Letting Go and Gearing Up

During our last trip we were on the East coast in Massachusetts. We made a detour through Plymouth so we could see Plymouth Rock and the Mayflower II (a replica of the original pilgrim ship). Standing in the belly of the wooden ship reminded me that we are so fortunate to have the ability to cross seas in the comfort of an airplane! It was hard to imagine months at sea in the relatively cramped quarters with no sight of land. What faith the Pilgrims must have had to leave everything they called familiar for a land of unknown.

This last week, our family has been further preparing for our big trip over the ocean. We had a garage sale to get rid of some household items that we no longer need or won't be taking to Hungary. In the words of our two-year old "but that is mine!" It was a little difficult to explain that the items we were selling were worth letting go of and that something better would be coming along to replace it! It's easy to have that mindset in many areas of our lives as we become attached to the things of this world. But, God has continued to remind us that we lay up our treasures in heaven! Letting go of some of our possessions is just another step in the process of relying on God to provide our needs.

As we look forward to the next few months, we are definitely gearing up for some changes and some challenges. We continue to have a busy schedule of travel and speaking. We also are preparing for the arrival of the newest member to our family - Baby Long is due Nov 13th! It will definitely be an adjustment to have another little one in tow. We are excited to see how God will continue to provide in the months to come. We are still looking to move overseas the first of the year, so we continue to pray for the financial resources to become available. We simply ask that our friends and family continue to lift our ministry in prayer. We rely on that prayer for getting through all the "letting go" and "gearing up".

VBS #9 Comes to a Close

Well...it's hard to believe, but our last VBS is quickly coming to a close. We have one day left with a Hungarian meal and VBS program and then we are officially finished.

As we wrap up this last week, we have been reflecting on some of the ups and downs of the summer. We have many things to be thankful for and many praises to share!

1. Today we reached a new milestone in decisions for Christ. We have now had 100 children make first time commitments. PRAISE GOD! This does not include the additional commitments made this summer by teens and adults. YEAH!

2. We have over 60 new contacts that we have added to our support team. We look forward to sharing with these new partners in ministry about what God is doing around the world!

3. We have now been travelling "by faith" (as we would say, without our full-time employment), and God has been faithful to help us meet all of our financial obligations.

4. This week Corinne reaches her 6 month of pregnancy with no complications (thus far) and positive doctor reports. We are so thankful for this healthy journey for all of us.

5. We have been able to schedule meetings into the fall with churches and camps to fill out the calendar almost completely! We will be speaking and sharing our ministry full-time through the end of October.

6. God has continued to encourage our passion for the people of Hungary and we have received positive reports from the field. We are continuing to see God's hand in Hungary!

So you see, there have been many blessings from this summer's travels. Our prayer is that God would continue to move in our lives as we move toward Hungary. We know that the success of our summer is directly tied to the prayers of our friends...so thank you for your prayers and support. We couldn't have survived it without you! We have felt the attack of the enemy on many days, but we have also felt strengthened by the encouragement of your prayers. Please continue to pray for our safe travels back East and hopefully we'll bump into you soon!

Love,
Jonathan, Corinne and Carter

Camp, Cowboy Boots, and Kids

The last few weeks have certainly been busy ones... here are a few highlights!

CONFERENCE
We had the opportunity to quickly fly home for Missions in the Midwest (OMS Conference) for the last weekend of June. We enjoyed so much seeing our OMS "family" and sharing with everyone there about our ministry. It was a quick trip, but we were able to squeeze in a visit to the doctor where we learned Carter is going to have a little brother! Now the Long family debates the name...

CAMP
The first week of July we had the privilege of speaking at Family Camp in North Dakota. We were the featured missionaries and spoke each morning about Hungary and the ministry there. Jonathan also had an opportunity to tune up his guitar and assist with music in the evenings. It was a wonderful time of sharing and meeting friends, both old and new. We were blessed by the time we spent there and appreciate the kindness and encouragement of all our Mt Carmel families!

MORE VBS
Following camp, we were back to Billings, MT at Eternity Church for VBS and this week in Fallon, MT. Our spirits are continually renewed as we see young people making decisions for Christ and developing a heart for missions. It is truly the best part about each week!

We are gearing up for our last two weeks of VBS before we head back East. It is hard to believe the summer will soon come to a close! Hopefully we will be passing through your neck of the woods soon!