Our Sister Church in Budapest
By Steve Gregg
One of the aspects of Creekside that I appreciate is our long-standing relationships with our two sister churches, one in Baraderes, Haiti and the other in Budapest, Hungary. Our connection to these churches stretches back over 30 years, resulting in relationships that have grown and deepened over decades of trips as we served alongside each other. We have seen young people grow into adulthood, get married, raise a family, and those grown children start their own families, creating a multi-generational connection to the church.
Earlier this week I made the trip back to Hungary. This time I’ll get the chance to help lead a Men’s weekend for the Újpest church and then preach for the entire church the following Sunday morning. In between those teaching/preaching opportunities, I’ll have the chance to gather with church families for dinners at their homes, attend a mid-week small group and catch up with leaders one-on-one. Yes, a lot of really good coffee will be consumed! Going to the mid-week group will be especially fun since these folks started meeting after a Hungarian couple came to Gainesville and found out about our OAGs. My last weekend there I will get to reconnect and spend time with a long time pastor friend at another church and speak at their spring church retreat.
For this trip I would appreciate prayers for the following:
One of the aspects of Creekside that I appreciate is our long-standing relationships with our two sister churches, one in Baraderes, Haiti and the other in Budapest, Hungary. Our connection to these churches stretches back over 30 years, resulting in relationships that have grown and deepened over decades of trips as we served alongside each other. We have seen young people grow into adulthood, get married, raise a family, and those grown children start their own families, creating a multi-generational connection to the church.
Earlier this week I made the trip back to Hungary. This time I’ll get the chance to help lead a Men’s weekend for the Újpest church and then preach for the entire church the following Sunday morning. In between those teaching/preaching opportunities, I’ll have the chance to gather with church families for dinners at their homes, attend a mid-week small group and catch up with leaders one-on-one. Yes, a lot of really good coffee will be consumed! Going to the mid-week group will be especially fun since these folks started meeting after a Hungarian couple came to Gainesville and found out about our OAGs. My last weekend there I will get to reconnect and spend time with a long time pastor friend at another church and speak at their spring church retreat.
For this trip I would appreciate prayers for the following:
- Please pray that the talks I give would encourage and build up the Body there and point them to Jesus, their Hope and Comfort.
- Pray for my individual conversations with church leaders and families. The past several years have been difficult because of many of the same things we have faced, but they also have a horrible war next door that could spill over into their country at any time
- They have also gone through a recent pastoral transition so prayers for the new senior pastor Lazslo and his family are appreciated.
- On this trip I will have the chance to reconnect for a few days with a couple who attended Creekside over 10 years ago and now live in Central Europe. They have been through their own challenges the past several years, and I want my visit to be a blessing to them.
- FInally, in my new role as an Associate Pastor, I find my mind and heart is increasingly drawn to how I can better serve our Budapest sister church and other connections in Hungary most faithfully. I’d appreciate prayer for clarity as I continue to sort through what that looks like in the years to come.