Hi
So my most recent blog is now a few weeks old. Since then we have been busy as usual, watching our life whizz by us. I would tell you more but there is something I must do first.
Today, 12 youth and leaders from First United Methodist Church in Port St. Lucie, Florida touched down at Belfast International Airport to embark on a mission journey that they have been planning and preparing for for over 6 months. I am thoroughly excited to have them here and was even more excited as I walked into their canteen at lunch time today to see them all. The forst thing I have to do is say this too all parents. Your kids are fine - extremely tired and will sleep very well tonight, but they are tired. I saw them just as they were finishing lunch and then left them for an hour while I took Mike and Diane Burns to East belfast Mission and to my house for a very speedy tour - I had left the stroller at home and did not like the idea of carrying my 30lbs daughter through Belfast. We got back and all the kids where there ready to go for a walk into the city centre. We walked in and stopped by some traditional irish music playing buskers outside the Ulster Hall who the kids liked listening to, and finished up at our city hall gardens. This is a cool place where people congregate to sit on the grass when it is sunny. I parked Eva, myself, Chelsea and Erika there while the others went to see some shops. It was cool and Eva thought it would be fun to chase the pigeons that were landing there and feeding on scraps, she also felt the need to go and talk to everyone seated around us. From here we walked back to the halls where the kids are sleeping. I was leading the pace and walked like lightening to get back because Eva was suffering in the sun - oh yeah it is hot hot hot here at the minute.
We got back and took a seat under the shade of a tree again and just hung out for a while. margaret called with us on her way home from work and basically we all just connected very well again. It was as if there had not been four months of no contact between us all.
Diane asked if I would pray with the group. I said of course and decided that I would share something with them that has been on my mind this week as I thought of their impending arrival. In my time as their youth director I always took these kids on trips and really pushed the fact that they had to function and survive as a team and their input into the team was of the utmost importance. This trip provides all of them with a great opportunity to go out on their own and learn how to function as missionaries without the comfort of the youth group around them. And so I also say that to parents that are anxiously wondering how their wee ones are doing. The anxiety is understandable as they are so far away - but, and there is always a big hairy butt!!!! This is an immense opportunity for personal spiritual growth and deevelopment in their lives and I am prayerfully excited for them and I know you pray also for them. Pray that they will grow, survive and shine as they fit into teams where they don't know everyone as well.
I will be touring around all of their teams and taking pictures as they work and get to know a new group of people. Please feel free to call me if you need to know how they are getting on. I cannot give out my number on here of course, but Susan Skinner has it and I she now has permission to share it. Just remember there is we are five hours in front of you and the Charles' don't sound good on the phone in the middle of the night!!!!!!
I will update with more and maybe some piccies tomorrow night.
Blessings
Tuesday, July 18, 2006
Wednesday, June 21, 2006
Things have been extrememly busy since my last update. I am sure I have told you previously that we were renovating our kitchen and bathroom and have been working quite hard at it - that is now done and the good news is that it was all done in time. Time for what, margaret would have been asking, well in time for the surprise visit of Ron, jen and Kate Buchmeyer - our bestest mates from Florida. Margaret and Jen are close close buddies and so before we left Florida I started putting plans into place to make sure they came over and that it would be a surprise for Margaret. I don't know how we achieved, because everyone else in the world knew that they were coming, however, on June 8th, Margaret got the surprise of her life when she arrived home from work only to find Ron and jen in our front hallway. She was shocked and the tears of happiness soon rolled down her cheeks. It was extremely cool - stressful somewhat in terms of arranging it, but cool nonetheless.
So for the last two weeks we have been hosting Ron, Jen and Kate and considering our house ain't that big, we have coped very well. we have spent a lot of time chilling and chatting and catching up as well as going on long drives so the Buchmeyer's could enjoy some of the beauty of Northern Ireland. We took a trip to the North Coast and to Dublin and basically just had a lot of fun with each other. There are lots of pictures below for you to see. It was a special time with special friends and proved to us all that distance is no barrier to the love that exists in a true and deep friendship.
