The Joy of Giving!

Dear Partners in Ministry,

Every year at this time, more money is given to charitable causes than any other month. And with the economy strong, we may see more money given to charity in December 2006 than any month in history. That is wonderful! America is the most generous country on earth!

My ministry is about giving. I see both sides. I see a country that the Lord has blessed with abundant resources, unlike any country ever in the history of the world. Yet I frequently see many missionaries living at near poverty conditions. So I would like to present you with three reasons why we should give generously.

1) The Lord commands that we give generously: Paul, inspired by the Holy Spirit, wrote to Timothy these words, “Instruct those who are rich in this present world…to be rich in good works, to be generous and ready to share, storing up for themselves the treasure of a good foundation for the future, so that they may take hold of that which is life indeed,” (1 Timothy 6:17-18).

2) The cause of Christ needs laborers: In my travels across Eastern Europe I see doors opened wide for the gospel but no one is there to go through them. I see missionaries who want to bring the gospel to their countrymen but just don’t have the resources to support their work. I see excellent outreach strategies that never get past the proposal stage. There are many reasons why this is so, but always top among those reasons is a lack of funding. In one of the most influential New Testament passages to me, Jesus says, “the harvest is plentiful but the laborers are few…” (Matthew 9:37).

3) The words of Jesus: “It is more blessed to give than to receive,” (Acts 20:35). THIS VERSE IS RADICAL! Many of the national missionaries I work with are scared about asking American Christians for financial support. I answer by showing them this Scripture; they are a blessing to their donors! It is more important for the donor to give than it is for the missionary to receive! I believe that the biggest competitor to missions is not Muslims, secularists or foreign governments; it is materialism. When we give to the cause of Christ we are choosing to divorce ourselves from the idol of materialism. Giving, if done in the right spirit, is a high form of worship to Almighty God!

But the sad fact is that very few Christians are giving. The “Rule of 3s” helps to explain this: 1) the average Christian gives only 3% of their income to Christian causes 2) only 3% of Christians tithe and 3) of the money that is given only 3% goes to the international mission field. Yet most Christians complain of financial problems. Is there a connection? Imagine where the cause of Christ would be world-wide if merely half of us tithed!

However, I must say this: EB and I have received undeserved attention for the financial turn around of our ministry in Hungary (they still have needs but are now pointed in the right direction). We don’t deserve credit; YOU do! When we began to help our Hungarian staff, we went to THOSE ALREADY SUPPORTING US! And you all gave generously again and introduced our beloved Hungarian staff to your like-minded friends. Even recently in an email I quoted our Polish director that it will not be a happy Christmas for many of our Polish staff families due to poor support. And YOU took the initiative (I never asked). Over $20,000 thus far has been given to our needy Polish staff. Wow! YOU MAKE EB AND ME LOOK GOOD! Keep up the excellent work; you are an example to the cause of Christ everywhere!

EB and I want to live with a “kingdom mentality.” If you will be giving extra this Christmas, then please consider the needs of national missionaries (with ANY Christ-exalting ministry) before our family’s needs; also EB and I would like to recommend Samaritan’s Purse (http://www.samaritanspurse.org) Through their humanitarian work, they get the gospel into areas that mere evangelists and church planters cannot go.

Giving benefits you, it empowers the missionary and brings the Lord glory. Name another use of money that does all that! Giving generously is a WIN-WIN-WIN opportunity!

Serving with you,

Matt and EB

PS: this is a link to a talk I heard by John Piper. No other theologian has influenced me like Piper. This is classic Piper and it is a “go into all the world and lay down your life for Jesus” message. http://www.desiringgod.org/ResourceLibrary/Sermons/ByScripture/10/11_Let_All_the_Peoples_Praise_Him/

Do not seek a painless death; seek a purposeful death.

Warsaw's Tragic History & the Death of the European Enlightenment

I was caught off guard with how modern Warsaw is. Plenty of reminders that I was in Eastern Europe (including cold and grey winter weather) yet Warsaw has skyscrapers that Budapest doesn't have.

It was July 1944. The Polish resistance, outgunned and outnumbered, was battling the Nazis for control of Warsaw. The Poles looked up and saw on the opposite side of the Vistula river, which flowed through Warsaw, the Soviet army lined up on the banks. The Poles cheered! “They have come to rescue us! They will cross over and drive out the Nazis!” But the Soviets did not cross. They stood there. Watching. And waiting. They waited until the Nazis greatly weakened themselves by pounding the Polish resistance and destroying Warsaw. Once both the Poles were decimated and the Nazis exhausted, then did the Soviet army make its move. The Nazis retreated leaving death and destruction behind. Hence, the Soviets postured themselves as the liberators of Warsaw (much like they did in Budapest). Little did the Polish people realize that they were about to be enslaved by the Soviets for the next two generations.

250,000 Poles died during World War II as the Nazis and the Soviet armies battled over Warsaw. Before the war, Warsaw had a Jewish population of 400,000. After the war, there were virtually no Jews left. During my brief tour of Warsaw, I saw a wall that marked a boundary of the former Jewish ghetto. And many of the same emotions came over me that I felt this past summer at Auschwitz: emotions of terror, disbelief and disgust mixed with anger. There is nothing left of the 400,000 Jews that lived in this city 65 years ago. (Wikipedia’s page on Warsaw is a great, quick resource about the World War II battle for Warsaw: www.wikipedia.com)

This wall in Warsaw is essentially all that is left of the Jewish ghetto built by the Nazis.

The Soviets desired to colonize and make slaves out of Poland and all of Eastern Europe. On the heels of the Jewish holocaust, the Soviets either killed or shipped to the Siberian Gulags all the intellegencia of Poland, regardless of religion. (The Soviets did this as well as in the other Eastern Europe countries). They didn’t want any skilled workers, thinkers, entrepreneurs, leaders, problem solvers, or wealthy people in any of their European colonies; all they wanted was a mindless working class of slaves that they could manipulate and extract goods from on behalf of the Soviet Union.

