Introduce yourself and your city? My name is Tori. I’m a 20 year old English girl living and working in Madrid, Spain. What’s your city known for? Madrid is a great city but isn’t particularly famous for much. The buildings are beautiful, the people are beautiful, the food is beautiful. But there’s no beach, there’s no huge tourist attractions, it’s not even that big for a city…so it’s charm springs from the metropolitan, clash of the old Spain (jamón on every corner) and the young, professional and extremely international mixture of urban dwellers. Though it certainly does have the best metro in Europe. Fact. If we were to visit, what 3 places would you take us? La Paloma Blanca. It’s a fantastic, super Spanish tapas bar in the centre of the arty district of town. With every drink you order, there comes lots of little plates of tapas to share so the more people in the group, the more variety of food available. Gran Vía to Retiro, it’s the main stretch of road leading up to a beautiful park…I’d take you all along there to enjoy the beautiful buildings and bustle of the city before going boating in the Retiro Park. Chamberí is Madrid’s best kept secret. It’s an old metro station that was closed down in the 60’s and yet has remained in it’s 1940’s state. It’s free to enter and a really cool, spooky place to visit and step back into 1940’s Madrid. How are you serving your city? I’m working as the youth pastor of Mountainview International Church which exists to serve and equip the international community in Madrid and especially in the North Western suburbs of the city. I help run various projects including a free café in the school where we meet for worship, lots of youth clubs and events and groups for young adults in the city centre. Where is your fave place to pray in your city? In the park where I go for a run. There’s a hill at the side which overlooks the urban sprawl and frames the most beautiful of sunsets. It’s where God reminds me how much he loves this city. Where is your fave place to eat in your city? 100 montaditos. It’s a bar which serves huge drinks and tiny baby sandwiches. On Wednesdays and Sundays everything is 1 euro. Bargain! How can we pray for your city? Spain has a very hostile view towards God. They make the automatic connection to Catholicism and the tragedy of the civil war which had a heavy catholic drive. So, as well as praying for specific ministries such as Mountainview, Spain is in dire need of people to intercede for the souls who have been damaged by Christianity in the past. Pray that God will reach Spaniards despite their misconceptions. Pray for God to breakthrough these hard hearts and change this country. check out Tori’s blog here We’re running a two week mission trip to Madrid this summer. Email gemma@blessnet.eu if you’re interested
Zoom

Introduce yourself and your city?
My name is Tori. I’m a 20 year old English girl living and working in Madrid, Spain.

What’s your city known for?
Madrid is a great city but isn’t particularly famous for much. The buildings are beautiful, the people are beautiful, the food is beautiful. But there’s no beach, there’s no huge tourist attractions, it’s not even that big for a city…so it’s charm springs from the metropolitan, clash of the old Spain (jamón on every corner) and the young, professional and extremely international mixture of urban dwellers. Though it certainly does have the best metro in Europe. Fact.

If we were to visit, what 3 places would you take us?
La Paloma Blanca. It’s a fantastic, super Spanish tapas bar in the centre of the arty district of town. With every drink you order, there comes lots of little plates of tapas to share so the more people in the group, the more variety of food available.
Gran Vía to Retiro, it’s the main stretch of road leading up to a beautiful park…I’d take you all along there to enjoy the beautiful buildings and bustle of the city before going boating in the Retiro Park.
Chamberí is Madrid’s best kept secret. It’s an old metro station that was closed down in the 60’s and yet has remained in it’s 1940’s state. It’s free to enter and a really cool, spooky place to visit and step back into 1940’s Madrid.

How are you serving your city?
I’m working as the youth pastor of Mountainview International Church which exists to serve and equip the international community in Madrid and especially in the North Western suburbs of the city. I help run various projects including a free café in the school where we meet for worship, lots of youth clubs and events and groups for young adults in the city centre.

Where is your fave place to pray in your city?
In the park where I go for a run. There’s a hill at the side which overlooks the urban sprawl and frames the most beautiful of sunsets. It’s where God reminds me how much he loves this city.

Where is your fave place to eat in your city?
100 montaditos. It’s a bar which serves huge drinks and tiny baby sandwiches. On Wednesdays and Sundays everything is 1 euro. Bargain!

How can we pray for your city?
Spain has a very hostile view towards God. They make the automatic connection to Catholicism and the tragedy of the civil war which had a heavy catholic drive. So, as well as praying for specific ministries such as Mountainview, Spain is in dire need of people to intercede for the souls who have been damaged by Christianity in the past. Pray that God will reach Spaniards despite their misconceptions. Pray for God to breakthrough these hard hearts and change this country.

check out Tori’s blog here

We’re running a two week mission trip to Madrid this summer. Email gemma@blessnet.eu if you’re interested

