SKI RETREAT IN DETROIT -- FEB 5-7, 2005

What a weekend with showers of blessings. God always amazes me! Thank you Detroit church for helping us and giving so sacrificially! This weekend was a team work, and each of you was a crucial team member. Thanks for this unforgettable weekend!
      Many young people were able to come and share this special event from all over the United States. 14 people came from Chicago, 1 from California, 5 from New York, 3 from Cleveland, 5 from Florida, 2 from Virginia, 5-8 young people from Detroit. The main theme for the weekend was "faith". We talked about it, prayed together, studied the Scripture, and have been trying to put it into practice. God has opened his showers of blessing in many ways; here are just a few testimonies of how the Almighty has revealed Himself to us. Korry

Cikket küldtek: Gedeon Kiss (New York) /  Monica Miko (Detroit) / Laura I. Szalay (New York) / Rebecca Demeter (Chicago) /  Abigail Szabo (Chicago) / Veres Johanna (Cleveland)

Detroit has become the favorite hotspot for the North American Hungarian Baptist Youth. About 40 of us flocked in on the weekend of Feb. 5-6 for a ski trip. We visited many of Detroit's major attractions that offered lots of fun.

      Among them was the Pap's family house where we all stayed and enjoyed lovely hospitality and boarding for the weekend. Every room served as a bedroom; the living room also served as our lounge, featuring movies, games, and even devotion consisting of preaching, praying, singing, and conversation.

      Saturday morning we went to the Alpine Valley Resort to hit the slopes and enjoy sliding down the hillside on skis, snowboards, snowshoes, and even on our faces in some cases. It was wholesome fun to make it all the way down without falling, but some major falling stunts turned out to be even more entertaining.

      On Sunday we drove to Detroit's next major attraction, The First Hungarian Baptist Church, where we shared in blessings through a short service and delicious Hungarian-American food that was followed by a good two-hour workout at the ice skating rink. There we discovered that we are by no means figure skaters; lucky for many of us the ice didn't break underneath us.

      When we concluded our little encounter with the ice rink, we were just a short drive away from our final destination of the weekend getaway and get together: the projection screen in the Miko family's living room. Reporters and bulky football players were projected on the screen in the midst of trainers, strategists, cheerleaders, officials, and fans as they excitedly prepared for the big game. The excitement in the living room spilled out into the kitchen and down to the basement where long tables were packed with trays of appetizers, food, and snacks for the fans and spectators. The basement also featured a ping-pong table that had drawn many of us around it to break us into a sweat.

      The central theme of our meeting, FAITH, was illustrated by a movie that featured Harrison Ford as Indiana Jones in a clip where he took a leap of faith into the unknown, visually represented by an abyss that he had to pass through in order to save his father. Muttering the Scripture that was the key for crossing over to the other side, he stepped onto thin air and a bridge appeared underneath his feet that provided solid footing for crossing. My mind replayed God's wondrous provision for our Salvation, Jesus Christ, who bridged the gap between Him and mankind. That was the reason we were together in one Spirit. That made our weekend together all the more and memorable fun. "Behold, how good and pleasant it is for brethren to dwell together in unity." Psalms 133:1      Gedeon Kiss, New York

Have you ever failed while attempting to do something? Did you try again? Did you settle in hopeless defeat? Perhaps, if you're like me there have been examples of both situations in your life. The question is what made the difference between the two scenarios?

      As youth from Cleveland, Chicago, New York, Florida and California gathered together for a well-planned ski trip in Detroit on February 4^th to the 7^th there were plenty of opportunities to see God address these issues. The focus was a crucial one: FAITH.

      A ski slope may have looked intimidating to the first-timers, understandably so, for some things we fear in life have real potential for hurt. Falling can be painful on our bodies and emotions. Brokenness may require serious time out for healing. If you were to watch these first time skiers step out on the glistening snow you would have noticed three commonalities they shared.

      First of all, they had a made up their mind to try. Sometimes we want God to help us stay the way we are. But these kids grabbed a handful of faith and were on their way to change. Change leads to growth, and the first faith step is a made-up mind in Christ. Our minds really are the battlefields!

      Second, they realized that doing something fairly scary for the first time would not only be easier, but even enjoyable if they took the outstretched arm of one who was already a skilled skier. This took a certain amount of humility. It was necessary to admit that they needed help. Moving a mountain or getting a skier down that mountain safely is nothing compared to changing our selfish, proud, ambitious and destructive hearts. To take another's arm also took faith in that person. Will they catch me when I fall? Will they have the patience if I can't do this even an hour from now? Will they ridicule me and expose my weaknesses in front of others? Will they ever help me with anything again after this? These are questions we never need to worry about when it comes to Jesus! The reason we can have faith in Him is because His character is that of faithfulness. Not our character, not that of the noblest Christian we know, but the character of Christ. He is faithful always and in everything. It is because of His faithfulness we can resist the temptation to measure ourselves against people who seem more gifted for example. Over and over Jesus tells us  "You can trust Me!"

