We’ve spent the last few days acclimatising, buying necessities (shoes for the children, chocolate for Emma) and sorting out practical things like insurance for the car etc…  Its nice to have a few days with parents/grandparents and then we hope to travel back to Cardiff and move back in to our old house, God willing. I am busy job hunting at the moment… always difficult in an economic downturn, but we trust that the Lord will provide something so that we can survive.

Lots of mixed emotions… we’re missing St Lucia (especially the ecclesia), but glad to be back… There is still much work to be done there, particularly with those who are still ‘babes in Christ’. Continued encouragement and guidance is needed as ecclesial life does not come naturally to them. Short or long-stay visits from brothers and sisters would be very much appreciated, either as part of a vacation or as residents who may seek employment on the island. We’re thankful for the opportunity we had to work with and for them and feel privileged to have been able to visit this area of our Father’s vineyard.

Of course time doesn’t stand still and we are already looking forward to the future and whatever it holds, secure in the confidence that we can do all things through Christ who strengthens us.

Thanks again for being a great audience,

Arne, Emma, Anneliis & Lucas

This was only half of it!

Dafydd & Lynne (Jenkins) stayed for a week… thankfully and also kindly took some of our luggage back with them.

Less than 3 weeks to go till we fly out. We have begun the task of packing up our stuff; hard to think back 10 months ago when we arrived with it all.

The CBMC has chosen to return to its former apartment after we leave. Having only 1 bedroom and 1 room downstairs which served as kitchen/dining & living area, it would have been very cramped for the 4 of us, but should be adequate for a visiting couple. Since the ecclesia now has its own room, the flat will only need to be used for ad hoc visits rather than for meetings. CBMC has also expressed interest in any couple(s) from the UK who may be available to come out for 2 weeks (or more) and assist with the work.

Anneliis continues to amuse us with her random conversations. She looked up into the sky today while we were out shopping and remarked, ”that’s a small moon, mummy”. “Yes”, said Emma, “that’s a half moon”. Anneliis digested this for a moment and then said, “Who broke the moon?!”

As we stand on the brink of return, there is much to ponder and reflect upon:

• Things we’ll miss: the sunshine, the freedom, fresh tropical fruit, the warm ocean, the rum… all the things one might associate with the Caribbean!
• Things we won’t miss: the humidity, the insects, stale cereal, erratic water supply, the threat of cyclones… the hazards of living this side of the Atlantic and close to the equator.
• Things we’re looking forward to: Fish & Chips, fresh cream cake, chocolate, wine…  give it a few weeks and we should be as fat as houses!
• Things we’re not looking forward to: Rain, snow, unemployment, proximity to the beach, a small house.

But seriously, we shall miss the work here. Despite its challenges, we feel we have built a rapport with the ecclesia, leaving them with a more stable framework and a clearer idea as to their responsibilities both to each other and to the work here. Though there is not much to show for our efforts in regards to the contacts, we have sowed and watered and trust that God will bring an increase by the hand of others, as He pleases. We have learned much about ourselves, our strengths and our failings, our resilience and our levels of tolerance. We are sad to leave and yet glad to be coming home. We have greatly missed our family, our friends and the wonderful blessing of fellowship. We shall enjoy the freedoms and the choices that living in the UK afford, many of which we take for granted until they are no longer there. We thank our Heavenly Father for the opportunity we have had and pray that He will watch over our departure and our transition to the UK as He has been with us hitherto.

Thanks to you (all) for reading the blog… especially to those who left comments or e-mailed their support. There are many other things which we did, the which, if they should be written every one, I suppose that even the world itself would not be in the least bit interested! But we are happy that we could share our experiences with you. May God be with you until we meet again.

The ecclesia had met in various schools although this had proved problematic as the caretakers were unreliable resulting in weeks where they had no open room. It was also not possible to hire the schools mid-week so lectures had to be held in a different place to Sunday morning which made the transition from preaching events to the ecclesia more of a challenge for any would-be converts.

