October 2011 in Hungary

From Russell

Back in Hungary…Great Family Time– Finally the Chun’s made it home from their two month trip to the states. Family, special friends all contributed to a great “family” time. It was a good transition for Levi (short for Levente) who is now beginning to see himself as a “CHUN.” Although a month late for school the kids are catching up quickly. Niki is in a special class – one girl, ten boys? We are thinking about making a change there.

Balancing Act – Baseball, Logos the Language School, Orphanage (Miskolc and Berretyoujfalu), Refugee Camp work, Handicapped work , Women’s Ministry (Marvelous Light), Using Coffee to touch lives (Coffee outreach), Adult American Football, School Basketball and English Classes everywhere!

Hmmm….I am glad that Kara Mckenzie has signed up for another year (or more) for work in Debrecen. Phillip Hildebrand arrived in Miskolc in September and hasn’t stopped running! (Ah, the passion of youth). They are our newest “tentmakers.” What is that exactly? The Apostle Paul did it…he made tents…and in doing so he worked amongst the people building relationships and supporting himself.

Kara and Phillip are hard at work learning to feed, house, travel and minister in Hungary. I think I’ll let them tell you their stories…….


From Kara

English Teaching
Just a little over a year ago I came to Hungary to touch lives through language. At times I am simply astounded at the doors that open to me, based on the mere fact that I am a native English speaker! I’ve participated on judging panels for English competitions with heads of education for Hungary and the EU – my only qualification was that I am a native speaker. Wow! Now I have reached a point where I have become a tent-maker. My ability to teach English has opened doors for me to support myself by teaching at 2 language schools. I still teach with LOGOS, but now I am also working for Katedra language school.

Coffee House
Missionaries with the International Mission Board (IMB) run this University outreach. Once a week we rent a room at a local panzio near city center and welcome people to a friendly, non-threatening environment. This is a place for people who are “window-shopping” Christianity. We serve coffee, tea and snacks and plan an activity for our guests so that they can meet people from around the world and interact with native English speakers. While building relationships with different people (students, orphans, refugees, etc) I have found this ministry outreach to be invaluable. It is a light-hearted wholesome event that I can invite people too. More often than not these individuals do not know me well enough (yet) to feel comfortable coming to my home. This ministry provides the perfect place for strengthening budding relationships, and from there we can provide people with options to dig deeper into Scripture (i.e. church, Men/Women’s Bible Studies).

Marvelous Light
This is a brand new ministry with a focus on Women in the “College/Career” phase of life (roughly ages 18-35). God gave me a vision and a passion for this ministry early this spring. There are so many young women in Debrecen and the surrounding area that have no interest in sports. Partnering with female, Hungarian Christians we are working to reach out to this demographic. Through Connections Coffee House, Language teaching, and Women’s Bible Study we are striving to reach the lost, and disciple the saved. As we work to build relationships with these women it currently means running all over the city and drinking a lot of coffee. The Connections Coffee House and the Women’s Bible Study (which meets once a week in my home) are the stable activities that we can invite people to.

Berettyóújfalu Orphanage & Music
After spending several weeks in Summer Camps I had plenty of opportunities to interact with orphans from a town called Berettyoújfalu (about 30 km south of Debrecen). Currently I am going there on Friday afternoons. I have one piano student and we spend about a half hour working together, and then we play with the other kids in the duplex. We are hoping and praying to get a translator so that we can begin doing Bible Stories with them.

In Summary
PLEASE PRAY! Each of these ministries can only be effective with YOUR help! Pray for the people we are reaching out to, and come into contact with. Pray for each person we partner with (Calvary Chapel Debrecen, IMB, etc). Please keep me in your prayers as I work to balance my schedule and learn the Hungarian language. There are so many ministry opportunities and it is important to stay closely in tune with exactly where the Holy Spirit wants us to be.

Paul said in his first letter to the Corinthians that “Everything is permissible – but not everything is beneficial. Everything is permissible – but not everything is constructive. Nobody should seek his own good, but the good of others” (1 Corinthians 10:23-24).

This is why it is so important for all of us at GSI to balance our schedules. There are many amazing opportunities, and we’ve all reached a point where it is necessary to discern exactly what God wants us to do in this season. Sometimes a distraction can come along dressed as an amazing opportunity. Pray for wisdom and discernment for each of us that we may glorify God in ALL of our work.

From Phillip

English and Sports

As the newest GoodSports Intern, I am living and working in Miskolc. A teacher of English at the Avasi Gimnazium, I have a bunch of kids who think I am the best at English! (little do they know). I help coach the school basketball team and get this…TWO adult American Football teams have hired me to be on their coaching staff in Nyiregyhaza and Budapest. Our new all star team from both Miskolc and Nyiregyhaza just beat the Budapest Cowboys (ranked second in the country!).

