The way the journey unfolds...

So this is how you blog - I wondered what people were blogging on about!

Why am I doing this? Well for 2 reasons - firstly because as a family we have been on an incredible journey and we never would have been able to guess or believe how God has worked.
Secondly, because people have asked us to share a bit about what is going on and how it happened.

The question is where to start? Every story has a beginning, middle and end. The difficult bit is to try and work out where we are now? We are coming to the end of our time in Tunisia, we are about to begin a new life in the UK (in a very exciting / scary situation) and yet we feel like we are in the middle of God's story!

When you are about to take another transition in life, you tend to look back and reflect on what has already been. I have been amazed, humbled and awed at how I have seen God at work! If anyone doubts that there is a God who knows us, cares for us, and truly is involved in our lives then I challenge and encourage them to rethink their heart position. I simply cannot possibly doubt God's presence, leading, protection, humour, and intimate love and knowledge for me and my whole family. It is like the old saying "looking at individual threads and knots on a tapestry makes a chaotic picture - stand back and look at the bigger picture and you can see the story".

So this blog space will be used to share the journey.

At this moment in time - early in October, we are preparing to leave Tunisia. All of our furniture has been sold (though I have told people they can't have it yet as we still have 9 weeks to go - some people are vultures!). The kids are noticing their bedrooms looking a bit more empty, and as a family we have that "things are changing" feel.

We have lived in Tunisia for 5 years and been on the kind of journey that makes you look back and think "did that really happen? Did we really live through that?!" If I was to try and summarise the experience here it would be "learning to trust God in every way imaginable".

So going backwards - We arrived in Tunisia after spending a 1 -1/2 years in France learning French (in order to learn Arabic - as you do!) And that's when gorgeous Carys was born, 2004 (Carys from Paris - ooh la la).
We arrived in France after spending 1 year living in Birmingham at a training centre for overseas workers.
Before that we were in Battle, East Sussex for nearly 2 years sharing a house with one of our bestest friends, Jeanette. Sam was born during this time (it was 2000 - he is about to turn 9!). Before this we were in the Philippines for nearly 3 years working for Tearfund, seconded to a group called "Samaritana transformation ministries" working with men and women in prostitution.
Before that we were 2 years at "All Nations Christian College" (a training college to prepare you to work overseas), before that 1996 - 98.
Before that we were a couple of years in East Sussex involved in Battle Baptist Church, Glyn and I worked for Parchment Trust.
We spent a few months in Nigeria with a good friend who gave us what he called "THE BAPTISM OF FIRE" (sounds great if said in a big Nigerian accent! This is also another story... Malaria - yuck - dysentry - yuckier)
Before that we got married - 2 very young people (1993 - Glyn 21, me 20!) we had no idea what the future would hold! There is obviously more before this, but I will save that for another time!!!
Suffice to say we were the 2 most unlikely people to be "chosen" by God to walk this extraordinary path...

So this brings us back to Tunisia... We have loved this place and yet found it the most painful, formative time of our lives to date. It is easy to speak the words "we trust God" but until you are faced with situations that require utter and complete trust they are just words. There have been many laughs, many tears, manys joys and many fears. For anyone who may doubt there is a spiritual realm and that the supernatural exists I would have to simply reply "oh yes it does!". For anyone who doubts that God knows all and is involved in all, I would again simply have to say "oh yes He is!".

So how do we know it's right to leave Tunisia? Because God has told us and spoken very clearly. But this is for next time...