August Update 2013

Greetings from lovely North Carolina!  We’re delighted to give you the latest update.

Family: In July, we traveled from New Hampshire to North Carolina, visiting with our partners in Connecticut along the way and sharing what the Lord has done through our ministry in Eastern Europe.  We were so blessed when one of our partners treated us to a free overnight stay at a very nice hotel while we were there.  Further along on our trip, we took time out to stop in Virginia Beach for a little rest.  We stayed in a town about 30 minutes from the oceanfront, called Chesapeake, and got up very early to go out and walk on the beach while there were still relatively few people there. We all enjoyed walking along the shore with our feet in the water.

The family at Hampton Beach in NH

When we moved to the States, we did not realize we would need to learn a language, but we are having fun learning to understand the local, North Carolina dialect here where we live now.  On our first day, as we came into town, we asked for directions from a lady at a convenience store.  We heard her say to turn right onto "Home 'n Meal Road."  We figured there must be a restaurant there with home cooking or something. But as we followed her directions, we came to a road called, "Holman Mill Road." Then we realized that must be what she was talking about.

We are staying temporarily during our stateside furlough at a missionary housing community in North Carolina, which is a compassionate, non-denominational ministry, established especially for missionaries home on furlough, which are actively itinerant.  Here we are renting a three-bedroom home that meets all of our needs.  Jennifer's parents came from West Virginia to visit us for a couple days, and it was their first time seeing us in nearly five years, since we moved to Hungary.  They had never seen Joseph, since he was born in Hungary four years ago.  And needless to say, the other children had all grown considerably.  It was an emotional reunion, and everyone enjoyed the time together.

The family at Myrtle Beach, South Carolina

One highlight since arriving here is that a Christian couple invited us to stay at their beach home in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina for a few days. Although they don't know us and have never even met us, they allowed us to take the keys and go to their place by ourselves for free in August! All we had to pay for was a very small cleaning service fee.

The business man who owns the beach home was a missionary kid growing up, so he does this as a ministry to the missionaries living here in the community where we are in North Carolina.  He said, "Sharing our place with other people has been part of our 'giving back to the Lord' for His goodness to us." His condominium is right on a beautiful golf course with a perfect view of the fairway from the patio.  Although we did not do any golfing, we had a great time there.  Since the condo was only a mile from the oceanfront, one of the highlights was walking on the beach with our feet in the water, collecting seashells.  Praise the Lord for our time at the beach.

In August, we also celebrated Faith's eleventh birthday.  Since we had been in Myrtle Beach during her birthday, we celebrated the day after we returned home to North Carolina, by having a picnic together at a local city park, complete with birthday cake and playing a family game of "baseball."  We posted photos of this and our time at Myrtle Beach out on the album at the link below.

More photos.     

Both our desktop computer and laptop have recently experienced major technical problems, requiring Len to completely rebuild them, reinstalling the operating system and everything else. The laptop, which we use when we travel and share about our ministry, is still down with major issues.  Please pray that the Lord would provide the professional assistance we need to help us get it running perfectly once again.

Ministry:  In July, during our time in New Hampshire, at a home group meeting where were presented, a lady had a message for us that our times are in God’s hand, as it says in Psalm 31:15, "My times are in your hand."  Len told her that he has that Scripture on his desk clock.

Eight days later, while we were settling into our home in North Carolina, as Len was putting the battery back into his analog desk clock for the first time since we were in Hungary, he realized the hands on the clock were already set to the correct time at that moment.  It was the same time when he installed the battery as it was when he disconnected the battery in Hungary.  It was 9:45 PM, and this happened entirely by coincidence.  When the clock was reconnected in North Carolina, it was only off from the current time by four minutes or less, so there was no need to reset it. That was amazing!  Then he remembered the word from that sister in New Hampshire.  Our times are truly in the Lord's hand. Let this be an encouragement to you, too.

Since we moved to North Carolina, Len had a chance to speak to a group of adults and youth from a couple of local, Baptist churches, who volunteered their time to come and do some needed work here in the missionary housing community.  The chaplain here had asked Len to share briefly about our ministry and give an exhortation.  It was a good opportunity to share and build new relationships, as we interacted with the people, so we are grateful for that.

During our time here, we have been visiting churches in North Carolina.  At one church, the Lord led us to lay hands for healing on a man with lung cancer that had spread to his back, which we did after the service with the pastor's permission.  The sick man, named Bob, had not been to church in eight weeks, but decided to come on that one day when we visited.  We didn't know this until afterward, once the pastor told us.  Bob said the pain left his back when hands were laid on and the prayer of faith was offered in Jesus' name.

The family on the fairway beside the condo in SC

The pastor says he "knows beyond the shadow of a doubt" that the Lord led us there that Sunday. The night before we visited, Len had called the church telephone number to find the Sunday service times.  He called around 11:25 PM expecting to hear the service times on the church phone's greeting message, but instead the pastor's wife anwered the phone at home.  On Sunday morning, the pastor told the congregation that on the previous night, he had just been praying  that the Lord would send someone to the church the next morning. He said that was about fifteen minutes before Len called, so he sees our visit to the church as a direct answer to prayer.  He and his wife were very encouraged by our visit.

In fact, later that Sunday evening, he said, "I have rejoiced all day in the Lord because of your visit. [My wife] has been telling everyone about how God answered prayer today." Praise the Lord for the way He encouraged this pastor and his wife, and healed the man with cancer!  The pastor has invited us back again, and we're seeking the Lord's direction concerning this invitation. 

We have certainly been praying for the Lord to open doors.  Our desire would be to come to your church or Bible Study group to make a presentation of our work in Eastern Europe, while we are in the States.  Please pray about this.  It's a chance for us to encourage people to greater evangelism and commitment to completing the Great Commission globally, and we would be honored to come speak. The uniqueness of our presentation is that we present how the Lord has changed the lives of people in Eastern Europe, highlighted by our children singing a special worship song live in Hungarian.  We know you will enjoy the presentation.   So give us a call if we can come to speak to your group.

Please join us in praying for the Lord to open doors of opportunity for us, that we would be fruitful for Christ, and that the Lord would raise up additional partners. Also pray that the Lord will provide the many things we need, in order to make this furlough possible, as well as the necessary finances. 

Administrative Needs:  Our current bookkeeper, Emily, has notified us that her services to this ministry will end next January.  We really appreciate her giving us this notice, since it can take a long time to find the right person for this volunteer position.  Since this is a role that requires a high level of trust and integrity, we are prayerfully seeking the right person to fill it, whom the Lord has chosen. 

The position involves entering data pertaining to gifts into a user-friendly, accounting software, called QuickBooks, and printing out receipts to mail to our partners.  It also involves balancing the account, as well as generating monthly and annual reports, and sending annual giving summaries to our partners. If you or someone you know would be interested, please contact us.  The start date would be January 2, 2014, but we would like to identify the right person as soon as possible.

Resources:  This month we would also like to encourage you to read Len's latest blog called, Walking in the Perfect Will of God.  Please also read three of our daughter's most recent poems, I'll Follow You,  Worth My Praise, and The Hunter and the Hunted.  Len's entire collection of his most popular blogs are at "Writing for the Master".  We welcome your comments on this newsletter, so feel free to leave those below.