Kids who shape my life

But the real sharing of my life is with the kids at the Diosgyori Children’s home. We have started a bible study on Monday’s and every month we are starting a children’s church service. We discovered that sometimes the church has to go to the kids and not the other way around.

Just pray

A lot is going on…but I love it. My prayer is that you will lift the work I do in prayer. We need lots of things, but prayer tops the list…

GoodSports 2010

GoodSports Hungary is rushing into new areas of ministry. From teaching English to refugees to orphanage outreaches to our village baseball team, there is never a dull moment in Hungary.

Now, our first American intern, Haley Murphy, has joined us for a six month stay. She will be teaching English at the refugee camp and local schools as well as doing children's programs. Haley will help launch our new non-profit language school: Logos, International.

As soon as our summer schedule is set we will post it. We invite you to pray with us as we serve here in Hungary.

What's the buzz on the Mosquitoes?

As the school year begins, the Mosquitoes are scrambling to prepare for the upcoming tournament for the Hungarian championship. Three players from our village team made the Hungarian national team this summer and won 4th place in an international tournament held in Czech. Here is a video our Mikepercs Mosquitoes.

Take Me Out to the Ball Game

After two or three years of practicing baseball with our village kids, GoodSports and our village of Mikepercs now has a team in the Hungarian National Youth Baseball League. We have only played three games so far and although we lost two (both to the Szentendre Sleepwalkers who have five or six Japanese kids on the team and most are 14, the upper age limit), the Mikepercs Mosquitos did manage to beat last year's national champs -- the Tiger Kids. And they did it quite soundly.

So baseball fever has hit our village. And in the whirlwind of hitting and catching, bunts and base steals, relationships are being forged. And we pray that Christ is glorified. May the pearl of great price come to Mikepercs in the form of a diamond -- a baseball diamond that is...

Christmas in Hungary

The Greathouse's enormous hospitality brought seven girls who grew up in the orphanage at Miskolc down for Christmas in Debrecen. We did Christmas Eve at the Greathouses and Christmas Day at our home. Here are some photos.

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GoodSports Hungary Summer 2008

In the spirit of "a picture is worth a thousand words," here is our report from summer 2008. I hope you enjoy it. And you can join our new "Prayer Family" program introduced in this video.

When an Orphan Discovers the Family of God

As I write this, we are wrapping up five weeks of unending camps and mission outreaches which stretched from an orphanage in Miskolc, Hungary up to a baseball camp in Bojnice, Slovakia then into the simplicity of Hungarian village life and finally into a youth English camp before wrapping up back in the orphanage at Miskolc.

Over the course of these weeks we've struggled to break through the thick walls erected by wounded souls, we've fought stereotypes and an outbreak of scabies along with a threat of lyme's disease, we've learned more about our brothers and sisters in Christ who come from different denominational backgrounds, and we have seen some precious kids come to Christ in very genuine ways.

I used to think that was what it was all about, but now I understand that this is just the beginning. Becoming a part of a family can happen in just a moment, but that moment is but the cusp of relationships that develop and deepen over the course of a lifetime -- or perhaps eternity.

On last Friday, a baptism occured on the final day of English Camp. When Evi, one girl from the Miskolc orphanage learned of it, she ran to her best friend asked her if she wanted to be baptized. Evi had been baptized the year before.

"I do not even know what it is about," Anita explained.

Evi shared with her friend how it was the outward expression of what Christ has done in one's heart.

Anita's eyes lit up as she asked excitedly, "Can I do it in jeans?"

Anita could not be held back that day and as she stood before the crowd of campers and counselors, she told her story:

"My name is Anita. Two years ago both my parents died, one six months after the other. I lived with various relatives after that, but as soon as I got settled in one place, I was sent somewhere else. I had no home. Eventually I was sent to the orphanage in Miskolc. And when I started going to the Wednesday bible study and the different conferences and programs that you made for us, I suddenly felt like I had a family again. God has given me a family in you."

That day Anita proclaimed Christ and was born into a new family -- the family of God. It is a new beginning for her, but just the first day among many where she will grow and change succeed and sometimes fail.

May we always be faithful to love her and those like her through it all. This is our call -- to love and guide them in love through their good and bad days. For not only do we share the gospel of Jesus Christ, we share our very lives as well, because they have become so dear to us. 1Thess2:8.

Please pray for Anita and Evi and all the kids of the Lakasotthon orphanage. God is doing a work among them even now.