Decades in one moment

We’ve closed a week of an evangelistic blitz among high school students with a week-end-long YTL Student Retreat between March 17-19. It was a surreal moment for us to stand there and deliver our good-bye messages. In 1984 (still under communism) it was less then 5 of us students who first got involved in this ministry. (Of the original 5 only us are still around.) Over the decades we’ve seen thousands coming to faith and hundreds growing up into Christ-like laborers.

Speaking to this youngest generation of students in YTL were unique and emotional. I choose to speak on the “Walking the Narrow Path: what does it take to walk faithfully toward God when most everybody around you choose the easy road?” I’ve shared how the only thing that will keep them going is if they fell in love with the beauty of Jesus and they constantly renew their mind about who really God is and what He did for us! Doing this will help them overcome their doubts, theirs fears and their pain over the losses, and will enable them to leave behind what they need to, to deny themselves and to pick up their cross.

Decades come alive in one moment

The highlight of the weekend was to see decades of our ministry and life coming alive in one student’s testimony. Hajcsi (15 years old) was sharing how God encouraged her through our Bible-study group to share her faith with an old lady in her neighborhoodThis 15 years old girl gave an evangelistic literature to this old lady and prayed for her. A few days later this lady died. She had an opportunity to be exposed to the good news because this 15 years old student was faithful. BUT what’s even more unique in this story is that Hajcsi’s mother was one of the student who came to know the Lord and was discipled through YTL in the mind 1990s. 20+ years later her daughter is also discipled by our ministry and is sharing her faith! What a privilege to see lives touched generations after generations! It couldn’t have happened without your constant, faithful, sacrificial partnership! We are convinced that what God is up to in the future through YTL and other ministries is going to expand that influence further to the cities of the U.S. and of the world.

Please, pray for:

• the ENGLISH translation of the YTL curriculum. HUGE, HUGE, HUGE project and VERY IMPORTANT! We just got a letter from China from a professor in a university in Shanghai and they are waiting for this new YTL curriculum to be in English so they could translate it into mandarin and use it in their university!
• all the details of our move (June 20th): renting our house in Hungary, selling cars, packing, moving, housing in the U.S., buying cars, etc.. - the list is overwhelmingly long.
• our kids’ future: that they would have friends, community, schools, adjust to the culture, etc..
• our health: emotional, physical, mental, spiritual strength as we lead our family through this.
• our finances: we need resources not just to cover the extra costs of this move but to find more partners who would support our ministry on a regular basis.
• our legal processes: we have to do a lot of legal closings in Hungary (tax, insurances, etc.) and a lot of legal openings in the U.S. (tax, insurances, driver’s license - yes, we will need to take a written test and a driving test - ugh, I’m so tempted to show them how Hungarians really drive :)
• Edina and I as we have to travel in May to Orlando for a training for 12 days.

The magnitude of this change in our life forces us to draw ourselves ever closer to our magnificent God! Your friendship and partnership is more needed and thanked for than ever before!

Advancing the Kingdom of God together,

Gabor and Edina
online secure giving: give.cru.org/0636800

The Power of Prayer

Prayer-event for the release of Andrew Brunson

As we look in the Bible we see everywhere the power of prayer.

• The prayer of Abraham proves that prayer saves the lives of people. (Gen 18:22-33) 
• The prayer of Moses shows that prayer rescues a whole nation. (Ex 32)
• The prayer of Hannah brings life and gives a prophet to a nation. (1Sam 1)
• The prayer of Elijah impacts nature. (1King 17:1, 18:1)
• The prayer of David brings victory in the battle against every odds. (1Sam 17:45-47) 
• The prayer of Solomon enables the young as he faces a daunting task. (1Kings 3:9) 
• The prayer of Hezekiah heals the sick and expands life-time. (Is 38:2-3)
• The prayer of Daniel reveals God’s secret. (Dan 5:29)
• The prayer of Jesus unites him with the will of God. (Mt 11:26).
• The prayer of Paul tells us that completely transforms us. (Phil 1:9-12)
• The prayer of the Church advances the mission of Jesus. (Acts 4:23-25) 

Prayer impacts governments and changes the lives of generations!

Last week I had been invited to a government organized meeting in the Education Department of the Hungarian Government. A handful of people had been invited to help shape the future Family Life Education Program the Hungarian Government wants to implement. The YTL curriculum is a key component of this new government initiated Family Life Education Program.
One of the expert the government invited to this meeting is Agnes. She is a university professor. 22 years ago she became a believer through YTL.Now at this meeting she thanked me not just for the impact this ministry had on her life, but that YTL is now taught in her daughter’s school and she is impacted by it now! It’s amazing to see how God is using this ministry to impact generations after generations!
What a privilege to see that where ever we went with YTL from Hungary to East Asia God has opened the doors of professionals and decision-makers. As we are taking on the biggest challenge of our life and are seeking to take YTL to the U.S. and beyond working together with the co-author and co-founder of YTL again, we have great anticipation about what God is up to! The road of this transition had been extremely difficult: physically, emotionally, spiritually, legally, financially and family-wise. Our experience is that whenever something is so hard like this, God is always up to something and the Devil is trying to attack in every possible way!
Your prayers had never been more needed! Only through the power of prayer God can use YTL in the U.S. and beyond. Pray fervently! Pray boldly! Pray that God would open miraculous doors for the gospel.

How to pray for us?

• We have found a translator for the YTL curriculum. We hope that by the end of this year all the 700+ pages, 3 volumes, 54 classroom lectures and 17 reading assignments will be translated. We are trusting God to provide the appr. $8000 to cover the translation and editing costs!
• I’ll be giving 3 talks at the YTL student retreat on March 17-19. Much to prepare for! Pray God would speak!
• On April 3rd, the Hungarian CRU team will have a special sending event for us when they'll invite leaders from churches and mission organization and will send us out as their missionaries to serve in the U.S. and beyond.
• May 10-21 Edina and I have to travel to the U.S. for a training for our new role.
• June 20th is our moving date to KC. So much needs to happen before that:
  • Renato graduates from High School (June 10th). He still doesn’t know where he will end up from the fall. HUGE prayer-request that he would come with us at least for a year or two!
  • Gergo graduates from middle school (June 14th).
  • Rahel graduates from King’s College, London and will find out if she is accepted to med school in Scotland. 
  • We need to find a moving company.
  • We need to sell our cars in Hungary and find some reliable used cars in the U.S.
  • We are renting our house in Hungary (contracts, prep for renting etc.).
  • We need to sell most of our appliances as they are 220V and are not usable in the U.S.
  • We need to do a tons of paperwork with the Hungarian government as we are leaving (tax, insurance, etc.) and with the U.S. government (driver's licenses, tax, insurance, etc.) as we are arriving. 
  • We need to say good-bye well to parents, relatives, friends and our church.

Are we overwhelmed? Yes! “We are afflicted in every way, but not crushed; perplexed, but not driven to despair;… struck down, but not destroyed; always carrying in the body the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be manifested in our bodies.” 2Cor 4:8-9.
Your prayers, friendship, partnership is needed more than ever!

Advancing the Kingdom of God together,

Gabor & Edina