Discuss
Tags Interviews
In January 2011 we sent Marky b to Watermark Church in Freiburg, Germany for a two week trial placement. Nearly two years later he is still there… Bless: Still living in the city centre? Marky b: Kind of. I recently moved out of my apartment and I’m currently staying in a student dorm for a month. It’s a bit of a change going from living in a flat to sharing a kitchen, 3 toilets and 2 showers with 15 other people but it’s not too bad. I’ve got that until the end of the month and then… …I don’t have anywhere to move to so I’m regularly checking websites/newspapers and the like, but not really getting anywhere at the moment. The renting market is currently so saturated especially with the new semester starting next month. One guy told me he’d received 91 replies to his room advert in 18 hours, its mental really!! This doesn’t mean I’ll be homeless but may mean I have to sleep on some friends’ sofas for a couple of weeks while I continue to look Bless: what’s going on at Watermark Church? Marky b: As a church we’re currently in temporary accomodation (so to speak). We’re meeting at a place called “Kinder Galaxie” here in Freiburg which is basically a huge indoor play area for kids. We’ve got an area off to one side from the main area to run our services however. The cool thing is our kids (and slightly older church members) are allowed to play on any of the trampolines, bouncy castles etc. We’re currently setting up everything we need every week which isn’t always fun but we are getting a lot quicker at it. The place isn’t ideal and we are sometimes interrupted by a family sitting at the back of our service eating a tray of chips, but it is working for the meantime. We are however looking for a permanent building that’s ours; that we can use throughout the week and to reach out into our community. This month I had the privilege of doing the first 3 parts of a sermon series called “Old Camel Knees” here at the church. I really enjoyed preparing the messages and preaching them. I was also able to identify things I need to work on when I stand up and preach and then work on them. You can find my sermons either to download or stream here Bless: you still working at Starbucks to pay the rent? Marky b: Yeah. Starbucks is still pretty fun. I still can’t spell people’s names but I actually find it more amusing now than anything else and a friend of mine at work has recently started a list of weird German names we encounter. Our favourite was a woman called “Biggi”, who after stating her name said, “And please don’t spell it with a “P” like the person did yesterday.” Amazing! Bless: hear rumours that you’re going back to school? Marky b: A couple of weekends ago I went to visit a Bible school in a nearby city called Pforzheim. The school is called MBS (Martin Bucer Seminar). The school runs seminars twice a month and the rest of the work is done in private, through reading material or essays etc. I enjoyed the day there but the German was pretty hefty….in the last hour I heard words, couldn’t tell you a thing that was being said though! I’m going to go again next month and have another look. I’m looking to potentially start in November. How long the course takes is up to me and how much work I can put in on a weekly basis but it will eventually lead to me getting a Bachelors/Masters in Theology. Bless: what have you learnt recently? Marky b: I’ve been taking a lot of time recently to pray at a little brook near my house. There’s a huge tree trunk that sits across both banks. I’m really enjoying just sitting there and praying. I’ve just been taking time to tell God about everything that’s happening in my life, sharing my heart with him really. It’s been amazing to see how God has been guiding me in those times and been speaking to me. It’s something that’s so important, to take time away from our schedules and just hang out with God. I notice that sometimes when I work back-to-back days I just get into a pattern of work - sleep - work - sleep and I don’t take the necessary time for God; this relationship needs investment and it SO worth it when we take time for God. Bless: what can we pray for? Marky b: please be praying both that I find somewhere to live and that we find a new building to meet for church If you want to know more or would like to support Marky b then email mark@blessnet.eu or follow Marky b’s story at barkyme.tumblr.com
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In January 2011 we sent Marky b to Watermark Church in Freiburg, Germany for a two week trial placement. Nearly two years later he is still there…

Bless: Still living in the city centre?

Marky b: Kind of. I recently moved out of my apartment and I’m currently staying in a student dorm for a month. It’s a bit of a change going from living in a flat to sharing a kitchen, 3 toilets and 2 showers with 15 other people but it’s not too bad. I’ve got that until the end of the month and then…

…I don’t have anywhere to move to so I’m regularly checking websites/newspapers and the like, but not really getting anywhere at the moment. The renting market is currently so saturated especially with the new semester starting next month. One guy told me he’d received 91 replies to his room advert in 18 hours, its mental really!! This doesn’t mean I’ll be homeless but may mean I have to sleep on some friends’ sofas for a couple of weeks while I continue to look

Bless: what’s going on at Watermark Church?

Marky b: As a church we’re currently in temporary accomodation (so to speak). We’re meeting at a place called “Kinder Galaxie” here in Freiburg which is basically a huge indoor play area for kids. We’ve got an area off to one side from the main area to run our services however. The cool thing is our kids (and slightly older church members) are allowed to play on any of the trampolines, bouncy castles etc.

We’re currently setting up everything we need every week which isn’t always fun but we are getting a lot quicker at it. The place isn’t ideal and we are sometimes interrupted by a family sitting at the back of our service eating a tray of chips, but it is working for the meantime. We are however looking for a permanent building that’s ours; that we can use throughout the week and to reach out into our community.

