We had an extremely effective week with the help of 32 American volunteers who came for our mission trip (called Bringing in the Hungarian Harvest Project, BHHP). Over 700 students showed up at the 7 dorm outreaches and at the two special outreaches we had for campus and high schools students. Also we went to about 100 classrooms to speak to students and invite them to after school activities. I can't share all the great stories, but the following four short stories are summarizing well what we see happening in YTL.
Story # 1: We've closed the BHHP mission trip with our annual YTL educator's symposium. 160 educators from all over Hungary came to spend the whole weekend with us to learn how to use our program and curriculum. (From their written feedback we know that they committed themselves to teach YTL to over 12,000 students this year). As always it's is our practice at these symposiums we've shared the gospel with the participating educators through Dave Robinson's and Gabor Gresz’s testimony and ask them to consider giving their life to Jesus. Four educators indicated a decision. After they shared their testimonies, the gospel and asked them to consider turning their lives to Jesus, one educator, named Beata came up to them. She shared that after hearing how God changed Gabor’a heart and made he able to forgive to his abusive father, she immediately realized that she lived her life in a prison. In the prison of not forgiving her mother. She has spent her whole life to prove herself to her mom. She preformed really well, but by now she got to a point where there is a lot of hate and bitterness in her and she can't forgive her mother. She never considered the existence of God, never believed in God. But now she felt so compelled by the pain in her heart and the freeing love of Jesus that she opened her heart "just a little" - as she said - to Jesus. She said that during the whole symposium she felt that everything was for her. In tears she said her first prayer in her life with very little faith, but with an honest and broken heart! And we all know that God take those prayers very seriously!
Story #2: Saturday noon an educator came up to Gabor before lunch. She wanted to introduce herself. As she said her name he immediately recognized the name - one of the newly converted student's mother. She told her story why she came to the symposium. Her daughter - Fanni - was a teenager who got into a lot of trouble. The parents couldn't handle her, they had a tons of conflicts at home. The parents even had been called in by her school many times because she got into big problems there. They were miserable as they saw how they are loosing their daughter. They've sent her to our "SpeakOut" summer English camp a year ago. And Fanni's live has been changed dramatically. Her mom said this to me: "I've never imagined that in one week this could happen with MY daughter!!! Fanni came back a totally different person. So now I came to this educator's symposium to find out what is this YTL thing that saved my daughter and our family!" Fanni's life changed because Christ changed her life. And now her mom understands this. Since then she is turning her school up-side-down in a good term. She is sharing Christ with everybody - students and teachers, and bringing them to everything we organize. Fanni is a very outgoing, leader type of person - a really fireball! Before knowing Christ she used all her energy to make her family's life hell, now she is using all of that to get others into Heaven! The teachers are amazed how she has changed. They really like the "end product", but they don't understand the "process".
Story #3: One educator at the symposium shared with us that 6 years ago she came to a YTL symposium and prayed to receive Christ. Since then not just her life has changed, but she felt called to help other educators and students to find Jesus. She led one of her colleague to Christ and brought her to this symposium. This past year God opened a huge door for them in their city, named Vac to teach YTL in all the high schools. As a result of their work we've started to travel there last year and even this week we are holding a two day assembly to all the high schools there. Thousands of students are hearing the gospel this week because one educator 6 years ago came to the symposium and her life was changed!
Story #4: God used this week to change the life of the Americans who came to BHHP. Many of them expressed what a faith step this was for them to share their faith and how this impacts their everyday walk with God as they go back. But there was one American couple out of the 32 participants in the group who - during this week - got convinced that the Lord is calling them back to Hungary to full time ministry. Laborers are the most needed resource in the mission field!
Sometimes we just wonder what is going on! How many lives are changed and impacted. And we just only see the surface!
