A Fellowship like Home
Having grown up in Nigeria, Hanis Kakaba Habila was used to being surrounded by community. But when he moved to Budapest to attend graduate school, he felt alone—until he found a young adult fellowship hosted by Jeff and Julie Bouman, Resonate Global Mission missionaries.
Habila had asked God for guidance as he accepted a scholarship to begin a master’s-degree program in Budapest, and he was confident that God was calling him to go, but he was unsure why. Yet he trusted in God as he packed his belongings and followed God’s lead.
In Nigeria, Habila had enjoyed living in a supportive community at school, at church, and in his neighborhood. But after living for two months in a big city where the language was unfamiliar, he struggled with feeling alone. He tried to replicate the community he had had back home by going to church, but the churches he visited spoke only Hungarian.
“It was very difficult. I would shake hands with the pastor, but I couldn’t tell what he was saying. The part of me that was in church almost every day of the week was still feeling empty,” he said.
Then one day Habila received an invitation to St. Columba’s Church, where people spoke English. There he met the Boumans. Jeff invited Habila to a weekly gathering of international students that he and Julie host regularly at their home.
The Boumans’ weekly fellowship group serves young people from all over the world who are new to Budapest. The Boumans open their home for Bible study, snacks, and conversation. In Budapest, living spaces are often decades old and too narrow to host gatherings, but God has provided the Boumans a spacious place.
Habila walked up four flights of stairs that led him to the Boumans’ front door. Shoes lined the interior of the doorway, and a welcoming sound of laughter rang from the living room. For the first time since leaving Nigeria, Habila said, he felt a sense of home.
At a typical fellowship gathering at the Boumans’ there are young people representing up to 14 different nationalities in one room. It’s a beautiful community that displays God’s diverse character.
“Everyone is speaking about experiences that are different from what you are used to and what you know. And somehow it still works. People come every time. It’s very nice. Love is there,” said Habila.
Habila and several other fellowship members became fast friends. They began spending evenings together, taking trips, watching movies, and even teaching one another how to dance in their native cultures. They built a sense of accountability into their friendships and created space to share about life. Among the new friends Habila met was Ivan Santoso, a Cohort Europe volunteer.
Resonate’s Cohort program equips young adults to serve in a grassroots ministry, immerse themselves in community, and engage in deep spiritual formation. Resonate has opportunities to serve in Cohort in Central America, Detroit, Europe, and the Middle East.
Habila began to ask Santoso about his experience in Cohort and was intrigued by the way Santoso described how God was working through the program. Habila said he soon felt that God was calling him into the next step of his faith journey.
Through his experience with the fellowship group, his relationship with the Boumans, and his friendship with Santoso, Habila explained, he began to feel strongly that Cohort was the reason God had brought him to Budapest—but he wasn’t sure if it was possible for him.
Habila said he wasn’t sure if joining Cohort was financially sustainable, and since the legal process for expatriates staying in Budapest can vary greatly by country, he wasn’t sure if he would be able to join.
But Jeff Bouman gave him hope.
“When Jeff said, ‘It is possible for you to do this,’ he helped me see how it is a good fit for me,” said Habila.
With the support of the Boumans, Habila applied to Cohort and was accepted. And now, with Jeff’s guidance, Habila is serving, learning, and walking alongside others—especially other young people who are new to the city of Budapest, like he was.