In closing, we have much to praise God for, and many opportunities for you to join us in prayer.

Praise the Lord with us for the many answers to prayer:

"Not to us, O Lord, not to us but to your name be the glory, because of your love and faithfulness." (Ps 115:1)

1. For leading and guiding us in all of our travels, and His amazing timing.
2. For protecting us during our travels.
3. For the open door we received from the one church in NC, and for encouraging the pastor and his wife.
4. For the amazing way He touched and healed the man from cancer at the NC church we visited.
5. For the couple in NC who allowed us to stay in their beach home for a few days, and the wonderful time away we had there together as a family.

Next steps and prayer needs:

1. For the Lord to provide all that we need to make our Stateside furlough possible.
2. For the Lord to open doors of opportunity and give us safe travels as we travel around the States.
3. For the Lord to further expand the awareness of this ministry throughout the US, and raise up many new partners, who will sponsor us.
4. For the Lord to continue to move powerfully through the Word, our testimonies, and our ministry to those who come to hear us.
5. For the Lord to help Greg and Gyula to finally start meeting in a Life Transformation Group for discipleship. 
6. For the Lord to provide a new bookkeeper in time for next January, who will be faithful, reliable, and trustworthy, as Emily has been. 
7. For our financial blessing. 

Thank you so much for your partnership in this ministry.

with love from all of us,

The Lacroixs

There are two ways to donate to Doulos Missions International. You may either send a check or money order by mail to:
Doulos Missions International
PO Box 5526
Manchester, NH 03108-5526

Donate Online

July Update 2013

Greetings from beautiful New Hampshire!  We’re delighted to give you the latest update.

Family: In June, we spent two weeks in Manchester, NH, visited with family, and took care of a number of administrative matters, including getting our recently purchased van on the road.

The children hiking atop Canon Mountain in NH

At the end of those two weeks, we moved to Charlestown, NH, near the border of Vermont, where we stayed at the home of some friends in Christ for three weeks.  We were so grateful to have that place to stay! God is good!

At one point, Christopher was bitten by a mosquito on his forehead and it swelled up into a big, ugly welt.  His whole forehead was swollen, including the bridge of his nose and eyelids.  It temporarily deformed his face horribly.  We prayed for him and treated it, administering benedryl, black tea, and cold tea-bag compresses, and within a couple days, the Lord restored him to perfect health. He's fine now.  Praise the Lord!

One night as we were traveling back home from a long trip across the state, a thunderstorm and torrential downpour suddenly hit the specific area were were driving through.  We were on the interstate highway and did not experience flooding, but driving conditions were treacherous.  And we found out later that the weather service had issued a flash flood warning for that exact area we were driving through.  The fastest we could go was around 40 mph, because visibility was very poor.  We prayed through the storm as we continued along for perhaps 30 minutes, and the Lord safely got us back to the home where we were staying.  Thank the Lord for His protection over us.

Although our stay in NH has been a busy one, we took some time to do fun things together as a family.  One of them was to go to Canon Mountain and ride the aerial tram to a spot near the summit.  Then we hiked to the summit and climbed the observation tower.  It was a time filled with beholding the wonders of God's beautiful creation.  Praise the Lord!

We also found time to visit a reconstruction of Fort Number 4, a colonial-era fort.  The original fort was located on the property of the home where we stayed with friends in Charlestown, NH.  So that was very interesting and educational.  Thank the Lord for some family fun.

More photos.   

Zsolt with his grand daughter

Ministry:  In early May, before we left Hungary, Len ate dinner at the home of one of his disciples, Greg, at the home of his parents.  In Hungary it is very common for single people to live with their parents until they get married.  After dinner, Len laid hands for healing on Greg's father, Zsolt, who is a Christian medical doctor.  There were two issues: his pancreas was diseased and so were the discs in his spinal column, which had both been causing chronic pain.  About a week or two later, Len inquired with Greg about his father's well-being, and his father wrote the following email:

"Dear Len,
Thank you so much for the prayer you said for me. I felt the power of God swelling (flushing) over me while you were praying. My back was without any pain for a long time after your prayer but the recent days I loaded it a lot, and now I have pain again. 

I don't know what happened to my belly but it started to hurt a second time today, and this disturbs (bothers) me a lot.

It is so great and wonderful that Jesus went up to the Father and sent the Holy Spirit to strengthen us. Thank you for being with us, (during) your visit!

May our God give you strength and encouragement in your ministry and mission.

love,
Zsolt"

Praise the Lord for what He did when hands were laid on Zsolt!  Please pray for Zsolt's healing to be complete and all residual pain to leave his body.

Greg

Greg has indicated to Len that he would like to start a Life Transformation Group with his friend Gyula (pronounced DYOO'-la).  He says they have wanted to do so for quite some time, but have have only talked about it and procrastinated.  He requested prayer that they would actually begin to have discipleship meetings together like he used to have with Len, as he and Gyula really sense a definite and urgent need to do so. 

During our time in New Hampshire, we have been visiting churches in the region, preaching, giving thanks, sharing our story, ministering to people, and building relationships.  Now we are back in Manchester, staying at the apartment of a sister in the Lord, and preparing to move to the southern part of the US.  We plan to be led by the Holy Spirit, as long as the Lord opens doors for us at churches around the country.

After Len shared our testimonies in one NH church of what God has been doing in Eastern Europe, we ministered to the sick. One young lady had just seen her doctor before the meeting, because of chronic neck pain that she had been having for a period of weeks.  He recommended physical therapy.  However, when we laid hands on her, the Lord healed her and the neck pain left immediately.  As a result, she was fit to go on a planned ministry trip to the street people of Boston later that week.  Her little sister had asthma, and at bedtime her mother would usually hear her breathing, but when we laid hands on her, the Lord healed her.  When her mother put her to bed that night, she was concerned when she did not hear her breathing, but when she checked on her, everything was fine.

Len presenting at a New Life Community home group in NH

 Another lady repented of past involvement in witchcraft and participation in the occult, and once the curse was broken, she felt "a peace like she hadn’t felt in long time."  One man was unable to walk briskly due to difficulty breathing and a heart problem due to his many years of smoking, even though he has since quit.  As we laid hands on him for healing, he felt "something like waves going through his chest."  Another lady who minsters to children asked for prayer for strength. And when we imparted the fire of the Holy Spirit to her, she was overwhelmed with joy, which was very obvious. Another sister in the Lord received prayer for her thyroid gland, which was swollen and visibly protruding from her throat.  Since then she has reported a decrease in the inflammation and she trusts the Lord to complete the healing.

At another NH church, after Len shared our testimonies, we once again saw the Lord move in power. One lady, had suffered from scoliosis since age fourteen, and also had arthritis.  We laid hands on her for healing.  One leg was longer than the other by ¼ to ½ inch and we saw it grow out within seconds to become the same length as the other leg. Afterward she was able to walk around without pain. She later said she felt "a gentleness" and had a vision of grapes when we prayed for her healing.  Two or three people also received the baptism with the Holy Spirit and with fire, according to Matthew 3:11.  We were so blessed by the way the Lord moved and touched people with healing, power, and deliverance.  Praise the Lord!

