SOLD, to the American!

Diosd was seeing mounds and mounds of snow yesterday...and no sign of stopping. Flurries, slippery ice, and cold...nothing would stop the 2010 Senior Olympic Auction from happening

First we were greeted by a figure skater and tennis player who registered us. We got to choose our very own Olympian as our flag for bidding. Kristin and I chose Romanian Judo competitor Alina Alexandra. After registering, we enjoyed a fabulous taco salad dinner served by a referee, soccer player, and several other athletes.

After dinner, we bid on a few items in a silent auction. I won some hand-made greeting cards. They are lovely!

Following the silent auction was a loud auction. It began with the ceremonial lighting of the torch. Throughout the auction, members of the Jamaican bobsled team displayed the items. For both the auctions, families, teachers, and community members donated items. Items ranged from restaurant gift cards, free stays at lake houses, senior slaves (they'll clean for you!), babysitting, American gift baskets, and much more! The talented art teacher even donated an acrylic painting of the Diosd church! I had my eye on a 30 minute massage from local physical therapists and won! This blind, Christian couple gladly donated their services, and I am so grateful!

All of the proceeds of this auction go to the senior class. They will use this money to take a senior trip. It should be a special time for them, as many of them move away and back to their home countries upon graduating. It will be a sentimental time for them. The auction was a lot of fun and went for a good cause!

The Call

Sometimes I find myself wondering, "Why isn't God being clear? Why isn't he answering my prayers and my questions?" Sometimes, he just seems to be taking His dear old time. Maybe you have felt this way too...

I spent last week in Nerja, Spain attending Campus Crusade's Midyear STINT conference. This conference is planned at just the right time in the cultural transition cycle. You can think of this transition in four stages:

I: Honeymoon stage

II: Crisis

III: Getting back to normal

IV: Normal-Adapted

When I came to Hungary, I was in the honeymoon stage, and I fell in love. Fortunately, my "crisis" stage was very mild, and I still love Hungary. However, right after Christmas, for a few weeks I found myself very stressed and emotional. The kids were driving me crazy, I had a lot of extra jobs to do, and I was getting sick. I was definitely not my regular self, and it was showing.

I am so thankful that I was able to go to Spain for this conference. I did not really want to go...it was hard to take a week off of school, and it required extra finances. In the end, I am certain that God wanted me there and at this exact time. It was hard to come back to Hungary, (The weather in Spain was gorgeous. Budapest is seeing 7 inches of snow and no sign of stopping!) but I know the Lord is with me.

In Spain, we heard from David Wilson. Irish accent in tow, he spoke each day about the call of Moses. Have you ever realized how long it takes Moses to really respond to God in Exodus? Moses goes through doubt and fear, but finally follows God. We studied Moses' call and I found many parallels in my life.

God revealed to me many misconceptions I had about my call. I know God called me to Hungary for this period of time in my life. I assumed that coming to Hungary was my call to be a missionary. God is showing me that going overseas is not what it means to be a missionary. John and I have decided to live in Colorado Springs next year. At first, I hated this. I was very upset and would cry at the thought of it. Why was God calling me back to the U.S.?? How can I serve him there? Don't I have to be raising support to be a missionary? I was doubting what God could use me for in Colorado. David challenged us to think about God's larger call on our lives. I started to think..."Is God really calling me to Hungary? Or to be a missionary?" I believe God is just telling me to share his love with people. That is what a missionary is.

I wish we could sit down over coffee and really talk about what I told me this past week. It is hard to explain in a blog...I try to keep it brief and interesting, but I hope you know that God is going much deeper in me than I can really write about. God has really been changing my heart...my stubborn heart. Now I can think about next year without getting a sick feeling. I can talk about it without tearing up. I am excited to see what and who God has waiting for me in Colorado. It is a new challenge...serving God and sharing the Gospel does not stop just because I am moving back the the U.S. God's goodness never changes.

