Hi everyone!
We wanted to give you an update on what's been happening in our lives. It's been a while since we last shared, and a lot has changed. So, we're here to catch you up on where we are now.
First of all, we moved out of our apartment in January and closed our photography studio. Then, we spent a few months in Hungary, reconnecting with family and friends, and wrapping up some photography and video projects from last year as well as filming some new projects.
In March, we ended up traveling to Ukraine to take our close friends to see their families. During our time there, we also worked on several projects that we're still putting together. It was a great opportunity to see the impact that God is having on people in Ukraine even in the midst of war, and how we can use our gifts and talents to further His kingdom.
While in Europe, we began the process of searching for a mission organization to join. In case you did not know we felt called to full-time missions before we were married but God had other plans for us to get to the point where we are today. We explored different options and met with different people both in the USA and Hungary over the last two years. After careful consideration prayer, and guidance from others, we are blessed to tell you that we joined an organization called Truth Planters. It is a small organization based out of Budapest, Hungary but we'll tell you more about them shortly!
After returning from Hungary in April, we spent quality time with my family in Mississippi, told them about our exciting update and sorted through our storage unit that we'd packed back in January, took what we needed, sold everything else, and set out for Ocean City, Maryland – where we are right now.
We are currently working with Ocean City Baptist Church. We're involved in international student ministry and media ministry. Ocean City experiences a massive population surge in the summer, due to it being a vacation beach town, where it goes from 30,000 people from 5 locally surrounding cities to 350,000 during some of the busiest weekends in the summer. And in order to serve that many people they give out J1 student visas to college students from around the world – who come to work and travel in the U.S. for 3-4 months. We organize events to engage with these students, help them learn English, and share cultural things, and through this process, we share the gospel and build genuine relationships and friendships. And truly try to be there for these students and care for their physical and sometimes emotional needs as much as we can.
On a weekly basis we have the following events, Monday night dinners where churches from all over Maryland and Delaware come and cook food for 250-300 students this is a very crucial event because this is usually our first point of contact with them. On Wednesdays, we have Surf Camps which is hosted by our church through one of our church members who owns the shop and provides free boards and instructors to the students and local members of our community. Thursday night we have Coffee House and Game Nights, where we have conversations play different board games, and get to know the students better to build a genuine relationship on a deeper level. On the same night, we also do English Club and use bible passages and different vocabulary to help them improve their English while also teaching them about the bible. In July, we also had 4 bonfires on a local national Island called Assateague Island where we had smores and each week different interns from our church would share their testimonies of how they became believers, which led to some questions from a few of the students. We also invited many students to our Sunday services, which we hold two each week, one at 9 and the second at 10:30, and many of them came because they are curious about what church looks like here in the States and this leads us to another point of contact. So, with all of these happening, the main purpose of those events is just to minister to them, be there for them, love on them, and see where God takes the seeds that we plant in their lives. There are many other events and activities that we do throughout the summer, but we’ll share those with you in a separate video.
So, since we officially joined Truth Planters in April before we left Hungary we are now full-time missionaries, and while we're currently in Ocean City for the summer, once this season ends, we'll head back to Mississippi for a short period before moving to Budapest, Hungary in December to be there full time with exception of summers during which we’ll be coming back to Ocean City to continue the international ministry. Over the last 3 years, while we were doing videography, we have recognized the impact that visual storytelling can have in spreading meaningful messages to encourage and build up others. We believe that by using our talents in alignment with God's purpose, through visual storytelling, we can help to draw people closer to Jesus and inspire a genuine passion for serving on the mission field or encouraging believers to engage in missions through prayer, awareness, and/or financial support, we’ll also be working with various missionaries, churches, and organizations to make a positive impact. We're passionate about using our skills to support the body of Christ.
With all of this being said we will need many of you to support us, as we start this journey. One of the main ways you can do that is by signing up for our prayer letter and committing to spiritually support us through prayers, but of course, if you feel led to support us financially that is very much needed as well. You'll find all of the ways and links below, but please do not hesitate to reach out to us if you have any questions.
Also, by signing up for our prayer letter you will be updated about our journey on a regular basis.
Thank you for all the encouragement and care we have received from many of you throughout this process and we can’t wait to see where God takes us from here.
It's not a goodbye but see you later!
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