Just before their arrival, we celebrated Eva's 1st birthday on June 6th. During the week we had three parties to accommodate all friends and family and each occasion was special in ti's own way. Eva got overloaded with gifts and toys and as was inevitable, just played with the boxes. However, now she is playing with the toys as the boxes have been put away! About a week after her birthday, Eva took her first real steps all alone with no help. She just decided one day that she would walk across the room to get something she wanted. She does it so well that you could swear she has been practicing while our backs have been turned. Erm... our backs are never turned, we are great parents!!!! She is also starting to recognise more words and responding to them as well, she knows how to make Elmo do the chicken dance and is learning that the remote changes channel and volume on the tv. She is pushing at the power button on the TV and I think her next trick will be turning it off on us. I think she might decide to do this during a crucial moment of the world cup finals!! She is growing so fast - I really don't know where the year has gone.
Other than all this - things have been pretty cool. I have had a couple of preaching appointments and have felt they are going well. I have found myself almost trying to fit into a mold since coming back from America in terms of my preaching - trying to gauge what style certain people might want me to preach in and have not been myself as much. The last couple of times I have preached, I have tried to be myself more i.e, read less notes and interact more with listeners. I feel much more comfortable away from detailed notes and have felt more freedom as I put less in front of me. I have heard from Queens that I am being place on a waiting list for entry this year and will not find anything out for certain until August/September. It's a bummer but we trust that the right way will open up for us.
The next major thing coming up is the youth trip that is coming over from Port St Lucie. I am totally pumped about them coming over here and excited about the impact it will have on their whole lives. Mission changes lives and mixing it with travel only increases the impact. I will be giving a couple of their training talks when they come over and then will be touring around their mission sites and seeing them all in turn. It will be an exciting and fruitful trip for them.
There are plenty of pictures below for you to peruse. Enjoy them.
Blessings
So for the last two weeks we have been hosting Ron, Jen and Kate and considering our house ain't that big, we have coped very well. we have spent a lot of time chilling and chatting and catching up as well as going on long drives so the Buchmeyer's could enjoy some of the beauty of Northern Ireland. We took a trip to the North Coast and to Dublin and basically just had a lot of fun with each other. There are lots of pictures below for you to see. It was a special time with special friends and proved to us all that distance is no barrier to the love that exists in a true and deep friendship.
Just before their arrival, we celebrated Eva's 1st birthday on June 6th. During the week we had three parties to accommodate all friends and family and each occasion was special in ti's own way. Eva got overloaded with gifts and toys and as was inevitable, just played with the boxes. However, now she is playing with the toys as the boxes have been put away! About a week after her birthday, Eva took her first real steps all alone with no help. She just decided one day that she would walk across the room to get something she wanted. She does it so well that you could swear she has been practicing while our backs have been turned. Erm... our backs are never turned, we are great parents!!!! She is also starting to recognise more words and responding to them as well, she knows how to make Elmo do the chicken dance and is learning that the remote changes channel and volume on the tv. She is pushing at the power button on the TV and I think her next trick will be turning it off on us. I think she might decide to do this during a crucial moment of the world cup finals!! She is growing so fast - I really don't know where the year has gone.
Other than all this - things have been pretty cool. I have had a couple of preaching appointments and have felt they are going well. I have found myself almost trying to fit into a mold since coming back from America in terms of my preaching - trying to gauge what style certain people might want me to preach in and have not been myself as much. The last couple of times I have preached, I have tried to be myself more i.e, read less notes and interact more with listeners. I feel much more comfortable away from detailed notes and have felt more freedom as I put less in front of me. I have heard from Queens that I am being place on a waiting list for entry this year and will not find anything out for certain until August/September. It's a bummer but we trust that the right way will open up for us.
The next major thing coming up is the youth trip that is coming over from Port St Lucie. I am totally pumped about them coming over here and excited about the impact it will have on their whole lives. Mission changes lives and mixing it with travel only increases the impact. I will be giving a couple of their training talks when they come over and then will be touring around their mission sites and seeing them all in turn. It will be an exciting and fruitful trip for them.
There are plenty of pictures below for you to peruse. Enjoy them.
Blessings
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