Pr. Rob Haynes and others from New Life praying for us

After we shared our testimonies at a home group in Charlestown, NH, there was a time of ministry for one particular sister, named Felicia.  The Lord moved again powerfully.  She was set free, healed, and baptized with the fire of the Holy Spirit.  Afterward she was bright-eyed and full of hope.  The next day she wrote to us saying, "I am so thankful and overjoyed at the healing/ministering work the Lord blessed me with through you both last night!!!!  I have not encountered faith  and the power of the Holy Spirit like that in a very long time, so I felt refreshed, invigorated and revived with hope, healing, and faith." She added, "I was inspired by the testimonies you shared about people's lives [in Eastern Europe] changing through discipleship."  Praise the Lord for what He did in Felicia's life! We know she will never be the same.

From time to time, people who read Len's blogs contact him.  He recently received the following remarks from a pastor in Myanmar (a country in Southeast Asia, formerly called Burma):  "I am Pastor [name redacted for security] from Myanmar New Life Evangelical Ministries (MNLEM). I am also a Lecturer at Bible schools and translator of Christian books and also a Church Planter in a remote area...As I read your e-mails and articles, you are so special and an encouragement to me indeed." Praise the Lord for the way He is encouraging this pastor, and reaching people through us that we don't even know yet!

Our desire would be to come to your church or Bible Study group to make a presentation of our work in Eastern Europe, while we are in the States.  Please pray about this.  It's a chance for us to encourage people to greater evangelism and commitment to completing the Great Commission globally, and we would be honored to come speak. The uniqueness of our presentation is that we present how the Lord has changed the lives of people in Eastern Europe, highlighted by our children singing a special worship song live in Hungarian.  We know you will enjoy the presentation.   So give us a call if we can come to speak to your group.

Please pray for the Lord to open doors of opportunity for us, that we would be fruitful for Christ, and that the Lord would raise up additional partners. Also pray that the Lord will provide the many things we need, in order to make this furlough possible, as well as the necessary finances. 

Some of the quotes in this newsletter have been edited and paraphrased from the original sources for clarity.

Administrative Needs:  Our current bookkeeper, Emily, has notified us that her services to this ministry will end next January.  We really appreciate her giving us this notice, since it can take a long time to find the right person for this volunteer position.  Since this is a role that requires a high level of trust and integrity, we are prayerfully seeking the right person to fill it, whom the Lord has chosen. 

The position involves entering data pertaining to gifts into a user-friendly, accounting software, called QuickBooks, and printing out receipts to mail to our partners.  It also involves balancing the account, as well as generating monthly and annual reports, and sending annual giving summaries to our partners. If you or someone you know would be interested, please contact us.  The start date would be January 2, 2014, but we would like to identify the right person as soon as possible.

Resources:  This month we would also like to encourage you to read The Role of the Trinity in Drawing People to God.  As always, Len's entire collection of most popular blogs are at "Writing for the Master".  We welcome your comments on this newsletter, so feel free to leave those below.

In closing, we have much to praise God for, and many opportunities for you to join us in prayer.

Praise the Lord with us for the many answers to prayer:

"Not to us, O Lord, not to us but to your name be the glory, because of your love and faithfulness." (Ps 115:1)

1. For opening doors for us at churches in NH.
2. For brothers and sisters in Christ in NH who opened their homes for us to stay there.
3. For protecting us during our travels, especially the nighttime torrential downpour.
4. For the opportunities to share at churches and the amazing way He touched and healed so many people.
5. For the way He touched Zsolt during Len's visit to his home, relieving his pain.
6. For using Len's blogs to train and encourage leaders, including the pastor in Myanmar.

Next steps and prayer needs:

1. For the Lord to provide all that we need to make our Stateside furlough possible.
2. For the Lord to open doors of opportunity and give us safe travels as we travel around the States.
3. For the Lord to complete the healing in Greg's father, Zsolt, and others we have prayed for.
4. For the Lord to further expand the awareness of this ministry throughout the US, and raise up many new partners, who will sponsor us.
5. For the Lord to continue to move powerfully through the Word, our testimonies, and our ministry to those who come to hear us.
6. For the Lord to continue to multiply disciples through Dávid V. and the others in his church. 
7. For the Lord to help Greg and Gyula to finally start meeting in a Life Transformation Group for discipleship. 
8. For the Lord to provide a new bookkeeper in time for next January, who will be faithful, reliable, and trustworthy, as Emily has been. 
9. For our financial blessing. 

Thank you so much for your partnership in this ministry.

with love from all of us,

The Lacroixs

There are two ways to donate to Doulos Missions International. You may either send a check or money order by mail to:
Doulos Missions International
PO Box 5526
Manchester, NH 03108-5526

Donate Online

June Update 2013

Greetings from New Hampshire!  We’re delighted to give you the latest update.

Our family at the London airport

Family: In May we finished all our preparations to return to the US this summer for our first stateside family furlough. We sold our van for the full asking price.  We also had everything packed five days before leaving, and by the grace of God, we made it safely back to America on June 5th.  A team from our home church was at the airport in Boston, waiting for us to help us with all our baggage. Praise the Lord!

At the time of this newsletter, we are staying at the apartment of a sister in Christ from our home church in NH, who offered it to us.  She actually moved out for two weeks to live with some friends, so that we would have the place all to ourselves.  We are so grateful to have this place to stay! God is good!

Our plan is to spend our first six weeks in NH, and then make our way down to NC, Lord willing.  We intend to make that our base as we travel to speak at churches and with friends.  Please pray that the Lord will provide the many things we need, in order to make this furlough possible, as well as the necessary finances.

More photos.   

Ministry:   Since our last update, Elizabeth continues going to the hospital for chemotherapy treatment. The treatment causes pain all over her body, including her teeth.  It also causes nausea and loss of all her strength.

Elizabeth and her mother, Elizabeth

In May we made one last visit to see her and her mother, Elizabeth. They live out in the country in a very rural area.  It was a beautiful, warm and sunny afternoon under clear blue skies, following heavy rains. We sat outside for fellowship and prayer.  They pumped water out of their well for us, which runs on an electric pump.  Elizabeth explained that when she was a girl, she had to go outside and crank the handle on the manual well, before they had electricity (see "more photos" link).  But eventually they paid a commercial company that is adjacent to their property (about a quarter mile away) to connect that company's electricity to their home.  This was costly, but at least allowed them to get electricity to their home. They pay this business to use some of their electricity each month.  If they were to get the utility company to run a proper transmission line to their home, it would cost around $44,000 USD!  So they continue with this makeshift arrangement.

The single, main wire that transmits the power into their home ran very low, right over our heads as we sat there.  It's only about seven feet above the ground, deteriorated from age and patched with some black electrical tape in the middle.  When we stood up to pray for Elizabeth and her mother, Len looked up just before he raised his hand, redirecting his arm a few inches away from the wire.  The Lord protected Len and Elizabeth, whom he was laying his hands on, as well as Jennifer who was also touching Elizabeth.  Praise the Lord for keeping us all safe from harm!