Like our Campus Crusade staff in Hungary, our Polish staff can all tell stories from the previous generation of relatives that simply vanished or family that were ruthlessly killed. I stayed with Robert and Beata Kowalsky, a Campus Crusade Polish staff couple with 3 beautiful young girls. Of Robert’s father’s family, only Robert’s father survived the battle of Warsaw as a 15 year old boy constantly on the move to avoid capture; the rest of his family was captured and killed. Beata’s grandfather was shipped off to Siberia because he was a blacksmith and the Soviets didn’t want him making bullets or weapons for the Polish resistance.

The Enlightenment began when on a wintery day in 1618 Rene Descartes sat next to a fire and articulated the words that not only changed Europe but world history: “I think therefore I am.” At that point an era began where the shift of authority was no longer based on the Bible and the church but based on human wisdom and reason. Man set out to build an earthly utopia that was void of God and any other authority except man himself. The Enlightenment didn’t end, I personally believe, until the fall of the Berlin wall in 1991. That symbolic act was the curtain closing on the final scene of the European Enlightenment that chronicled man’s multi-century failure to build a utopia on earth.. The harder man tries to build a man-centered Christless utopia, the more tragic are the results.

The quest for societal utopia is all but gone (albeit the Muslims today think that a world-wide society based on seventh century Arab culture is the answer). Unfortunately the vacuum left by the Enlightenment in Europe is not being filled with a return to Jesus Christ; it is being filled with Post-Modern thinking that embraces a world view that is nihilistic, fatalistic and materialistic. Shopping malls have replaced universities (which had replaced churches) as the center of society. The pursuit of materialism (i.e. the pursuit of self) is what occupies the modern European mind. The tragedies of World War II are told today by the grandparents, listened to with one ear by pre-occupied parents and pronounced boring by the children. Unfortunately, the words found posted in Auschwitz by George Santayana take on a special meaning: “The one who does not remember history is bound to live through it again.”

These are the Kowalsky girls. Their parents, Robert and Beata, are on our Polish Campus Crusade team. I work closely with Robert in addressing the financial needs of our Polish ministry and staff. Above, these girls are (from the left) Carolina, Victoria and Eunice.

I almost forgot! Thanks for praying for Elizabeth! Here she is flanked by her mom and grandmother in a Budapest doctor's office moments after waking up from surgery for having her wisdom teeth pulled. There were no complications and she only took pain medicine the next day.

How can a God who is all loving send someone to hell?

We had a birthday recently. Rebekah turned 10 years old. She got one of the best presents an American kid living overseas could receive: Oreos!



Savannah, EB, Rebekah and Elizabeth (Liz).

I was drinking cappuccino in the dining car of the train that was taking me from Budapest to the Czech city of Brno, where I was scheduled to speak that night. We were passing rolling hills and small villages along the Danube river in the northern part of Hungary. We even passed the Visegrad castle perched on a high hilltop above the river. I remember praying, “Thank You, Lord, that I can take Your message of reconciliation into a country where You are largely ignored. What an awesome privilege. I certainly must have the greatest job in the world!”

The Czech Republic is a country of 12 million people, yet has the same ratio of evangelicals as Poland: ½ of 1 percent of the population. In spite of the rich Czech history of the Moravians and the Hussites, the Czech people have shown little interest in the gospel since the fall of Communism. Yet when I arrived in Brno and met the staff of this student ministry (a group aligned with but not a part of Campus Crusade for Christ), my heart was encouraged. These Czech missionaries are working the campus at Brno, along with several other universities inside of Czech. Also EB’s mom’s family comes from Bohemia, which is modern day western Czech; my wife and children all have Czech blood.

After touring the city for 2 hours, I gave my presentation to 60 students on “If God is all-loving and all-powerful, how do we make sense of the evil and suffering around us?” After my talk, which was translated into Czech, I fielded some questions. When that was over, several students wanted to ask me questions one-on-one, including one young lady with tears in her eyes. “How can a God who is all loving send someone to hell, even if that person sincerely searched for God?” I took a deep breath, smiled and attempted answer to her plea.

“First, I appreciate your heart. It shows a tender spirit. I understand this is a difficult issue. It is for me too. Second, God created hell because many people want nothing to do with God. They shake their fist at God or ignore Him their whole lives. When they die, they merely get what they have spent their whole physical lives pursuing…separation from God. Therefore God would not be just if He didn’t create hell.

Third, I believe no one deserves heaven; rather we all deserve hell due to our rebellion against God and His incomprehensible holiness. So the fact that heaven is even an option for us is an indication of God’s grace toward mankind. And God maintained His just nature not by merely waving off our sin but by extracting in its entirety the penalty for our sin. Therefore even though there is a hell, God is still the Most Just Judge and the Greatest Love in the universe. (I didn’t but I should have at this point quoted Athanasius, an influential Christian theologian, when he said back in the third century, “What kind of person must He have been to bring us the salvation that He alone could have and did bring to us?”)

Fourth, I believe in hell because Jesus teaches about hell. And I trust Jesus. I may not always understand Him fully but I trust Him. Fifth, in a direct response to your question, I believe the Lord will move heaven and earth to get the gospel to those who truly seek Him. I reject the idea that God is unable or unwilling to get the gospel to those who honestly seek Him. In fact Ronnie (my pastor in Budapest who speaks frequently to this student group) travels to Iraq several times a year to meet with 13 Iraqi pastors. 11 of those 13 pastors came to faith in Christ because Jesus appeared to each of them individually in a dream and said, “Follow Me.” No Four Spiritual Laws, no TV preacher, no Jesus film showing. The Lord is prepared to do whatever it takes to call His sheep to Himself.”

She smiled, wiped away a tear, thanked me and left. I’m not sure if my words were helpful to her or not. But the staff there said I connected well with the students and even said they are anxious to have me back again.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Matt

A view of Brno, Czech.

