I find the greatest peace in the mornings. As I’m drinking a big cup of coffee (one of my favorite things) and listening to classical music (the music with which I was educated) I find peace. When days are at their quietest, in the morning, that’s where I like to live.For the last couple of mornings, I’ve been considering the idea of retelling and remembering all that God has done. This was brought on by a conversation I’ve had recently where I was responding to the simple question, “So, how are things going so far?” As I told the story of our time in England, I was remembering and recounting all that God has done and it excited me to see that there have been many awesome stories and demonstrations of God’s work in England - many of which I hadn’t recognized in the moment. It was only in the retelling and remembering that I noticed God the most. And so, I wish to recount again the story of our time in England…so far.

I will remember the deeds of the Lord; yes, I will remember your miracles of long ago. I will meditate on all your works and consider all your mighty deeds. Your ways, O God, are holy. What god is so great as our God? You are the God who performs miracles; you display your power among the peoples. Psalm 77:11-14 (NIV)

Relationships
Since arriving on October 29th, our team has been striving to find our place and identity in Birmingham, England. When we first arrived, we noticed that CMF had done a great job of networking and developing relationships on our team’s behalf. However, now we had the responsibility of sorting out what those relationships actually were in practice and how we could continue to develop and invest in them. Relationships with Pavilion Christian Community and the people there, relationships with Together in Mission, relationships with Birmingham Christian College, relationships with other ministries in the city - all of these important points of engagement for our team. Then determining how each of these relationships then relate to each other was a focus for us.At the same time, we were focusing on our personal relationships as a team. We all realized quickly that we had spent a total of two weeks with each other before we arrived in England and now we were spending nearly every waking moment. We took on the responsibility of learning each other. We took on being intentional about learning how best to talk with, relate to, work with and love each other…successfully, I might add.We additionally had the task of determining what our relationships with supporters looked like now that we had to shift our whole mindset. We were here now. We weren’t raising support any longer. We weren’t working on communication and follow-up with them 24/7; we had a new job to do. Personally, this scared me a little bit (still does to be honest) because I want our supporting team to feel like and know that they are a part of all that is happening here and without them, it cannot continue. It remains incredibly important to me. And so we continue to work out how these relationships look while we’re making our focus students instead of “getting to England.”

Getting a Routine
Even from the first days, we knew we needed to get a pattern to life. We were beginning the process of learning the culture and some sort of order would help us all go through that process a little better. So we started regular, planned meetings - usually at Sainbury’s Cafe (say what you want Englanders, it’s a good cafe) to talk about vision, strategy and how things would actually come together. We started fasting together on Fridays for breakfast and lunch and then came together in the evening to pray together, take communion, cook dinner together and break the fast. I’m so happy that we’ve set a foundation like that for all that is to come. We still continue this to this day.Together we walked the roads completely around the University to see what was there. From previous trips, we had in our minds that the south side of the University was the best place for something like what we had in mind. It has the most student housing, the most popular strip of road, the most student foot-traffic, etc. A trip around the Uni confirmed this for us. So, we headed back to the area we were drawn to in the first place, with this confirming new information.This is when we stumbled upon the house that would later become the property we were pursuing for a ministry house. More about that later.

Celebrations with Friends
Thanksgiving was approaching, but so was Guy Fawkes Night (including fireworks and near death experiences, as pictured to the right). Because of previous trips before arriving, we were blessed to have a small group of people who readily welcomed us in and helped us get our feet in Birmingham. They invited us to a bonfire and fireworks night and so we invited them to a Thanksgiving meal. We spent two days cooking and preparing a meal for ten and it was such a great evening. We spent this very surreal evening around a table with our British friends and remembered how grateful we were, how thankful to be in England with them, even if it meant being away from our families.In November, we also got to travel to Salamanca, Spain to meet with En Vivo, another Globalscope ministry to students there. We spent a number of days learning from the team, asking our questions, discovering more about their early days, about team dynamics, and about ministry to students in a European context. I helped to lead their music for En Vivo on Thursday. Leah learned more about how En Vivo handles finances for the team and for the ministry. Robert had the opportunity to talk with Jesse, their team leader. Natalie was able to dive into the exchange student program in preparation for our own exchange students. We ended the trip with a great night out including too much food and just the right amount of laughter and encouragement. It was time well spent.

