Boldog Szent István ünnep! Or, Happy Saint Stephen's Day!
Today is a national holiday. It's the birthday of the first Christian king of Hungary and when we celebrate the founding of this country. Tonight we had a special bar-b-que at Zach and Julie's and then went down to the river to watch the fireworks. We were going to go to a friend's apartment who had access to the rooftop, so we could get a good view. But the streets were all blocked off around the river, so we couldn't get close enough. We ended up going back to the square near our flat and watching the fireworks through the buildings. The weather had been cooling down and there was lightening in the distance. But about 10 minutes into the show, a storm showed up. A huge wind came out of nowhere and it started to rain a little. We got up to head back home (about 3 blocks away) and then it just started POURING! We started running, but not before we got absolutely soaked. It was a fun night, and we just laughed about it when we got home.
Here's some pictures of the night...
This is me and Ashley (one of my roommates and fellow STINTers) after we realized that the streets were blocked off and we couldn't get to the roof...
Here we are watching the fireworks from a distance...
And then here we are in the lobby of our apartment building (with Kirsten, our third roommate!), drenched from the storm...
Hi everyone :) I am sitting on my new bed in Budapest, I have a lovely view of a sun shower from my window, I've got the sole fan pointed at me, and I can hear classical music coming from one of the apartments across the street. I thought this would be the best time to sit down and share with you what's been going on in the past few weeks.
I've been back from SpeakOut camp for just over a week. This summer was a great learning experience for me. We had three weeks of camp, which over 200 students attended. This year, I was a discipleship group leader and had the opportunity to disciple young American girls through their tutor times with Hungarians. I didn’t have my own individual tutor groups, but got to know many Hungarian girls through my discipleship group. Erin, Aline, and Hannah were the three American girls in my group and I couldn’t have been happier with the connections I was able to make with them. I was able to see both Erin and Aline lead three different girls to Christ.
I also got to lead a Bible study this summer with my girls. Our study was on the new Covenant and was very helpful in strengthening my walk. We learned so much about our identities in Christ, our purity, our disposition, and giving all the glory to God. I really enjoyed leading the study and connecting with these young girls on a new level. Being a leader this summer definitely prepared me for the upcoming year. I now have a better understanding of what it means to disciple and how I can really build relationships with the high school girls I will meet.
The past week and a half since camp ended has basically been filled with me getting to know my new city. The few weeks after SpeakOut ends and the school year starts is a down time for the ministry, so there's hasn't been work for me to do yet. I've been spending a lot of time with friends from camp, as well as Zach and Julie, the directors of the high school ministry, and exploring Budapest. It's been a little lonely, but once my roommates arrive in the next couple of weeks, things will start up and be really busy.
For now, thank you for your prayers and support. I'll update again soon!
All my love, Lauren
And then here we are in the lobby of our apartment building (with Kirsten, our third roommate!), drenched from the storm...