Memphis to Austin to emergency skin graft surgery

It was 2 weeks ago that EB and I returned to Budapest from the US. I spent the first 10 days in Memphis with two of our Polish staff. I wish I had great news to report to you. I wish I could tell you that both of the Polish men I worked with got their support fully raised. We had several great volunteers really sacrifice a lot and work hard to open doors for these two guys (their names in English were Mark and Luke; together we were Matthew Mark and Luke!). But for whatever the reason, folks weren’t buying. Some support was raised but these men will return to Poland soon (they remained after I left Memphis) still in great financial need. The battle may have been lost but the war is not!

From Memphis, I hooked up with EB and together we went to Austin. There the President of Campus Crusade (Steve Douglas) and many of the Vice Presidents of Campus Crusade had a weekend with some of the top donors of Campus Crusade from across America. There the dreams and goals of our ministries world-wide were presented to some of the ministry’s best friends and most generous donors. Poland was given center stage one night and Marek Wyrzykowski, who traveled with me in the States this past summer, gave a great presentation on what the Lord is doing and has done in Poland. Money was raised but still not enough to meet the needs of our Polish staff and ministries.

In Austin at the conference we met one man whose business was bought out by a large corporation. I asked him, “So what are you going to do with the money? Buy a bigger house, another car or new clothes?” “No!” he said as if I had just insulted him, “I am going to use the money to fund the Great Commission!” Music to my ears! We need thousands of men like this who will invest not in the temporal things of this life but who will channel their resources and abilities toward the work of the gospel around the world. God calls ALL Christians to live sacrificially in view of the Great Commission. Not all are called to go but all are called to live passionately whether that is through sending others, giving generously, or praying continually.

EB and me at the Austin conference.

The money is out there for the fulfillment of the Great Commission; there is no doubt. The Lord has blessed abundantly the church in America. There is no greater cause, no greater pursuit man can commit himself to than the spread of the gospel. The Lord Jesus Christ is worthy of worship of all peoples everywhere. Outside of the direct worship of and communing with the Lord, there is no greater pursuit of the Christian church than missions.

Ben's foot 10 days after skin graft surgery

Perhaps the biggest news is what happened while I was in the States and EB was still in Budapest. Our son Ben suffered a third degree burn on his leg just above his foot. It required immediate skin graft surgery. It was over before I even knew what happened. I logged onto my email while in Memphis one morning and had received several emails saying, “Heard about Ben; we will be praying.” I was clueless. When I finally reached EB by phone she was with Ben at a hospital in Budapest where he was recovering nicely. The time change and an out of order phone kept EB from contacting me. Even though it will take some time, we are expecting a full recovery for Ben’s leg.

When we got back to Budapest our hot water was out, the heat didn’t work and our internet phone (with a USA phone number) was broken and there were 21 new mole hills in our front yard (I have been battling a mole for a year). Eventually everything came back on line but it took several days of repairs.

Thank you for your love and for standing with us in ministry; you are valued and needed. As you pray for us, please remember the four Ps:

1) passion: we will passionately follow the Lord Jesus

2) protection: from our kids and teenager to us as we travel, may the Lord watch over us and protect us.

3) provision: may the Lord provide abundantly for the work of the gospel across Eastern Europe

4) Poland specifically; may the Lord give us wisdom, strategy and energy to help raise people to fund the work of the gospel in Poland.

Everyone is costume for our office fall festival party: EB is a cowgirl, Rebekah is a hula dancer, Quentin is a cowboy and Savannah is a super model.

Here Elizabeth is helping with one of the games at our fall festival party.

Bringing in the Hungarian Harvest Project (BHHP) opens doors for our Hungarian ministry!

“It was one of the best evangelistic mission trips I have ever been on!”

Brent Harrison, Director of "Experience Missions Intl."

Here I am contending for the faith with Akos, a Hungarian student at Budapest's ELTE campus. With me is Mitch who before this mission trip had never been out of Georgia or Florida and he got on a plane (for the first time) to join us in Hungary.

During BHHP week the Lord chose to both use us and work in us in a wonderful way! 21 Americans from Atlanta, Dallas and Memphis all came to Budapest to labor alongside our Hungarian Campus Crusade staff team. Wow! Here are some of the highlights.

*We distributed 1400 SSKs (student survival kits;) that contained evangelistic materials and invitations to several of our outreaches. Over the whole month of September, our campus ministry team distributed over 10,000 of these kits across Budapest.

* Over 40 students came to our English Clubs on Business Ethics. The recent meltdown of integrity within the Hungarian government added a thirst for this topic.

* Over 200 students attended our “Personalities Profiles” evangelistic event at Karl Marx University. (I always love it when we share the gospel inside this school named after this influential atheist!) This presentation spurred conversations about Christ that continued long after the event ended.

* 20 kids from a middle school met us at a McDonalds to hear more about Christ. The school invited 8 of us to speak in classrooms all morning. We then invited the students to meet us after school to hear more about Christ. The promise of free ice cream certainly was a draw too! Although Campus Crusade in Budapest does not have a middle school ministry, this is an open door we just must pursue!

* initiative evangelism: The American “BHHP”ers, many of whom had never shared their faith before, jumped at the chance to fan out across a campus and witness individually with students. Honestly, I was skeptical about this outreach. But the project participants displayed great faith in the midst of their own fears. We had meaningful conversations and even led several to Christ!

I had a long talk with a college student named Andras. He said he was mad at God and the church. “Why?” I asked. “Because I could not live up to all the rules and expectations. Then they kicked me out of the church.” “That doesn’t sound like my God,” I told him. Then I spent the next 15 minutes talking through Ephesians 2:8-9 and how salvation is not by works but by faith; salvation is a free gift from God!

It is an affront to the holiness of God if we think we can work through a checklist of activities that ensure our salvation. Our good works come from our salvation; those good works do not lead to our salvation. Centuries of people doing evil in the name of the Lord and ignorance of the meaning of the cross has caused a lot of hardened hearts across Europe. The body of Christ must serve tirelessly and selflessly, pray, and fast in order to reverse this trend.

