Gratitude

Everything I have is given to me.

I was thinking about that last night before bed and again while making lunch today. I was making soup. I poured water into a pot and let it heat. The electricity activated the stove and the water poured from the tap as it usually does, but I did not wire the building or lay the pipes. In the water, I boiled a stock cube and some rice which former housemates had left behind, I poured in a sauce which a friend found and purchased for me a year ago, I added vegetables and herbs I had purchased using funds provided by supporters - many of whom are probably reading this. If that's you, thanks for lunch.

The giving goes further. This food, like the majority of what I eat, was made without consulting a recipe. This is because I have a mother who, many years ago, was willing to pass on her abilities to an easily distracted daughter. If not for that, I wouldn't have the confidence or experience to improvise a meal from ingredients left in the cupboard. Mom, thanks for teaching me to cook.

Just as lunch was almost ready to eat, a friend of mine came in and offered me something to drink. Another gift which I had not purchased was given to me. Faith, thanks again for the tea.

But the gift reaches further. I could go on. I could go deeper and meditate on the people who shipped or produced ingredients and the debt of gratitude owed for the natural world from which these ingredients came. I could consider that my body and health and consciousness have all been given to me as surely as that cup of tea was.

The risk is that this will begin to read like the Acknowledgments section of a book, and while most acknowledgments feel unending, this one really would be, because everything, everything in my life is given to me.

That includes the strength to make it through busy seasons. In the past four months, I have not once updated this blog, but I have run a kids' club. I've prepared numerous English lessons, seen new ministries begin, and watched outreaches fall. I've rejoiced with those who were rejoicing, counselled grieving friends, and celebrated the holidays with loved ones. I've considered the future, formed new dreams, and watched some of those dreams die to eventually make way for others. All of this was with gratitude for the help of dear friends close by, the prayer and support of loved ones far away, the common sense and energy of coworkers, and, yes, the grace of God.

The problem is, that picture is too large for me. It's difficult to see and wrap my mind around all of these things I don't have any hope of paying it back.

So, today, I focus on the little things. The fleeting gifts. The everyday generosity we take for granted, because there's a lot to be thankful for in a cup of tea and a bowl of rice.

Bless the Lord, O my soul,
    and all that is within me,
    bless his holy name!

Bless the Lord, O my soul,
    and forget not all his benefits,

who forgives all your iniquity,
    who heals all your diseases,

who redeems your life from the pit,
    who crowns you with steadfast love and mercy,

who satisfies you with good
    so that your youth is renewed like the eagle's.

 - Psalm 103:1-5

Bringing you up-to-date

Hello everyone,

The last month has passed, sometimes flying and sometimes crawling by. I've become involved in the English classes at an LCM centre in Limehouse once a week. At the moment, I'm beginning to prepare to lead an entry-level class next week and a pre-entry class the week after. The ladies there are lovely, both the ones I work with and the women who come in for the classes. I'm excited for the opportunity to gain teaching skills, and I'm grateful for a slower pace this week. It has given me the chance to catch up on several other necessary items that fall by the wayside in the course of the average week - updating this blog being one of them.

For the month of November, I'll be assisting with youth work at a Centre on the Isle of Dogs once a week. My hope is that this will give me another perspective on youth outreach at Ridley Centre and prepare me to better serve there as well. Work continues at Ridley, with Philippa launching a new English teaching outreach, but it has been slow-going to get students in the door. Please pray that God would give the team fresh energy as well as a shared vision as we go into the months ahead.

I've been asked what I actually do when I'm not working. This Saturday I ran away to Richmond park with two friends to see the deer. The mushroom picture at the top is courtesy of my friend Faith. For some reason, my expectation was that Richmond park would be similar to Hyde park. Hyde park is extremely cultivated and commercialized, with every shrub seeming to have a border around it and an ice cream stand at every corner. It is not my favorite London park. Richmond Park, however, is on the outskirts of London and feels like stepping directly from the city into the countryside. It is the first time I've been in London and had no strangers within a hundred feet of me. We watched deer, climbed trees, and looked out over the treetops from the top of a nearby hill. The park is free to access, and I highly recommend it to anyone staying in London craving a breath of fresh air, as well as to any visitors who don't have a chance to visit the countryside. The bakery and tea-house near the entrance also seem to be well worth a visit, though my little group was too eager to get outside to spend much time there.

