In Hungary more than 50% or marriages fail within the first 5 years. It’s yet another statistic that adds to the sense of hopelessness here.That’s one reason it was exciting to see a good turnout for the Love and Respect marriage conference that began today in Szeged. We were encouraged to see that many of the couples were young. The Love and Respect material is especially relevant to them as they are establishing the patterns in their marriage.

Our team will be participating in the conference in several ways. I had the privilege of giving the opening message. I began by offering greetings from The Orchard in Chicago and shared that our church had been praying for the conference and for them over the last several months. I will also give the closing message. Adlin Sierra will give one of the messages tomorrow as well about ways women can help their husbands to feel respected. Pete and Carla Himpelmann will share a testimony tomorrow about how God worked in their lives to save their marriage. Also, Adin, Pete, Carla and I are participating in an English-speaking discussion group after the messages. We have two delightful young couples in our group and are enjoying getting to know them and sharing what we have learned about God’s ways and faithfulness in our marriages.

Andras, the pastor of Cornerstone Church here in Szeged is very pleased with how the conference is going. It was a great encouragement to him when we told him members of the Itasca campus generously donated enough money to cover the expenses of the conference. Look to the blog tomorrow for more details of the conference. And thanks for praying!

Greg