After many fruitless searches, we began to wonder what plans the Lord had for meeting. Any of the rooms we found (which in itself took painstaking effort) were unsuitable (e.g. bad location, too costly, too small). Then, providentially, we stumbled across a room for rent. The Agent arranged for a viewing. The room was on the 2nd floor, but it was ideal; central to town, but with street parking. Windows on 3 sides provided  natural light and breeze. The owner on hearing that we were a church group agreed to discount the rent and also pay the water utility charge, which made the price very affordable. Clearly the hand of the Lord was with us as we could have expected to pay double the cost for this size room in this location. The ecclesia immediately voiced its approval and CBMC also gave theirs so we went ahead with a year’s contract.

Since then, we have held a meeting of dedication to introduce the new location to visitors and to thank God for blessing us with a new spiritual home. We have also held our regular Memorial Services and Bible Classes in the newly dubbed “upper room”. Lectures commenced last week and 5 visitors were in attendance as well as 6 members so a good start to our post-summer preaching programme.

Of course, we are all aware that it is the people which make an ecclesia rather than the building, but we pray that having their “own place” will give the St Lucia ecclesia a sense of identity and help them work together to witness and to preach the Gospel message effectively.

For any who might be visiting the island on holiday, the address is:

2nd floor, 24 Mary Ann Street, Castries, St Lucia.

(above Cecilia’s Hair Salon)

And on that note, let us hope that the Gospel perm-eates through to our neighbours! LOL! Next week’s lecture: “What must I do to be shaved?”  Hall security isn’t a problem… we have a dread-lock! LOL!  Its a good job we’re leaving soon, but it will be a sad parting! hehehe!

Wondering what the Tobagans (or should that be Tobogans?! or even Tobagonians?!) would make of my black eye, we set off for the airport. Its no coincidence that the airline LIAT can be rearranged phonetically to spell “late”, but eventually our plane landed in Castries and we boarded it… Anneliis was first up the steps and headed for the cockpit. Thankfully a stewardess turned her round and we got the last 4 seats together – it was free-seating. In fact the whole  thing was a bit like a local bus journey (yeah, even the flying!)

We were supposed to travel to Barbados and then change planes to go to Tobago. When we took off, we discovered people already on the plane, who had come from St Vincent. The pilot then informed us that we were headed to Martinique (which is north of St Lucia) and then we turn round and travel back south (flying over St Lucia) to get to Barbados. Here we disembarked, walked into the transit lounge, went through Security and then back out on to the very plane we had just left (which now had a new flight crew) to head to Tobago (or to Bago as Anneliis kept referring to it). Fortunately our cases had stayed on board during this entire time so I felt confident that the luggage would make it.

Tobago was great… much cooler than St Lucia. It was a wonderful 2 weeks of fellowship. The truth has flourished here, under the good hand of God and the hard work of brothers and sisters from UK and latterly from America & Canada. The Bible School was terrific and the studies were well received. Bro. Jay Mayock, accompanied by his wife Rebecca, was the other speaker and we very much enjoyed their company. We were all accommodated in a large apartment  across the street from the meeting room, which made looking after the children much easier for Emma. Brothers and Sisters from Trinidad, Barbados and Guyana as well as locals from Tobago all came together and a wonderful time was had.

There were a couple of hair-raising moments… a taxi-crash, Anneliis being car-sick over Emma, being stranded at a Shopping Mall, Anneliis pouring hot coffee over herself, but nothing life threatening and overall, we count ourselves blessed and richer for the experience. We are thankful to our Heavenly Father and to the brothers and sisters who assisted us and who showed such gracious hospitality.

The trip back was as traumatic as the one going… the plane was 1.5 hours late, the children were tired, hungry and frustrated from all the seat-belt restrictions, we missed our connection in Barbados although it turned out that the plane we were on was going to St Lucia (although they still made us get off it and get back on again!) Then to cap it all, we arrived home and I couldn’t remember the Alarm Code. The siren was wailing, the children were crying… I rang the Alarm company whose advice was “try and remember the code!”. Their second recommendation was “try to disconnect it” although how one should go about this remains a mystery. Thankfully Emma, who usually struggles to remember what day it is, had a brain-wave and was able to disarm the thing.

