MARK YOUR CALENDARS to PRAY!
In less than a month, JFM will be sending its first Global Outreach Ministry Team to Hungary, to come alongside our partners in the Set Free Movement. They will engage first hand in the incredible transformations taking place against modern day slavery.
JFM has a 20 year + relationship with the Free Methodist World Missionaries who are currently serving in Budapest-Larry and Katie Winckles. They have grown and developed national leaders whose heartbeats serve and love on the most vulnerable for being trafficked . Those Hungarian leaders include:
Pastor Peter Toth-leads Sunday worship services, MOPS, Salvation Army classes for mothers, outings for children, youth camps and programs in Budapest
Pastor Slyvia Nyiri and Szandra Barat Abrams-coordinates activities and outings in children’s homes Pecs
Pastor Zsuzsa Mecseri McNamara- Coordinator of the Set Free Movement in Hungary (who is currently on maternity leave)
Erin Kingsley- the newest American missionary to Hungary, she is currently filling in where she can, submerging herself in the language and culture, aiding in the after school programs at the foster care centers
The entire team also partners with Gerry and Kati McNamara- Free Methodist Missionaries from Ireland (Gerry). Kati helps within the Set Free Movement with prevention programs/activities in foster care homes in the city of Gyor. Gerry has been devoting extra care and time with the refugee help due to the war in Ukraine. (Gerry and Kati are ZsuZsa's parents too)
This ministry trip has been in the works since 2019 with COVID restrictions altering plans in 2020 and then again in 2021 for any international travel to Europe. October 12th is their departure date and will be shadowing the Hungary team for 10 days. The team will be visiting the foster care centers in Budapest, Gyor and Pecs to engage the youth and to show them the love of Christ. The team will also be engaged with the Salvation Army in Budapest where classes for mothers takes place. They will have opportunities to spend one on one time with mothers and their children, sharing their testimony to each other!
Why is so much time being spent with the youth on this trip? In Hungary, 1 out of every 100 children are in the foster care program. Hungary (along with other JFM global countries we partner with) is ranked as "Tier 2" country by UN standards on human rights in regards to slavery/trafficking.
There is work to be done on education and prevention. Fostered or orphaned children become the prime targets for traffickers for many reasons. For many of these young kids, they are in the program temporarily as they await custody and parental rights from the courts. The promises of job security, or someone to pay attention to them, fake relationships, along with lax government laws on online solicitation for children, creates the perfect environment for evil to thrive. But, by having loving and safe adults, paired with the teachings of the Gospel, prevention with education about modern day slavery, children are experiencing changed lives through Jesus!
The teams will partake in the much anticipated “Walk for Freedom'' event in Budapest on Oct 15th. This is a walk around the city to bring awareness on the atrocities of human trafficking by engaging with the public.
This year, our partners in Hungary have exhausted their spare time in aiding with the refugee crisis due to the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Supplies are being transported monthly along with the message of Hope and Salvation from the Gospel to displaced people. The informational banners on warnings about human trafficking by the team is now in other European countries, printed in different languages, placed in high visible locations.
Even though this is the very first mission trip to Hungary, we look forward to more collaboration in years to come. This trip is a small trip of five active followers at JFM. The GO Team will share more in the upcoming days about this trip on Facebook and Instagram so make sure to follow there too! Look for @JFM Global Outreach on updates.
The most powerful thing another brother and sister in Christ can do is pray! Will you pray for Global Missions on Oct 12th with the departure of the team traveling to Hungary?
1.Pray for all the individuals working together in this unified mission Oct 12-Oct 23rd
2.Pray for the children and mothers to experience life changing love with the Holy Spirit welcomed into the foster care centers.
3.Pray for Transformation to take place in hearts of the wicked who profit and seek to destroy innocent lives by trapping them into slavery.
4.Pray for Faith by Action to all who Believe.
