January Whirl

At the beginning of this new year God has answered a pretty few of my 3-month old prayer requests (hm... I didn't need to wait so long...):


- My international driving license has arrived! I am very excited because 1. I have more opportunities and 2. I can become a (more) confident driver (What a gift!).

- I have my home church: the Hillbrow Independent Baptist Church in the heart of the city. Last Sunday with one of the boys I crossed the street to get some peanuts before Church Service. He asked me: Can you run fast? Hm... :D I invited the mongers to church and I prayed right there for them because God loves to see in His house even those who have dreds. I hope one day they will take Him seriously.

- A few years ago I whispered a prayer to God if He thinks fit than to use me in people's lives by a regular ministry as well. He has answered it double: I can serve in the Youth on Fridays (and help the girls) and I can show the beautiful truths of the Bible to the young ones in their language at Sunday School. I am so very excited, I can't even put it into words... :)

- At Word of Life South Africa besides the new year's big Bible Club Material reproduction (printing, punching, binding, shipping) now we are to organize 3 camps (3 weeks in a row - my responsibility is the program). Now I make myself completely at home. :D

- The Discipleship Training Center has started (4 boys): I have a really important role in this!!! Twice a week I cook for supper! :D My price ups to 100 cows by now. Who would offer more? :D My new favorite is that I can introduce the drama world to the guys - they can learn a lot of new things, many skits and the Born Again To A Living Hope will take its first steps with them as well.

Above all my social life is getting stronger as well - I get to a know and keep in touch with more and more people.

Thank you very much that so many of you are beside me and pray for me! It means a lot to me!!!


PS unbelievable as it is - It rains a lot this summer in Johannesburg (which means the sun is not shining).

SUMMER CAMPS

(I am already asking the WOL Hungary Summer Camp Team's forgiveness!!! :D)

I have spent the best week of my life in a summer camp organized by WOL South Africa. We had a lot of preparation. Though the kids camp was only 2 nights/3 days and the youth one was 5 days we needed to design and do the decoration, to plan the daily activities, schedules, games related to the topic (kids camp - Safari, youth camp - Truth under pressure)...

I was a program helper which actually meant joker (slavey?). :D I was truly thankful for it because I was able to taste of everything: I was part of a lot of pranks, I taught how to swim, I talked to a girl after the dedication camp fire, I led a morning hike with Quiet Time, I landed in the swimming pool in my jeans, I was Zizi, the zebra for three days, I was the key person (the main coordinator of the room checks :), I led many, many games...

2 favorite memories:

- I asked Miriam to announce after one of the evening meetings my Hungarian collage, Andris Bartos' picked bone joke: "Put on water and fire-proof clothes for the evening game!" You should've seen those scared faces and then heard all those questions: What kind of cloth is that? Are we really going to play with the fire? ... :D :D :D

- The original plan was to have a morning hike with Quiet Time every morning with each team but it was raining all week except Friday when I was scheduled to lead the group. So we made it voluntarily but still there was quiet a group of people. That one hour what we spent together gave some stronger friendships, opportunities to be observer and part of lives up to this day.

So truly my heart is full of praises and thanks to God that He brought so many young people to the camp, so many of them made personal decisions and also how much He stretched me as well.

Smile and laugh with me at these pictures:

The preparation (card-boards and paints everywhere)

The key woman

One of the rooms' creative group picture

Opps... Kirsten got the package of salt to eat...

Chocolate in nappy :D

Classical muscle moves

Are you pushing girls to the pool??? So there!!! Eggs!!! :D

Sliding together is FUN!!!

More pictures:
Kids Camp 1. (200 pictures)
Kids Camp 2. (68)
Teens camp 1. (68)
Teens Camp 2. (199)
Teens Camp 3. (125)
Teens Camp 4. (119)
Teens Camp 5. (28)
Hike (18)

(The pictures were taken by Jessica Bowen, BIRD ON A WIRE PHOTOGRAPHY.)

People I give special thanks to God for...

The Page family

"We always thank God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, when we pray for you, because we have heard of your faith in Christ Jesus and of the love you have for all God’s people." (Paul - Col 1:3-4)

This is the way I think and pray for this family which set up a really high gage in gathering God's people around them and love them in the most natural way. They share almost everything with others, there is no difference between mine and yours. They are not perfect but still great examples of how they try to be more and more like Jesus.

Jessica Bowen

Mamma mia! Who has ever thought that 3 weeks could be so full of laughter, honesty, happy moments, cries, late night hours, wet clothes, movies, chips and chocolates, sentences started accidentally in Hungarian, paintings, seeing things in the clouds and of course copying everything I say with a Hungarian accent... :D God gives so abundantly that I just simply overflow...

Jess was our offical and professional summer camp photographer. "She is at ease as much as a flake." (I have a hard time to translate myself... all these slangs I use....) I am really thankful for her how God worked in me through her: she eased me, recalled the joy of the painting, showed me how to remain a woman even in the ministry and we became simple friends.

We hope and pray that she may come back to South Africa again and meet in Hungary as well! :)

Hillbrow

This is the heart of Johannesburg (In the 1970s it was an Apartheid-designated 'whites only' area but soon became a 'grey area', where people of different ethnicities lived together. The lack of investment led to an exodus of middle class residents so today the majority of the residents are migrants from the township, rural areas and the rest of Africa.). What I cannot reflect with any words, any pictures is the music of the city (others say noise), the dirt and mess everywhere... and of course the faces... Well, Hillbrow is in my daily Prayer Journal...