The silence was golden… aah, it was so nice to be home!

Yes, its a sad day when you have to admit your sporting inabilities, but the time has come to hang up my surfing boots and admit that man (well this one anyway) belongs on terra firma.

The story starts with a typical trip to the beach. I had purchased a “Boogie Board” (think that’s what they’re called) and was looking forward to trying it out in the water. I removed my prescription sunglasses (having lost a pair before) which rendered me semi-blind, but could just about make out the waves, as they hit me! After a couple of gentle rides to shore, the waves picked up and I began to ride with confidence. Unfortunately, this coincided with me losing all sense of timing… I set off too late, got slammed by a wave, the board disappeared under the surface, along with me… hit my head on a rock (on the seabed). Came up dazed, but managed to get to shore with cheek bleeding and blurred vision. Sat on the sand for a rest, while Emma took the board out to sea to show me how it was done!

By now, my cheek had swollen and was throbbing plus my right eye was discoloured and closing (see attached photo) so we decided it was time to head home.

Arne takes on the waves... and loses!

As was customary, we rinsed the kids off in the sea to get rid of most of the sand before drying and changing them in the back of the car. I went to rinse Anneliis, but was the unfortunate victim of another huge wave which knocked us both down. In my haste to rescue her, I managed to lose my second pair of sunglasses of the year! Once again, Emma had to drive us home while I nursed a sore head and a bruised ego.

By the morning, I was limping and had an eye-socket the size of a golf ball. I looked like I was auditioning for a part in “Treasure island”, the only thing missing was a parrot (although Anneliis can do a really good impression!) I’ve since been banned from any more ocean activities, so the board is now just for doing the boogie on!

I think the most exciting news is that we have begun our countdown to coming home!

Yes, its hard to believe, but we only have 5 weeks of our stay in St Lucia left. October was the latest date we could get a Return Flight when our tickets were booked (back in November 2009). There was a possibility that we might extend the date to stay till the year-end, but we feel that the children have endured enough (both of them suffering with the heat & humidity) and we are quite looking forward to heading back to cooler climes and to the company of friends and family.

Anyway, since we last wrote, we’ve been to Tobago, edited & proof-read a new book and found a new Meeting Room. I shall endeavour to regale you with a few of the highlights…

Yes, the boy was 1 today… (or yesterday if you’re reading this tomorrow). We celebrated the occasion by sharing a birthday muffin (cakes are expensive and we’re on a tight budget). I lit a match (in lieu of a candle) and stuck it in the top (it was either that or a hurricane lamp!) and we all sang. Lucas looked bemused, but suitably impressed and waved enthusiastically at the end when Liisi blew the match out. She also assisted with showing him how his new presents worked… a water-proof book (for the bath)… [now there's an idea for the Christadelphian Office], a stuffed monkey (for bedtime), a new sports car (for driving or chewing)… probably should point out that the latter is only in miniature.

We’re off to Tobago at the end of July, God willing, for the Bible School and Youth Camp so I am busy preparing some talks for that. Our newsletter is gathering pace and we’ve had favourable comments about the timely articles as well as responses to our competitions.

Bro Andre is busy writing his new (second) book which is about the Trinity. After a successful reprint of his first book on the Devil & Satan, he is now tackling this new subject and is hoping to have it published before we leave. We’ve been drafted in as part of the editorial committee which for me involves fielding questions and proof-reading while Sister Emma is helping by type-setting and also casting a critical eye over the grammar and writing.

It would be nice to hear from a few more people via e-mail, Skype, letter, carrier pigeon, if you can muster the energy. You continue to be in our thoughts and prayers.

