TFG+ Conference in London

I had a spectacular week! That's the best way to describe it, because words aren't enough :)

On Saturday, I went to a seminar called "Walk Through The Bible" and the session we did was the Old Testament. It ran form 9:30am to 5pm. I learned a lot! It was a nice overview of some of the Bible stories I know, and it put them into perspective in terms of their order in the Bible, as well as where geographically they took place. Not only that, but it made me realize that there's so much I don't know about the Bible and that I want to learn... It really renewed my desire to read the Bible.

On Sunday, I went to service at St Peters Boxted, and Julie ran the Sunday school with the kids. I really really think the older kids should start going to service, rather than Sunday school (which runs at the same time as service, and is focused primarily on the younger kids). But, I can't force them to do something they don't want to do. After service, I want to my buddy family, the Sheils, for Sunday dinner, which was little nibbles like cheese and crackers and chicken bits and such. After that, I went back home to the cottage. My host family and I strapped a canoe on top of the car, drove to the river in Stratford St Mary, parked, unloaded the canoe into the river, and we were off! Roger, my host dad, and I canoed to Dedham, where he switched with Patsy-Ann, my host mum, and we paddled to Flatford Mill. Sound familiar? That's where John Constable painted one of his most famous paintings! It was a clear, sunny day and there were families out in paddle boats and having picnics along the water and it was perfectly lovely. After that, I went to supper at the Sheils again, and had roast beef and yorkshire pudding. Yup, you heard correctly, beef! I am broadening my horizons :) Then contemporary worship at St Johns Colchester afterwards. Fabulous weekend.

On Monday, I headed out to London for our prep for service conference for TFG. I got to see the other TFG+ (aka YAGM UK) volunteers, who I haven't seen since orientation in Chicago. IT WAS AWESOME!!! I can't even properly describe to you how wonderful it was to see them again. Apart from that, the conference was great. We talked about culture differences and vocation for a pretty big portion, as well as planning and running three worship services for our group. We'll also be doing worship for our TFG Big Conference in January, with ALL TFG volunteers attending (100+ people)! It was just fantastic. We stayed at Guy Chester Centre in north London; the accommodation was great, the food was superb, and the company was spot on! I also got to meet my field officer, Chrissie, in person, and she is lovely! We talked about some of my goals for the year and for the future in general. My goals for the year: for my kids to increase their desire to worship, pray, and become active members of the church; to bridge the gap between the older members of the congregation and the youth; and for me to read the Bible. It was nice to have a clear view of my goals.
We also went out to the church pub each evening for a pint of beer, and luckily I had budgeted enough money to have a pint a night for the whole conference week! It worked out quite nicely, and it was soooo great to just... be... with my YAGM people again :) I feel like they're family now. Farewell on Thursday was bittersweet; it's nice to come back home to the cottage and my host family, yet I will surely miss my friends. I didn't take many pictures of the conference because I was just so wrapped up in experiencing everything! However, I did take this video while at the church pub: it's our group, plus Alan, who's a former field officer for TFG.

Friday was a bit of a chill day for me, unpacking and relaxing after the busy conference. It was nice to get a full night's sleep too :) I met with Tim for PPB (prayer, planning, and Bible study) in the afternoon and stayed for dinner (Julie made yummy Thai food again!) and then The Edge youth group afterwards. It was Game Night! Tons of fun. We spent most of the time playing different card games that the kids taught was, as well as Jenga and Pictionary. Brilliant evening.

In conclusion, this week has been a fantastic affirmation of my service in England :) I am so happy. I truly love serving the Lord and I hope to be able to do that the rest of my life!