When it was time to move on, the kids screamed because they knew they weren’t going to be held for a long, long time. It really hit the team hard who explained it as unreal and disturbing. From there drove to a boarding school where there were about 80 high school students. The students did a session for them with worship, a testimony from Kristi, and Tim Barley did a bible study. Everything before this was bleak, from the hospital, the border, and even the terrain which was all run down.
But these students had hope and promise, some of them knew the Lord, and they were excited about life. It was really refreshing for the team. They then went to Ladi’s house where they were fed like kings and well taken care of. But they were happy to get back to Hungary where there was civilization.
When he came to someone he didn’t know, he paused for a second then went in for the hug. He was really excited to see everyone. But then it was time for skonder, arm wrestling. I (Shaun) had the privilege of competing against him and as he got closer and closer to losing the match, I yelled out the phrase they taught me in Hungarian, Eros amerikai ferfi vagyok! (I am a powerful American man). Everyone laughed. Then Zakk and Matt got taken in back for some wrestling with two of the older boys. While some of girls played with the younger kids, most of the guys went out to play a soccer match. Again it snowed for a few minutes, but that didn’t stop us. It was a good time had by all, with only minor injuries. Then off to dinner we walked through this cottage type alley way out of a story book. 
We passed an old castle and took an amazing group shot. We ate and then headed off to a small room where we all crowded in for the session. 
We sang some crazy songs with hand motions, put on a drama, and Rich shared his amazing testimony which really moved the audience. I think it really hit home with a lot of the kids. When we finished up, Russ, our friend who does the Good Sports ministry, informed us we had but a few minutes to get to the trolley to get to our train which was the last train of the evening. So we ran, said our quick goodbyes, and almost missed the trolley—they did wait a couple minutes for everyone. When we got off the trolley, we sprinted—up and down stairs, through the corridors, and to the gate. When the last person walked up the stairs to the gate, the train arrived and we all hopped on just in time. It was intense!
We stopped at McDonald’s on our walk home, yes McDonald’s and might I add it was the nicest, classiest McD’s we had ever seen. The day was done, and once again we were spent; but we were glad to be spent, and are glad to do it again and again as long as we are here.
We heard from the team who is in Ukraine, they are well, but they are seeing a lot of hurt and suffering in the people. Pray for them and their safe return tonight. Another team is off to Romania to attend a church service, and another is going to play baseball with some kids headed up by Good Sports Ministry.
And Auntie Vik, Sarah says she is well and loves you.
Last night a group of us visited the gypsy church in Boszermeny, this is the church that VBC supported to raise up. They joined the Debrecen team in leading the church service. Deej led a couple of songs and the group loved doing the hand motions. Tim J. did an amazing job sharing his testimony. The group was really touched by God’s powerful transformation in Tims life. Singing and making crafts with the kids (and adults) was terrific. Our team was blessed by the love and genuine devotion of the Bosz believers. These people are extremely poor, not having running water or electricity, are shunned by society, and have nothing, except their faith, which amazed the team members. Many of them shared with us how much they appreciate Rob and Carol Greathouse’s faithful, loving service to them. Rob and Carol along with the Debrecen team truly are inspiring the believers in Bosz to love and good deeds. It was an incredible privilege to be there.
Another team is in the Ukraine right now and will be there overnight, serving God. Pray for their safety and guidance. They will return tomorrow afternoon with amazing stories I’m sure. We are just about to head off to Miskolc to spend time with the orphans we met at Dorcas camp, and the others we have yet to meet. We have a great testimony to be told by Rich Lopez, a fun drama, and music and encouragement from others. We’ll let you know how it all goes! Every day here is amazing. Time is rare, and rest is hard to come by. Yet our faith and hope in God is stronger and stronger every day as we must rely on Him and Him alone to pull us through this adventure.
Day two and three at Dorcas were great. Being around different people, the orphans from Miskolc, the university students, and the local church members, was such an amazing experience. We grew in relationships with each other and continued to love everyone in the name of Jesus. There was a bonfire after Monday night’s service and we all gathered around and sang out praises to God with Deej on the guitar. I (Shaun) wrestled some of the boys from the orphanage (about 16 or 17 yrs old) and unfortunately lost.