It was also great being able to speak during BHHP to the weekly meeting of our high school ministry. About 50% of the 100 students who attended were unchurched. Using quotes from popular music, I pointed these students to the glory of God and the privilege we have through Jesus Christ to call Him, “Father.” Most of these kids come from homes where “father” is not an endearing term. Once again, I had conversations after my talk where I was able to explain in more detail the meaning of the gospel.

I even had serious talks with two of the participants who are genuinely considering moving their families here to be involved vocationally with the spreading of the gospel!

“Europe is a hard continent for the gospel. But what we [American short term missionaries] can do is to build up a bank account of contacts for the national ministry. What BHHP does is to gather contacts and opportunities that the Hungarian staff can mine for the whole school year. Short term missionaries, mostly because they are either native English speakers or Americans, can open doors and gain respect that are sometimes difficult for our Hungarian staff to achieve.”

Quoted from David Coles. (He and his wife Nancy are from Atlanta and stayed an extra week after BHHP ended to help begin the follow-up process. I asked him to share some of his insight from their 2 weeks here.) Here he is below sharing his faith with a student after a morning of distributing Student Survival Kits.

Jay from Atlanta illustrates jokingly the intensity needed to make phone calls to Hungarian students to follow up from an outreach. Csilla is not sure whether to laugh or pray!

Roland (left; one of our Hungarian staff), Jean (BHHPer from Oklahoma City) make friends with two Hungarian students during the Survival Kit distribution.

Marilyn from our sending church in Atlanta initiates with a college students a conversation about Jesus Christ.

Pat from Memphis witnesses with middle school girls at McDonalds after we spoke at their school that morning.

Thanks for praying for us and thanks for those that gave up vacation and family time and spent their own money to join us for a week. Most of the participants had no previous experience in sharing their faith; they just had a willingness to try and an abiding faith in Jesus Christ.

Poland, Czech and Auschwitz

“In four years the subsidy we receive from Campus Crusade will have been phased out and we will be responsible for 100% of our own funding. This is putting much fear into us; we must act now so we don’t lose our staff.”



Here I am with our ministry's Polish director Mariusz who oversees 100 Polish staff sharing Christ in a country about the size of Texas. Those are 3 of Mariusz's kids, all of whom are growing up speaking both English and Polish.

Above the photo are the words said to me by Mariusz Kwapisz, the new country director of Poland. Unfortunately it is a scenario repeated many times in our ministries throughout Eastern Europe. EB and I spent a week with our Polish staff at their annual conference and I met with Mariusz and other Polish leadership to put together a plan to help our staff there. It was good to be with our Polish staff and get to know them and worship together.

Auschwitz: EB and I spent a day at this tragic place, not far from the location of the Campus Crusade Polish staff conference. To see one location where over a million were murdered was overwhelming. Emotionally I was doing okay until I saw the displays with the personal items of those murdered. Seeing the actual clothing taken from children before they were executed made me both curse the Nazis and cry.

I was also particularly moved when I visited the cell where Father Maximilian Kolbe died. Another prisoner received the sentence of death by starvation and Kolbe, himself already a prisoner at Auschwitz, volunteered to take his place in the starvation cell. The Nazis allowed this substitutionary death as a fulfillment of their law while obviously missing (and rejecting) the Truth to which Kolbe’s sacrifice pointed. No man would have done what Father Kolbe did unless they not only understood but greatly treasured what Christ did for us on the cross. May Father Kolbe’s faith and pain be a witness to us all!



At first, Auschwitz was used by the Nazis to murder Polish and Soviet prisoners of war as well as those of other nationalities and Gypsys. Yet when the Nazi plan was put into effect to exterminate all European Jews, Auschwitz became the setting for the most massive murder campaign in history. No one knows with certainty how many died at Auschwitz; the best guesses range from 1.1 million to 1.4 million.



A display of many of the shoes taken from prisoners at Auschwitz.



The entrance to the gas chambers and ovens.

Czech: We dropped our kids off at a camp for missionary kids in the Czech Republic on our way to Poland. While traveling between the two locations, EB and I visited the small Czech village of Olomouc. Today it has cobble stone streets, a village square, churches centuries old and a rich history. We discovered that Olomouc has a dark side as well.

Jon Hus was a Czech Christian who in the days before Luther and the Reformation, called attention to the abuses of the Catholic church. Hus was eventually burned at the stake in Prague. Two of Hus’s followers were burned at the stake in Olomouc in 1415. The city then rebelled against the Czech king (who was pro-Hus) and gave its allegiance to the Catholic king of the then Hungarian empire, Matthias Corvinus. Ironically, today in Budapest the evangelical church we attend meets in a building name after King Corvinus.

EB and I are learning how much suffering this part of the world has had. Both the Polish people and the Hungarian people (and other peoples of Europe as well) have long, tragic histories of oppression and war. Christians likewise have suffered greatly in Central Europe. Yet today the enemy both within and without for Christians is not persecution but indifference.

Elizabeth's life changing summer in Uganda

My eyes get big as we step off the bus into the Ugandan slums, the community where the poorest people live. I look around me and feel like I am in a dump.

Essentially, I was in a dump. There is garbage and human waste everywhere. The smell is almost unbearable. Rags cover the tiny, skinny black bodies of the little children. They are running and playing around the shacks they live in, pieced together with cardboard, cloth, and anything else they could find. Tears come to my eyes as I try to take it all in and ask myself, “How could anyone live like this? Why, God, do they have to suffer like this?” I have never seen a place so poor in my life. We play with the kids, and feed them their one meal of the day: beans and mush.

The kids smile and laugh as we lead them in duck duck goose and red light green light. We sing songs and their little hands clap along. They grab our hands and the little ones all want to be held. As the boys start a game of soccer, we girls go talk to the other teenage girls living there. They are very eager to talk to us, and we get to share the gospel with them, and many of them come to Christ. As the bus comes back to pick us up, they cling to us, and beg for us to return soon. I hug them and tell them I will pray for them. As we drive away, I watch all the kids running after us, and my heart breaks for them. I know that my life will never be the same again.