Recently, it has come to my attention that I have not posted any information regarding funding on this blog.For anyone interested in partnering with me financially in the next year, I have opened an online PayPal account you can access through this link: https://www.paypal.me/CorneliaGreenidge

(USD is absolutely fine as far as currency selection goes.)

Please note that donations to me this year are not tax deductible, as funds will be going into my personal account. This is due to the fact that LCM is unable to open accounts for foreign citizens, though they are willing to vouch for me that all money raised will be going to service and ministry expenses in London. If you have any questions about this or anything else covered in this email, please feel free to contact me through my work email: Corrie.Greenidge@lcm.org.uk

 Thank you all again for your prayers and encouragement. The Lord bless you and keep you.

- Corrie

Back in London

**I wrote this post in late September when I first arrived in London, but initially forgot to publish it to the web page. Thank you all for your patience with the delay.**

Hello everyone,

Thank you for your thoughts and prayers. By the grace of God, I've landed safely back in London, and am currently recovering from jet-lag and preparing to get to work. Autumn has set in here, with chill breezes and occasional rainfall. At the moment, the sky is blue and sunbeams are slicing through the privacy curtains. Despite the city's reputation for continuous drizzle, I've found that the weather is mild more often than not. It is, without a doubt, my favorite time of year.

I'm extremely grateful to have been able to experience the beginnings of Autumn in Colorado this year as well. My family traveled into the mountains before I left to enjoy a few days of hiking and time together. By now, the elk are probably bugling, the leaves are beginning to change, and people are looking towards the all-too-quickly approaching holiday season.

My temptation is to look ahead as well. I'm anxious to see what this year will bring, how our new outreaches will look, in what ways youth work will change, who will return from the community this year, and what new faces we'll see. Then there's the change to when we have our Mum's and Tot's outreach and my time learning more about teaching English as a foreign language. That's not even looking at collecting my residency permit, completing the necessary paperwork at LCM Headquarters to begin work this week, catching up with old friends, and getting to know people who have moved into the intern's house since I've been in the States. I'm grateful that anxiety has not yet caught up with me, but the potential is there, and I'm reminded again of Jesus' words to Martha.

“Martha, Martha, you are anxious and troubled about many things, but one thing is necessary. Mary has chosen the good portion, which will not be taken away from her.” - Luke 10:41b - 42

There is my prayer request for the coming time. Please pray with me that my focus and my priorities would be in their proper place. Pray that that's where the eyes of my team would be as we continue to work in East London, that before we become preoccupied with much serving we would not neglect to sit at the feet of Christ and remember why it is we do what we do. 

Thank you again to my family at Grace Church. You are tremendous blessings to me, and I am always happy to hear from you.

 Love,
Corrie

Home Assignment

Hello everyone,

I'm happy to say I had a safe trip home on Thursday, and I've recovered sufficiently from jet-lag to update this blog. The past year has been a learning experience, and I'm excited to return to work with London City Mission in mid-September. In the meantime, I would like to meet with anyone in the Longmont/Firestone area who is interested in a cup of tea and conversation about what God is doing in London. Starting next week, I'll be at local coffee shops each Tuesday evening - I'll be sure to post more information in advance on my Facebook page. If you would rather meet at a different place/time, or if you don't have access to Facebook, please feel free to contact me via email at CorrieRGreenidge@gmail.com. God bless, and I look forward to hearing from you.

- Corrie

Ghost Writer! Moment by Moment Musings

**Corrie Note: Hello all! I haven't been very faithful in posting on this blog recently as life has been a little crazy. That being said, I'm in fairly regular contact with family back home. Fed up with the lack of a blog to read, my mom offered to write a few follow-up pieces based off of our previous conversations. I know, I know, getting your mother to do your homework is not cool, but she's pretty great, and I'm certainly not going to complain.**

Moment By Moment Musings 

How’s that for alliteration? I was going to go with “Moment by Moment Musing with a Missionary’s Mom” but that just got messy. (See what I did there?) The Sherlock references needed to end because it’s just to much to live up too. Besides, I took the online Sherlock personality test and ended up with Mrs. Hudson...I can see it...(Humor w/ Hudson?) While in London, Corrie and I also visited:
St. Paul’s Cathedral, Westminster Abbey, the Westminster Bridge Memorials.

