Vienna road sign to Budapest, Hungary
The Bad, Old Days in Europe when Communism trapped the Hungarians
Sharon and Martin Van Horn moved to Vienna, Austria, in 1981 to share the Gospel with Austrians. At that time Vienna was the end of the Western World, since it was situated at the Iron Curtain separating the West from the Soviet Communist empire. Budapest was the capital of Hungary, and to reach it an American had to wait in long lines at the border to buy a visa and have his car trunk and undercarriage inspected by police. Hungarians dreamed of freedom they could only hear on the radio or read about.
One Wednesday night a mysterious, bearded Hungarian with a heavy accent visited the prayer meeting at our little Austrian church. Ferenc Varga lived in Traiskirchen refugee camp. It turned out he was not a communist spy, but a man who had moved to Guatemala and become a Christian. Now he wanted to reach Hungarian refugees, who had escaped to the West, with the Gospel. Could I help?
For two years I drove vanloads of Hungarians, who mostly spoke no English, to our church or a local facility where I shared the wonders of a Bible and the Jesus Christ that they had had no chance to learn about. I had the privilege of baptizing five men before they moved on to America or Canada. It was a wonderful opportunity that God opened to me and our coworkers.
Then came the Fall of the Iron Curtain
Then in 1989 to the surprise of all observers, the Communist Empire fell. Czech students visited Vienna to give us pieces of barbed wire. I actually have this small segment of the Iron Curtain.
A hungarian man withstood the pressures of communist atheism and pastored a small church. Now he has over 200 churches, one of them in Vienna, Austria. They are known as the Hit [Faith] Churches. On April 4, 2010, Easter was celebrated on the public square in Budapest by 1,300 church members.
We have been set free: from atheism, communism, sin, death, fear, the Devil’s lies and unbelief. Celebrate together with these european believers. Savor the freedom that Jesus has given us all.
We read in the Gospels how Jesus Christ went all over Israel bringing healing and deliverance. He also delegated his authority to his disciples, who also proclaimed the Gospel of the Kingdom of God and healed the sick, cleansed the lepers, raised the dead and cast out demons. We are Jesus’ disciples today and we want to see him do the same things wherever we go.
Saturday evenings we are studying the Scriptures and the materials on healing prayer by Charles and Frances Hunter, and by their daughter, Joan Hunter. We are excited to see Jesus answer prayers for healing.
For an outline of our studies you can go to www.mightyinspirit.com.
For further information, videos and resources check out www.joanhunter.org.
We meet monthly with people from different churches to have fellowship with God and each other. We meet at the home of Richard and Mary Thompson. Everyone comes with a desire to connect to God and each other.
View the photo gallery: Louisville Fellowship Evening, September 2009
Katie is a new Christian from Russell Springs, Kentucky. She came to know the Lord personally a few months ago and has consistently desired to follow Him each day. She is a real joy as she expresses her love for the Lord.
On August 22, 2009, Katie was baptised by her pastor, Roger Wheat, from the Coffey Hill Friendship Church in Russell Springs.
Life Connections International moved headquarters from Clinton, Connecticut, to Louisville, Kentucky in September 2008. We were grateful for the generous help provided by friends and brothers & sisters as well. We could not have accomplished such a move without them – thanks so much to you all!
With Life Connections International making the cross country move, our challenge was to get everything out of the house and into the trailer. We needed a MASTER PACKER – Joel came just in time to meet the challenge – our HERO!!!
It’s September 2008, and we at Life Connections International were in the midst of boxes, bubble wrapped furniture, and dust bunnies…. loading up the truck to head to Louisville, Kentucky!
Moving from Connecticut to Kentucky was a big task – first we had to sort and pack boxes. The living room was a great place to do that. The walls started to disappear and be replaced by boxes!
Families in Transition Training took place in Louisville, Kentucky, from August 14-15 2008. Tonya invited me to come to Russell Springs (3 hours south of Louisville) on October 3rd to speak at a women’s retreat at her church. God is in charge of Divine Encounters!!
Pauline, Tonya and Sue were three of the special women I met at the FIT training. They are all from various parts of Kentucky and will facilitate education programs for parents and children going through divorce. The FIT program is mandated by the State of Kentucky Court System.
