Matt and Liz Eck

Faithfully Planting Seeds in Vienna

When most people picture missions work, they imagine remote villages, jungle roads, or tiny huts in faraway places. But sometimes missions looks like riding public transit through one of Europe’s most historic cities. Sometimes it looks like raising children in a small apartment overlooking the Danube River. Sometimes it looks like faithfully preaching the gospel in a city filled with beauty, culture, skepticism, and spiritual loneliness.

That’s the life of Matthew and Liz Eck. For more than 16 years, the Eck family has served in Vienna, Austria, helping strengthen the local church, train leaders, disciple believers, and share the hope of Christ in a spiritually challenging environment.

And after spending time talking with Matthew recently, one thing became very clear: They are exactly the kind of people Legacy Bible Church wants to stand beside.

A Calling That Changed Everything

Matthew didn’t originally set out with some polished master plan to move overseas. During college, God began redirecting his heart toward missions. What started as an interest in language and culture eventually led him to Germany, then Russia, where he met Liz while both were serving in ministry. Years later, God planted them in Vienna. Now their children have grown up there. German is woven into daily life. Austria is home in many ways. And through every season, the mission has remained the same:

Faithfully preach Christ.
Faithfully disciple people.
Faithfully strengthen the church.

Gospel Work in a Beautiful City

Vienna is stunning. Historic architecture. Music. Art. Cafés. Tourism. Beauty everywhere. But underneath the surface is a deep spiritual need. Many churches are small. Gospel-centered ministry can feel isolated. Faithful biblical churches often struggle simply to afford space to meet while also supporting pastors and ministry leaders.

Yet God continues to move. Matthew shared stories of refugee outreach among Persian-speaking families, youth discipleship, leadership development, and local evangelism happening quietly and faithfully throughout the city. One recent outreach event was a simple Easter egg hunt in a local park. Families gathered. Conversations happened. Relationships formed. Seeds were planted.

And that’s often how gospel ministry works: One relationship, One conversation, One faithful act of love at a time.

Training Leaders for the Long Haul

Part of Matthew’s ministry involves helping train pastors, elders, and church leaders both in Austria and beyond. He works with ministry training initiatives that equip leaders in places like the Czech Republic and previously in Ukraine and Russia. Rather than building personalities or platforms, the focus is simple:

To equip faithful men and women to know God’s Word deeply and shepherd people well. That vision resonates deeply with Legacy Bible Church’s heart for gospel-centered ministry.

Why This Partnership Matters

At Legacy, we do not want missions to become anonymous. We don’t want missionaries to feel like names on a wall or faces in a slideshow once a year. We want to know them. Pray for them. Encourage them. Walk alongside them.

The Eck family is faithfully doing difficult, long-term ministry work in a place where spiritual fruit often takes years, not weeks. That kind of ministry requires endurance. Faithfulness. Patience. Prayer. And we are grateful to partner with them in it.

How You Can Pray

Please pray for:

·      Endurance and encouragement for the Eck family

·      Their children as they grow up overseas

·      Gospel-centered churches throughout Vienna

·      Refugee ministry opportunities

·      Wisdom as Matthew helps train church leaders

·      Open hearts throughout Austria

·      Future opportunities for Legacy to serve alongside their ministry

And most of all, pray that Christ would continue to be proclaimed boldly in Vienna.

Because even in one of Europe’s great cultural capitals, people still need the hope of the gospel.