Missions: Countries & People Groups

Last weekend, Don and I stepped out of our typical world of college admissions and invoicing/public relations/running a household & business and connected in with a church body (E Free) and their conference about their mission efforts in Hungary. I think they have been sending people to Hungary for at least 13 years. The most interesting thing to me was that no one there seemed to have any connection to Hungary by ethnicity except for one guy, who was a Hungarian from Hungary, and me. But these people were all so passionate about Hungary and her people. God gave them a heart for Hungary! And then I read Kisses from Katie and she, too, had no ethnic connection to Uganda, but fell in love with the people of Uganda. God gave Katie a heart for Uganda!

If you don’t have a heart for a certain country maybe God is giving you a heart for a people group. Some people become connected to and passionate for a country or a people group because they have heard a missionary speak. Maybe you know a missionary in the field who has asked for prayer. Ask God to cultivate in you a heart for encouraging those who serve in missions and a passion for sharing the Gospel. And ask Him to give you a heart for something bigger than yourself!

As you pray for a country or people group, consider these PrayerPoint starts:

* receptive hearts to the Gospel
* native ministry partners
* creative & relative connecting points to share the Gospel
* funds needed for the workers and programs
* careful spending of the funds donated
* healthy and multiple partnering churches and church bodies
* creative ways to work through governmental issues
* language barriers to be removed
* the Gospel to be shared in many ways
* long-term relationship building

If you have a certain country on your heart, keep in mind, you may never be called to serve there. Being a prayer partner for a country or a people group is a big job but don’t be so overwhelmed that you are unable to do anything. Take it one step at a time. Learn about the country. Trace a map and label the top 5 cities. There are other hands on and practical ways to become more connected to a country. And if you have kids or work with kids, follow their lead. Encourage them to adopt a country or multiple countries during a year. If you do it monthly in your home or classroom you can pray for 12 countries in a year!

I do suspect God will grant you a heart for a country or a people group if you ask Him because He loves people. If you ask Him for a heart like His, He will certainly grant you a heart for missions. Having a heart for missions opens the door for God to work and develop in you a heart for certain people.

And who knows where that might lead.

Hungarian Bibles for Children in Hungary

Are you interested in helping some Children’s Bibles in the Hungarian language get to children in Hungary?

Let me tell you how this started.

I am in contact with a publisher in Hungary who publishes Christian books in Hungarian – I am most interested in his Bibles — he has a Children’s version as well as an easier-to-read version for adults.

I am also in contact with Patricia who lives in Hungary and works with orphans. She is originally from California but has lived in Hungary the last 20+ year ministering to these orphans. She isn’t even Hungarian but speaks fluently — and she married a Hungarian national. They have a huge heart for missions. They live on a very modest budget and have officially adopted one child but unofficially love on many, many kids. They are also building a home for unwed mothers near Eger.

I asked Patricia if she could use some Children’s Bibles and her answer was yes ~ 50!

50? Gulp!

It would be wonderful to hand the publisher the money for the 50 Bibles when we visit Hungary in May. The publisher is willing to get the books to Patricia. We will buy as many as we can.

Here are some ways you can help:

* Please pray for this opportunity. We are excited to partner with the publisher, the missionary family, and our customers who have a heart for this type of ministry. Thank you for praying!

* Consider making a purchase from Magyar Marketing between now and May 7th. 10% of all retail sales will go towards purchasing these Bibles.

* Consider a contribution of your own to this project. Any $ amount will help. While we are not a tax deductible organization so you won’t get a tax credit, this is a great opportunity to share God’s love with these children. All $$ donated will go to the purchase of the books and the exchange penalty at the bank (unfortunately unavoidable).

May I say I am so thankful we have come this far in being able to share the Gospel with Hungary? I remember my mom sewing money into the coats of priests who were going to visit their family in Hungary and Transylvania so love offerings could get to those churches.

If you would like to make an additional contribution please email me at liz(at)magyarmarketing.com

May God bless your day!

Liz and family

PrayerPoint ~ The Mind ~ March 1

Today’s PrayerPoint ~ The Mind

Just before Christmas, Hannah, Elizabeth, and I had an opportunity to sing Hungarian Christmas carols to an elderly woman living in Evansville who only speaks Hungarian. Imagine that! She lives right here near us and the person who checks in on her is our Hungarian instructor. This sweet woman has Alzheimer’s disease, a form of dementia that gradually gets worse over time. Her short term memory isn’t very good, but let me tell you, her ability to sing multiple verses of a number of Christmas carols in Hungarian from memory had not diminished one bit. Those verses were tucked way deep in her mind and she joined along as we sang and she didn’t even need a song sheet! So, so sweet. She remembered. She knew. She sang with her whole heart.