The slum outreach was part of the work our team of 90 did in Uganda. We also worked in high schools and in orphanages. I got to work in hospitals and with AIDS patients.

In the high schools, we did assemblies, and also interacted with the students through sports and sharing our faith personally. As I interacted with these students, they would often share their questions and struggles with me. They were dealing with a lot of tough issues, and so I could really feel the Holy Spirit speaking through me and giving me words to say. One girl came to me, and told me about how she was orphaned at a young age, and now she and her siblings lived with her grandma, and they had no money for school, food, or anything. As she shared this with me, she burst out into tears, and my heart ached as I listened to her story of great suffering and pain. I was able to give her a small comfort by telling her how Jesus is the father to the fatherless, and also showing her the verses in Matthew 6 that talk about how not to worry, Jesus will provide for our needs. She thanked me and hugged me, and it felt good to have been able to give her some comfort.

Another amazing experience I had in Uganda was doing a clinic for children with HIV/AIDS. A group of us went to the hospital, and sang songs and played games with these children. They seemed like completely normal children, but their lives had been affected drastically by this horrible disease. Many of them were very young, and my heart ached knowing that they will die much too early. We shared testimonies with them, and then did a gospel presentation, and the majority of them received Christ. I took comfort in the fact that God had saved the souls of these children, because there is not much other hope we can give them.

One day, we got to shadow a doctor going though his rounds in the maternity ward. Unfortunately, I was repeatedly mistaken for a medical student, and was asked to perform medical procedures such as removing catheters, removing cesarean wrappings, and sterilizing medical equipment. It was definitely an unforgettable experience.

I want to say a big thank you to everyone who gave toward my summer in Uganda and prayed for me and my team. I had an amazing time there, and God taught me wonderful things. He is awesome!

Decisions to receive Christ at a church in the slums

Face painting at a school

My ministry team

"Come over to Macedonia and help us!" Acts 16:9

Macedonia (flag pictured above) is a tiny country, about the size of Maryland, that was carved out of the former Yugoslavia after Communism fell. Macedonia was not recognized as a sovereign country by the USA until the opening days of George Bush's second term.

“This is why I am a missionary,” I remember thinking.

I was sitting with my 14 year old son Ben, on a beach on Lake Ohrid, Macedonia, witnessing to two Macedonian guys not a whole lot older than Ben, named Ottas and Vladimir. Even though they did not receive Christ with us, they were able to clearly articulate back to us the message of the gospel and why Christ had to die. They communicated in good English even with cigarettes hanging out of their mouths while they were wearing Speedos and drinking beer.

For the last two weeks of July we were at the “Lake Tahoe of the Balkans” for a classic Campus Crusade for Christ summer missions project. There were 80 American Campus Crusade staff and students along with 40 Macedonian Campus Crusade staff and students. The project had been going on for all of July but we received an invitation from the project directors, Don and Kathryn Mansfield, to jump in for the last half. For me it was refreshing to be in a similar environment that knitted my heart to missions when I was a college student. These are the reasons why our July in Macedonia was such a great missionary experience:

*faith filled environment
*international missions experience
*emphasis on initiative evangelism
*exhortation to take the gospel to the entire world
*training up of college students
*developing national (Macedonian) leadership
*(relatively speaking) family-friendly environment of Lake Ohrid
*exposing our children to all of the above!

If I had more time I would gladly tell you the story of the water pump going out in our van in the middle of nowhere where we already did not speak the language! And how we had to talk our way through 6 international border crossings (it worked 5 of the 6 times) without the correct car papers, even though we were 100% legal.

Thank you for enabling us to live and serve in Eastern Europe in doing what the Lord has called us to do! We cannot do it without your partnership in our lives!

Pictures say much more than words (and are more fun!) so here are some pictures of our time in Macedonia.



Beaches like this one along Lake Ohrid were perfect places to meet students and share our faith.



Lake Ohrid was a surprisingly clean little village with cobble-stone streets, water front coffee houses and cafes along with beauty and history.



This windswept lakeside point on Lake Ohrid with an old Christian Orthodox church was a picturesque and made a great place for a quiet time.



During one sunrise devotional time three young believers (one from Moldovia, another from Bulgaria and the third from Macedonia) came forward for baptism.



Here is EB sharing Christ with Natasha who described herself as an athiest yet attentively listened as EB explained about Jesus who is real, alive and gave Himself up for mankind. Our Lord says that His Word does not go out without accomplishing His purposes (Isaiah 55:11).



The capitol city of Macedonia is called Skopje. We drove through Skopje twice. At one stoplight our van was mobbed by begging gypsy children. Even though the city is dirty and poor, there are some faithful missionaries with Campus Crusade (and other missions agencies) in Skopje. It is also a place where Muslim and Christians live side-by-side in peace. Many mosques, like the one above that we photoed from our car, are located throughout Skopje.



And I had to end with this one. Our 14 year old son Ben has this desire to hurl his body through the air. Here he is jumping off cliffs along Lake Ohrid.

Tragedy and Chaos in the Midst of Vacation

Our family at the Grand Canyon on our way out to a family reunion in the Southern California desert.

Tragedy: As many of you know, we had plans to be in Northern California on vacation in late June. We had plans to see dear, valued friends in San Francisco and even take a behind the scenes tour of Pixar studios. But as we were packing at EB’s mom’s house on the central Kansas prairie, we received a phone call that changed everything.

The son of EB’s cousin, who just finished his freshman year at the University of Kansas, had hours before taken his own life in Topeka. Within minutes of learning the news, EB and her mom were in the car heading to Topeka.

EB and her mom’s love for this family, along with their faith and cool way of thinking, providing an invaluable service to the shocked, grieving family. EB and her mom received visitors on behalf of the family, prepared meals and made many of the decisions regarding the funeral that are just too difficult to make for a shocked family. God chose to use EB and her mom to provide faith and comfort in the midst of a tragedy.

