wichita, KS 67203.

Busy schedules often keep us from sending out updates as often as we would like, but those with internet access can keep up-to-date by checking out our blog at http://www.xanga.com/gcmiller2hu.  Carolyn typically updates the blog every few days with news and pictures from special events.  Holly and A.P. each have their own blog, too. Holly’s is http://hollyshungary.blogspot.com and A.P.'s is  http://web.mac.com/apcrouch.

Thank you again for your prayers and support.  Your encouragement is greatly appreciated.  We are also eager to pray with you about matters affecting your life.  It has brought us great joy to be able to lift many of you up as you have done for us.

Last but not least, we wish you and yours a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.  Many have lost loved ones this year and we pray that the God of all comfort will hold you close.  May the Prince of Peace quiet those who have experienced turmoil.  May He bring healing to the sick and light to those trapped in darkness.  Most of all we pray that you will experience the great Joy that surpasses explanation.


In His Love,
Gary and Carolyn for the Eastern Hungary Team

Field address:  
Gary and Carolyn Miller
Bem Ter 8, fsz. 3
4026 Debrecen
Hungary

Email address:  gcmiller@pobox.com
Website: 
http://www.hope4ehu.com/


 

Sent Tuesday, October 21, 2008  11:49 PM

Dear Family, Friends, and Prayer Partners,

Thank you all very much for your continued prayer support.  I (Gary) apologize for not getting our summer update out.  I am not sure where the time went, but somehow it just got away from us.

Quick list of prayer items in this newsletter.

Praises:
Summer work
Team is growing.
New residence permits.

Prayer Requests:
Bible distribution in Balmazujvaros the morning of October 26.
Presentation on the reliability of Scripture in Balmazujvaros the evening of October 26.
Possible scripture distribution in Nadudvar November 30.

In our last newsletter we asked you to please pray for healing for both Gary and Carolyn.  Gary's back problem turned out to be a pulled muscle, and the doctor said it would take time to heal.  He spent the last two weeks of May going daily to physical therapy to help relax it and then to strengthen it.  It gave him problems well into the summer but is now back to pre-injured state.  Carolyn is healing very well from the surgery.  Having to lie in bed so much and not getting to do her exercises caused a flare up of the Chronic Myofacial Pain.  She is now back into her exercise program to help it.  Please pray that it will help.

A team came from Cross Timber Baptist church in Texas to hold an English camp in the town of Hajduszoboszlo the last week of June.  Cross Timber is the church where we stayed during our time in the States in 2007.  We have come to love the members of this church greatly, and it was an awesome experience to get to serve together on this side of the big pond.  They put together a team in less than two months and organized an excellent camp.  The Hungarian pastor, Tibi, is over four small churches, and the team ended up holding services in three of the four on Sunday.

Levi, our Roma (Gypsy) church planter intern from Romania, arrived the following week and was with us until mid-August.  We spent several days orienting him to the city and to the work.  So many things were new to him since he came from a very small, very poor village.  Until the week before his arrival there were supposed to be two interns, but the other one's father had a stroke and she needed to stay and help care for him. 

We had to totally rethink our Roma work after Levi arrived.  He had to spend time studying language because in Romania they speak an older form of Hungarian.  One friend from church told him that it was actually refreshing for her because she has not heard Hungarian spoken like that since her grandmother passed away.  But in Levi's village they mix in Romanian and Romany words so he had to learn the Hungary-Hungarian vocabulary.  He told us when he left that he realizes he now speaks a more proper form of Hungarian.

In July, we partnered with the church in the town of Puspokladany, which is one under Tibi's care.  We held a Scripture distribution while the church held a tent evangelistic outreach and sports camp.  We gave out Bibles in the open market on Friday morning and then set up our booth next to the church's tent for Saturday and Sunday.  Volunteers from all four of the churches came to help while we were out in the market.  One volunteer was a nurse's aide, so she offered free blood pressure checks.  Gary then preached one of the services during the outreach.  You can read more about that part of the work on the Heart for Hungary website: http://www.teamhungary.com/spotlight.html.  Scroll down to the third story on the page. 

The following week the church held a sports camp.  Levi was able to attend the entire camp.  During the week the attendees got instruction on many types of sports and physical education.  Gary taught a block on baseball which went over well, but the complexity of baseball is difficult to get down in one afternoon.  We hope to hold a baseball camp there again next spring.

Each night of the camp there was a special presentation offered.  On Friday evening Gary held a lecture on Heaven and Hell: What Does the Bible Really Teach.  Even in the church there is a lot of misunderstanding, and we use words interchangeably that are different terms in Greek and Hebrew.  Since then we have met many people from the camp who have thought about the presentation and want to ask more questions.

After the sports camp we focused on Roma work.  Our goal was to get a group started in Puspokladany and then let a national church planter or pastor take over.  We have a good relationship with the Roma community there and felt this was the best place to start.  Our plan originally called for the two interns to help in the Bible distribution and sports camp to get accustomed to the town, then travel by train from Debrecen to Puspokladany two or three times a week for outreach.  Levi, however, never got comfortable enough to go alone, which meant that we did not get to go back as much as we had wished.

In 2007 our interns met some Roma women with whom they began to build a friendship.  We took photographs from the girls back to the ladies as a way to get our foot in the door for this summer's work.  We gave them the photographs and introduced them to Levi.  We had several rounds of picture-taking and giving, and each time we went back we got deeper and deeper into spiritual matters.  We then planned a large cookout for the end of the summer as a going-away party for Levi.  This was to be the point to see if we could get a group started.  However when we arrived no one came out to greet us, and we knew there was a problem.  We called to the neighbor lady and she came out and invited us in for coffee.  The husband in the home where we were to hold the cookout was drunk and the wife asked if we could postpone the dinner.  We stayed for about an hour, and in the course of the conversation we were able to share the Gospel.  Even though things did not develop as planned, the door is still open for future work.

We have a Bible distribution planned for Sunday, October 26, in the town of Balmazujvaros at the open market.  The church we attend here will be helping with the distribution, and then we will help with a presentation that afternoon in the same town.  Our church wants to use it get a new church plant started in the city. 

We are trying to get one more Bible distribution organized for the town of Nadudvar.  Hopefully this will be the first day of Advent, which is the last Sunday of November.  It is a special day here for both Catholics and Protestants, and we felt it an appropriate time for giving out God's Word.

Out team is growing!  Anna Paige (A.P.) Crouch joined our team on October 15.  She will be involved with student ministry and in helping us to develop our sports outreaches.  She was a PE major and is currently working on her Master's degree in Missiology at Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary.  Part of her training is two years practical experience here on the field.  You can read more about A.P. on our website at http://www.hope4ehu.com/team.html. She also has a blog where you can hear directly from her:  http://web.mac.com/apcrouch.

Another praise report - we got our new residence permits.  They are for three years and are renewable.  A number of our colleagues had received visas or residence permits that are not renewable.  It took almost two months for ours to be processed and we were afraid that there was some type of problem.  It was a great relief to see them stamp the new ones into our passports.

Busy schedules often keep us from sending out updates as often as we would like, but those with internet access came keep up-to-date by checking out our blog at http://www.xanga.com/gcmiller2hu.  Carolyn typically updates the blog every few days with news from special events.

The student ministry continues to grow.  Holly keeps people updated through her blog at http://hollyshungary.blogspot.com

Thank you again for your prayers and support.  Your encouragement is greatly appreciated.  We are also eager to pray with you about matters affecting your life.  It has brought us great joy to be able to lift many of you up as you have done for us.

In His Love,
Gary for the Eastern Hungary Team

 

 

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