How sweet it is to be loved by you...

I'm grateful. Today a group of us who just met each other last tuesday were all together in London. We travelled to visit a church which is being planted in a difficult part of London, it had been a central part of were major rioting took place in the 80's. Its a huge estate, multi cultural with various social problems - drug and gang related no doubt. The church was held in a portocabin type building, there was a sunday school and a small youth group and a service all taking place in the same space in different corners. It was freezing outside but so warm inside. The message preached was about Gideon taking an army of 300 against 120,000 and God equipping them and winning victory through them - all of God's doing through his chosen people. God does it today and in that warm building God was winning souls - and His presence and their servant hearts were tangible. Young teenagers who looked as though they would have no interest in sunday school were humbly listening to a middle aged lady reading from the Bible to them. Was awesome. Loved it - and there was homemade lemon cake with icing and hot coffee in the middle of the service too! Our little group made ourselves at home in the midst of them - we are going back in feburary to be with that church for a week - we are looking forward to it. Our group is all together as we are going through missionary candidates course to join WEC and each go out to different countries to actually be missionaries! Never thought this day would actually arrive! My thought and feeling through out the day was how sweet it was to be loved by God - how sweet it is to love him and I know he is taking me deeper in my bond with him and it truely feels so sweet to my life. I feel like I'm taking baby steps still - and one day I'll know what it actually feels like to win a mighty battle by the hand of the Lord - I'm so glad he is tenderly leading me to that place. He is God and there is no other.

Cafe times with Catherine

Today - I must update my blog. It has been over a month now since last writing. I have tons to talk about with my new ventures of life - living in a manor house, missions trainning, visions of Albania, gratefulness to God, desiring to be filled deeper with the Holy Spirit - and I will write of these things for sure - but all I want to write about briefly today is my friend Catherine.

You would love to meet her, and you will enjoy her thoughts and musings as she writes her blog - Station Road Oakly. I get the priveledge of being her Bond Street housemate. One of our favorite things to do is visit the CAFE Cafe. It is two seconds up the top of our street with "CAFE" painted bold and red upon its outside wall. It's not very big inside, and serves all the good traditions of an english cafe - hot bacon, egg or sausage sandwiches, big mugs of tea or coffee and other options I never really go for - all revolving around tastey english breakfasts. We sit in there when we can, and play backgammon! Catherine had this uncanny thing about always winning and leaving me with just one remaining piece to get into my side of the board. Always so close to winning I can never believe that she takes the victory so suddenly and easily and so often! That exciting moment breaks us out in loud laughter every time! But that is because she is Catherine and that is the fun we have in playing an old mans game such as backgammon! There is much to say about her, I am just pleased to know her and share life with her. And while I am away from my adopted home for these two months of missions training I will miss Catherine and those times and happily look forward to the rematches in the cafe with a mug of coffee where I win 10 games in a row!