Good, Better, Best

We've all had them. Those days where we focus on school/work, family, friends, and other extra activities. Those days that are so busy that when we finally find a second to catch our breath we have to ask, "Where has all the time gone?". Sometimes this is even the question we ask ourselves after several years of work or school. It's that moment where we stop and wonder what we've been doing with our lives. Time is a precious commodity -- how do we know if we are investing it wisely and according to God's will?

"Pay careful attention, then, to how you work -- not as unwise people but as wise -- making the most of the time, because the days are evil."

-Ephesians 5:15-16

The Blackaby brothers analyzed this verse in their book "Experiencing God Day-By-Day". The brothers say that "the temptation is to sacrifice what is best for what is good. The enemy knows that blatantly tempting you with evil will be obvious, so he will lure you with distractions, leaving you no time to carry out God's will. He will tempt you to so fill your schedule with good things that you have no time to carry out God's best," (p.239). 

I'm not going to lie and say that going to Hungary for four months is a huge sacrifice where I will be living in a hut and only get to converse with the people in my little "village". Of course the majority of my time will be spent doing mission work. But, I will have several opportunities to go to museums, shows, and sight-see during my semester abroad. Even so, I still struggled with the idea of spending four more months overseas after I had already spent six weeks there. I am in high school and should be preparing myself for college and the SAT exam. Wouldn't it be more logical to stay home and work on my academics? I only have two years left before college -- I should focus on school... right?

But then I realized that by doing so I would only be looking to do what is good for me -- what the world says I should be doing with my time in high school. Staying at home meant I would do little to grow God's Kingdom. It's not that I can't evangelize, volunteer and grow the Kingdom in the United States (quite the opposite!). But spending four months focusing on just that activity would make a much larger impact for God than staying home to focus 100% of my energy on school.

If you're having a hectic day/week/month/year where you're wondering where the time has gone, I would encourage you to seek God and ask Him to tell you what is best for you rather than continuing to do what is good for you. You don't have to pack up and head overseas but maybe there are some little changes that God has in mind in order for you to work toward His best for you. Reminds me of a little proverb I learned a few years ago -- "Good, better, best. Never let it rest until your good gets better and your better gets best."

Mary Kate

Heading back to Hungary on Labor Day!

God has provided me with the opportunity to return to Budapest, Hungary this fall for four months! I will leave September 5th for a semester of working at the library and assisting the Ridgeway family in their work.

For the fall, I plan to coordinate several programs at the Budapest Christian Library.

1) Children's Story Time
A program for younger children. We will begin by reading "The Lamb" by John R. Cross and continue from there to learn more about God and the Bible through story telling. Crafts and/or games that help make the story "stick" with the children will also be included during the weekly meeting time.
2) "By This Name" study
This book (also by John R. Cross) gives a comprehensive outline of and purpose behind the Holy Bible in an easy-to-understand way. I'm hoping that other teenagers who want to take a deeper look at the Bible will join this group so that together we can better understand God and His master plan.
3) I am Second group
I am Second aims to bring people together to share their own stories, hear other people's stories, and read God's stories. Using these methods, the group will collectively spark conversation that will aid each member in learning how to make Jesus first in his or her life.

I look forward to seeing how God works through me to reach some of His beloved children. In addition to the above programs, I plan to also help the Ridgeway family on the home front in every way that I can. Please pray for me as I prepare to go back. Prayers are the best gift you can give me.

Mary Kate

"Jesus said, 'I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.'"
-John 8:12

Mary Kate... in Texas

As of last Tuesday night, I am back in Texas!

I feel so blessed to have lived in Hungary for six weeks and get a feel for the ministry that the Ridgeways have there. I have learned so much about God, Hungary, missions, and myself through this trip. I will forever be thankful for this experience.

As you may have guessed, missionaries have an extremely difficult job. After living with a missionary family for six weeks I was able to see this firsthand. I think that a lot of Christian homes and churches support overseas missionaries (which is great!). But when times get tough for a family, sometimes "extra expenses" are cut. Unfortunately, supporting missionaries can quite often be thrown in with the same list containing eating out and going to the movies and are therefore cut from a families list of expenses. I would encourage you to follow through on your commitment(s) to missionaries and support them for as long as they need the support. Missionaries make sacrifices all the time. As fellow brothers and sisters, we should help them out as much as we can. Missionary work has many other challenges as well: a different culture, sometimes a different language, different worldviews, different politics, different childhoods and life experiences, etc. Trying to connect with someone and sharing your faith with them is never easy but having grown up with such different backgrounds makes it all the more difficult. However, missionaries probably have the most rewarding job in the world. This is not an exaggeration. Through all of the hard times that the Ridgeway family has had these past two years, their faith has been stretched and strengthened in ways that we cannot possibly imagine. On one hand, I am happy that I have not undergone some of the stress that they have. On the other hand, I yearn for the depth of faith that they have and will have for the rest of their lives because of their work in Hungary. Thank you for praying for the Ridgeway family and the Budapest Christian Library and me! Please continue to support us in that way.

Now for the big question: am I going back to Budapest in the fall? Well, the Ridgeways said that they would welcome a second trip. Of course I want to go back (and probably will); but, this is all in God's hands. I will make preparations this summer to go back to Budapest in the fall but ultimately God is in charge of the outcome. If God does not want me to go back, I have no doubt in my mind that He will stop me.

Thank you, everyone, for the encouragement and prayers. Whether I return to Hungary or not, I feel blessed to have gone for six weeks to learn all that I have and grow closer to God in the process.