This month I had the privilege of doing the first 3 parts of a sermon series called “Old Camel Knees” here at the church. I really enjoyed preparing the messages and preaching them. I was also able to identify things I need to work on when I stand up and preach and then work on them. You can find my sermons either to download or stream here

Bless: you still working at Starbucks to pay the rent?

Marky b: Yeah. Starbucks is still pretty fun. I still can’t spell people’s names but I actually find it more amusing now than anything else and a friend of mine at work has recently started a list of weird German names we encounter. Our favourite was a woman called “Biggi”, who after stating her name said, “And please don’t spell it with a “P” like the person did yesterday.” Amazing!

Bless: hear rumours that you’re going back to school?

Marky b: A couple of weekends ago I went to visit a Bible school in a nearby city called Pforzheim. The school is called MBS (Martin Bucer Seminar). The school runs seminars twice a month and the rest of the work is done in private, through reading material or essays etc. I enjoyed the day there but the German was pretty hefty….in the last hour I heard words, couldn’t tell you a thing that was being said though! I’m going to go again next month and have another look. I’m looking to potentially start in November. How long the course takes is up to me and how much work I can put in on a weekly basis but it will eventually lead to me getting a Bachelors/Masters in Theology.

Bless: what have you learnt recently?

Marky b: I’ve been taking a lot of time recently to pray at a little brook near my house. There’s a huge tree trunk that sits across both banks. I’m really enjoying just sitting there and praying. I’ve just been taking time to tell God about everything that’s happening in my life, sharing my heart with him really. It’s been amazing to see how God has been guiding me in those times and been speaking to me. It’s something that’s so important, to take time away from our schedules and just hang out with God. I notice that sometimes when I work back-to-back days I just get into a pattern of work - sleep - work - sleep and I don’t take the necessary time for God; this relationship needs investment and it SO worth it when we take time for God.

Bless: what can we pray for?

Marky b: please be praying both that I find somewhere to live and that we find a new building to meet for church

If you want to know more or would like to support Marky b then email mark@blessnet.eu or follow Marky b’s story at barkyme.tumblr.com

Bless: Introduce yourself… Carolyn: Hi, my name is Carolyn Ros. I am married to Johan (for nearly 39 years!) with 4 adult kids, six grandkids and the 7th on it’s way. I love reading, hiking, having friends over, teaching…and a whole list of other things as well! Bless: What are you up to at the moment? Carolyn: I work with a missions organisation called YWAM in Amsterdam. As a full-time missionary, I am involved with teaching, mentoring, coaching and in a consultancy role to different teams within the organisation. I travel and teach in different parts of the world and love this diverse side of my job. Bless: How does Bless fit into your story? Carolyn: Bless fits into my story because of Gerard and Chrissie Kelly. I worked together with them during their time in Amsterdam. I guess what happened is that we work well together because we both have the same passion for young people, prayer and missions. This summer, Johan and I will be helping with the training of the Bless missions team for the 3rd year running…which we are thrilled with. Bless: What are your dreams for the next 12 months (or so)? Carolyn: After this time with Bless, we will be at Spring Harvest together. Once we return to Amsterdam, I have a second book that I am writing and need to finish. I will be traveling in the Autumn to Thailand, Singapore and Switzerland to teach…while continuing my leadership responsibilities with YWAM Amsterdam Bless: What can we pray for? Carolyn: Pray for joy during the Bless training week. Joy for each participant to know whom they are serving. Joy for them to discover more deeply who they are. Joy to take what they have learned and impart it to the place they will be traveling to.
Zoom

Bless: Introduce yourself…

Carolyn: Hi, my name is Carolyn Ros. I am married to Johan (for nearly 39 years!) with 4 adult kids, six grandkids and the 7th on it’s way. I love reading, hiking, having friends over, teaching…and a whole list of other things as well!

Bless: What are you up to at the moment?

Carolyn: I work with a missions organisation called YWAM in Amsterdam. As a full-time missionary, I am involved with teaching, mentoring, coaching and in a consultancy role to different teams within the organisation. I travel and teach in different parts of the world and love this diverse side of my job.

Bless: How does Bless fit into your story?

Carolyn: Bless fits into my story because of Gerard and Chrissie Kelly. I worked together with them during their time in Amsterdam. I guess what happened is that we work well together because we both have the same passion for young people, prayer and missions. This summer, Johan and I will be helping with the training of the Bless missions team for the 3rd year running…which we are thrilled with.

Bless: What are your dreams for the next 12 months (or so)?

Carolyn: After this time with Bless, we will be at Spring Harvest together. Once we return to Amsterdam, I have a second book that I am writing and need to finish. I will be traveling in the Autumn to Thailand, Singapore and Switzerland to teach…while continuing my leadership responsibilities with YWAM Amsterdam

Bless: What can we pray for?

Carolyn: Pray for joy during the Bless training week. Joy for each participant to know whom they are serving. Joy for them to discover more deeply who they are. Joy to take what they have learned and impart it to the place they will be traveling to.