There has also been a lot of arm wrestling the past couple days and us guys are getting tired. Even though there is a language barrier, I held some back flip lessons with minimal injuries. All this has led to some great bonding and hopefully a foundation for Christ in these kids lives. We were all sad to depart today, but the kids are really excited that we are going to see them . A team of us are going to the orphanage tomorrow afternoon. Please pray for opportunities that would affect their eternity. But there was also much more going on in Dorcas…
One such event shows how God can take heartache and struggles to encourage and lift up others. This morning (Tuesday), Kelly Shannon shared with the team members a message from her devotion. It was about secrets and how everyone has a secret secret that they hold inside. If they keep it in, it has power over their lives, but if they let it go and confess it to someone, they can be free. This was meant for our team only, but a couple Hungarian girls in their early twenties overheard it, and it tugged at their hearts. Later in the day Kelly shared with everyone about struggles, and how she went through over twenty years of heartache living with an alcoholic. It was hard for her, but she told her story and how God has poured out His peace on her, and that she can stand strong with Christ. Those same girls knew that they had to talk to Kelly. Later that day they approached her and told her that they had overheard the earlier devotion and that they had secrets they wanted to get out into the open. They all went to a cabin and for the next hour, poured out their hearts to Kelly about the struggles they had kept inside for so long. She prayed for them, and then felt like God was telling her to give her scarf (a handmade gift from a friend that meant a lot to her) to one of the girls. She did and the girl cried. Then again, she was compelled to give her new shoes she had just purchased from the bible book store to the other girl. The girls shoes were old and tattered. Amazingly, they fit perfectly and the verse that was inscribed on them, 1 Corinthians 13:13 (check it out) happened to be that girl’s favorite verse! God was at work and used Kelly’s trials for His glory and these girls’ benefit.
Another profound moment at camp was when Tim gave a talk on sexual purity, and how different girls view themselves. He used the illustration of a paper cup, an old mug, and a china tea cup, relating these to the different ways girls can be treated. The paper cup is used once and thrown away. The old mug is used over and over, and if it breaks, a new one is purchased. Yet the tea cup is precious, delicate, and requires much care. Many girls do not view themselves as a fine tea cup, but the truth is that they are, and need to be treated as such. To bring the point across, a beautiful tea cup and saucer was handed out to every girl there in hopes that they will start to believe their worth and God’s plan for sexuality.
One of our teams went out to the Gypsy church while the others stayed back and went to dinner (there was not enough room for everyone to go). 
Continue to lift us up in prayer as we on our own can do nothing that matters. But with God all things are possible, and it is His strength that gives us life, and life to the full.
But the travels were not over. It was then a three hour bus ride to Debrecen. We did stop halfway for a pit stop at the local Shell station, which was fun. When we got to the hostel, we were all dead tired from traveling for over twenty hours, but it was pizza time. The hostel was surprisingly nice. We were three to a room with all our own bathrooms in a beautiful building. We were definitely not expecting it to be that accommodating.
After church is when we really started to meet some people. We stayed at the church for a few hours after the service, had lunch, and started to get to know the people we would be staying at the camp with the next two days. It was a lot of fun learning some Hungarian and getting past the language barrier to get to know people. There was a lot who spoke English though, which was a big help.
We settled in and then started playing games. Some of us guys kicked around the soccer ball with the Hungarian boys from the orphanage and broke in to their circle. Its amazing what games can do. From that moment on, we all came more and more comfortable with each other and the relationships started to build. It was easy to see that God has His hand in this trip and us here for a purpose. We had some great group games which included a huge game of spoons, and an indoor scavenger hunt; it got pretty wild. Tim gave a talk and then we hung out for a few more hours.
On Friday, March 21, 2008 a team of middle school, high school, college students, and adults will be heading to Hungary to work alongside missionaries that VBC supports in Eastern Europe. As time allows, Shaun Leblanc and other outreach team members will
be updating this blog with stories, pictures, and highlights from the trip. We will be returning on Monday, March 31. Please pray for us while we are gone and check out this blog periodically for updates. Thank you!
past summer. From now on, we will be using and updating this blog for all future trips and outreach events. Please post comments and enjoy the blog!
