5 Minute Monthly(ish): The Six Weeks of Summer

We have reached the end of our first summer in England and what a time it has been. We have had loads of adventures, experienced a few firsts and saw some amazing sights. It was a time of rest and rejuvenation with a bit of chaos mixed in. We're sorry to have missed a July update, but as you'll read, it's been a busy summer! Thank you for your patience, and we're happy to share on what these past two months have held for us!

We have learned that summertime here operates differently than the American summer! If you say "Summer Break" in the UK, it means the 6-week school break that happens from mid-July up to the first week of September. This British six week long summer is packed full of vacation and fun. All weekly programs come to a halt and families take long trips and time off to be with each other. We found ourselves caught up in the mix of it all. With some church leaders on holiday (vacation) I took on a little more of the church responsibilities while also being relieved of a few normal weekly ministry tasks. And as for our family, our August has been anything but routine: an unexpected family vacation in Cornwall, a church camping trip, and, for me, a weeklong trip to Wales for my class intensive.

This update is about sharing our summer break with you. It has been packed full of simple moments with the boys, special moments with friends and spectacular moments in God's creation. So here is a glimpse of our six weeks of summer in England!

Life Happenings

We began July by starting to figure out what life with our two children will shape up to be. Silas had grown enough that we could begin to do more with him and we have been enjoying our family of four outings. We are learning that kids (especially small ones) influence what you are doing and add limitations. Yet, this is not a bad thing because there is nothing sweeter than going on simple adventures with your child who finds pure joy in rocks and flowers and the blueness of the sky. It has been a bit humbling to realize we can't do everything we used to do, but it has also been essential and special to prioritize family friendly adventures that leave everyone feeling happy and satisfied.

Our boys are growing fast and keeping us on our toes. Josiah's vocabulary has sky-rocketed and he has the cutest sayings. He talks about his friends, calling them by name, he folds his hands at dinner and prays to "Dod" thanking him for "mommy" and "daddy" and "Si" and he loves the outside, water and plants. On sunny afternoons he can often be found walking around the backyard, with a half-eaten green bean in hand, saying "bean-bean!"

Silas has really started to fill out and grow big! He had his first solo trip with mommy and daddy when we took him to London to apply for his US passport and visa. Our second born is now a United States citizen with a British birth certificate! Silas is a very happy little guy, always smiling and often giving shrieks of joy when he sees us come near. He holds his head up on his own, shoves his fists in his mouth and sleeps consitently through the night (Praise God). Even though Josiah can sometimes be a bit rough with him, it takes quite a bit to make him upset; we are grateful for such a gracious child!

Our August started strong with an American Independence Day celebrated on the 4th of August since we missed July 4th. We had our friends over and showed them how patriotic we could be, complete with a cookout and a reading of the Declaration of Independence. Shortly after this we left for our vacation to Cornwall-- a county in the southwest of England known for its forests and surfing. A family who's connected to our church was going on a vacation themselves, and in great kindness, offered their home to us for a week. Another family in our church lent us their car to make the drive. And what a time we had! We decided before we left that we wanted to use the time for rest, not as much for adventure. We never ventured more than 30 minutes away from our stay, but spent time walking in the woods, visiting the beaches, and exploring local towns. It was a much needed break, as we got time to step back and reflect on all the life changes that have come our way in the past year.

A few days after we returned, we packed up again, and went with our church family to a spot not too far from Portsmouth for camping. We had an amazing time sitting around the fire, going on walks, making puzzles, and bonding over our sleepless nights that come when camping with 12 kids under age four. I also shared a short devotion every morning focusing on three different hymns and what they teach us about God. Unfortunately at the end of the trip, I left Aleah's phone on top of a car, and it was subsequently found a few hours later (destroyed) on the road. However, we are grateful to the Lord for the kindness of supporters who, before we were really able to put word out about it, helped us to replace the phone expediently!

Ministry update

This summer season, as I've said, has been a fluxuation of increased activity in some ways and decreased in others. I spent a good part of each week leading up to August prepping for something I was doing on Sunday-- either leading, teaching the children, or preaching.On August 3rd, I had the opportunity to preach at a nearby church for a pastor on vacation. The week leading up to it was very difficult; I became ill with Hand-Foot-Mouth Disease (thankfully the only one in our family to get it), and it left my mouth full of sores. I was recovered enough to preach on Sunday, although I must say that I did not feel too confident in the sermon I gave. Unrelated to the illness, I am glad for the experience and what I've learned, though I recognize I have much to learn before I feel confident preaching a topical sermon exegetically.

For the last week of August, I took the train out to Wales for another class intensive. In this module we studied Ezekiel, and I was really challenged by what I learned. My professor is clearly a top scholar when it comes to Ezekiel, and it showed. My head still feels like it's swirling with all that I learned, but there's not much time for a rest from the work-- I have a significant amount of writing to do following the intensive that will take me through October to finish!

In other ways, I have begun to prepare for the functions that will start back up again in September. I will be helping again as a leader for both the student (college-age) ministry and the youth group, and I am looking forward to what we are doing in those. For the students, we will be studying Ephesians, so I will be leading a table discussion with a group of the students each week. In youth group, we will be studying what it means to be a part of a church, and how understand bible verses in their proper context. Last semester, we noticed a growing number of youth coming out on Friday nights, and we hope that only grows more.

Aleah will be back into the swing of church life and ministry as well. Toddler group starts back up on Mondays in September, and she is looking forward to being around mothers of the greater community with similarly-aged children. We will be hosting a community group in our home starting this month as well, and in addition to that, Aleah is planning to regularly get together with mothers and women in the church to be an encouragement.

On a bit of a lower note, one of the guys I have been meeting with regularly to talk about Jesus with has unfortunately not been able to extend his visa in this country and has had to leave. I've been getting together with him for a few months, and I am grateful for our friendship and how open he has been to hearing and talking about the gospel, but it is unlikely I will see him again. I ask that you please join me in praying for him that he would come to a saving faith in Jesus despite no longer being able to meet together.

As we near the end of our summer, we are excited to get back into the routine of normal life yet lovingly looking back on the adventures we had. In our first summer here, I drove a car in the country for the first time, we had our first real family vacation ever (believe it or not), and we had our first camping experience with a newborn. We saw gorgeous cliffs, wonderfully old trees, and quiet seaside coves. We also experienced some small hardships such as Josiah's car sickness and Aleah's phone getting demolished; but in all, this summer has been one for the books.

Pray With Us

Requests

• Pray for those we meet with on the edge of faith that they would choose to follow the Lord

• Pray for us as our Autumn gets busy that family time would not be lacking

• Pray for our fall ministry programs as they start up that they would mature believers and see lost the lost saved

Praises

• We thank God we had so much restful family time

• We are praising God for his providence we've experienced this past month

• We are thankful that members of our church had a restful summer and are ready to jump into church routines again

We cannot thank you enough for the kind support and prayers you all have continually given to us. We are blessed by you and we are so grateful. We hope and pray that you all have also had a fulfilling and restful summer break.

God bless,

The Mann Family