The Tea,

Here we are, the team, Steve and Lauren, Caleb, Jess and Anya Alison and I

Please pray for us and give thanks for for all that is coming in the next couple of months.

Love and Prayers

R

What a week

Last week i was going on about waiting, but this week God has Just given us some many opportunities and has been a real humbling week.

Firstly because last night Anya Grace Shorter was born, amazing, mid wife only just got there. Mum did brill, dad is doing house work and Jess and Caleb are loving their new sister ( Jess offered to and tried to cut her hair this morning!!)

Things on Harold Hill have been great to, youth work has started and i think i going to the opportunity to really get to know the community, I've been give some amazing opportunities to lead some parenting courses. A local pub has asked me to lead their carol service and so it's all go!!

The week however started really sadly with the news that a child in Caleb's year group died of meningitis, and a child Caleb's age was shot with a flare gun on the estate over the weekend, both reminding us of the preciousness of life and of the need for people to find the life going hope that Jesus offers. See a child being born only screams this wonderful and beuitful truth of the hope that Christ brings.

R

Still no Baby!

People keep asking what we’re up too, well we see this year as a year of listening, listening to God about the shape and structure of the church, listening to Harold Hill and Listening to each other. Having a team is brilliant!, and Lauren an Steve have already brought so much to the group.

If you’re looking for a biblical justification for what we are doing there are two main bits. Firstly in the Old Testament book of Nehemiah, Nehemiah (in chapter 2) spend time assessing the situation, he was only looking at the walls, we’re looking at a community of 30000 people and so we don’t want to rush.

Secondly is the fact that Jesus spent about 30 years just being in a community, so if he spent time fitting in, so can we! In an age were everyone one wants every now people have forgotten that sometimes in the bible God did things straight away and other times thing took years. So were happy to be spending this time listening to him.

Please pray for me I start to Youth Work Jobs next week (if there is not baby) which I’m really looking forward to.

Please pray for steve and Lauren

Please pray the baby comes and all is well!!

R.

waiting!!

I'm not that keen on this whole waiting game thing! Waiting for shorter child number three and waiting for the right opporunties on HH is not easy.

Keen this first year clear to be spending the time waiting on God and getting to know the local community is not going to be easy, there is so much pressure internally to get going and yet this waiting game is all part of that.

Steve and Lauren our new tema members start this week which is really exciting and we're going to be psending loads of time just gettin to know each other and be praying for our new community.

Please pray for them as they settle into HH and for us as we wait.

Please be praying as we are having serveral ooportunities to help support other agencies such as the local youth service and the local sure start centre. Pray for balance of time!!

See you next week, maybe with some baby photos!!

Rich