Fulfilling Unexpected Plans in Budapest
Spending my day like this wasn’t on my radar. I’m encouraged to know that it didn’t take God by surprise. He knows where that manuscript is.
It’s Wednesday evening in Budapest. Our team drove here from Romania yesterday. Four volunteers flew out this morning and one remains because she plans to participate in an evangelistic family camp in Slovakia.
What an incredible team God gave us. Each person contributed to the program either by teaching Bible lessons or crafts, playing games or simply spending time with the campers, and praying, praying, and more praying. We began each morning with a devotional and then spent time in prayer for the campers’ physical well-being and spiritual growth. Presenting the kids’ needs to God as a unified group was a highlight for me.
Today, after the four left, I had to tend to an unexpected task. Two weeks before I left on this trip, I learned that Harvest House Publishers plans to re-release 10-Minute Time Outs for Busy Women under a new title and with a new cover next February. That meant quickly revising the manuscript to fit the new format. I spent two long days on revisions before I left home because I knew I wouldn’t have time while overseas. The manuscript was mailed back via a major courier on June 24.
On Friday, July 8, I received an email from my editor asking if I’d returned the manuscript yet. I gasped, regained my composure, and emailed my response. Bottom line—the manuscript had not yet arrived. Nor has it arrived to date. It’s vanished somewhere between Sumas, Washington and Eugene, Oregon. Neither the shipper nor the courier have a clue where it is, and it appears there’s no tracking number.
And so, guess how I spent my day? With my bottom glued to a wooden chair under a gazebo. My editor emailed the original manuscript file and we found an Office Depot nearby to photocopy the 352 pages of script. My job was to whittle it down to 288 pages and update the material where necessary.
I worked for nearly six hours, broke to enjoy dinner with missionary friends who live in Budapest, and now I’m catching up with you. Tomorrow morning I’ll claim the same chair and finish the task. My hubby will take pictures of each page with changes and then we’ll email it back. What would we do without technology?
Spending my day like this wasn’t on my radar. I’m encouraged to know that it didn’t take God by surprise. He knows where that manuscript is; why He’s chosen not to reveal it is anyone’s guess. Maybe someday I’ll find out, maybe not. Either way, I’m glad God’s in charge.
Tomorrow in the late afternoon, our volunteers from Canada will fly into Budapest for the Slovakia family camp. We’ll catch a shuttle bus from here to there, arriving around 10 PM. And so our journey continues. We’re looking forward to seeing what God has in store there.
Know you are loved,
Grace
Find personal encouragement and renewal as well as practical tips for living effective Christian lives in your home, church, and community in my devotional, Peaceful Moments to Begin Your Day.
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Sounds like things are going great for you all. Praying for you and still enjoying the study!
Yes, things are going very well, thanks to faithful pray-ers like you. Glad you’re still enjoying the study, too 🙂