On another note: You may have heard of this “pastor” Phelps of a cult-like church in Topeka who has his parishioners picketing funerals of soldiers killed in Iraq. Phelps had his cronies picket the funeral of EB’s cousin’s son. The father is a prominent judge in Topeka who had executed some search warrants on the Phelps family and sure enough, when the Phelps found out about the death, they picketed the funeral.

Chaos: Even though we nixed the Northern California part of our journey, we made it out to a week-long reunion for EB’s immediate family in the desert of Southern California, where on the coolest day the high was 108. EB’s sister and her husband (Lewis and Barbara Winkler) are moving next month to Singapore. Lewis has just finished his theological doctorate and will be teaching at a Campus Crusade for Christ seminary in Singapore.

In the midst of our Southern California week our Elizabeth was scheduled to go to Uganda for July on a missions project. She was to leave from LA and meet her team in Washington DC. The day before her flight she asks, “Where is my passport?” Less than 2 hours later she was on a flight back from Palm Springs to Wichita where someone was to meet her after ferrying her passport from EB’s mom’s house.

Elizabeth made it out of the Palm Springs airport fine but her connecting flight to Wichita from Phoenix was cancelled. My 15 year old daughter had to spend the night alone in the Phoenix airport. I almost made the 4 hour drive to Phoenix at 9pm that night but the airline assured me she was under their safe protection.

The next day I had to press hard to make sure she was on the first flight to Wichita even though American West at first said there was no room. Elizabeth did get to Wichita, secured her passport, flew to Chicago and then to London, all unescorted, and in London she met her team. She then flew with them to Uganda. We have heard briefly from Elizabeth that she and her team are all safe and sound and where they should be in Uganda. For three straight nights Elizabeth slept either at an airport or on an airplane.

The day we realized Elizabeth’s passport was in Kansas, I was on the phone for 6 hours and for another 3 hours the second day, trying to find a solution to Elizabeth’s dilemma. For Elizabeth, it was a baptism by fire into missions and a guarantee she will never forget her passport again!

In the midst of vacation: It was good to be with EB’s family in Southern California for a week in spite of the difficulties. Now I am back in Denver with two of our Polish staff. We are beginning an arduous and faith-filled process of setting up networks between Denver and Kansas City for our Polish staff. We really need the Lord to act in a way that is now unseen. On July 13th our family is on a plane back to Budapest. We will spend a long weekend at home in Budapest and then go to a 2 week Campus Crusade evangelistic outreach in Macedonia, just north of the country of Greece. We see Elizabeth again after we return to Budapest from Macedonia.

Please pray for the grieving family who suffered such loss in Topeka, for Lewis and Barbara Winkler moving to Singapore, our Elizabeth in Uganda and for my time developing support networks with our Polish staff.

EB sends her love; thank you for standing with us in ministry. The Lord is good to us!

Hungarian Fund Raiser Fills Room!

While at the Hungarian Celebration dinner, we left the kids back in Budapest well taken care of by two of the teachers (middle back) from the International Christian school close to where we live (Savannah is not pictured).




I had to post this picture. This is of Andras (Andrew) and Mara, two of our Hungarian staff, while in a boat over the Memorial Day weekend. It looks like something from a GAP commercial!




A good crowd shot from our Hungarian celebration dinner.



Here our 4 Hungarian staff are with a close group of committed friends of the ministry in Charlotte, North Carolina.

I wanted to give you a brief report of our Hungarian celebration and fund raising dinner back on May 22nd. EB and I, along with our 4 Hungarian staff, had a lot of fun being in a room with over 200 people, all of whom could have been somewhere else that night yet chose to be with us.

The feedback we received was that the evening was professional and visionary but personable and fun. The Hungarian staff did a great job sharing passionately what the Lord is doing in their country. And they did it as they spoke in their second language!

We owe so much to the small army of volunteers and table hosts who really made the evening happen. Much prayer and much effort went into the dinner.

Due to the generosity of a matching fund, we received nearly $80,000 in cash gifts and pledges that night. Whereas we still have a ways to go to meet Hungary’s operating budget through 2007, we are grateful for how people opened up their hearts and their giving to the work of the gospel in Hungary.

EB has since returned to Budapest and is helping our kids finish their school year. I miss them greatly; I am not complete without my family by my side. I will meet EB and the kids in Kansas City this upcoming Wednesday. We will then divide the next 5 weeks in the States between vacation, visiting supporting churches and setting up personal support networks for our Polish staff in Denver and Kansas City.

I have a variety of emotions and thoughts as I turn my attention toward our Polish staff. I am somewhat fearful because we are just not as well connected in other cities as we are in Atlanta. And our Polish staff outnumber our Hungarian staff 3 to 1. Yet we must try something. If we do nothing, then we will in all likelihood loose many of our Polish staff. The cause of Christ cannot afford to loose laborers, particularly those working on the foreign mission field. And particularly those missionaries working in parts of Europe where there is openness to the gospel. Sometimes I am saddened that it seems to be the burden not of the church as a whole but of the individual missionary to ensure his/her support is raised.

Please pray for me and our family as well as the financial needs for our Hungarian and Polish staff. We need the Lord’s grace, strength and intervention in all areas of our lives, from personal to ministry. Thank you for walking with us in our ministry and in our lives.

Mother's Day for EB and my mom!

On USA Mother's Day yesterday (May 14; Hungarians celebrate Mother's Day on a different day) we spent the afternoon horseback riding in a small village near the Slovakian border. The weather was perfect and our kids (and EB and me!) loved the chance to be out in the country. Here are a couple of photos:



In the above photo the younger kids and EB enjoy a ride in a wagon. I don't think I ever recall grass so green and lush!



Savannah was a natural on the horse!



Oh, and I have to add this last photo. This is perhaps my favorite all-time photo I have taken in Hungary. This is from last Saturday night about 9pm in downtown Budapest. There was still enough light left so the sky had some color to it but dark enough that the buildings and bridge were lit. Leaving my shudder open for a second added a neat affect to the boat on the river and the headlights of cars along the far shore.

