Sunday 12 October 2014

On a Mission

It has taken Judi and I a little while to readjust to being back home in the UK. Catching up with our children, Tom and Ellie, has been great and we have enjoyed seeing our other family and friends. It is also a bit strange being missionaries.

Judi and I are now full time missionaries with Elim Missions. This week-end we have been on our first set of "missionary events" since returning home. As well as catching up with our nearest and dearest our time in the UK also involves going out to talk about Hope and Kindness and encourage people to support us. We are just starting to get used to this new role. On Saturday we attended a missions conference in Birmingham and went on from there to Nantwich (in the North West of England) where we spoke about our work in Kenya to the Elim church there.

We had a great time up in Nantwich. It is difficult sharing about ourselves and our work in Kenya in about twenty minutes, but Judi did a great job. She would be the first to say that the thought of talking in public fills her with dread but once she gets going she is very good. We met some very lovely people in the church and were really encouraged by the warmth and hospitality we experienced. Thank you everybody at Nantwich, especially Rachel, Pastor Michelle, Laurie, Richard, Ella and Austin and Rachel's mum, dad and sister Lisa.

While I am in "on the road for Hope and Kindness" mode I'd like to take the opportunity to extend an invitation to anybody who might be thinking about going on a short term mission. I read an article recently that said the term "short term mission" should be banned. It was a provocative headline but the writer went on to make the point that spending a short time "on a mission" abroad is actually a great opportunity to start up a long term relationship with the people you go out and work with. We would agree. We have had a number of repeat visitors and they are always a massive encouragement to our children and staff in Kenya.

I think a lot of people are put off thinking about coming to a place like ours for a short visit because they worry about what they have to offer. "What will I do when I get there?" We would love to have more visitors who have practical skills, IT experience, teaching skills, musical giftings, a heart for dance and drama and everything in between. As Jesus said, the fields are ripe for the harvest but the workers are few.

If you feel a desire to go somewhere new and challenging to make a difference in people's lives check out the Volunteer, Visit Us section on our website (www.hopeandkindness.org). We would love to hear from you.

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