(Above: Our kids participating in our family's giving tradition before we opened our presents. Also, our family ice skating at the Budapest city park on Christmas Eve.)
I thought we would take a couple of paragraphs and describe how we celebrated Christmas here on the other side of the world from America.
Christmas Adam party: At the Campus Crusade offices here in town EB and I put on our ministry's annual "Christmas Adam" celebration, which we have on the day before Christmas Eve. (get it? Adam came before Eve!) I ran the program while EB did the decorating and organized this event. It was both a family time and worship time for the 40 or so American families who either teach at the missionary school or work out of the Eastern European and Russian Campus Crusade headquarters located here in Budapest. EB received a hearty round of applause for her excellent work!
Christmas Eve Ice Skating: On Christmas Eve we continued another family tradition of ice skating at the Budapest city park. Even though the temp was over 40 degrees it was a lot of fun, especially for the kids. From there we went to our church's Christmas Eve celebration.
Family Give before Presents: We have a tradition that we do with our children in the days before Christmas. EB and I take money from our savings and gave each child a different amount based on their age. We then put before them photos and letters from about 10 ministries and individual missionaries that we like (most were not Campus Crusade ministries) and let the kids decide where to give their money. Our kids got so excited about this that each child dipped into their own personal money and gave even more to these ministries!
Christmas on a Sunday: Finally, at 5:30pm today, we began to open our presents. We decided to attend church in the morning and wait on the presents. It was unique to open presents in the evening (about the same time that our friends on the West Coast awoke to their Christmas mornings) but I am proud that our kids exercised the patience it took to persevere throughout the day.
Kingdom-Mentality Giving: I know this time of year many people give extra to their favorite charities. EB and I desire to exercise a "kingdom mentality" toward giving. We believe the Lord has already provided the money that every Christ-centered ministry needs. Therefore, EB and I encourage you to give generously to those ministries the Lord has put on your heart. Living outside of the US, I realize how much the Lord has blessed financially the American church and how great the needs are of Christian causes overseas. Thank you for the great generosity you have shown us and our friends! You are a great example of giving and being committed financially to the Great Commission world-wide. It is a privilege for our family to serve with you!
May the Spirit of generosity that sent God's Son to earth be yours all year long!
Love, Matt and EB