I have sang this song a million times, but it hit me hard this week:

Take my will and make it Thine,

It shall be no longer mine;

Take my heart, it is Thine own,

It shall be Thy royal throne.

Do you need to say these words to God too? What is he calling you to do? Is he calling you to go overseas? To a new culture? Is he calling you to support another missionary? To make more of a sacrifice with your finances? Or is he calling you to be a missionary right now, exactly where you are?

Tis the Season

Sigh. It's January 2010, Christmas is over, school has resumed, and I can finally relax. Time to start my break. Seems backwards that I feel more calm now that Christmas break is over!

My break started with a bit of sickness. I battled a sore throat and headaches for the first few days. Not to mention, the weather here was crazy! After waiting and waiting for the snow that everyone warned me about when coming to Hungary, it finally came. And it came in masses. The weather was cold and miserable. I started to get worried that Christmas break would be spent huddled inside trying to stay warm. How would I be a good tour guide in this weather?

On December 23, I picked up three important guest minus five important bags from the airport. My family arrived, but where was their luggage that had my gifts??! I realized that seeing their faces and hugging them was my real gift this Christmas. We had a good reunion that lasted about 5 minutes before we were all annoyed with each other. Yep, my family had arrived, and things were normal :-)

On Christmas Eve I introduced them to public transportation as we went to the Budapest Christmas Market. Mom loved the handmade goods. I think the men enjoyed viewing all the various types of food. We spent the afternoon walking by the river being tourists. Dad loved taking pictures imitating the statues. We enjoyed a pizza dinner. It was a lovely day until we came to realize that the public transportation shut down early...something I never knew (whoops). All were in good spirits as we found a lone taxi to take us home. What a blessing it turned out to be as the taxi was much warmer than a bus!

Christmas day began with the arrival of the luggage. I ended up with a suitcase all to myself, filled with some possessions from the States. I enjoyed going through all my stuff that I hadn't seen in a while. We relaxed by watching our favorite old Christmas films and had a wonderful ham dinner.

The next day, Chris and I ditched Mom and Dad. We sent them off to the Opera House for the Nutcracker. Yes, I was a bit jealous to miss this ballet performance (Chris was NOT jealous one bit!), but I traded the show for the arrival of my fiance. John looked like a lost puppy when he walked into the airport...so I tackled him out of the blue with a hug. Welcome to Hungary! That evening, we tried to have dinner at a Hungarian restaurant that turned out to be closed (whoops). I improvised by making a traditional Hungarian meal for them at home. John helped me while everyone else slept. The awoke to a yummy meal!

The last few days of their trip involved much sight seeing. We added one more friend to our journey (Mom's friend who lives in Romania). I enjoyed having him help me tour around as he knew more about Budapest than me! We walked by Parliament, walked over the Chain Bridge which crosses the Danube river, went up the funicular to Buda Castle district and walked back down, went to the covered market to buy salami for Chris and souvenirs, took Dad to a music store, took mom to St. Stephen's Basilica, and found good Mexican food for Mom's friend (can't get it in Romania!). I also showed them around Diosd, including the Posta (post office), the meat store, the convenience store, and the school. We enjoyed watching some basketball games at the school where John had fun shooting some hoops himself. Card games were also enjoyed each night by all. Everyone seemed to find something they liked in Hungary!

On their last day, we went to a local mall and goofed around. Everyone bought something stylish to wear. We also cleaned the house for the returning Mullet family. I tried to make one more Hungarian dessert dish that did not turn out well (whoops). The family humored me by eating burnt, yet somehow still soggy Hungarian pancakes. What kindness!

Be sure to ask them about the trip. I'm sure they each have a different take on their stay here.

The weather turned out to be great. We packed a lot in during their visit. I was sad to take them to the airport and the good bye hugs were hard, but I am so thankful they came to visit. Now they know who/what/where I am talking about when I tell them stories. I value the chance that I got to share my life with them.