Here is our September update!
Youth Outreach:
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| August 14th teens |
Thank you for praying for our August 14th youth program. We were thrilled to see about 25 teens show up! As we mentioned in our previous letter, these were all teens who had attended English Camp in July. We had a great time of games, songs, food and fellowship. We also introduced our church and shared our desire to start regular youth meetings in the Fall. Our first one will be held on September 10th. We are praying for a solid base of at least 8-10 teens to get started. We have about 10 church members who are planning to be involved in this ministry. Please pray for us to be able to launch a strong youth ministry that will be capable of reaching and discipling teenagers who do not have any church background.
Family Camp:
August 18-22 we held our first family camp in Diosjeno, Hungary. We had about 45 of our people participate. During our five days together, we balanced teaching times with time for sports, games and relaxation. We also tried to do some things we don’t generally do on Sundays, such as a prayer night, a worship night, and a testimony night. One morning we also split the men and the women for separate sessions. We felt like God used camp to draw us closer to him and closer to each other.
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| Family Camp Hike |
Passing of Charin’s Dad:
In mid-August we received word that Charin’s father was seriously ill and in the hospital. The day before our camp, Charin decided to fly back to the States to be there with her parents during this time. God gave her four days with her dad before he passed away on August 21st. We were so glad that she had this time with him. The funeral was held a few days later, and two of our daughters were also able to attend. Charin returned to Hungary on the 27th just two days before she started her new teaching job. Although this was a very difficult time emotionally, we are thankful to know that her father is with the Lord with no more pain or illness. Please pray for Charin’s mother as she adjusts to her new life without her husband of more than 50 years. Please pray for Charin and the rest of the children and grandchildren as they deal with this loss.
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| Charin and her dad last summer when he was still healthy |
I do apologize for not dropping an extra email during this time. Some of you may not be aware that we have a special Facebook group called Focus Church Budapest Prayer Team. I share weekly updates and quick prayer requests on that page. Please let me know if you would like to be a part of this group, and I will get you added.
A look ahead:
Four prayer requests for September:
1) Charin’s new job- teaching English at a school here in Budapest. Please pray for her to have opportunities to reach out to students, parents and teachers.
2) Lord willing, we will begin renting an office for our church in the same building complex where we hold our Sunday services. This will give us both a place to work, and also a place to hold smaller weekday meetings.
3) September 10th we will launch our biweekly youth nights. Please pray for a faithful base of 8-10 teens.
4) September 26th will be the second anniversary of Focus Church. Please pray for growth - both spiritual and numerical and that we will stay focused on making disciples for the glory of the Lord.
God bless,
Marc and Charin Patton
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