There are more memorials now in England: Manchester, London Bridge, Grenfell Tower Fire, and most recently the attack on the mosque in Finsbury Park, North London. It makes you stop and think, right? More importantly, it makes us stop and pray! Corrie is concerned that her location is a distraction. Maybe if people weren’t concerned about her, they would be more concerned about the people actually involved. I think that by the Lord placing her there, we are even more aware of the people. Otherwise, it’s easy to separate ourselves from the tragedies. Here’s a tangent, but circles back around, so hold on. Not long ago, I was watching “Madame Secretary” a fictional political TV show. Russia was invading Bulgaria and the debate at NATO was, “Do we go in and protect this small country?” Now that I have met Bulgarians, have heard some stories, and pray for individuals on a regular basis, my reaction to a fictional TV show was, “Of course, you go in!” I don’t know if that would have been the same a year ago. It’s the same with these attacks. The people are real and no
longer “Just on an island” on the other side of the Atlantic.The Westminster Bridge and London Bridge attacks were way too close to home for Corrie but only confirmed that she is where she is supposed to be. For those who wonder – I also have peace.

“There are no 'if's' in God's world. And no places that are safer than other places. The
center of His will is our only safety - let us pray that we may always know it!”
― Corrie ten Boom

Now, let me introduce you to some of the people in Corrie’s life. You have probably heard or read some of the names already but this will give you a quick reference point.

The Hostel - Central London
People are there anywhere from a few weeks to several months. There are also guest rooms for visiting LCM missionaries, (and family members for a small fee.) It’s located directly next to LCM headquarters and has a pretty cool history, being built in the mid 1700’s as a parsonage, and having survived the Blitz. (Headquarters is built on the foundation of the old church building, which didn’t survive.) Jonathan is full time with LCM. He lives in an apartment in the hostel w/ his wife and daughter. I’m not sure of his official title. I do know that he’s the one Corrie was in contact with concerning LCM. He helped her determine where, exactly in LCM, she would be serving. Plus, he makes sure everything at the hostel runs smoothly.

Ridley Christian Center - East London
There’s a team of people that Corrie has been working with. Sammy is the leader right now but is transferring to The Isle of Dogs. (Be in prayer for the right person to take his place.) Philly, Yordan, Ilyas, Ali, and Kaine make up the rest of the team. Corrie spent Christmas with Philly and her husband, Chris, along with their family, then New Year’s with Yordan, Kalina, and their family.

Now for some stories:
-Corrie is trying to learn Bulgarian. It’s a practical language skill that has come in handy several times. One day she was working at the food bank – a weekly gig at a church in East London. (Tangent: That’s one of the many healthy things about LCM. The goal is not to go into an area and take over Christian ministry. It’s to work alongside churches that are already established and supplement what is being done.) There is a lady she works with every week named Eileen. Eileen knows a young Bulgarian lady and her mother who go to the church where the food bank is run. They have lived in the area for 3-5 years. They are both believers and Corrie was able to write a note in Bulgarian, with some English, inviting them to Ridley Christian Center and giving them Yordan’s Facebook page so they could get connected with other Bulgarian believers. The daughter, who is around Corrie’s age, came to the center on a Tuesday and the two of them got to hang out for a few hours. Corrie was really encouraged by their time together and looks forward to hanging out with her more.

Philly taught Corrie a cool lesson that she passed on to me. They were discussing the purpose of learning a new language. Is it to say, spell, write everything correctly? Or, is it to understand and be understood? When you know that it is the latter, it gives you freedom to learn and communicate effectively, even if not perfectly. The Holy Spirit really does fill in the blanks.

-To celebrate The Fourth of July, Corrie listened to Hamilton and the Liberty’s Kids theme song, connected with some friends, and got to see/talk with several family members via Whatsapp. (She considered throwing some tea in the Thames but didn’t want to waste the tea or pollute the river more.)