Mary Kate

PS: To keep up with what God has planned for me this year, subscribe to my blog on the left-side panel (under "Follow by Email"). Thanks!

You knew this post was coming...

...the post about food!

I have tried a couple of different Hungarian dishes as well as Hungarain versions of familiar food this past six weeks.

After church one week we went out for an ice cream cone. Hungarian ice cream is creamier and softer than in America (more like frozen yogurt) and is sweeter than in the U.S.

The ice cream shop...

Hungarian ice cream...

Landon eating some ice cream...

We also went to a Hungarian's house (a friend of the Ridgeway's) and she fed us some Hungarian food. We had some yummy appetizers (nothing like some goose fat on bread with a little paprika sprinkled on top) and a stew that consisted of potatoes and sausage. 

Kotchious Kolosh, a Hungarian pastry, is also super yummy! It's bread with Cinnamon, chocolate, nuts, or just sugar on it. 

Making Kolosh...

 The final product...

I've also experienced some European coffee. By that I mean that the size of the coffee is way smaller than in the states. A medium was maybe two ounces of coffee (vs. 16oz in the states). It's great coffee, by the way, just smaller. 

Jo Reggelt ("Good morning" in Hungarian) is a brand of breakfast food that is quite popular. Basically, you're eating cookies for breakfast -- what's not to like?

Also, lots and lots of Nutella! I know you can get that in the states but it's widely available here. What is less available, however, is penut butter. And the PB in Hungary is much more organic than in the states (less sugar, more peanuts). 

Overall, I have enjoyed the food here. Sure, there are some thing in the U.S. that I would hate to live without (icing, granola bars, chocolate chips, pop tarts, etc.)  but trying some Hungarian food this past six weeks has been lots of fun.

Mary Kate



Hungarian Lesson #2

I hope you've been using "Szia!" (from Lesson #1) as a greeting to some of your friends. I've been using it quite often here in Hungary. I also hope you are ready to learn another Hungarian phrase...

The next time you want to say "Thank you!" to someone, try saying it in Hungarian. Köszönöm is the Hungarian word for "Thank you". To learn the proper pronunciation, go to this site http://www.forvo.com/word/k%C3%B6sz%C3%B6n%C3%B6m/ and click on one of the play buttons.

All of the encouragement I have received these past five weeks has reminded me to thank God for all of the amazing people He has put in my life. I deeply appreciate all of the support that my family and friends have given me during this trip -- you guys are wonderful.

Köszönöm!

Mary Kate

Librarian by day, a little lost by night

Since my last post I have gone to work at the library two or three times. So far my jobs have consisted mostly of cataloging books and dusting shelves. As much as I love hanging out with the Ridgeway family, I also love being at the library and in the city.

To get to the library, I take a bus and a tram. On Tuesday, Rusty went with me to the library but left around lunch (I was going to stay until closing time). He told me the numbers of the tram and bus I needed to take to get back to the Ridgeway's house and I wrote them down. That evening I was going to take public transportation by myself for the first time. Somehow, I ended up writing down the wrong number and therefore got onto the wrong tram! About halfway through the route I had a hunch that I had taken the wrong tram. I went ahead and stayed on, though, hoping and praying that it was, indeed, the correct tram. At the end of the route, I couldn't recognize the place at all... I was lost. By myself. In a foreign country. I went up to the driver and as he got out of his little box I asked him for directions. I hoped the driver could somehow tell me where to go since my Hungarian is limited to about ten phrases. As it turns out, he spoke English, told me which bus to go onto next, and I made it home an hour and a half after leaving the library (almost twice as long as it should take me). But, I made it. While lost I just kept praying. I never panicked, just prayed. I will admit I got nervous, maybe even a bit scared, but I made it. And, my confidence was regained on Wednesday and Friday when I took public transportation by myself again and made it without any mistakes or delays. I thank God that I am safe -- He is in control!

On a happier note, I visited the Budapest Great Synagogue and St. Stephen's Basilica on Wednesday. Both were beautiful!

Inside St. Stephen's...

The top of St. Stephen's has an amazing view of the city...

Mary Kate

"Do not fear, for I am with you; do not anxiously look about you, for I am your God. I will strengthen you, surely I will help you, surely I will uphold you with My righteous right hand." 

-Isaiah 41:10

Less computer, more God

Since arriving in Hungary two weeks ago, I have spent minimal time on the computer. At home, I normally spent the entire day doing school on the computer, checking emails on the computer, and all-around just wasting time on the computer. In Hungary, however, I have gone several days at a time without checking email or even opening my laptop... and the amazing thing? It's not that bad. Actually, I'm rather enjoying it. I have been able to spend more time with the kids, more time relaxing, and more time with God. My mind is not racing with information I just read on Facebook but rather I am focusing on what is right in front of me: an amazing opportunity to serve God, experience another country/culture, and get to know a wonderful family. Sure, I'm on the internet right now blogging about not being on the internet; after I post this, though, it could be two or three days before I even check my email again (versus two or three hours like at home). It is quite refreshing to stop feasting my eyes upon a computer screen but instead to focus on God.

Renewed in Him,

Mary Kate

"'Do you not know? Have you not heard? The Lord is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth. He will not grow tired or weary, and his understanding no one can fathom. He gives strength to the weary and increases the power of the weak. Even youths grow tired and weary, and young men stumble and fall; but those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint.'"
-Isaiah 40:28- 31