Len with the Hungarian grandpa's scythe.

Elizabeth and her mother explained that they used to grow their own vegetable crops and raise farm animals on their property many years ago.  They still had an old scythe lying around, which Elizabeth said her grandfather used to cut grass and crops on that property, when he was alive.

The visit was a very difficult one for the two Elizabeth's, even from the moment we arrived, because they were very sad to see us go.  They could not bear the thought of saying goodbye, so they began to weep and kissed us.  But after prayer and farewells, once we had torn ourselves away from them, we returned home to our village, not knowing when we would see them again.

Last month, we mentioned an older lady named Aunty Elizabeth, who is Elizabeth's friend, whom she met at the hospital, and who felt that she was near death.  Aunty Elizabeth also has cancer, is around seventy-three years old, and has been Elizabeth's roommate a couple times.

In May, Len asked Elizabeth how Aunty Elizabeth was doing.  She said, "There were a couple days in the hospital when Aunty Elizabeth had no doctors or nurses caring for her, so I was her only caretaker. I cared for her, and prayed for her.  Then Aunty Elizabeth's condition required that she be moved to the Intensive Care Unit.  During that time, I prayed a lot for her. And now she is better.  Jesus helped her. Thank God"

Also in May, Len had a chance to share the gospel with our next-door neighbor, Rudi.  He is a young, Hungarian engineer in his late thirties, who is married without children. He had made a decision to move with his wife, Orsi ("OR-shee") to Switzerland, in search of a better life.  Back in October 2011, just as they were about to move, he came to our home to help Jennifer with something, while Len was traveling on ministry out of town.  At that time, Jennifer had shared with him that although she was happy for him to be making this move, he needed to be thinking about life beyond this life. He said back then that when he was in the university, he began to think that maybe there is a God, because he saw how perfectly everything was designed.

So in May, Rudi came to our home for a very short visit, on the last evening of a three-day stay at his home in Hungary.  He said it would be the last time he would see us until we return to Hungary, since he was heading back to Switzerland the next day.  When Len shared his testimony and proclaimed the gospel to him, there was a greater openness.  He said that during the past few months, he had begun to see specific good things that were happening to him and Orsi as God blessings.  He had begun to look up and say, "Thank you.  You're a good God."  For him, that seemed like a major step in the right direction.  We also believe it shows he has gone from wondering if there is even a God to actually thanking God for his blessings, and testifying that he did so.  So let's pray that Rudi and Orsi both make a decision to give their lives to Jesus.

Kriszti and Gabor

Meanwhile, Gábor returned from his two-week trial period in Germany, and found the job to be suitable for him.  He has since returned again to Germany for a longer period. 

Meanwhile, a few of our friends indicated they wanted to send their greetings to the churches in the States.  David, a Hungarian disciple, said, "I would like to send my greetings to the churches where you are going! You are in my heart!" In his last conversation with Len before we left Hungary, he said, "God sent you to Hungary just when I needed you, and there was nobody else in Hungary who could help me.  Now I'm multiplying disciples and doing what you taught me.  Even if you only came to Hungary for me, it was worth it."

Vilmos, an elder in Hungary said, "You can include me in the group who send greetings from Central Europe to brothers and sisters...I really appreciate your commitment to serve Churches and people from Europe. It is not a small thing to leave your country and your home and dedicate your time and life for an unknown nation. I also appreciate the time which I spent with you.  There are some points which I learned from you, and I will never forget them...I don't know what is your feeling now... [as you return] home for a time. I still remember your vision [that we should] 'be fruitful and multiply' Let me encourage you. You were 'a man who cast seed upon the soil.' And from the grace of Lord the harvest will come."

Marina, one of the Bulgarian leaders, wrote: "Greetings from Plovdiv! Thank you for your willingness to greet the American churches from Bulgarian churches! It would be WONDERFUL! Please, include Bulgaria in your list! I would appreciate it!" 

Some of the quotes in this newsletter have been edited and paraphrased from the original sources for clarity.

Administrative Needs:  Our current bookkeeper, Emily, has notified us that her services to this ministry will end next January.  We really appreciate her giving us this notice, since it can take a long time to find the right person for this volunteer position.  Since this is a role that requires a high level of trust and integrity, we are prayerfully seeking the right person to fill it, whom the Lord has chosen. 

The position involves entering data pertaining to gifts into a user-friendly, accounting software, called QuickBooks, and printing out receipts to mail to our partners.  It also involves balancing the account, as well as generating monthly and annual reports, and sending annual giving summaries to our partners. If you or someone you know would be interested, please contact us.  The start date would be January 2, 2014, but we would like to identify the right person as soon as possible.

Resources:  This month we would also like to encourage you to read The Book of Life.  As always, Len's entire collection of most popular blogs are at "Writing for the Master".  We welcome your comments on this newsletter, so feel free to leave those below.

In closing, we have much to praise God for, and many opportunities for you to join us in prayer.

Praise the Lord with us for the many answers to prayer:

"Not to us, O Lord, not to us but to your name be the glory, because of your love and faithfulness." (Ps 115:1)

1. For helping us with all the preparations for furlough and getting us safely back to the States.
2. For the team that met us in Boston to help get us and our baggage to NH.
3. For protecting us during our final visit to Elizabeth's home.
4. For the opportunity to share Jesus with our neighbor Rudi, and his openness.
5. For the places in NH that the Lord has provided for us to stay for our first six weeks.

Next steps and prayer needs:

1. For the Lord to provide all that we need to make our Stateside furlough possible.
2. For the Lord to give us safe travels as we travel around the States.
3. For the Lord to reveal Himself to all the non-believers in Hungary, whom we have touched.
4. For the Lord to further expand the awareness of this ministry throughout the US, and raise up many new partners, who will sponsor us.
5. For the Lord to continue to multiply disciples through Dávid V. and the others in his church. 
6. For the Lord to provide a new bookkeeper in time for next January, who will be faithful, reliable, and trustworthy, as Emily has been. 
7. For our financial blessing. 

Thank you so much for your partnership in this ministry.

with love from all of us,

The Lacroixs

There are two ways to donate to Doulos Missions International. You may either send a check or money order by mail to:
Doulos Missions International
PO Box 5526
Manchester, NH 03108-5526

Donate Online

May Update 2013

Greetings from Hungary!  We’re delighted to give you another update on what the Lord is doing here in Eastern Europe.
  

Joseph and Christopher

Family: In May, we celebrated Christopher's eighth birthday. We also continued to make preparations to return to the US this summer for our first stateside family furlough. All the preparations continue to go well, by the grace of God.  Praise the Lord!

At the time of this newsletter, we have less than 23 days remaining until our departure.  Please pray that everything we need to do before our return will be fully accomplished. Please pray that the Lord will provide the many things we need, in order to make this furlough possible, as well as the necessary finances.

