Jumping in

Wow. What a day.

After literally sleeping for twelve hours (8:30PM-8:30 ish AM), I woke up actually feeling quite energetic. I did not feel nearly as jetlagged as I expected. My host family and I spent the morning exploring the Greater Manchester city centre. Manchester is an incredible city. The cathedrals and churches were beyond amazing. One in particular - St. Mary's Church - was so dazzling in its uniqueness. It's referred to as Manchester's "hidden gem," and for good reason. This church is tucked away from nearly all traffic - automobile and pedestrian - and you would really only be able to find it if a local showed you. We also went into John Ryland's library, which also basically looked like you were in a cathedral or in Hogwarts. There were countless ancient books, and I even saw fragments from what are believed to be some of the oldest copies of Scripture in existence. Talk about incredible!

As many of you who might be reading this know, I am not a city person. I tend to avoid Chicago if I can. But Manchester was so different from any city I have ever stepped foot in. There are so many wide pathways and squares that are solely for pedestrians. Even the traffic wasn't all that busy. It didn't feel any where near as overwhelming or claustrophobic as most American big cities. While it is definitely bigger, it honestly didn't feel any busier than Naperville, and most of the drivers were nowhere near as obnoxious. And it was definitely way more beautiful.

After exploring the city centre, I went along on a youth event from some of the students connected with the Eden Network. Eden is a youth outreach program that is dedicated to building community connections in some of the harder-to-reach places. My host family serve as the leaders of it, and the neighborhood (or "estate") that they live in is surrounded by a mixture of socioeconomic statuses and a variety of influences. The five students that I went with, as well as their leader I was helping, are all from the estate. The program that we attended was a workshop/concert led by a UK-based Christian band called Twelve 24. It was mostly a creative workshop, but it and the concert were geared toward sharing the Gospel. It was a great event, and some of our students (and many others in attendance) gave their lives to Jesus. It was incredible! The students were also largely entertained by having a "real" American with them, and asked me all sorts of questions about where I live, what we have in our country, and how many famous people I know. Some even were telling me what they know how to say in American. It was quite hilarious for me, as I definitely don't think myself exotic by any means, but apparently I am to them.

I get to attend Ivy Church for the first time tomorrow. I can't wait to see what it will be like, and I am so excited to be meeting the people there!

Please pray for the students on the estate, especially the ones who have accepted Jesus. Also, pray for Ivy Church and Eden Network as they strive to reach the lost in Manchester.

Blessings,
Lindsay