Live For Others speaks to Hélène Garagnon, the managing director of Alpha France… Bless: Introduce yourself… Hélène: I’m 50 years old and have been married to Benoit for 22 years, we have 4 children and we’ve lived in Normandy for 18 years. We’re part of ‘Chemin Neuf’, a community of catholic congregations, with a heart for working ecumenically. With the support of this community and the churches involved, Benoit and I have been able to launch the Alpha course in Normandy. Benoit was regional co-ordinator and a member of the Alpha board and when he told me they were looking for a managing director, I felt called to apply. Having been managing director for a couple of large organisations, I wanted to invest my talents into serving a worthwhile mission. That’s how I arrived at Alpha in 2009. It’s such a pleasure to do God’s work alongside such a fantastic team. Bless: What are you up to at the moment? Hélène: I’m currently running Alpha in France, which has two primary missions: to proclaim the Good News through a 10 week course which is open to anyone and to transform society through courses for couples and parents. We work to promote these courses, as well as to train up the church teams to be able to run them. Bless: What might a time2bless placement look like with Alpha Paris? Hélène: A student who came to work for Alpha Paris would participate fully in the life of the organisation through meetings, eating together (every lunchtime) and prayer times. They would help out with training (we have already trained up 3,000 people in 20 different locations in France), events like Worship Central and presenting the courses to the churches. Bless: What are your dreams for the next 12 months (or so)? Hélène: My dreams are to see young disciples emerging who will inspire and train up other young people to enable 14-25 year olds to meet with Christ and to build lively and growing churches. Bless: What can we pray for? Hélène: We’d be grateful if you could pray for the development of our Youth Alpha course and our youth festivals in Hautecombe this August, as well as for the training weekend in Lisieux on the 10th and 11th of November this year. If you’d like to read the original FRENCH transcript of this interveiw please email vikki@blessnet.eu
Zoom

Live For Others speaks to Hélène Garagnon, the managing director of Alpha France…

Bless: Introduce yourself…

Hélène: I’m 50 years old and have been married to Benoit for 22 years, we have 4 children and we’ve lived in Normandy for 18 years. We’re part of ‘Chemin Neuf’, a community of catholic congregations, with a heart for working ecumenically. With the support of this community and the churches involved, Benoit and I have been able to launch the Alpha course in Normandy. Benoit was regional co-ordinator and a member of the Alpha board and when he told me they were looking for a managing director, I felt called to apply. Having been managing director for a couple of large organisations, I wanted to invest my talents into serving a worthwhile mission. That’s how I arrived at Alpha in 2009. It’s such a pleasure to do God’s work alongside such a fantastic team.

Bless: What are you up to at the moment?

Hélène: I’m currently running Alpha in France, which has two primary missions: to proclaim the Good News through a 10 week course which is open to anyone and to transform society through courses for couples and parents. We work to promote these courses, as well as to train up the church teams to be able to run them.

Bless: What might a time2bless placement look like with Alpha Paris?

Hélène: A student who came to work for Alpha Paris would participate fully in the life of the organisation through meetings, eating together (every lunchtime) and prayer times. They would help out with training (we have already trained up 3,000 people in 20 different locations in France), events like Worship Central and presenting the courses to the churches.

Bless: What are your dreams for the next 12 months (or so)?

Hélène: My dreams are to see young disciples emerging who will inspire and train up other young people to enable 14-25 year olds to meet with Christ and to build lively and growing churches.

Bless: What can we pray for?

Hélène: We’d be grateful if you could pray for the development of our Youth Alpha course and our youth festivals in Hautecombe this August, as well as for the training weekend in Lisieux on the 10th and 11th of November this year.

If you’d like to read the original FRENCH transcript of this interveiw please email vikki@blessnet.eu

Bless: Introduce yourself… Ella: My name is Ella. I’m 19, I come from Bristol and I like elephants and Ella Fitzgerald. Bless: What are you up to at the moment? Ella: I am spending a week in Bethanie, where I am training to go to Freiburg, Germany. Each day I get to join in with the morning prayer meeting and then I usually do some Bible study. I have also had a chance to look around the nearby city, Caen and drink chocolat chaud (with marshmallows!) Bless: Why are you moving to Germany? Ella: I am going to work with a church there for three months. I am hoping to get closer to God through my experience and also to bless the church in Freiburg. Bless: How does Bless fit into your story? Ella: I found out about Bless through someone at my church and I was very excited to find that Bless did placements in Germany. I did German for A level and so I had been looking to do some sort of short term mission work in Germany. The placement in Freiburg seemed like an answer to prayer. Bless: What are your dreams for the next 12 months (or so)? Ella: I would love to be changed by my experience in Germany and to learn to trust completely in God. I would also like to improve my German and get to know the community in the church and in Freiburg. Bless: What can we pray for? Ella: I’d really appreciate prayer that I’d settle in quickly and that I’d be brave enough to try and speak German, as often as possible, even if it means embarrassing myself! I’d also like prayer that I would be able to use my gifts to serve the church and that through my time there I would learn more about God and get to know Him better
Zoom

Bless: Introduce yourself…

Ella: My name is Ella. I’m 19, I come from Bristol and I like elephants and Ella Fitzgerald.