A text from Corrie on the 4th:
.
“Total 'Happy Independence Days': 3 Bulgarians, 3 Americans, maybe a South American,
and one Brit who wasn’t sure what the Fourth of July was celebrating, but was really cool
about it when I told him.”

From yesterday - Pictured above
“This morning I watched toddlers. This afternoon I hung out with Yordan and Kalina. The Isle of Dogs went well...Also, I just got a text from Ilyas that one of our contacts just professed Christ. All in all, a very satisfying day.”

Corrie will be here August 3rd – September 14th. She’ll have a lot more stories to share!

Another text conversation that Corrie and I had recently:
Me: “Dang, girl, I can’t wait for you to get here!”
Corrie: “You’ll be sick of me after the first, 'I’m a grown woman, doggonit!' argument.”
Me: “That’s the plan.”

There ya go. This mom is all mused out, for now.

:) Tammy

Travels with Tammy/Wisdom from Watson

**My Mom visited over Easter, and it was wonderful! She offered to author a blog post on it. Without further ado I present...Travels with Tammy**

    I’ve learned from different friends that alliteration helps people remember. That’s why I can still remember the “ROYER REPORT” and “REV RAG” even though I haven’t read either one for close to two decades. Let me explain the two titles for this blog, then we can get to the actual content.

    When Corrie left for London last August, I gave her a huge hug and figured that I’d see her again in a year. Samuel had plans to visit. Dave, her Dad, might end up over there on a work trip and would have a chance to say "hi" to her, and that would be enough. Then my wonderful husband took a look at all of the air miles that he had accrued. To him it made more sense for me to go and spend several days then for him to show up and share a meal. Made sense to me, so that’s how I ended up traveling across the ocean and spending Easter in London with Corrie. The other title came from Corrie...in a way. As a proud mom, and the mission board chair, I keep encouraging (nagging) Corrie to update her blog. She shares these incredible stories with me! I just want everyone one hear them! She commented that I could be Watson to her Sherlock. She could live the life that God’s given her and I could report on it. Somehow, I think that she figured since she wasn’t here, life would stop for me. (Her dad and 4 brothers might take offense at that, but as the only girl, she gets a lot of leeway.) So there you go. The blog will probably be more “Travels” than “Wisdom,” but I’ll start typing and we’ll see what happens.

    I’ll start this by saying that the trip was in God’s timing, not mine. As usual. My plan was to go in May and get home just in time for Mother’s Day. That way the boys would REALLY appreciate me. But when Dave started looking at his miles, it worked out that he could send me business class a month earlier. Of course, I’d have to fly through Frankfurt but business class sounded really good so why not? Then we got the actual dates. It came right after a very busy time for our family. We wrapped up our 6th performance of “The King and I” on Sunday, April 9th, cleaned up the church on Monday, April 10th, and I was on the plane Tuesday, April 11th. It worked out perfectly because I was too tired to be stressed about the travel part.

    I got on the plane (“Hello, Mrs. Greenidge. Would you like orange juice, water, or champagne while we wait to take off? Here’s a menu. I’ll be by later to hear your selections."), had a nice meal, reclined the seat all the way back, put in my head phones, and slept. Colony House, Switchfoot, and John Forman sang me across the ocean.

    Customs was a new experience but not a bad one. The international travelers in my family told me to keep answers short and clear. I might have said a little to much. When the scary man sitting on a platform where I had to look up to him, asked me why I was in London, I said, “To visit my daughter.” So far so good. “Why is your daughter here?” That one caught me a little off guard. “Oh! She’s interning with LCM in Central London. It’s a...” I was getting ready to continue when he rolled his eyes, stamped my passport, and told me to move on.

