A Foundational Generation of Hungarians

Since 2005, Navigators Mark and Laura Newell have been seeing the Lord work in the lives of university students in Budapest, Hungary.

Back when Mark was in college, he remembers seeing his Navigator campus director pack his bags to move his family to do ministry in Thailand. The willingness to leave behind the familiar to pursue the nations resonated with Mark, and it struck a passion in him for cross cultural ministry.

Over the past 20 years, the Newells have seen how building relationships with Hungarian students has led to steady growth in their community — but it takes much patience and perseverance. As Hungary is a country where most people do not have any connections to Christians, it has been crucial for the Hungary team to share their lives with Hungarian students so that they can see with their own eyes what walking with Jesus looks like.

“I think a challenge we have faced is regarding the perseverance that’s needed working in a more secular culture — the years that are needed to journey with friends,” Mark says. “As they grow in trust, they grow in curiosity, and they become open and trust Jesus. What we really long for even more is to see the gospel moving through families. And it’s a joy, a joy to see that the gospel is moving to siblings, to parents, even to grandparents.”

Being an example for how to live in Christ

This was the case for Benni Illes, who met Mark as a Hungarian student in university in 2014. As Mark built a relationship with Benni, he started to talk to him about faith, helping him understand how to read the Bible and memorize Scripture.

“That was very significant for me, to have someone who could not only help me get into the Word and understand it, but also to see what faith looks like,” Benni says.

Now, Benni has been on staff with The Navigators for 10 years, and he is passionate about passing on what he’s learned to others. “Our students don’t really have a Christian community around them — people who they can look up to for examples to see how they live their lives with Jesus,” Benni explains. “I had that example, and I want to follow that for them.”

For The Newells and The Navigators Hungary team, 1 Thessalonians 2:8 has been at the heart of their ministry: “…we were delighted to share with you not only the gospel of God but our lives as well” (NIV).

By doing life with students — teaching them English, serving together, and coming alongside them in everyday moments — The Navigators team in Hungary is establishing a picture of what life with Christ looks like, and how students can experience the fruit of the gospel in their own lives.

A foundational generation of Hungarians

The Navigators Hungary team has been excited to see the next phase of their ministry: watching God raise up a foundational generation of Hungarian believers. Now, it isn’t just Americans bringing the gospel to Hungarians; it is Hungarians to Hungarians. Friends, classmates, families, and neighborhoods are being touched by the gospel as this generation of Hungarian Christians seek “to know Christ, make Him known, and help others do the same^®.”

“We are praying for a foundational generation of Hungarians who are committed to the Lord, to one another, and to our calling,” Mark says. “We find ourselves praying the words of Jeremiah: ‘Our Lord, God, you have created the heavens and the earth by your great power and by your outstretched arm, nothing is too difficult for you.’ We want to trust God for what only He can do.”

Discipleship Tip:

Benni grew in his faith through Mark coming alongside him and helping him understand how to read the Bible. How can you come alongside others in your life? Consider the example you are setting in your relationships, and how you can give others a better picture of who Jesus is and His Word through starting gospel conversations and simply doing life with those around you.