Bless: What are you up to at the moment?

Ella: I am spending a week in Bethanie, where I am training to go to Freiburg, Germany. Each day I get to join in with the morning prayer meeting and then I usually do some Bible study. I have also had a chance to look around the nearby city, Caen and drink chocolat chaud (with marshmallows!)

Bless: Why are you moving to Germany?

Ella: I am going to work with a church there for three months. I am hoping to get
closer to God through my experience and also to bless the church in Freiburg.

Bless: How does Bless fit into your story?

Ella: I found out about Bless through someone at my church and I was very excited to find that Bless did placements in Germany. I did German for A level and so I had been looking to do some sort of short term mission work in Germany. The placement in Freiburg seemed like an answer to prayer.

Bless: What are your dreams for the next 12 months (or so)?

Ella: I would love to be changed by my experience in Germany and to learn to trust completely in God. I would also like to improve my German and get to know the community in the church and in Freiburg.

Bless: What can we pray for?

Ella: I’d really appreciate prayer that I’d settle in quickly and that I’d be brave enough to try and speak German, as often as possible, even if it means embarrassing myself! I’d also like prayer that I would be able to use my gifts to serve the church and that through my time there I would learn more about God and get to know Him better

Bless: Introduce yourself… Jon: I’m Jon, I’m 22, I’m engaged and I like to draw. Bless: What are you up to at the moment? Jon: I have just moved to Bethanie till the summer as a Bless intern. I like to draw and paint and bless are giving me the space to develop those gifts which is great. I’m also wanting to fit into the rhythm of life here with the Bless team, working on the land and joining the community in their daily rhythm of prayer and shared meals. Bless: Why have you moved to France? Jon: I’ve moved to France because it’s great and I felt like I needed to get away and have some space from the somewhat noisy and chaotic life I was living in England and to try and get some perspective and vision for what is next. I also have been to bethanie a few times for go2bless mission training and loved the place and the people. Bless: How does Bless fit into your story? Jon: Like a glove. Bless: What are your dreams for the next 12 months (or so)? Jon: To create a lot. To learn French. To get married and to travel and perhaps go to art college. Bless: What can we pray for? Jon: Pray that my time at Bethanie would be inspired, fruitful and freeing. Pray that I’d get some kind of understanding about what the next step is after these few months. check out Jon’s drawings at jonwhitedraws.com
Zoom

Bless: Introduce yourself…
Jon: I’m Jon, I’m 22, I’m engaged and I like to draw.

Bless: What are you up to at the moment?
Jon: I have just moved to Bethanie till the summer as a Bless intern. I like to draw and paint and bless are giving me the space to develop those gifts which is great. I’m also wanting to fit into the rhythm of life here with the Bless team, working on the land and joining the community in their daily rhythm of prayer and shared meals.

Bless: Why have you moved to France?
Jon: I’ve moved to France because it’s great and I felt like I needed to get away and have some space from the somewhat noisy and chaotic life I was living in England and to try and get some perspective and vision for what is next. I also have been to bethanie a few times for go2bless mission training and loved the place and the people.

Bless: How does Bless fit into your story?
Jon: Like a glove.

Bless: What are your dreams for the next 12 months (or so)?
Jon: To create a lot. To learn French. To get married and to travel and perhaps go to art college.

Bless: What can we pray for?
Jon: Pray that my time at Bethanie would be inspired, fruitful and freeing. Pray that I’d get some kind of understanding about what the next step is after these few months.

check out Jon’s drawings at jonwhitedraws.com

BLESS: Introduce yourself… TIM & VIKKI: We live and work at Bethanie, and have recently become parents to the lovely Ethan. We’ve been here since last September and before that we spent 6 months in Brazil working with in a favela near Rio de Janeiro. Up until then, Tim had worked as a youth leader in a church in Loughton, Essex and Vikki was a French and RE teacher. BLESS: What are you up to at the moment? TIM & VIKKI: We are loving settling into life at Bethanie, as we’ve just joined the Bless team out in France. Tim tries to fix some of the broken things around the place and Vikki is trying to get the team speaking more French. We are also both working hard at getting our son to giggle. BLESS: Why have you moved to Bethanie, France? TIM & VIKKI: We moved to France because we visited Bethanie and immediately felt a connection to the place, the people and what Bless is doing with young people around Europe. BLESS: How does Bless fit into your story? TIM & VIKKI: We had been wondering what our next step would be and talking to God about the future. One of the things we felt very strongly was about finding a place/job etc. that fits our shape. Vikki had done time2bless back in 2003/4 and when we visited Bethanie the team talked to us about joining them, so we thought and prayed about it and decided to make the jump across the channel. BLESS: What are your dreams for the next 12 months (or so)? TIM & VIKKI: We’d love to get to know people in our little rural community out in France and get involved with local stuff. We’re really keen to get fully stuck in at Bethanie - developing the buildings, learning to cook more recipes slow-style, speaking more French among ourselves and filling up our programmes with a whole bunch of diverse young people. Vikki dreams of delving deeper in her relationship with God and being the best mum she can be. Tim is dreaming of pursuing God and being awesome. BLESS: What can we pray for?  TIM & VIKKI: Pray for God’s favour for a continued smooth transition from the English to the French system - healthcare, inusrance, car etc. Pray for a wider financial support base back in the UK to enable us to be here as long as God wants us to be here. Pray for us to develop better relationships, rhythm and rule at Bethanie. Pray for Ethan to continue to be healthy and lovely.
Zoom
BLESS: Introduce yourself…