    Again, my wise, world traveling husband helped me out by encouraging me to pack carry on, so I didn’t have to deal with baggage claim. I get through the gate and there she is! My Neeka! (Yes, it’s one of her many nicknames. Don’t ask me why. We started calling her that when she was a baby, and it stuck. It’s short for “Corneeka,” A nickname for Cornelia. Our family is a little wacky when it comes to nicknames.”)
    Back to the travels...Corrie has learned to have people take time to eat before the long tube ride to the hostel where she lives. (More on the hostel later.) We had some tea – London, right – and a snack. Then it’s on to the tube, after putting money on our oyster cards. Corrie laughed at me because I kept comparing the Tube to the El in Chicago. The Tube is wider and cleaner, just sayin’. She planned the route so that when we exited the station, the first thing I saw was the Tower of London. Very cool. Sad history but amazing architecture. Her goal at this point was to keep me awake, so we walked across Tower Bridge to get to the hostel, exchanged gifts, went for another walk, and grabbed Thai food for dinner. (Because, I hadn’t been exposed to enough Thai culture lately.) We stopped by a grocery store then headed back to the hostel. After she cleaned the bathrooms (it was her turn), I got a shower and crashed for the night.

    There you go – day one. Don’t worry. I’m not going to do any other days like this. One reason is because it all runs together. We would wake up in the morning, decide what we wanted to do that day, and go from there. There were only two things scheduled, so we had plenty of time to rest. The entire trip was excellent, but there are several that really stand out.  

    The first one was having Good Friday dinner with Yordan and Kalina. I also got to meet their lovely daughter, Pavlina. Corrie knows me well,  so was concerned that I would be anxious about being thrown into a new situation. I had total peace about having dinner with them. They love Jesus and enjoy my daughter. It doesn’t get much better than that! We had tea, snacks, dinner, and dessert while conversing over a couple of different languages and more than a couple of different cultures. A friend of Kalina’s from medical school was visiting from Bulgaria. She doesn’t speak as much English as Yordan and Kalina, but I think she understands quite a bit. She laughed and seemed to enjoy the conversation, with Yordan and Kalina providing translation for all of us. We spent several hours there and I could have stayed longer, except for the whole jet lag thing. Corrie told me once that this is the couple that she could picture Dave and I sitting on our back porch discussing Jesus, kids, life, and missions with...I think that she’s right. I would love to get to know this family better and feel like we only scratched the surface.

    The second scheduled activity was church. After all, it was Easter Sunday! A solid gospel message was presented along with hot cross buns and champagne. You’d have to talk with someone from England to understand the relationship between the church and the government. Evidently, separation of the two is not a bad thing. A survey was taken that week of people who regularly attend church in England. The question was asked, “What do you associate most with Easter?” Hot cross buns came before the resurrection of Jesus. A definite mission field and in the church.

The one thing I regret is not visiting Ridley Christian Center. Samuel got to spend some time there in January and meet the people. The time just seemed to get away from us.

Other adventures/highlights:

-Many walks along the Thames

-Watching Beauty and the Beast with Angelica and Corrie, then going out for a fabulous curry dinner

-Dumping American candy on Elie’s bed

-Discussing food and Lord of the Rings with Quinn

-Getting to meet Aaron who spent his first 12 years in Longmont (It IS a small world)

-Getting to meet Jonathon who was recovering from a cold and not catching me at my best.

-Going to see a west end musical “Half a Six Pence”

-Having the traditional fish and chips. (I didn’t need to eat anything else the rest of the day.)
-Watching a couple of movies and Big Bang Theory while eating pizza and ice cream.

-Finding Harley t-shirts for cousin John 

-Seeing Buckingham Palace but really just needing to find a toilet.

-Paying to use one in St. James Park

-A lot of walking, talking, praying, and even a little crying with one of my all time favorite people

This ends TRAVELS WITH TAMMY.

I’ll do another one that covers Corrie and WISDOM FROM WATSON.

Corrie said she’s looking forward to it...”Watson understood and appreciated Sherlock’s genius.”

Her many adventures will be coming your way soon. Hopefully, I’ll do the title justice.

North Devon

If any of you are curious as to where you can find one of the most beautiful places on Earth, I recommend North Devon. I spent a four-day weekend in Ilfracombe with my friend Elie and her family, running barefoot on the tors, exploring the coast, and relaxing on the beach. It was a wonderful time to enjoy God's people and His creation. Now I'll let the pictures speak for themselves.

                                   

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

A Photo Tour of Ridley

Our Front Entrance yesterday morning. We do a community drop-in every Friday and most Wednesdays.