"Elizabeth"

Ministry:   Since our last update, Elizabeth continues going to the hospital for chemotherapy treatment.  Although she has pain, she says with tears of joy, "The Lord has changed my way of thinking.  I have joy, love, peace, and faith.  I pray every day, and I am helping people wherever I go. Thank you, Jesus!" Please continue to pray for her complete healing and for her financial blessing.

Through Elizabeth, Len has gotten to know an older lady named Aunty Elizabeth, who is Elizabeth's friend, whom she met at the hospital.  Aunty Elizabeth also has cancer, is around seventy-three years old, and has been Elizabeth's roommate a couple times.  They are always in the same ward at the hospital during their chemotherapy treatments, and they love each other as sisters in the Lord.  However, it has been very difficult for Elizabeth to watch Aunty Elizabeth's condition deteriorate over the past few weeks.  At the end of April, when Len visited her, she felt that she was near death.  She said, "I am not worthy to have the Lord come to my house, but if He just says the word, I will be healed."

Meanwhile, Gábor is fully recovered from his kidney surgery, and he has been back to work since mid-April.  Praise the Lord!  Thank you for praying for him.

The family at Gábor's house before the church service

He is now working in Germany for his two-week trial period, in order to see if this is suitable for him. If all goes well, he plans to return there in June for longer term employment.

He has been sharing the Lord with another man, also named Gábor, whom he has worked with from time to time.   That man has begun to attend the new church in Tököl, which was started in Gábor's home.  He is bringing his wife and daughter to church and they are open to the gospel.  He sees the difference between the way Gábor leads his life and the way others do.  He wants the peace of God that he sees in Gábor.  His wife even told him, "Whenever you work with Gábor, you are peaceful, and you seem like a man who has no problems."  According to Gábor, they are ready to repent and give their lives to Jesus.  Praise the Lord!  Pray that they will do so soon.

Len preaching with Gábor as translator

We were invited to a Sunday service at the newly planted, Baptist church in Tököl at the end of April, where we ministered as a family.  It was so encouraging to see Gábor's youngest son, Bendi, worshiping the Lord passionately with his eyes closed and hands uplifted to God.

Our children sang a special worship song in Hungarian, then Len preached, and Gábor translated for him. It was Gábor's first time translating, and the Lord helped him to do a great job! The message and ministry were well received.  After the Sunday meeting, Gábor said it was a "magnificent evening."

Many people in the church stood to repent and seek the Lord for holiness in their lives.  They asked the Lord to purify them with His holy fire, and we even had the opportunity to pray for several of them personally, as well as minister to them.  It was a wonderful time! Some of the people who asked for prayer were three youths, named David (Gábor's oldest son), Reka ("RAY-ka"), and Anita.  Several adults came forward for prayer, including a man named Paul, a woman named Andi, and a man named Joseph.  Please pray for the Lord to continue the good work He started in them and the others who came forward on that evening.

More photos.  

Gábor with his oldest son, David

At that meeting, a sister named Kati shared a testimony.  This lady is about fifty-five years old. She said that four years ago, she was having headaches, so she saw a doctor, who performed a CT scan.  He said she had a one-centimeter tumor in her brain, and that she should not worry, since it was not harming anything.  She returned to see him a year later for follow up.  The second CT Scan revealed the tumor had tripled in size to three centimeters in diameter.  But again the doctor told Kati not to worry about it.  She returned again the next time, and the CT scan showed that the tumor had grown much larger.  He said it could cause blindness, due to its proximity to her optic nerves, and that they should operate.  That was around January 2013.

However, the doctor warned her that nine patients in one hundred die from this surgery.  She reasoned that if God had allowed her to live this long, it was enough, and she was ready to meet Him. But following a subsequent blood test, the doctor said he would not be able to perform the surgery at that time, due to conflicting factors in her body.  So she prayed, and the church prayed for her.  She returned to the doctor at the end of April for another CT scan, which revealed that the tumor is completely gone!  The Lord has supernaturally healed her!  Praise the Lord!  Our God is Healer.

We also received an email from a friend of a Hungarian lady named Zsuzsa ("Suzanna"), for whom we had prayed a week earlier, when she came to our home to buy something.  While she was at our home, she complained of back problems, specifically that she had degenerate discs in her spine.  We prayed for healing, especially for the Lord to create new discs.  Here is the testimony that her friend, Éva ("Eve"), wrote to me: "Zsuzsa called me and asked me to write a short message to you. She was really thankful for the prayer. After a week she feels much better, and she has less pain. She did not take her medicine for a week now, and the severe pain did not come back. She thinks God healed her. She also feels that her pelvis changed its position.”

Zsuzsa's friend, Éva continued: “The doctors told her when she was a teenager that her spine wouldn't move at the age of forty. She is passed forty and her spine still moves, which she said is also a miracle. If I remember right, there is some problem with the fluid between the vertebrae.” Praise the Lord for what He has done for Zsuzsa!

From time to time, people who read Len's blogs contact him.  He recently received the following request from a pastor in Kenya: "Dear servants of God,  I would love to learn more from you about Gifts of the spirit and fruits of the Spirit."  After Len sent him some related articles in answer to his request, he wrote us the following very kind note of thanks:

"Dear Brother Leonard, I found you through your blog and felt the need to contact you about Gifts and fruits which are completely difficult to differentiate -- even myself as a Pastor for seven years. Very recently I had been asking myself a lot of questions about this. So when I found  you through your website, I did not hesitate to contact you, my brother, about this. It is a journey, and we have to help one another, as we walk together to the Kingdom of God. Thank you for sending me the related ones. I will be studying all of them, and hear what the Lord is speaking through His word to me. I am leading a local church here in Kenya and serving mostly in the rural homes, reaching people there with the gospel of Jesus Christ; so what you shared with me will be a blessing to all who will receive from me, as well. In Christ love, Pastor William."

He later wrote that he had spoken to his wife about us, and said, "As I told you already, your ministry will be of great help for the growth of our ministry here. I have been involved in teaching church planting, and teaching elders, as well as all the laborers in the kingdom of God. Me being one of your students will be a blessing to us." He said he would share with his church on Sunday everything Len had taught him. Praise the Lord for what this pastor is doing in Kenya and for the small way we were able to assist him.

Last month another reader from Germany, named Christian, wrote, "Dear Len, I love your articles about obedience." And just recently in May he wrote, "Your articles are a great encouragement for me for holiness." Any good fruit in us comes from the Lord, not from ourselves, so He deserves all the praise. Thank the Lord for every life that has been changed.

The Lord recently led Len to write an article about The Holy Trinity, and afterward he received a comment from a reader in Singapore, named Roy.  Roy has been a believer for twenty years, and wrote: "Len, thank you again for your article. It's quite coincidental that on Saturday, I had to draft a short [email] reply to a young believer about the Trinity. This young believer didn't know how to respond to a criticism from a Muslim, on how Christians could believe in the Trinity, and at the same time, believe that God is One."

Our God is amazing! He alone deserves the glory and the honor and the praise.  Where there is a need in one part of the kingdom, He meets the need through a member of the Body in another part of the kingdom.  Please pray that the Lord continues to use Len's blogs to develop disciples of Christ and leaders throughout the world.