Mom, happy Mother's Day! I am sorry we are so far away! We look forward to seeing you next month. I love you!

Matt

The Da Vinci Code and the Divinity of "Love Your Enemies"

For years the biggest cornerstone for my faith in Jesus was the evidence for His resurrection and the historicity of the New Testament documents. And these classic apologetic arguments are rock solid and a fantastic place to start when discussing the claims of The Da Vinci Code. However, in recent years my faith in Christianity has been even more strengthened by a mere 3 words that Jesus taught: love your enemies. This is why...

God, whoever He is, will possess the highest expression of all moral qualities. This is called "The Greatest Conceivable Being" argument. J.P. Moreland, one of my favorite theologians, expressed this concept excellently in his book, Love Your God With All Your Mind.

Dr. Moreland says on pages 158-159, "Theologians describe God as a maximally perfect being. This means that God is not merely the greatest, most perfect being who happens to exist. He is the greatest being that could possibly exist. If God were merely the greatest being who happens to exist, it would be possible to conceive of a case where a god could come along [who was greater] or where the real God grew in His excellence...Fortunately, the God of the Bible is maximally perfect being; that is, He is the greatest being that could possibly exist." (emphasis added)

In other words, the true God will be more just than any other god; the true God will be more loving than any other God; the true God will be more powerful than any other god. There can be no way to improve the virtues and morals of the true God!

It is this idea that makes my faith strong and gives me an additional weapon in defending my faith when "ancient documents" suddenly arise that communicate a different gospel or a different Jesus than the one of the New Testament. (I say "additional weapon" because the New Testament can stand on its own when compared to these "other gospels" of Jesus)

Make sense? Then consider the radicalness of the teaching of Jesus.

"But I say to you who hear, love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you... If you love those who love you, what credit is that to you? For even sinners love those who love them. If you do good to those who do good to you, what credit is that to you? For even sinners do the same. If you lend to those from whom you expect to receive, what credit is that to you? Even sinners lend to sinners in order to receive back the same amount. But love your enemies..." (Luke 6:27-28, 32-35)

Other religions, Islam being foremost, teach just the opposite of love your enemies. And Mohammad's teaching is morally inferior to Jesus' teaching. Mohammad taught, claiming it was from God, that we should kill our enemies. In the Koran it says, "Then fight and slay the pagans {unbelievers} wherever you find them. And seize them, beleaguer them and lie in wait for them, in every stratagem {of war}." Surah 9:5. Teaching and actions of influential Muslims today do not rebuff that Koranic verse.

I had coffee once with a man who fled the Islamic revolution of Iran during the late 1970s. He fled to the West and there converted to Christianity. He has since written several books against Islam and must use a pseudo name so that other Muslims, who are living according to the teaching of the Koran, will not kill him. I asked him, "What convinced you to convert from Islam to Christianity?" He said very succinctly that it was this teaching of Jesus and how it contrasted to the teachings of Islam and other religions.

This same contrast in moral aptitude can be found in today's headlines. When cartoons appeared in a Danish newspaper depicting Mohammad in a less than superlative light, there were riots, burnings, killings and demands. Yet when The Da Vinci Code hits the theaters, Christians, who will have their God lied about and belittled, will not be calling for the death of Tom Hanks and Ron Howard (I still have got to ask, "What got into those guys anyway?"). Rather Christians are using peaceful boycotts, discussions and debate to shed light on the truth. Imagine the Islamic response to a movie where Mohammad is discredited in a similar way!

Unfortunately church history is filled with examples of Christians who killed their enemies. Yet here is the difference between Christians killing in the name of God and Muslims killing in the name of Allah. Christians who kill are acting contrary to the teachings of Jesus while Muslims who kill are acting consistent with the teachings of their religion.

Jim Elliot and his missionary friends had access to guns when they willingly gave their lives as martyrs for the Auca Indians 50 years ago. Yet they chose not to use those guns. They reasoned that if they kill the Auca Indians, then those unbelieving Aucans would go straight to hell. If the Aucas kill them, then the missionaries go to heaven and their deaths would be a witness to their unsaved murderers. No other religion, not even Darwin, can account for that kind of reasoning!

I am hopeful that the Christian community's response to The Da Vinci Code will illustrate the moral superiority of Christ's teaching. And I believe that Christians can use this opportunity not to curse the darkness but to light a candle.

Here in Budapest we are handing out thousands of magazines that tell the truth behind the deceiving claims of Dan Brown's novel. It is material that is written by Josh McDowell. Last week we had a lecture/discussion in a coffee house in downtown Budapest about The Da Vinci Code. The coffee house was packed; there was not an empty seat, as seekers came to hear the truth about the claims of The Da Vinci Code. They also heard a clear presentation of the gospel of Jesus Christ. One young man rode 3 hours by train from another part of the country in order to be hear the discussion! More magazines will be passed out in other cities across Hungary.

{ Seekers in a Budapest coffee house seeking answers about The Da Vinci Code and its claims.}

Just the other day I passed a bookstore along the streets of downtown Budapest when out walked a woman with the hardback Hungarian translation of The Da Vinci Code in her hand. I asked her if she speaks English. Heavily accented, she said that she does. I then told her that the book in her hand was full of lies and offered her the Josh McDowell magazine in Hungarian. She took it, smiled, said "thank you"and disappeared into the crowded street.

I believe The Da Vinci Code is a gift from God. While Satan means it for evil, God means it for good. While remaining officially neutral on recommending either the movie or the book, I do believe that The Da Vinci Code is an opportunity for us as Christians to show the world the contrast between how Muslims handle adversity and how Christians handle it. I also believe it forces Bible-believing Christians to not only know what we believe but why we believe it.

Additionally, The Da Vinci Code will force us to engage our neighbors, co-workers and friends over the truth of the God who not only created them but loved them and laid down His life to pay the death penalty for their sins. Sin was not merely brushed aside or covered up with good deeds. The full brunt of the wrath of God because of sin was poured out on Jesus on the cross. And three days later, He proved His divinity by rising from the dead! No other god comes even close to that kind of love, justice and power! One cannot even conceive of a morally greater, more powerful God than our Lord Jesus Christ!

