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England was wonderful. Our three weeks in Blackpool were very formative. God gave us more vision for our future, we were incredibly blessed by the investment of the church leaders, we experienced many different types of ministry including soup kitchens, moms and toddlers programs, nightlife initiatives, discipleship groups and debt counseling and we had a substantial amount of time to walk, talk and think through different questions to help debrief and clarify our thoughts.
Blackpool was a beautiful town to stay in. Although it's the most deprived town in all of England, we really enjoyed walking around and we had many good conversations because the people were very open. We built friendships through going to the many soup kitchens in the area and were able to witness the beautiful family God is building there. Here are two quick testimonies of how God used us in England: We met a single mother and her two children at one of the soup kitchens towards the beginning of our stay. We sat at the table next to them and began to chat. That evening we were able to pray for the daughter and she was beautifully touched and baptized in the Holy Spirit. When she opened her eyes after praying, her complexion had changed and she looked much more hope-filled than she did before. The following Sunday we invited them out to lunch and treated them to Chinese, thier favorite food. Then we walked around with them for the whole afternoon as they shopped (mostly window shopped) and we took part in their lives. They were so, so blessed by the time we spent with them and we became fast friends. When the time came to say goodbye, tears were shed and lots of hugs were given. We know we left them more encouraged and built up than they were before, each of them had a new joy and lightness because of the precious touch of the Holy Spirit. We met a sweet woman at a soup kitchen one Monday evening. She had come to volunteer but didn't yet have a relationship with Jesus. That evening she so kindly offered to drop us off at our house and on the way home we were able to share about Jesus. She was very curious and we prayed for her before we stepped out of the car. The following Thursday she was at a church event and gave her life to Jesus! Two days later we saw her at a soup kitchen again and during the service she was so incredibly touched by the Holy Spirit. She has such a hunger for more of God and desire to serve and be with the family of God. We are so exctied for what God has in store for her and her family! Some more highlights: Alex gave a message at youth group and two girls in particular were so touched to the point of tears as they encountered the love of Jesus. I gave a message at the evening church service on Sunday and two ladies in particular were brought into a deeper place of freedom as the Holy Spirit enabled them to identify lies in their past that were keeping them in bondage. We were able to share about Jesus for one and a half hours with a curious Kurdish woman from Iraq. We were so blessed by the pastors investment into our lives. We were so loved and cared for by our amazingly generous house parents. We were encouraged through prayers and prophetic words from the church and we were beautifully welcomed into the family there. It's incredible how big of an impact we were able to have on people in such a short time! It makes us so thankful to be on God’s side and be able to impact people for eternity...what a privilege!!! ------ One question the pastor prompted us to ask during our time in Blackpool was, “What does it look like for the wisdom of God to be made manifest through the church?” (Ephesians 3) In studying this I began to understand a little more deeply what God is talking about. It's unity, it's oneness, it's Jew and gentile coming together as one, it's rich and poor, foreigner and citizen. It's what God has always been after- the union of God and man. The oneness of all people in His name and IN HIM. Where else, other than the body of Christ, do you see rich and poor, foreigner and citizen, old and young, educated and uneducated...coming together in love and unity? It happens in Jesus’ church. Or at least it's supposed to happen… The beauty of Jesus is that He is love unending and overflowing, He is grace boundless and wisdom in perfection...through Him and only through Him can we love unconditionally, have grace for one another's differences and the wisdom to handle them. Only through Him can we forgive again and again and lay down our rights at His feet. Only through Him can we see the glorious beauty in each person He created and call out their destiny. Because “Love never gives up. Love cares more for others than for self. Love doesn’t want what it doesn’t have. Love doesn’t strut, Doesn’t have a swelled head, Doesn’t force itself on others, Isn’t always “me first,” Doesn’t fly off the handle, Doesn’t keep score of the sins of others, Doesn’t revel when others grovel, Takes pleasure in the flowering of truth, Puts up with anything, Trusts God always, Always looks for the best, Never looks back, But keeps going to the end. Love never dies. ... Trust steadily in God, hope unswervingly, love extravagantly. And the best of the three is love. " 1 Cor. 13 [MSG] Somehow this love and unity manifests the wisdom and glory of God in a magnificent way. We must be about this unity, we must be all about this community of deep love. We must welcome the foreigner, seek to understand the marginalized, care for the widow and orphan and do good to everyone so that all the world sees the wisdom and glory of God as he calls people into family. Let's get a hold of this idea and create family and community wherever we go. One day we'll see with our very own eyes the biggest, best, most loving family there ever was and will be...it’s His goal. It’s His love. Well, friends, we just arrived in Holland. As usual, we don’t really know what we're doing but we’re excited for what our Father has here for us, too. He certainly didn't let us down in England!!
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AuthorA & E. Currently living in the USA but called to the nations for this season of our lives. Devoting our lives to His Kingdom Come... Archives
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