      Thirdly, when they fell they got up again! If you have ever been in a trial you may be all too familiar with how much effort it sometimes takes just to lift your head and look up, let alone to move your entire being in the right direction. We must possess the faith to get up again, and again, and again. But where and how do we get this faith? At times it feels as if God is demanding it of us. Is there a clear-cut path to being faith-filled? Yes! The Bible tells us that faith comes by hearing and hearing by the word of God (Rom. 10:17). It is also a gift of God that is freely ours (1 Cor. 12:9). Faith grows much like a muscle --it must be tested against resistance. Jesus says we have enough faith if we believe in Him (Matt. 17:20), so there goes that excuse! The object of faith is Christ (John 6:28-29), not anything else.

      We have learned so much during our weekend together and had amazing opportunities to share and bond both with laughter and tears. One thing that sticks out, however, is that failure does not have to be final. By faith the things we hope for actually have substance to them --there is evidence to those things that we cannot see (Hebrews 11:1). The challenge we are left with is this: Will we choose to step out in faith in Jesus next time there is a fork in the road? And if not, why not?    Monika Miko, Detroit

The weekend of February 4th, 2005, the young people of our Hungarian Baptist Churches met in Detroit, Michigan for a ski weekend. We came from New York, Chicago, Cleveland, California, and even Florida. We were graciously hosted by the Papp and Miko families and the Detroit church. They provided us with delicious meals and places to sleep and socialize. We managed to pack quite a bit into our short but wonderful weekend together. Our activities included skiing, snowboarding, ice skating, and a super bowl party. Some of us bravely tried these sports for the first time!

      (We can happily report no injuries.) We had our own praise service and discussion groups Saturday evening and attended the Detroit church Sunday morning. The weekend was fantastic and enriching on so many levels. It was such a blessing to have the opportunity to connect with other Christian young people- to pray and sing together, to enjoy and encourage each other. We feel strengthened and renewed and look forward to our next opportunity to be together.   Laura I. Szalay, New York

Egy jó, kiadós sielés után, valahol Detroit környékén

Csoportkép a korcsolyapálya mellett

Nagyon örültem, amikor megtudtam, hogy részt vehetek a Detroiti síelésen, melyre február 4-től l 7-ig került sor. Legnagyobb élményem az volt, hogy annyi fiatal közt tölthettem el a hétvégét. Mindenhol és mindenben együtt voltunk, együtt tölthettünk minden percet - teljes szívemből vágytam erre az egységre.
      A péntek estét énekléssel és bibliatanulmányozással töltöttük el. A hit volt az egész hétvégének a témája. Gestner Kornél elmondta a fiataloknak, hogy az imádság nagy hitet igényel. Ez nagyon megérintett engem, mert valóban nagy hit kell ahhoz, hogy mi, mai fiatalok kitartsunk az imádságban, még akkor is, ha nem kapunk rögtön választ, vagy nem látunk semmi eredményt. Az Úr arra tanított engem, hogy legyek erősebb hitemben, mert Ő meghallgat engem, de nekem hinnem kell, hogy ezt igazán megteszi. Az Úr Jeremiás 33:3-ban azt mondja, hogy: "Kiálts hozzám, és megfelelek, és nagy dolgokat mondok néked, és megfoghatatlanokat, amelyeket nem tudsz." Milyen csodálatos, hogy Isten, aki ezt az egész világot teremtette, ilyen közel van hozzánk és megáld minket, ha hiszünk. Áldás volt Stejanko Eric jelenléte is közöttünk, akit felhasznált az Úr a fiatalokhoz intézett beszédében. Ő arról szólt, hogy hittel tegyük le minden aggodalmunkat az Úr elé, mert csak így nyilvánulhat meg az Isten akarata a mi életünkben. Engem például azzal is megáldott az Úr ezen a hétvégén, hogy hinni tudtam abban, hogy meg fogok tanulni snowboardozni, legalább egy kicsit. Isten segítsége által ez meg is történt. Igaz, sokszor elestem, de soha nem adtam fel, hanem felálltam és újból kezdetem az egészet.
      Az Úr nagyon megáldott minket, fiatalokat és persze vezetőinket is, akik az egész hétvégét szervezték. Köszönjü azoknak a családoknak és a detroiti gyülekezetnek, hogy fogadtak bennünket és gondoskodtak rólunk az egész hétvégén. Szeretném, ha még sok ilyen ifjúsági találkozónk lenne a jövőben is, mely még jobban elmélyítené az egységet közöttünk.
      Nagyon hálás vagyok az Úrnak, hogy lehetővé tette ezt a hétvégét az amerikai magyar fiatalok részére, és az én számomra is. Azért imádkozom, hogy mindenkinek maradjon a szívében, amit Isten Igéjével a Szentlélek segítsége által ezen a csodálatos hétvégén elvégzett!  Johanna Veres, Cleveland

More pictures: http://homepage.mac.com/kornel.gerstner/PhotoAlbum12.html