Elie and Philly working on the Easter Craft in the lovely sunshine. You can see where our side yard opens just behind Elie.

The side entrance to the building is just outside of this photo's frame. The wall to the left originally had children's paintings from an event some ten years ago. Elie and I whitewashed it over a school break, but we left up the verses.

Yordan working at a desk in our main hall. In this picture, the hall is set up for use as a community space. There are tables, coffee, and tea just out of the frame to the left. In the course of an average week the hall alternates between a team meeting place, a community space, a youth room, and a sanctuary.

The back room has been seeing more use since Philly led the charge in redecorating. Here you see it set up for an Easter event. This is another room with many purposes serving as a meeting room, Mums and Tots area, Sunday School classroom, and Bible Study area through the course of an average week.

Since January

The past two months have been interesting. They were full of hope and frustration, exciting moments and doldrums. Sometimes the slow pace of progress has this particular American chomping at the bit to move forward. Other days, I come home and look through my notes wondering how so much can possibly be jammed into the course of a week.

We have moved forward with our Mums and Tots group with varying degrees of success. On the very first week, no one came. We continued to spread the word, and by the next Friday our small room was full of mothers and children. The majority of the women attending were from Muslim backgrounds, and conversation was friendly and open. In the following weeks, none of these women have returned. Rather, two different women - one Muslim, one Sikh - have brought children, generally at different times. The room is almost empty again, leaving Philippa and I to wonder whether mothers have been offended by something we've said, unimpressed with the playroom itself, or simply have busy and unpredictable lives. The fact that the playgroup has only been able to meet on Fridays thus far - a day of prayer, instruction, and ritual cleansing for Muslims - has also been unhelpful.

The situation with youth outreach has been accompanied by similar frustrations. The students who attend are from what may be considered Christian backgrounds. Outreach to young men has been going wonderfully, with Sammy, Ali, and Kaine interacting through casual conversations and games during youth club on Tuesday nights and Philippa's husband Chris helping to lead Bible Studies on Fridays. Young women have finally begun to attend youth club regularly - streaming in at once, chatting in tight groups or playing games for a few moments, and streaming out again before any real conversation can take place. Recently, I've been learning names, but it feels like we're making very little progress. Yesterday we held an Easter event for young women based on feedback from the students. We advertised for several weeks and received numerous assurances that the girls were happy to attend. Of twelve to fifteen girls who appeared interested none whatsoever attended. Frankly, this is an area where I'm finally seeing how spoiled I've been by the engagement of students at Grace.

For the past several weeks I've been attending a Bulgarian Bible Study led by Yordan. There are two to five people who have become regular attenders, and they are asking good questions. Last night's passage was John 3:16 - 21 and I was excited to see what they would make of such an explicit statement of the Gospel. They appeared engaged, but as soon as the prayer following the lesson was over conversation turned immediately to the shallowest possible topics.

I came home last night and brought this litany of frustrations to my housemates while we prepared our dinners. They were each encouragements, reminding me both that exciting things are happening and that these situations are in God's hands. I can not decide how many people come to events, I am not in control of how interested or receptive people will be, and God is the one who opens eyes that are blind to the Gospel. Now it's just a matter of remembering that. 

The Latest

Hello Everyone,

January has been a very full month. My brother Sam visited for a while earlier on and was able to meet many of the people I work with.

(Sam, I'd like to take this opportunity to give you a shout out for being a good sport, letting me steal your bacon and cheese chips, and eating a kidney pie without my help.)

On to current events...

I have some exciting news: The funding for the Mums and Tots program at Ridley has finally come through. We hope to do some deep cleaning and decorating work on the back room of the Centre in preparation for this outreach. Many mothers in the area are willing to visit us for a time of discussion and fun activities with their little ones. This is a wonderful opportunity to connect with people who otherwise have very little time to spare and let them know they are welcomed in the Church. It's especially exciting to see the interest continue as we are open about our faith and our role in an evangelistic organization. Please keep this outreach in your prayers.