What Path is Europe On?

Where is Europe going spiritually? What path is she choosing?

After a fast-paced March, I just spent several days meeting with the top Campus Crusade leadership across Western Europe, Eastern Europe and Russia. I was the new kid on the block and had a glimpse into the hearts and passions of these leaders who serve across Europe and Russia.

We looked at the “current reality” across Europe and Russia and identified factors that are shaping this super continent.

Fall of the Communism
Expansion of EU (European Union)
Uncertainties of Russia
Blurring of political borders
Intentional state-sponsored secularization
Migration to cities
Rise of Islam
Increased hopelessness
Wide economic diversit from the Siberian yak farmer to the London investment banker.

Europe is the most secular society ever in the history of the world, so says a recent edition of the International Tribune, an English language newspaper widely read across the continent. Europe is the only society in history that is purposely depopulating itself through negative birthrates. And it is the only continent on earth where the Christian church is not growing. Just 100 years ago, Europe was the cradle and protector of the world’s Christian missionary effort that spawned such missionaries as Hudson Taylor, Amy Carmichael and David Livingstone.

One factor worth mentioning is the growing trend to restrict religious freedom. Countries like Belarus, Serbia and even Russia have either passed or contemplating anti-evangelism laws. Leaders in Western Europe say that anti-evangelism laws are blowing in the wind as there is more and more suspicion directed toward Christianity and Christian missionaries. We acknowledge that our movement (Campus Crusade for Christ) in this part of the world does not know how to operate underground. Yet we also acknowledge that just that kind of hardship could very well be a gift from God that gets the body of Christ in Europe and Russia growing again.

Yet there are bright spots. For example, Romania and Albania are bright spots where the ministry is fully indigenized (led by nationals, not Westerners); Romanians and Albanians have evangelized the entire country and are sending out missionaries deep into the Middle East and as far away as China. Hungary leads Europe and Russia in evangelistic output per staff and is the birthplace of Youth at the Threshold of Life, a world-wide teacher’s training embraced by governments across the globe. Poland, the Ukraine, Britain, Spain and Switzerland are places where the Spirit of God is softening hearts.

Now is the time for the body of Christ to commit to pray for Europe and Russia, the new “dark continent” (a phrase used 150 years ago in the days of David Livingstone to describe Africa). Jesus Christ has not abandoned Europe and feels compassion for European multitude for they are distressed and downcast like sheep without a shepherd (Matthew 9:36). Darker days may still lie ahead for Europe before things change spiritually. But now is the time to pray and fast, sow seeds, proclaim the gospel and strengthening the churches that are there. Jesus Christ deserves the adoration and worship of the peoples of Europe and Russia!

The Magnificent March Month of Ministry!

Dear Friends,

It was an incredible month of outreach with evangelism taking place in all segments of our Campus Crusade for Christ ministry within Hungary. There are many stories to tell but please allow me to mention a few of the highlights.

"Battle of the Bands" Based on the success of an outreach a year ago using a band from our home church in Atlanta, our high school ministry decided to take it one step further and have a contest inviting amatuer bands from across the city to sign up. Knowing music is a great bridge by which to reach out to youth, we prayed that 200 would show up. 600 came!

A testimony and the gospel were clearly proclaimed with even a "pray with me" (Hungary is one of the few places across Europe and North America where we could get away with doing this and not get sued or lose our audience). Over 500 comment cards were returned to us! Although I don't have exact numbers, there were plenty of high schoolers who are "unchurched and disinterested" who NOW express an interest in talking about Jesus! Our high school ministry has plenty of follow-up to do between now and the end of the school year. Praise God!

Below are a couple of pics of students from our Battle of the Bands outreach with whom we built a bridge via the medium of music.

Even those who don't appreciate rock music agreed the Lord chose to use the outreach for His glory!

Here is a picture of the winning band, "Golairds." I would have bought their CD if they had one!

Middle School Classroom Speaking. We had a handful of friends from America join us to do outreach for a week. One day Kirk and Charlene Zuhars of Wichita, Pat Lawless from Orange County, California and I spoke in classrooms at a local middle school here in Budapest. Pat is a life long friend and we went to school together from 5th grade through our Kansas State years. It was good to have him here to get to know my family and do ministry together. During our morning at the Hungarian middle school, where we spoke in English classrooms, we invited the kids to join us after school at a nearby McDonalds where we told them more about our faith in Christ. 15 kids came and several of them trusted Christ!

Here are two pictures of Pat sharing Christ to the middle schoolers, one is of those who joined us after school at McDonalds.

Youth at the Threshold of Life

YTL, as it is commonly called, is a world-wide ministry within Campus Crusade that got its start right here in Hungary ten years ago. Late March was our annual YTL Budapest teacher's training. Nearly 300 teachers attended. At the training they heard a clear presentation of the gospel. After one of the evening sessions, we held a coffee house where our staff and visiting American friends dispersed into the coffee house and continued the gospel conversation with the teachers.

BELOW: Even after the conference hall had cleared of all attendees, Calvin Cartwright of Atlanta (center) was still witnessing to two teachers from the Hungarian city of Sopron.

BELOW: Edina Gresz (left), wife of our country director, and Suzanne Blackstone (middle) from Dallas, share with a table of Hungarian educators at the conference coffee shop. Several of the teachers at their table trusted Christ through the witness of the evening.

Praise God for these outreaches! Please continue to pray as there is much follow up to do!

I thought I would leave you with some pictures of the family that I took today while we went downtown for lunch after church. We love you and we appreciate you! We are eternally grateful for God's undying mercy and grace to us!

Spring snow melt in the Alps is bringing higher water levels along the Danube as it flows through downtown Budapest.

Our teenagers...and we love them!

The whole family strolling near Batthyani Square in Budapest

EB and Savannah find a quiet spot on our terrace. Spring is almost here!