Commissioning Service

Just a reminder about our commissioning service at Canterbury Baptist Church, this Sunday at 10.30. We'd love to see you there! It’s followed by a bring and share lunch in The Manse garden.

Baptist Assembly valediction service in Blackpool

Here’s a photo from our valediction service at the Baptist Assembly in Blackpool, the weekend before last, where we braved stag parties, dodgy hotels and ridiculously fast incoming tides for our official send-off. It was great to see everyone from IMC again, but the goodbyes were particularly significant as we’re now all going our separate ways. Besides spending time on the BMS stand and taking part in a seminar, we had plenty of time to enjoy the beach and sunshine (a foretaste of what’s to come…?)

Isaac on sunny Blackpool beach

 

Goodbye to IMC

IMC students, summer 2011

Our nativity play for the Action Teamers

We can't believe it's all over and we've said goodbye to IMC, our home for the past 8 months of our lives in Birmingham. The time has seemed so short and yet it seems that lots has happened as well. We've made wonderful friends who we've eaten with, learnt with (and from), laughed with (and at) and cried with too.

1920s party

Isaac has gone from being just a toddler into a little boy who can tell us what he wants and talk about what he has done. Naomi has changed beyond recognition and is amazingly confident around people, she even has a royal wave when she says 'hello' and 'goodbye' in her own way. Some of the highlights of the year include birthday celebrations in 1920s costume, Christmas nativity play in October (blame the Action Teamers) and very English cream teas and cricket with very American drama students.

Cricket on the lawn

Besides a little theology here and there, ethics, new worship songs, language and car maintenance, we've also been forced to learn how to be sociable with strangers at breakfast and win Settlers of Catan (a favourite board game). From an experience we were really unsure about starting, we've had a thoroughly great time.  The only disadvantage to all this is that now we have more people who it is very difficult to say goodbye to.

Who dun it? Anne Tique and Ivora Keys

Too end our time together, we held a murder mystery party. The dinning hall became Bosthorpe Evangelical Church and we were charged with discovering who had murdered the unfortunate Don Ritting?! Glamorous Charmaine became the doddery Anne Tique; Nicky, our normally on-the-ball tutor became the endlessly forgetful Al Zeihmers; the always well-turned-out Sarah arrived as Ivora Keys sporting a peach nylon number, oversize glasses and Jamaican accent. Even James and Arthur, both playing the fiery preacher Rev Al Ation, were glimpsed in dog-collars!

Ruth leading the IMC Commissioning Service band

The following day, we were commissioned at IMC in a intimate and moving service, held in the chapel. It was a really great way to finish a really special year. Now, it's all packing lists, catching up with friends and family and final tasks before leaving for Mozambique next month.

Thanks IMC and all those we've met there. It's been great and we'll miss you all!

Newsletter

Our first BMS newsletter is now out and can be downloaded by clicking here or via our page on the BMS website here.

If you would like to receive our prayer letters by post you can sign up on the BMS website here.

Thanks for all your support!

New School Connect website

The new revamped School Connect website is up and running! School Connect is the charity I  project coordinated before joining BMS. School Connect is a Christian charity linking schools in Kent and Uganda.

Check it out by visiting www.school-connect.org.uk.
G

Three months to go!

Sudbury Baptist Church

We can hardly believe that it is just under three months until we leave for Mozambique! We've started to make our way through a whole list of practical things that need sorting out, like injections, packing lists and anti-malaria drug trials, which is all fairly dull but does start to make our departure feel that bit more real.

Today we were invited to introduce ourselves at Sudbury Baptist Church near Wembley in West London. Sudbury Baptist, together with Alperton Baptist Church and Kingsbury Free Church form one of our link church groups who we hope to be able to keep in touch with when we are in Mozambique. We were made to feel really welcome and enjoyed being able to share a little of our story so far and share requests for prayer in the morning service. We met many new friends there and look forward to keeping in touch in future months. Thanks to everyone who made us feel so welcome!

Portuguese

Ola!

At the beginning of this term we had Portuguese lessons with linguist Joanna Benson.  Despite hopes of being fluent in a week we sounded more like animals at a zoo for the first few days as we tried to make our sounds genuinely Portuguese. By the end of the week we were told that the noises we were making sounded genuinely Portuguese but we still had little understanding of any words or phrases.  We have been assured that we have made an excellent start though.  Practise of Portuguese has been a bit slower since that week but we are still perservering and hope to be able to at least manage greetings, getting through the airport and shopping by the time we arrive in Beira.

Thanks especially to those who have been praying for our language learning and the patient people who have listened to us slowly murder their language, it's much appreciated.

Welcome to our blog!

Our current home: IMC in Birmingham

Our journey begins here in this building. It's a bit like uni halls except that we happen to have two children with us. Here we are studying other cultures, theology, development and various other subjects including lots of practical stuff to prepare us to go overseas.

Why? Well, in June we move to a port town called Beira on the Mozambique coast, working for international Christian charity, BMS World Mission. In Beira we are going to working in partnership with the local church to help the local community. Although this all sounds fairly simple, before we even begin to get to know the people we’re going to be working with our kids will need acceptable passport photos, we’ll all need lots of injections and we’ll have to endure a long haul flight with two children under 3! One small task before we can really get started is to learn Portuguese. Neither of us is feeling particularly bilingual yet! At least we know life won't be dull for the next little while.

Between other tasks, we'll try to keep this blog updated so you can easily keep in touch and follow us, both as we prepare to leave and while we are in Mozambique. Keep up to date by subscribing and you’ll get sent new content each time we post updates.

Anyway, much more to follow…

Geoff and Christine