Awaiting Budapest. Adaptability, transition, and motion are three words that have been on our minds a lot these past few years as we’ve begun our missionary careers here in Europe. This is now the sixth year that we have been living in the Netherlands! This summer we will transition to our new assignment in Budapest, Hungary! Split by the Danube River into the Buda side and the Pest side, it is the 14th largest city in Europe. The CHOG in Hungary is a beautiful example of unity in our region. The three church locations support and encourage each other as one body. See You in Orlando We are looking forward to briefly returning to America in June to attend the 2019 CHOG convention in Orlando. Let us know if you are planning to attend and would like to connect! We also are excited that just before convention starts, bright and early Thursday morning, there will be a 5k fun run/walk to raise money for Pink Door! Christy and several other 3W teammates have signed up to run. We hope this event can raise awareness and funds for the vital work that our teammates Rhonda and Kelley Philips do. Europe X We are anxiously awaiting gathering in Paris the weekend after Easter with leaders from Europe X. This will be the third face-to-face gathering of this small group, as we journey together and continually learn about the complexities of doing ministry across post-Christendom Europe. We are looking forward to having Nate Tatman, our future teammate and current pastor in Indiana, present with us for this gathering! Please add these pastors from France, Italy, Hungary, Spain, and England to your prayer lists as they seek to meet their communities right where they are and be the hands and feet of Jesus!
We are just thrilled to have been asked to be the coordinators for Europe X. This subnetwork of 3WLN (Three Worlds Leadership Network) is a support initiative for churches in our region interested in creating a culture of multiplication and who are actively church planting. All of the Church of God congregations in Budapest are healthy, growing, and multiplication-focused! Being located in Budapest will allow us to work more centrally with the churches and countries within Europe X. We are amazed at how low-cost carrier airlines allow us to fly between CHOG locations in different countries for usually under $115 round trip. This also means that we will be able to stay connected with the Churches of God in the Netherlands as we will still be the North American liaisons between Global Strategy/Church of God Ministries and the four churches in the Netherlands. We just returned from spending Sofie’s spring break visiting Budapest, talking with the Hungarian pastors, meeting with realtors, and attempting to acquaint ourselves with what district we would ideally hope to live in. We realized during this week that we basically are living a version of House Hunters International at the moment, albeit missions edition! We rejoiced with the pastors as they shared about how their churches are growing and filled with children! Individuals that support us monthly, at any level, will soon be receiving some short video updates. If you would like to start receiving those videos and follow this journey that God has us on in a more in-depth manner, please consider supporting us! This would greatly help alleviate some of our stress as we work to fundraise in the midst of transition, plus hopefully we can give you a few smiles and laughs while you watch it and spend a couple minutes “with us” on a regular basis. If you don’t currently support our family financially, would you consider starting? Transition is always a mix of excitement and fear as the majority of daily life switches from known into unknown. We covet your prayers during this season of so many things being up in the air! We do love and appreciate this season though. As we daily attempt to learn a new language, understand a new culture, and figure out our place in it, we are grateful for each other, for the love and support of family and friends and for the privilege of being able to share first-hand experiences of God moving in mighty ways here in our region of Europe and the Middle East!
Annual Support Goal $5,000Giving Suggestion:
Individuals/Families: $5 per month or $60 per year for 5 years
Churches: $10 per month or $120 per year for 5 years