Another area where we are currently experiencing growth is in the after school youth clubs. Currently we have a relaxed game time on Tuesday evenings. Last week we began a youth Bible Study on Friday nights. The first one was very promising, and I'm excited to see what happens this week. Please pray that students remain interested in learning more about Scripture and that we would have sufficient enthusiasm and wisdom in our interactions as leaders.

On a personal note, I am still uncertain what opportunities to pursue next year. Please pray that I would be wise in considering the future as well as diligent in the here and now.

I was reminded of this verse today while visiting a local school for an afternoon club. The motto of the school was something along the lines of Nisi Dominus Frustra.

"Unless the Lord builds the house,
those who build it labor in vain.
Unless the Lord watches over the city,
the watchman stays awake in vain." 
- Psalm 127:1 (ESV)

 
It's good to be reminded that this area is not my mission. It's not the team's mission. It's not even LCM's mission. Ultimately, it's in God's hands.

In the Spirit of Honesty

In case any of you are imagining London as a sparkling city - its harsh edges softened by the falling of gentle white snow in the crisp moonlight, its serenity broken only by the sounds of the Salvation Army choir in the far distance and the revelries of children playing the exuberant games of youth in the powder of the snow - I thought I should mention that London is too far in the south of England to ever get a decent snowfall.

Christmas cards and Charles Dickens have a lot to answer for.

The view out my window this afternoon

Christmas

Hello All! A very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year to you. :)

Several months before leaving, I decided not to come home for Christmas. Thankfully, a friend at work invited me to join her family for the holiday, and I had a wonderful time with them in London, Suffolk, and Cambridge. I can now confirm that mince pies, mulled wine, and Christmas pudding are all delicious, and that nothing beats feeling welcomed in - especially at a time of year that is otherwise so associated with loneliness. When I spend Christmas with my immediate family, I expect their love. I expect them to be kind, generous, and fun. That alone is a gift, but one of the many blessings of this Christmas was that I knew I had no right to expect any of those things. I found myself praying on Christmas morning for a way to respond because I hadn't done anything to deserve such kindness and generosity, and I was suddenly reminded that that's the point.

We cannot deserve Christ. There is nothing I can do to make myself more worthy of His sacrifice. That didn't stop Him from loving us anyway, and giving to us far more than any of us could have asked or imagined.

In the spirit of Christmas in London,
"God bless us, every one!"

This week

I'm aware I don't post stories on here very frequently, if at all. This is for a variety of reasons, chief among them a desire to respect the privacy of everyone I have the opportunity to interact with. Today, however, I have permission to share a very recent experience of a fellow LCM worker which I hope will be of encouragement to you.

X was walking her dogs down the street on her day off. She had a leash in one hand and a spray bottle full of water in the other, in case the dogs became too mischievous. It was another normal London day. As she walked down the street, a man approached her.

"How are you getting on with the dogs?"

X stopped. This was a rough area of the city, and London isn't generally known for its pedestrian chitchat. (Let that be your understatement for the day.) She made cautious conversation, telling him a bit about the water bottle she was carrying. The conversation eventually moved to his health and how he believed he had healed himself of a debilitating disease. X was curious.

"But you're better now?"

The man paused for a moment. It was evident something was still wrong. X gave him time to find words to describe his current condition, and at last he told her about the demonic oppression he was struggling under. He said he was dealing with it in his own way, but X told him she had the true answer to his problem. As soon as she mentioned the name of Jesus, the man began to smirk. X became nervous. It was an unsettling situation. What was she doing here, on her day off, trying to tell a man on the street about Jesus?

Suddenly, an enormous man approached from behind X. This gentleman was "suited and booted" as the saying goes - wearing an outfit that appeared to be incredibly expensive. He was an African man and had a handsome face with what X later described as "a permanent smile". As this new stranger walked up, he looked at X and said, "Lead him to the cross."

X and the oppressed man both turned to look at him. The stranger repeated himself, "Lead him to the cross." and continued walking. Before he walked out of sight, he turned around and called out,

"It's only through the cross!"

Then he was gone.

This gave X the courage she knew she needed. She was able to continue her conversation with the man she had just met, challenging him about his unwillingness to believe in Christ when he was so ready to accept the existence of spiritual forces. She tried to get him into contact with a nearby Christian mission. As it turns out, that ministry was already aware of this particular man, and they are now taking steps to reestablish contact with him. Please be in prayer for wisdom for the missionaries reaching out to this person, and pray for Christ's healing and redemptive work in his life.