The mind is pretty amazing. We “make up our minds” and “change our minds” and we say “never mind” when we want someone to forget something. But have you ever allowed God to transform your mind about something?

There are times that I am determined to believe something or behave a certain way even though I know it is counter to what God has to say on the matter. I can be so easily persuaded by worldly thinking — especially when I feel justified in doing so. Immersing myself in Scripture is certainly a key ingredient to “changing my mind” about a person or a circumstance. I am so thankful for the Holy Spirit’s influence on my thought life. There is no substitute for God’s nudge of awareness for both helpful and dangerous thought patterns. Now, if only I will choose to heed those nudges!

Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God—this is your spiritual act of worship. Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will. For by the grace given me I say to every one of you: Do not think of yourself more highly than you ought, but rather think of yourself with sober judgment, in accordance with the measure of faith God has given you. Romans 12:1-3 NIV

Are you willing to let God change your mind on a matter? Or are you determined to stand your ground?

Blessings on your day!
Liz

Palacsinta-Hungarian crépes

Here is our basic recipe for Palacsinta–Hungarian crépes–

2 large eggs

1 cup flour

2 tbsp sugar

1 1/3 cup soda water

1/3 cup milk

1/3 cup butter, melted and cooled

pinch of salt

This is our basic recipe. It all depends on the size of your eggs and you should plan to adjust the recipe if you need to get a very thin batter. 1/4 cup of batter will be all you need in the crépe pan as it should be thin enough to cover the bottom of a 10 inch pan. This morning we just slowly added the wet ingredients with the dry and mixed with a whisk. Some instructions recommend letting the batter rest for an hour before using but we were way too hungry to wait.

For more information on Hungarian products and encouragement to share your Hungarian heritage, visit our website at http://www.magyarmarketing.com and join our Magyar Marketing Facebook FanPage. Our goal is to help you discover, celebrate, and share Hungarian heritage!

Hungarian Soup

The other day I had some soup bones I needed to use up and so I decided to make Hungarian soup. The Hungarians make many different soups so to call this one item ‘Hungarian soup’ is kind of crazy but that is what it affectionately came to be known as in my family when I was growing up.

Naturally, I was thinking about all the tips and tricks my mom would mention as she was cooking the soup and I tried to execute it in a similar fashion. I felt pretty good about it but my kids like heartier, thicker soups so they were questioning how they were supposed to eat it (the carrots and potatoes were whole) and it wasn’t as satisfying to them.

There are times when something that is meaningful to you isn’t as meaningful to someone else. I don’t think it diminishes the value, but it does make it harder to create or enjoy something when others don’t really appreciate the effort. And yet, it doesn’t mean one shouldn’t make the effort.

Maybe you find yourself trying to share meaningful events during the church year with your children and they seem or state they are uninterested. Don’t lose heart. Some things are worth the effort. You likely have a connection to children in your life so take advantage of the opportunity you have to share with them. There are many ways they will catch on to the things of God without you delivering a 20 minute sermon. Let them see how you live and walk in faith. And while they may not adopt every practice you introduce to them, it is worth the effort to share with them. Their faith walk may look a little different from yours but that is ok.

When I have grandchildren, I will start them on this soup when they are young so they are used to it and grow to love it as much as I do!

Rubik’s Cube®

The Rubik’s Cube is a 3-D mechanical puzzle invented in 1974 by Hungarian sculptor and professor of architecture Ernő Rubik. We were pretty excited at our house when it first came out because we are 100% Hungarian. It wasn’t until recently that I wondered if there were some correlations between this cube and my life.

While getting one side to be all one color is impressive, it isn’t considered “solving the puzzle”.
Life Correlation: Just because I look put together in one area doesn’t mean I have all of life figured out. Check out all the sides.

One wrong turn can lead to several and that can lead to a mess.
Life Correlation: One wrong turn is rarely ever just one wrong turn. It is often the start of a series of bad moves.

Trying to put the puzzle back to its original shape takes time, patience, and practice.
Life Correlation: Trying to pick up the pieces in my life and put it back to its ‘original shape’ is impossible. I am so thankful for God’s mercy, grace, and forgiveness!

No matter how messed up it looks right now, there is someone who can put my confused Rubik’s Cube® back into a complete and perfect, original shape.
Life Correlation: No matter how messed up my life looks right now, God can take all of the wrongs I have done and the wrongs done to me and transform them for ministry moments in this broken and hurting world.

My prayer is that you allow God to work His healing and wholeness into every area of your life. As your healing progresses, do not be surprised if He asks you to share your story (His-story) to bless another fellow traveler on the path.