TIM & VIKKI: We live and work at Bethanie, and have recently become parents to the lovely Ethan. We’ve been here since last September and before that we spent 6 months in Brazil working with in a favela near Rio de Janeiro. Up until then, Tim had worked as a youth leader in a church in Loughton, Essex and Vikki was a French and RE teacher.

BLESS: What are you up to at the moment?

TIM & VIKKI: We are loving settling into life at Bethanie, as we’ve just joined the Bless team out in France. Tim tries to fix some of the broken things around the place and Vikki is trying to get the team speaking more French. We are also both working hard at getting our son to giggle.

BLESS: Why have you moved to Bethanie, France?

TIM & VIKKI: We moved to France because we visited Bethanie and immediately felt a connection to the place, the people and what Bless is doing with young people around Europe.

BLESS: How does Bless fit into your story?

TIM & VIKKI: We had been wondering what our next step would be and talking to God about the future. One of the things we felt very strongly was about finding a place/job etc. that fits our shape. Vikki had done time2bless back in 2003/4 and when we visited Bethanie the team talked to us about joining them, so we thought and prayed about it and decided to make the jump across the channel.

BLESS: What are your dreams for the next 12 months (or so)?

TIM & VIKKI: We’d love to get to know people in our little rural community out in France and get involved with local stuff. We’re really keen to get fully stuck in at Bethanie - developing the buildings, learning to cook more recipes slow-style, speaking more French among ourselves and filling up our programmes with a whole bunch of diverse young people. Vikki dreams of delving deeper in her relationship with God and being the best mum she can be. Tim is dreaming of pursuing God and being awesome.

BLESS: What can we pray for? 

TIM & VIKKI:

Pray for God’s favour for a continued smooth transition from the English to the French system - healthcare, inusrance, car etc.
Pray for a wider financial support base back in the UK to enable us to be here as long as God wants us to be here.

Pray for us to develop better relationships, rhythm and rule at Bethanie.

Pray for Ethan to continue to be healthy and lovely.

Bless: Introduce yourself… We are Iris and Justin. Last October we moved from Amsterdam to Rotterdam; Holland’s second largest city and known for the huge seaport. Iris works as a teacher, training young people in the area of physiology and anatomy. Justin works as a logistics coordinator for a fruit and vegetables trading company. We both really enjoy our work, we like to hang out, to organize, we do sports, Iris plays guitar and Justin loves to make bonfires.  Bless: How does Bless fit into your story? Iris was the first to get involved first with Bless. She was part of a mission trip to Croatia. After that experience Justin was introduced to the Bless family. We led a short term mission trip to Bosnia in 2010 and have helped on PRAYERhouse teams during Spring Harvest and attended lots of Heart to Bless prayer weekends. Bless is important to us because it feels like family and we feel really connected in the beliefs we share. We love the fact that Bless doesn’t want to be exclusive, instead their drive is to include as many people as possible by offering them space to learn more about themselves and God in a missional context. Bless: What are you up to at the moment? At the moment we are running our first Bless event in Holland. We have been given the opportunity to run a few prayer stations at a Navigators (Dutch student) festival called Focus. Check out focusweekend.nl for more info. Bless: What are your dreams for the next 12 months (or so)? Our dream is that we find opportunities in Holland where Bless can fit in. We are dreaming of finding churches to connect with the Bless ethos of creative prayer and training young leaders through mission. We also hope to connect to those people in Holland who are searching for what Bless has to offer. Bless: What can we pray for? Pray for us as we lead people in prayer at the Focus conference. Pray for loads of energy and time; as a lot of our work for Bless we do in our own time. Pray for connections with people, organisations and churches in Rotterdam. Blessings to all of you who support Bless and believe what God is doing through Bless! 
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Bless: Introduce yourself…

We are Iris and Justin. Last October we moved from Amsterdam to Rotterdam; Holland’s second largest city and known for the huge seaport. Iris works as a teacher, training young people in the area of physiology and anatomy. Justin works as a logistics coordinator for a fruit and vegetables trading company. We both really enjoy our work, we like to hang out, to organize, we do sports, Iris plays guitar and Justin loves to make bonfires. 

Bless: How does Bless fit into your story?