A Name
Here’s a whole post on the name-choosing process, but long story short, we chose a name for the ministry to students here in Birmingham. And so, we landed on CANVAS. There’s a lot of imagery and openness to that name. We like it. www.canvashouse.org

Above the Royal Orchid
Because this is a major student housing area and because we needed a space large enough for multiple purposes, the task of securing a ministry house was long and arduous (here’s a post from the midst of the search and struggle). We were looking for a campus house. Think of a house that is welcoming to students. A house that is located within a short walk to the University. A house that is flexible enough to include small groups and open mic nights. Think of a place that is open most all of the time for students to drop in when they’re bored, lonely, needing help, and just wanting to talk with someone. Think of a place that houses exchange students from America who have come to England to be a part of this ministry. This is a broad overview of what we mean when we say “campus house”.After carefully navigating numerous conversations, documents, meetings and details, we felt that renting this property would be a great decision for the team. We were even more excited when we were finally offered the property! Typically, the deposit is £300 per room (in this case £1800/$3640) but the letting agency dropped that down to £1000 (amazing). They also cut their administrative fees in half for us. It is quite unusual for a letting agency to do such things. We have officially signed the contract and placed a deposit on this property. In retrospect, this is an absolutely necessary piece of the puzzle and God worked it all out in amazing fashion.

Connecting and Networking
There are a few ministries working toward similar goals with students here in Birmingham. The Navigators, the Christian Union, Friends International and Agape are here, to name a few. When we first arrived, we made a decision to stay off campus and to not directly pursue relationships with students yet. We needed a framework. We needed a foundation. We needed the opportunity to speak with these other ministries before we begin, out of respect for their work, because we’re all in this together, and because we’re stronger together than divided.We spent time meeting with these ministries and honestly hope to continue those new relationships. There’s a lot that needs to be done and, while we have different methods, styles and positions, we’re after the same thing: seeing God’s kingdom expanded and student’s lives enriched. We see now how important it was for us to refrain from meeting with students, as much as it was in our hearts and as loudly as our brains were screaming. God gave us wisdom here and it’s apparent now how important it was for us to focus, as a team, on the foundation that promotes the longevity of this ministry.We also spent time sharing the goals and vision of this ministry with elders, leaders and home groups from Pavilion Christian Community. They are passionate about seeing God’s kingdom go forward and are thrilled to be a part of what’s going on with Canvas, as we are thrilled to be a part of what’s happening in the life of Pavilion.We say it often, but we want to be distance runners, not sprinters. These new connections and networks were vital to this foundation, and do and will remain to be.

Christmas
The holidays away from our families and long-time friends have been unusual. Praise God for Skype though. Through the power of technology, we have been able to see our families face-to-face. It was a weird and bittersweet dynamic to be honest, as we have a strong passion to be here but miss our families in great ways at the same time. Our hearts were blessed when we received Christmas cards and boxes from America including Starbuck’s coffee, Frank’s Red Hot Sauce and Hidden Valley Ranch Dressing. It was a weird sensation to open these boxes of things once familiar, that are slowly losing their familiarity.The people here in Birmingham went out of their way, especially our friends from Pavilion and from previous trips, to make us feel welcome and comfortable away from our families. Christmas carol service on the green in Bournville, tea with friends and encouraging words and gifts were all our experience this Christmas season. It was bittersweet, but sweet indeed.

The Future
On the 2nd of January, we’ll receive our first exchange students from America (this is really cool, so if you have questions, please let us know and we’ll tell you all about it)! Natalie has done a great job preparing for the students to arrive and once they get here we’ll be excited to see how we can encourage them in their work in Birmingham as they begin engaging students every day with their very lives.

Once again I’ll go over what GOD has done, lay out on the table the ancient wonders; I’ll ponder all the things you’ve accomplished, and give a long, loving look at your acts. O God! Your way is holy!No god is great like God! You’re the God who makes things happen; you showed everyone what you can do. Psalm 77:11-14 (MSG)

It’s all happening…