Some of the quotes in this newsletter have been edited and paraphrased from the original sources for clarity.

Administrative Needs:  Our current bookkeeper, Emily, has notified us that her services to this ministry will end next January.  We really appreciate her giving us this notice, since it can take a long time to find the right person for this volunteer position.  Since this is a role that requires a high level of trust and integrity, we are prayerfully seeking the right person to fill it, whom the Lord has chosen. 

The position involves entering data pertaining to gifts into a user-friendly, accounting software, called QuickBooks, and printing out receipts to mail to our partners.  It also involves balancing the account, as well as generating monthly and annual reports, and sending annual giving summaries to our partners. If you or someone you know would be interested, please contact us.  The start date would be January 2, 2014, but we would like to identify the right person as soon as possible.

Resources:  This month we would also like to encourage you to read the messages called, Striving to Enter the Kingdom of God, The Holy Trinity, Something is Going on in 2013, and The Dangers of Disobedience.

As always, Len's entire collection of most popular blogs are at "Writing for the Master".  We welcome your comments on this newsletter, so feel free to leave those below.

In closing, we have much to praise God for, and many opportunities for you to join us in prayer.

Praise the Lord with us for the many answers to prayer:

"Not to us, O Lord, not to us but to your name be the glory, because of your love and faithfulness." (Ps 115:1)

1. For healing Zsuzsa's spine.
2. For the repentance of the believers at the Baptist church in Tököl.
3. For Elizabeth's spiritual growth.
4. For healing Kati from a brain tumor.
5. For helping us with all our preparations for US furlough.

Next steps and prayer needs:

1. For the Lord to help us with all the preparatory tasks that we still need to accomplish in the next 20 days, including the final sale of our van on May 31.
2. For the Lord to provide all that we need to make our Stateside furlough possible.
3. For the Lord to give us safe travels back to the States.
4. For the Lord to reveal Himself to all the non-believers in Hungary, whom we have touched.
5. For the Lord to give us wisdom and understanding to know His will in each situation we go through. 
6. For Erzsébet ("Elizabeth") to be completely healed of cancer, and her son István ("Steven") to be saved.
7. For the Lord to further expand the awareness of this ministry throughout the US, Europe, and England, and raise up many new partners.
8. For the Lord to continue to multiply disciples through Dávid V. and the others in his church. 
9. For the Lord to provide a new bookkeeper in time for next January, who will be faithful, reliable, and trustworthy, as Emily has been. 
10. For our financial blessing. 

Thank you so much for your partnership in this ministry.

with love from all of us,

The Lacroixs

There are two ways to donate to Doulos Missions International. You may either send a check or money order by mail to:
Doulos Missions International
PO Box 5526
Manchester, NH 03108-5526

Donate Online

April Update 2013

Greetings from Hungary!  We’re delighted to give you another update on what the Lord is doing here in Eastern Europe.

 Family: In March, we sensed from the Lord that we should return to the US this summer.  So this will be our first stateside family furlough since we arrived on the field nearly five years ago. Needless to say, the children are very excited.  Lord willing, we expect to be there for at least one year, traveling and meeting many of you.  We look forward to seeing you, and having the chance to fellowship and pray together.  We also look forward to the ministry opportunities that the Lord surely has in store for us there as we travel.

Since we made this decision, the Lord has been putting together all the details in a truly heavenly way, and we have been very busy making all the necessary preparations for such a big move.  As you can imagine, there are many detailed arrangements that must be made both here in Hungary and back in the US, so this has been a major priority. And of course, this is a very expensive undertaking.  Please pray that the Lord will provide the many things we need, in order to make this furlough possible, as well as the necessary finances.

In April, Charity had a bladder infection.  We prayed for her and the Lord healed her without any medical intervention.  Praise the Lord!

It's been a very wet year here since January, with very few breaks in the precipitation.  As a result, there has been water leaking in the area of the foundation of the home we are renting.  This has caused a first-time mold issue to develop in the children's classroom located in the basement, which the landlord is preparing to take care of.  It's great that the landlord has agreed to do this. However, there are no mold remediation experts here, so a general concrete builder is doing the work with assistance from Len.  Needless to say, the fact that this is not being done by experts presents some health concerns, and is happening at a very inopportune time.  We are thankful to God that He has given us warmer and drier weather during the past week. Please pray this issue will get resolved promptly in a way that will completely and permanently resolve the mold problem.

Ministry:  Since our last update, Elizabeth continues to spend periods of time in the hospital for chemotherapy treatment.  She told Len recently that while she was at the hospital, she stepped out onto the terrace outside with a friend of hers, who was also a patient. While they were praying together, Elizabeth said that she began praying in an unknown language that.  She was so surprised when this came out of her, because she said it never happened before. Len rejoiced and reminded her of what happened in March when she was baptized with the Holy Spirit. Tears welled up in her eyes, as she realized that she had received the evidence of her baptism, glossolalia, or speaking in other languages.  Praise the Lord!

She continues to pray a lot, read her Bible, and hold onto her faith in Jesus. She and her mother are in dire straits financially.  She said her 21-year old son has secured a job that begins in June, which she hopes he will use to support her and her mother.  But they are doing all they can to survive until then.  Her son is not saved and is not the responsible type, so he needs the Lord.  Please continue to pray for her complete healing and for her financial blessing.

Erzsébet, Jennifer, and Len

Meanwhile, Gábor is recovering well from his kidney surgery.  Lab results on the tumor biopsy came back positive for malignancy, but the doctor is confident that he got all of it. And the small piece that remained in Gábor's kidney tested negative, so it is benign.  Gábor is already riding his bicycle, driving, and walking.  Praise the Lord!  Thank you for praying for him.

He plans to move to Germany soon, where there is work for him. In fact, he drove out there to Germany this week with his wife and oldest son, in order to meet his prospective employer.  It was about a ten-hour or 869-mile drive.  He plans to go back for two weeks in May to try out the job and see if it's going to work well.  If all goes well, he plans to return there in June for longer term employment.  He will leave his family here in Hungary, so he can try to earn a living to provide for them, since it is so difficult to make enough money here.

Kriszti and Gábor

Administrative Needs:  Our current bookkeeper, Emily, has notified us that her services to this ministry will end next January.  We really appreciate her giving us this notice, since it can take a long time to find the right person for this volunteer position.  Since this is a role that requires a high level of trust and integrity, we are prayerfully seeking the right person to fill it, whom the Lord has chosen. 

The position involves entering data pertaining to gifts into a user-friendly, accounting software, called QuickBooks, and printing out receipts to mail to our partners.  It also involves balancing the account, as well as generating monthly and annual reports, and sending annual giving summaries to our partners. If you or someone you know would be interested, please contact us.  The start date would be January 2, 2014, but we would like to identify the right person as soon as possible.

Resources:  This month we would also like to encourage you to read the messages called, The Obedience of Faith, Something is Going on in 2013, and Righteous Deeds and White Robes.

As always, Len's entire collection of most popular blogs are at "Writing for the Master".  We welcome your comments on this newsletter, so feel free to leave those below.

In closing, we have much to praise God for, and many opportunities for you to join us in prayer.