Iris was the first to get involved first with Bless. She was part of a mission trip to Croatia. After that experience Justin was introduced to the Bless family. We led a short term mission trip to Bosnia in 2010 and have helped on PRAYERhouse teams during Spring Harvest and attended lots of Heart to Bless prayer weekends.

Bless is important to us because it feels like family and we feel really connected in the beliefs we share. We love the fact that Bless doesn’t want to be exclusive, instead their drive is to include as many people as possible by offering them space to learn more about themselves and God in a missional context.

Bless: What are you up to at the moment?

At the moment we are running our first Bless event in Holland. We have been given the opportunity to run a few prayer stations at a Navigators (Dutch student) festival called Focus. Check out focusweekend.nl for more info.

Bless: What are your dreams for the next 12 months (or so)?

Our dream is that we find opportunities in Holland where Bless can fit in. We are dreaming of finding churches to connect with the Bless ethos of creative prayer and training young leaders through mission. We also hope to connect to those people in Holland who are searching for what Bless has to offer.

Bless: What can we pray for?

Pray for us as we lead people in prayer at the Focus conference.

Pray for loads of energy and time; as a lot of our work for Bless we do in our own time.

Pray for connections with people, organisations and churches in Rotterdam.

Blessings to all of you who support Bless and believe what God is doing through Bless! 

Bless: Introduce yourself… Gem: I’m Gemma. I’m just 23 and originally from Surrey. I recently graduated as a Human Geographer from Exeter University, but studied in Falmouth, Cornwall. This generally confuses people, I still don’t know why. Aside from sporadic bouts of colouring-in and the odd lecture my days were largely spent either on the beach, at Cornish cider festivals or serving coffee to locals. There’s so much to love about Falmouth but the one thing I really miss is its coastline. Whatever the time and whatever the weather, the sea offers a perspective on life that I think should be experienced daily.     Bless: What are you up to at the moment? Gem: After a hectic 8 months of dissertation, essays and exams I spent the summer with my family, reconnecting with old friends and my home church. It was really good to take some time out and re-learn what normal life is all about! In September I moved to Stourbridge, a large town just south of Birmingham, and started work for Bless in their UK office. The wonderful Knight family have let me make their house my home and i’m slowly settling in to life in the Black Country. I’ve been attending Chawn Hill church where i’ve met some great people and I seem to spend most weekends up on Clent Hills either running, walking the dogs, dancing with sparklers or drinking mulled wine. Life is good! Bless: Why have you moved to Stourbridge? Gem: Bless is an organisation that places huge emphasis on community and relationship, infact, I think it would cease to exist without them. The team I work alongside are so active and creative that to not be working, and in many ways living, alongside eachother (even within the chaos) would defeat the values that lie at the heart of Bless! Although my official role is in administration, I have found myself doing any number of things, with many experiences and opportunities given to me to learn and grow. In the four months that I have worked for Bless I have seen and experienced a different way of living. Priorities and values held by society are turned on their head and whilst the learning curve is steep and initially frustrating I have been totally drawn to the Bless way of doing…’life’.  Bless: How does Bless fit into your story? Gem: In 2008 I spent 3 months in Brazil and Peru on a short-term mission trip with Latin Link. My time there really anchored my faith and established solid foundations based upon active and overseas evangelism. Since then, whether volunteering for Bless in Europe, providing Tea and Toast outside clubs at 2am, prayer walking around Stourbridge or serving Shepherds Pie to the homeless I have found that I connect with and experience God when I’m actively serving Him. I just flipping love it! Nothing gets me more passionate and excited. Working for Bless has allowed me to not only do these things myself but to facilitate others as they learn, through Bless, to serve and connect with God in a way that I don’t feel is readily available and accessible within many churches today. After reading The Irresistable Revolution and Jesus for President, both by a guy called Shane Claiborne, I have wanted to experience a different way of life that experiences community, relationship, mission and prayer as an everyday necessity. Bless and its ‘community base’ in the form of Bethanie is a tangible connection and for me, it just makes sense. Sure, it isn’t perfect and i’m still settling in but whether I continue working with Bless for many years or move on to new things, it has given me a solid base and a platfom to dream big and see God in every single aspect of life. Bless: What are your dreams for the next 12 months (or so)? Gem: I have a feeling that the next 12 months are going to be exciting. I think there’ll be all sorts happening and never a dull moment to be had! One big dream I have is that an ‘expression of Bless’ will be established in the UK. Similar to Bethanie, I’d absolutely love to be in a position to live sustainably in community and to serve the local area both practically and spiritually, wherever that may be.  I’m also super excited for our summer mission trips and i’m really praying that the amazing ideas and plans we have for our other porgrammes become fully established and that they are fruitful.  Personally, i’d like to be in a position where I can support myself financially whilst working for Bless, whatever that may entail. And I just want a bigger heart and bigger vision for what God has got planned. Bless: What can we pray for? Me: A slight barrier that i’m facing at the moment is with transport. Without a car i’m finding that the process of getting stuff done can be quite slow and there’s some things that I just can’t do without mechanical wheels! I volunteer for Bless and have quite limited financial resources so I’m really asking for a bit of a miracle if this is to be sorted out.  Them: Pray also that we connect with more students and young people and that they have the opportunities and resources to join us on one of our many programmes and that they have a deep and impactful experience of God. Us: It would be great if people could pray for the development of Bless and Bethanie as I believe 2012 is going to be quite a crucial year. Inparticular, part of my job is to fundraise £300,000 by this time next year so that we can own Bethanie and secure it as a place of missional training. This undertaking seems huge and really quite daunting so any prayer would be much appreciated!
Zoom

