Two months down...

...10 more to go! I can't believe I've already been here two months. Well, to be fair, sometimes it feels like I've been here a few years, but at other times everything still feels so new. I suppose it's normal to take a while to get adjusted to a new culture, even if it does seem fairly similar to home.

So...what do I say after a two months of living in Nottingham, England? Where do I begin? Well, first of all, let me get the formalities out of the way. Yes, I'm doing well. Yes, I'm settling in nicely. Yes, I get along with my roommates and teammates...anything else I forgot? Oooh yes, the most common question I'm hearing from people at home can once and for all be answered: YES, I am actually enjoying the food! Apparently England doesn't have much of a reputation for being the gourmet capital of the world, but I am LOVING all of the different European flavours (look at how my spelling has changed!) and all of the Indian food as well. I think that India is to England what Mexico is to Florida...they have so many Indian restaurants, and all of the British restaurants offer some sort of curry dish. Quite interesting.

There are too many stories to share! Lots of interesting things have happened. I was chased through a mall once by a Middle-Eastern man asking if I knew what the Hebrew word on my shirt said (of course I did - I didn't go to Bible college for nothing!). I went to a pub one night to observe a debate on the existance of God (VERY interesting to watch!). I got stuck in "the loo" in a British house (there are always so many plugs, switches, and pull-cords in the bathrooms here, and I never can figure out how to use simple things like lights and toilets). I have had the chance to visit many areas of England already, including Warwick Castle, the house of a Duke and Duchess, the Peak District, and many cities and areas in the central part of England. This is a BEAUTIFUL country! I'm so used to living in the flatness of Florida, so the peaks and hills of England are breathtaking! Adding to the splendor of the countryside right now is Autumn. I've never seen a season like it!

Now - about the churches. I've had the opportunity to visit many churches in the area, all of different denominations. It has been interesting to see the way "church is done" in England. One of the churches we went to visit was celebrating their 100th anniversary, and another was celebrating 136 years! Isn't that amazing? Those two churches, however, are literally dying out. One of them had about 15 in their congregation - - ALL over the age of 65. All but one of the churches I have visited had what I would consider a REALLY small congregation. A couple of them are working on reaching out into the community, but I would say that most of these churches really struggle with looking outside of their own building. It's really sad to see. It makes me even more upset to see the community of Nottingham, realizing that the churches are FAR from being a reflection of the area. Nottingham is such an alive, rapidly growing, vibrant city! It is CRAWLING with University students, young families, and teenagers. When I look at 90% of the churches, all I see is a dusty old building with mildly tempered "ho-hum" personalities who love to remember their past glory days, but do nothing to re-live those times. The few churches in the area that seem to do well are the ones that really take advantage of the culture around it, and revel in reaching out to the needs of the people outside their walls.

As for my ministry here, my main responsibility lies in an after-school club held on Thursday afternoons at the West Bridgford School. My team, along with a local youth minister, prepare 2.5 hours worth of fun stuff for the students (Jr. and Sr. High age) to participate in. There's lots of games, food, and what is called "Square Time" where we sit and talk about life issues, centering around a Christian message. So far, the club has around 10 girls that come on a regular basis. We're hoping to grow this number in the coming weeks, and hoping to add a few boys to the mix!

One huge thing coming up for the team here is the possibility of putting together a cafe church/ministry for the local youth. There isn't any place in the area to keep the droves of teenagers out of trouble! From what I can tell, a place for the students to hang out after school is very much needed, and would have instant success. We are well into the process of searching for a building in a convenient location, and are putting together the business-minded details about starting up such a venture. This is something that is REALLY exciting to me! I've seen and heard about what a cafe ministry can do. It would be a perfect opportunity for us to build relationships with the local community, and to run a ministry out of something not as "scary" to a Brit as a church building. I think it would serve as a perfect bridge to building our ministry in Nottingham!

Well, there are so many more stories to share, but I don't want to write a whole book as my first blog! I will be posting more, on a more regular basis. I have pictures to share as well, so be on the lookout for that! Thanks for reading, and thank you to all of you for your support and encouragement. May God bless you and your families over in the colonies :)