Praise the Lord with us for the many answers to prayer:

"Not to us, O Lord, not to us but to your name be the glory, because of your love and faithfulness." (Ps 115:1)

1. For the gift of tongues that Elizabeth has received in connection with being baptized with the Holy Spirit recently.
2. For the opportunity to take a Stateside family furlough.
3. For the way Gábor's surgery went to well, and his excellent progress recovering.
4. For our landlord's agreement to take care of the mold issue in his home that we rent.

Next steps and prayer needs:

1. For the Lord to provide all that we need here and in the US to make our Stateside furlough possible.
2. For the Lord to reveal Himself to all the non believers in Hungary, whom we have touched.
3. For the Lord to give us wisdom and understanding to know His will in each situation we go through.
4. For Erzsébet ("Elizabeth") to be completely healed of cancer, and her son István ("Steven") to be saved and begin to support her and her mother.
5. For the Lord to further expand the awareness of this ministry throughout the US, Europe, and England, and raise up many new partners.
6. For the Lord to continue to multiply disciples through Dávid V. and the others in his church. 
7. For the Lord to provide a new bookkeeper in time for next January, who will be faithful, reliable, and trustworthy, as Emily has been.
8. For our financial blessing.  

Thank you so much for your partnership in this ministry.

with love from all of us,

The Lacroixs

There are two ways to donate to Doulos Missions International. You may either send a check or money order by mail to:
Doulos Missions International
PO Box 5526
Manchester, NH 03108-5526

Donate Online

March Update 2013

Greetings from Hungary!  We’re delighted to give you another update on what the Lord is doing here in Eastern Europe.

Family: In February, the children went on a field trip with their home school co-op to the Budapest Planetarium, where they saw the constellations and planets projected onto a domed ceiling.  They all found it fun, educational, and interesting.

In March, we celebrated Len's birthday, and the Lord spared Joseph from serious injury when he fell down some concrete steps. We are thankful he did not break his nose or front teeth, because his face struck the steps right under his nose. A fall like that could have caused a fractured skull, other broken bones, or even stitches, but the Lord protected him from all of those things.  And the facial wounds he sustained under his nose are rapidly healing. Thank the Lord!

Ministry:  Since our last update, Elizabeth spent a lot of time in the hospital, receiving chemotherapy treatment.  While this was very difficult for her, she is holding onto her faith in Christ for her complete healing, and says "little miracles are happening every day." She was testifying to her roommate about Christ, praying, and reading her Bible each day.  And she says the pain has decreased.

Erzsébet, Jennifer, and Len

Meanwhile, Gábor decided to take his doctor's advice and go for surgery on his kidney.  While he was in the hospital, which just happened to be the same hospital Elizabeth was at, he went over to read the Bible to her and pray with her the evening before his surgery.  Praise the Lord for the way that Gábor has been discipling her and caring for her! Please pray for total healing for both of them.

Elizabeth was released from the hospital in March, following her most recent round of chemotherapy treatments.  The doctor told her before she was discharged that her tumors are slowly shrinking. He held out hope that she could be healed.  Praise the Lord!  We know her healing was paid for by our Lord Jesus Christ, two thousand years ago. 

Gábor was also discharged from the hospital six days after the cyst was removed from his kidney.  Two doctors came into his room to conduct the discharge.  They asked how he was feeling and he said he was wonderful.  He had a very good experience.  The younger doctor reasoned, "God must be with you." Praise the Lord that even the doctor testified to the hand of God upon him in answer to our prayers and yours, as well as the church here that was praying.

Kriszti and Gábor

The church that has been founded in his home had their first service in a public building on February 24th.  Although we had been invited to attend, we were among twenty people that Gábor had to call, asking them not to come, since they only had room for fifty people, and were expecting seventy.  But he said their services during the first two weeks went well.  Please pray that this work will be established and result in many disciples for the Lord.

Another one of the men whom Len discipled, David, is doing well.  He says, "I'm still studying at my university, but beside that I started to work at a financial company. It's an all finance company. I like it.  I'm meeting a lot of people, and there are a lot of opportunities to be a witness.

I'm leading the youth group worship team. It is wonderful... exhausting but wonderful. I'm okay there. They love me and care about what I teach to them. I usually prophesy to them and GOD is moving in our assemblies. We pray and He acts. But we need a little rest and refreshment. We will have a camp at the end of March. We're looking forward to it."  Praise the Lord for a good report from David!

Administrative Needs:  Our current bookkeeper, Emily, has notified us that her services to this ministry will end next January.  We really appreciate her giving us this notice, since it can take a long time to find the right person for this volunteer position.  Since this is a role that requires a high level of trust and integrity, we are prayerfully seeking the right person to fill it, whom the Lord has chosen. 

The position involves entering data pertaining to gifts into a user-friendly, accounting software, called QuickBooks, and printing out receipts to mail to our partners.  It also involves balancing the account, as well as generating monthly and annual reports, and sending annual giving summaries to our partners. If you or someone you know would be interested, please contact us.  The start date would be January 2, 2014, but we would like to identify the right person as soon as possible.

Resources:  This month we would also like to encourage you to read the messages called, The Amazing Sign of Jonah,  Doing What is Right, and Righteous Deeds and White Robes.

As always, Len's entire collection of most popular blogs are at "Writing for the Master" (see here).  We welcome your comments on this newsletter, so feel free to leave those below.

In closing, we have much to praise God for, and many opportunities for you to join us in prayer.

Praise the Lord with us for the many answers to prayer:

"Not to us, O Lord, not to us but to your name be the glory, because of your love and faithfulness." (Ps 115:1)

1. For the faith of Erzsébet ("Elizabeth") in the midst of her trials, and for her witness to others.
2. For the way the Lord is using David to be a witness at work, at college, and for his leadership in the youth group.
3. For the way Gábor's surgery went to well, and his excellent progress recovering.
4. For the Lord's protection over Joseph, that kept him from serious injury when he fell.

Next steps and prayer needs:

1. For the Lord to pour out his Spirit on the new church opening in Tököl, and cause it to grow.
2. For the Lord to reveal Himself to all the non believers in Hungary, whom we have touched.
3. For the Lord to give us wisdom and understanding to know His will in each situation we go through.
4. For Erzsébet ("Elizabeth") to be completely healed of cancer, and her son István ("Steven") to be saved.
5. For the Lord to further expand the awareness of this ministry throughout the US, Europe, and England, and raise up many new partners.
6. For the Lord to continue to multiply disciples through Dávid V. and the others in his church. 
7. For the Lord to provide a new bookkeeper in time for next January, who will be faithful, reliable, and trustworthy, as Emily has been.
8. For our financial blessing.  

Thank you so much for your partnership in this ministry.

with love from all of us,

The Lacroixs

There are two ways to donate to Doulos Missions International. You may either send a check or money order by mail to:
Doulos Missions International
PO Box 5526
Manchester, NH 03108-5526

Donate Online

February Update 2013

Greetings from the land of the Magyar people!  We’re delighted to give you another update on what the Lord is doing here in Eastern Europe.

