Finding Routine

I think one of the hardest things about moving around and living in different places is a lack of routine. Constant change is taxing for the brain to handle and it can make cultural adjustment much more difficult. Having a regular schedule is comforting - it feels like home. Discovering a routine means learning the way to do things in a new place, so you don't have to think so hard about it anymore. Having a routine means you can focus your mental energy on other things.

After a couple weeks in England, we are finally finding a routine and, therefore, feeling more settled. With our semi-weekly tutoring sessions, church bible studies, a weekly team meeting, church services, and study time, our schedule is filling up! We are thankful for this regularity. We were also able to get an affordable 3-month gym membership, so we can stay fit (and mentally healthy) while we're here.

Here is our weekly schedule right now:

Sunday: Prep for church service; Set-up at 3:30pm; Service from 4:30 - 6pm
Monday: German study in the morning; Tutoring session in the afternoon
Tuesday: 10:15am bible study; 7:15pm bible study; prep for Wednesday team meeting; German study
Wednesday: 10am Team meeting, with occasional afternoon team prep work
Thursday: German study in the morning; Tutoring session in the afternoon
Friday: Sabbath (rest day!)
Saturday: German study; prep for Sunday

What do you find comforting about your daily or weekly routine?

Photo credit: dhester from morguefile.com

Christianity Explored

Adding stickers to what seemed like 10,000 CE postcards

Our Lichfield WorldVenture team is gearing up for starting a Christianity Explored course in the local neighborhood! Similar to the Alpha course, Christianity Explored is focused on helping new believers or people who are searching. It offers a safe place to ask questions and explore the basics of Christianity and what we believe.

We will be starting a 7-week course in early February and in preparation, we've been distributing postcards all over the neighborhood. Our teammates are really focused on their local neighborhood (which they call an "estate"), especially since the church meets in the community center. Last Wednesday, we spend an hour or two adding course information stickers to many, many Christianity Explored postcards. Then we ventured out, dropping them in every mailbox in the neighborhood! We each had a zone to cover and were out there for about 2 - 3 hours going door to door.

Although it was a tiring day, we're praying that a few people from the area have interest in the course and see it as an opportunity to get their questions answered in a safe, welcoming environment.

Would you pray with us, that God stirs the hearts of some local people to come and explore Christianity with us?

Our New Apartment

Welcome to our new life in England! Check out the video below, as Bethany takes you on a tour of our new (temporary) apartment.