"How then can they call on the one they have not believed in? And how can they believe in the one of whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone preaching to them? And how can anyone preach unless they are sent? As it is written: And "how beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news!"
- Romans 10:14

X shared this message with our training class this morning, and it struck me that this was the second such story I've heard this week. I received her permission to share her story online, and now I would like to tell you briefly about another.

I have the opportunity where I'm serving to meet regularly with a woman named H. H speaks Bulgarian and Greek, but virtually no English. Thankfully Yordan, one of the missionaries at Ridley, speaks Bulgarian as his first language. This is a tremendous blessing as it's not a very common language in the sea of cultures that make up Forest Gate, meaning H often has a great deal of difficulty communicating.

On Tuesday, during the meeting with H, an interesting question arose. I had heard previously about the day she first arrived at Ridley. Sammy, our Centre leader, had been trying to learn where she was from and if she knew any English when Yordan entered the room. It became immediately evident that they (quite literally) spoke the same language. As it happened, she had a flat very near the Centre and had decided to visit. That was all I knew about how she became associated with the ministry to begin with.

The question that came up this Tuesday was how she had decided to visit in the first place. H told Yordan she had been in England a very short time and was walking down the street when a Bulgarian woman came up to her and told her to go to Ridley Christian Centre. 'There is a man there who will speak to you in Bulgarian.'

H hasn't seen or heard from this woman since. They spent some time trying to decide who it could be, but Yordan doesn't believe he has ever heard of this woman or met her at all.

Please let this be an encouragement to you. So often we can fall under the burden of not knowing who to speak or reach out to. So often we can become frustrated when we come up against a barrier - whether it's fear, language difficulty, or any of our myriad limitations. Please be reminded that God is faithful and very actively involved. I know it's encouraged me.

For my thoughts are not your thoughts,
    neither are your ways my ways, declares the Lord. 
 For as the heavens are higher than the earth,
    so are my ways higher than your ways
    and my thoughts than your thoughts.
                     - Isaiah 55:8-9 

But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.”
                     - 2 Corinthians 12:9a

Grace Notes (Abridged)

I haven't updated this blog since I first began working at Ridley.

Believe me when I tell you that is no coincidence.

I'm not sure which of you receive the Grace Notes from church and which don't, so here's an 

abridged copy of what I sent in this week: 

The last two months in London (Yes, two months already! Time flies.) have been so full of opportunities to learn, share, and serve that it’s difficult to know where to begin. I’ve completed training, found a church and a library, learned how to navigate public transport, begun work in the East End, and even made a few friends.

Some of you are aware that initially I was going to be the only female worker at Ridley Christian Centre. Thankfully, I am now one of three women working at the Centre. London City Mission has hired a full-time female missionary for Ridley who is passionate about reaching out to mums and tots in the neighborhood. They’ve also placed another gap-year intern who I live with at the hostel there. This is a tremendous blessing, as it means I don’t have to walk around London alone, I have a friend to share work experiences with, and the three of us have a lot more opportunities to do women’s outreach without becoming overwhelmed.

Forest Gate, where Ridley is located, is an incredibly diverse area of east London, and we have a diverse team to match. There are four English people from various backgrounds, a Bulgarian man, a Pakistani man, and an American. (Yours truly.) In addition to youth clubs, community drop-ins, door-to-door outreach, and serving the local congregation, we’re working on starting a mothers group, girls Bible study, and food bank. All of this while the church that meets at Ridley finds a new pastor. It’s an incredibly exciting time to be involved, but there’s definitely potential for exhaustion. Please pray for the people of the neighborhood to have open hearts and homes. Pray for endurance and encouragement for Sammy, Yordan, Ilyas, and Ali especially, as they have very full plates. Pray also for Eli (pronounced “Ellie”), Philippa, and myself, that we would have wisdom in reaching the women in this area and maintaining relationships with them that are based on genuine friendship and a desire to share the Gospel.

Love,
 Corrie