Bless: Introduce yourself…

Gem: I’m Gemma. I’m just 23 and originally from Surrey. I recently graduated as a Human Geographer from Exeter University, but studied in Falmouth, Cornwall. This generally confuses people, I still don’t know why. Aside from sporadic bouts of colouring-in and the odd lecture my days were largely spent either on the beach, at Cornish cider festivals or serving coffee to locals. There’s so much to love about Falmouth but the one thing I really miss is its coastline. Whatever the time and whatever the weather, the sea offers a perspective on life that I think should be experienced daily.    

Bless: What are you up to at the moment?

Gem: After a hectic 8 months of dissertation, essays and exams I spent the summer with my family, reconnecting with old friends and my home church. It was really good to take some time out and re-learn what normal life is all about! In September I moved to Stourbridge, a large town just south of Birmingham, and started work for Bless in their UK office. The wonderful Knight family have let me make their house my home and i’m slowly settling in to life in the Black Country. I’ve been attending Chawn Hill church where i’ve met some great people and I seem to spend most weekends up on Clent Hills either running, walking the dogs, dancing with sparklers or drinking mulled wine. Life is good!

Bless: Why have you moved to Stourbridge?

Gem: Bless is an organisation that places huge emphasis on community and relationship, infact, I think it would cease to exist without them. The team I work alongside are so active and creative that to not be working, and in many ways living, alongside eachother (even within the chaos) would defeat the values that lie at the heart of Bless! Although my official role is in administration, I have found myself doing any number of things, with many experiences and opportunities given to me to learn and grow. In the four months that I have worked for Bless I have seen and experienced a different way of living. Priorities and values held by society are turned on their head and whilst the learning curve is steep and initially frustrating I have been totally drawn to the Bless way of doing…’life’. 

Bless: How does Bless fit into your story?

Gem: In 2008 I spent 3 months in Brazil and Peru on a short-term mission trip with Latin Link. My time there really anchored my faith and established solid foundations based upon active and overseas evangelism. Since then, whether volunteering for Bless in Europe, providing Tea and Toast outside clubs at 2am, prayer walking around Stourbridge or serving Shepherds Pie to the homeless I have found that I connect with and experience God when I’m actively serving Him. I just flipping love it! Nothing gets me more passionate and excited. Working for Bless has allowed me to not only do these things myself but to facilitate others as they learn, through Bless, to serve and connect with God in a way that I don’t feel is readily available and accessible within many churches today. After reading The Irresistable Revolution and Jesus for President, both by a guy called Shane Claiborne, I have wanted to experience a different way of life that experiences community, relationship, mission and prayer as an everyday necessity. Bless and its ‘community base’ in the form of Bethanie is a tangible connection and for me, it just makes sense. Sure, it isn’t perfect and i’m still settling in but whether I continue working with Bless for many years or move on to new things, it has given me a solid base and a platfom to dream big and see God in every single aspect of life.

Bless: What are your dreams for the next 12 months (or so)?

Gem: I have a feeling that the next 12 months are going to be exciting. I think there’ll be all sorts happening and never a dull moment to be had! One big dream I have is that an ‘expression of Bless’ will be established in the UK. Similar to Bethanie, I’d absolutely love to be in a position to live sustainably in community and to serve the local area both practically and spiritually, wherever that may be. 

I’m also super excited for our summer mission trips and i’m really praying that the amazing ideas and plans we have for our other porgrammes become fully established and that they are fruitful. 

Personally, i’d like to be in a position where I can support myself financially whilst working for Bless, whatever that may entail. And I just want a bigger heart and bigger vision for what God has got planned.

Bless: What can we pray for?

Me: A slight barrier that i’m facing at the moment is with transport. Without a car i’m finding that the process of getting stuff done can be quite slow and there’s some things that I just can’t do without mechanical wheels! I volunteer for Bless and have quite limited financial resources so I’m really asking for a bit of a miracle if this is to be sorted out. 

Them: Pray also that we connect with more students and young people and that they have the opportunities and resources to join us on one of our many programmes and that they have a deep and impactful experience of God.

Us: It would be great if people could pray for the development of Bless and Bethanie as I believe 2012 is going to be quite a crucial year. Inparticular, part of my job is to fundraise £300,000 by this time next year so that we can own Bethanie and secure it as a place of missional training. This undertaking seems huge and really quite daunting so any prayer would be much appreciated!