Celebrating four years

Family: In January and February, the Lord continued to give Charity, Hope, and Christopher more poems, which they really enjoy writing. They wrote several, and we posted the best ones online, including "America, Turn Back to God" (see here), "Overflowing Blessings" (see here), "Sheep and the Goats" (see here) and "Use Your Talents" (see here).  Their blog, called "Verses to the King" has already received nearly 2,000 page views from some fifteen countries.

In February, we celebrated our sixteenth wedding anniversary and Joseph's fourth birthday. 

Ministry: Last month we mentioned the poor lady with cancer, named Elizabeth, who gave her life to Christ.  In January, during one of our visits to see her and her mother, she testified that the tumor on her neck is getting smaller, and it is no longer causing her any pain like it had been.  However, she said that the tumor on her right abdomen seemed to be growing and the pain from it was keeping her from sleeping.  Even maximum doses of powerful morphine were not enough to stop the pain.  So we laid hands on and prayed for her.  Afterward she said that the Lord had taken the pain away.  Praise the Lord!  Please agree with us in prayer for a complete healing. Her mother also testified that she has not felt any rheumatoid arthritic pain in her back for two weeks, since immediately after she received prayer.  Hallelujah!  Give God all the praise!

Erzsébet, Jennifer, and Len

Shortly after we arrived at Elizabeth's home, Gábor showed up with his wife, Kriszti, so that she could give Elizabeth a haircut.  They were a few hours late for a scheduled cut, but it coincided perfectly with our visit. After singing some worship songs, Len spoke about the baptism with the Holy Spirit.  Afterward, all four Hungarians in the room received the Holy Spirit!  Elizabeth wept and shook when she did, and said later that she felt like she was not even sitting in her seat.  Her mother said that she never found it so easy to speak in another language.  She felt like she could just fly away.  And Kriszti said she felt so happy inside when she received the Holy Spirit.  Praise the Lord! God is so good.

Even Gábor received the Holy Spirit, and earlier during his visit there, he had received a call from his pastor at the Baptist church, named Géza.  Géza called to tell him that they would be having a sending service to commission Gábor and another brother to plant the new church in Tököl that he and Kriszti had started in their home with four other couples from that town.  They will be having their first public meeting at the end of February in a rented building, and we have been invited.  Please pray for the outpouring of the Holy Spirit on that first meeting.  Gábor said he plans to invite Len to preach at a future meeting there.

When we left the home of the Elizabeths, everyone felt that the Lord had arranged for Gábor to come when we were there, so that Len would have a translator to share this important message. They were all filled with joy and with the Holy Spirit, praising and thanking God for the great things He had done.

We would also like to mention that ever since these ladies gave their lives to Jesus, Gábor has been helping to make them into disciples.  So this is another second generation of disciples here, in addition to the ones David V. is producing. Praise the Lord that the little garden here is beginning to multiply.

In February, Elizabeth was admitted to the hospital by ambulance, because there were two liters of water in her right lung that were suffocating her.  That has been resolved, but they have not released her from the hospital. She is back on chemotherapy, which has been extremely torturous for her to undergo. However, the tumors are visibly shrinking.  She was put into a private room, and usually has no other visitors, since her only family is her mother and son, who live too far away. We would appreciate your continued prayers for her.

A couple of men have contacted Len through the internet, asking for help. They are backslidden and want to return to God, but do not believe any more in His mercy for them.  Len has been writing to them to encourage them and point them back to Jesus.  One of them is named Darryl in the US and the other is Denis N in Russia.  Denis had been saved and received the Holy Spirit, but then he went back into the world.  As a result of his sin, he lost his mind and was committed to an institution. He has since been released, but is plagued by terrifying thoughts and feels he is hopeless. He does not feel he can repent. Please pray for him to repent and receive the Lord's mercy and forgiveness.

Edith, Andrew, Len, and Jennifer

We mentioned previously that a Hungarian, medical doctor named Endre ("Andrew") surrendered his life to the Lord, inviting Jesus into his heart.  We have been helping to locate a good church for him to attend in his hometown in Hungary, as well as in England, where he works two weeks at a time each month.  Unfortunately we have no news to report, since he has not been in touch with us.

Gábor has been for follow up visits with the doctors, regarding his kidney.  He has not had any symptoms since he was healed, but the doctors are not taking any chances.  They are planning surgery, based on the images taken prior to his healing.  They say it is a cyst, which must be removed, and the two months it would take to get another image is too long.  They want to operate within the next three weeks without even doing a needle biopsy, which they claim could damage his kidney or produce a false negative result.  Gábor needs wisdom from the Lord at this time to know how to proceed, and that is what we're praying for him.  No weapon that is formed against him shall prosper.

Kriszti and Gábor

Jennifer continues to visit with and build relationship with Rita, the poor, gypsy lady we mentioned last time, as well as her boyfriend.

We count it a joy and a privilege to serve the Lord here in this place that was once (not all that long ago) held captive behind the Soviet communist, iron curtain for fifty years.

Resources:  This month we would also like to encourage you to read  a message about "The New Wine" (see here); a poem that Charity also wrote, called "The Meaning of Life" (see here); Other inspiring, new poems written by our children include "Overflowing Blessings" (see here) and "The Sheep and the Goats" (see here).

As always, Len's entire collection of most popular blogs are at "Writing for the Master" (see here).  We welcome your comments on this newsletter, so feel free to leave those below.

In closing, we have much to praise God for, and many opportunities for you to join us in prayer.

Praise the Lord with us for the many answers to prayer:

"Not to us, O Lord, not to us but to your name be the glory, because of your love and faithfulness." (Ps 115:1)

1. For giving sixteen wonderful years of marriage, and four years of life to Joseph.
2. For the faith of Erzsébet ("Elizabeth") in the midst of her trials.
3. For baptizing Elizabeth, her mother, Gábor and Kriszti in the Holy Spirit.
4. For inspiring our children with more poems that are blessing others.
5. For the open doors of ministry on other continents.

Next steps and prayer needs:

1. For the Lord to pour out his Spirit on the new church opening in Tököl, and cause it to grow.
2. For the Lord to reveal Himself to all the non believers in Hungary, whom we have touched, especially Rita the poor, gypsy lady. 
3. For the Lord to give us wisdom and understanding to know His will in each situation we go through.
4. For Erzsébet ("Elizabeth") to be completely healed of cancer, and her son István ("Steven") to be saved.
5. For "Andrew" to grow in his new relationship with Jesus, and for his wife Edith, and daughters to come to Christ also.
6. For the Lord to further expand the awareness of this ministry throughout the US, Europe, and England, and raise up many new partners.
7. For the Lord to continue to multiply disciples through Dávid V. and the others in his church. 
8. For the outpouring of His Holy Spirit here in Diosd to continue to ripple all across Hungary and Eastern Europe.
9. For the Lord to powerfully anoint and help Len as he meets with pastors, elders, and disciples here in Hungary this winter.
10. For our financial blessing.  

Thank you so much for your partnership in this ministry.

with love from all of us,

The Lacroixs

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Doulos Missions International
PO Box 5526
Manchester, NH 03108-5526

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