Out of the Comfort Zone!

We’re heading towards two weeks of being in this fair land and it is becoming more real that we’re not just here on vacation! We are thankful to have the certainty of knowing that God has called us here… we cling to that on the days when the challenges come and the desire to be back where we were comfortable rises up! Our God is so good to have made it very clear and to have spoken in numerous ways so that we can stand in these days of transition and change.  It definitely requires us putting our eyes on the Lord moment by moment, quick repentance when we turn and look at circumstances or let stress come in, and a deeper level of trust and faith – all of which is wonderful training and a beautiful thing, but also messy and vulnerable!

We are gratefully still in the OM (Operation Mobilization) guest house and the girls have made friends with the 11 year old daughter of the couple who run the house (to the point of tears if they don’t get to say goodnight to her in the evenings!!)… but we hope to be moving to our new, albeit somewhat temporary, house on Saturday! We are very much looking forward to having a little more space and not all being in one room, and to getting to unpack our suitcases! Last week Pr Jonathan was at a prayer gathering with other pastors and happened to ask if anyone knew of accommodation available – and a place had just opened up in a ‘Manse’ – a house next to a church provided for the minister of the church –  in Bromley Commons, only a few miles south of Bromley. Gratefully we were able to negotiate the rent to be about half of what we would otherwise be paying for a house here. It is only short-term accommodation as they are looking for a new minister for their church and when they get one we will need to move, but as we’ve prayed we have felt it is the next step, so we take it not knowing how long we’ll be there or where we’ll be beyond that, but thankful that our loving Father is providing for us and leading us. We just simply have to follow.

Our days so far have been filled with exploring Bromley and getting our bearings on where things are; increasing our boldness/courage when driving; working on Bill’s visa; looking for a vehicle for when we return our rental one on Wednesday; hanging out with Grace; playgroup at the church; visiting new friends; and sampling almost all of Sainsbury’s microwave meal selection!! We did have one very wet, cold & windy trip to Farnborough to meet up with my mum and sitting on the M25 (the highway that circles London) in the pouring rain in solid traffic on the way home we had one of a number of moments when we really wanted to be back in our comfort zone and wondered what on earth we were doing here!! The grace of God IS sufficient to keep us and we will seek to dwell in that grace!

We are grateful and thankful for your prayers – please do continue to pray as we move on Saturday and as we are still very much in transition! The girls are doing well and making new friends…for them there is still maybe the feeling of vacation (although its a fairly wet and cold one) but they are adapting and enjoying Bromley Town Church and new adventures! We are facing issues with Bill’s visa that definitely need prayer, and we need strength because we are both very tired and not sleeping particularly well – which can definitely add to the feeling of vulnerability and the desire for the ‘comfort zone’ we were used to!

Not the greatest pictures, but this will be our home as of Saturday

Thank you for walking with us and for your messages! If you haven’t already done so, please ‘follow our blog’ so that you’ll be notified when we post updates. Much love to you all!