Nevertheless we are thankful for the opportunity and have learned much about ourselves, our children, our community and the God whom we serve. And although we must inevitably commence thinking about our return and rehabilitation into UK life, we still have much to occupy us here. The work of transitioning and trying to train the ecclesia to take responsibility when we go will be at the forefront of our efforts.

We had a recent visit from the Linkman, Bro Martin Webster. I drove the 1.5 hours down to the south of the island to pick him up and we were on our way back when we encountered roadworks. St Lucian roadworks are similar to those you encounter in the UK, but with twice the people and half the activity! The signs indicated that there would be a narrowing down to one lane for all traffic and it was clear from the cones that vehicles would need to take it in turns. As we approached the single lane entry, there was a STOP/GO sign helpfully placed inside one of the cones, but no one was there to operate it! Since it said “GO” and there was no oncoming traffic, we pressed ahead… alas that was our first error… half way along our coned highway (and we must have gone almost half a mile) we met oncoming traffic… the bus-driver screeched to a halt as did I and we stared at each other for a while. I could see other cars behind him so clearly they had been given a “GO” instruction as well. As we had come too far to reverse back, I pulled in as much as I could whilst endeavouring not to drop down the large storm drain at the roadside. The busdriver made a big deal of getting past us and then the rest of the cars (and there were a lot) began to stream past. At first, I just ignored the stares, but it started to get embarrassing. Martin tried to sink lower into his seat (which is hard to do when you’re over 6ft) and pulled his baseball cap over his face. I hastily scribbled “Its ok, I’m a Missionary from Wales” on a piece of paper and stuck it to the windscreen. If nothing else, it hid my blushes! After what felt like a lifetime, the traffic subsided and we pulled away and continued our journey. As we reached the end of the roadworks, the woman operating the STOP/GO sign at this end stared, obviously suspicious that we should be arriving this soon. I was tempted to let her know she was flying solo, but since the car windows don’t work, I just waved and carried on. not wishing to stop in case we met more traffic!

Our 3rd and final lecture brought in 12 visitors and good support from the ecclesia too. The challenge now is how to transition those who are interested enough to attend our lectures at a neutral venue to come to our place of meeting. I realise that its a question that has had many a preaching committee pondering. Ultimately of course, no matter how much we lecture, preach, debate, converse… the desire for baptism and the commitment to change must come from the individual themselves. I’ve been thinking recently about how far one should take that and how blunt one should be? There are a number of our contacts who know our doctrinal beliefs and understand the basic Scriptural principles, but who are unwilling (it seems) to make the final (or more accurately the first) step. They know that baptism is required, but are either unwilling to break away from their “other” church despite acknowledging that what they hear there isn’t correct Bible teaching  or  are not ready to make “the commitment” that baptism into Christ entails. Clearly it would be dangerous to push someone into a choice they are not ready to make, but one is left to ponder whether there is something lacking in our teaching or presentation of the Gospel that would help their dilemma or whether they have rejected God’s offer by their indecision.

And finally, Andre and I visited a contact several weeks ago. The lady had been visited by JWs and so she asked a question about eating blood and what the Scriptural arguments were. During the course of our explanation, the conversation turned to kosher meat etc… and I inadvertently mentioned black pudding… after a moment’s silence, Andre piped up… “we just call it pudding here”! Oh for the ground to swallow me up!

There’s something rather disturbing however when you rollover and feel something scratching your arm… and then horrifying when you discover its a cockroach! Such was Emma’s misfortune the night before last. I was rudely awoken to her leaping up (as much as one can inside a mosquito net!) and then scratching around under her pillow for the torch. As my befuddled brain found its way to reality, I wondered at first if she was doing some strange dance in her sleep, but dismissed that as she started to screech… “URGGHH… COCKROACH!”. It was my turn to do the exotic dancing as I wiggled my way down the bed. The creature paused, its antennae swirling, trying to locate us. “Hit it with the torch, woman!” I yelled. Emma obligingly swiped at it. “No, open the net first!” I barked. She managed to get it onto the floor, where it scuttled across to the corner. “Quick, put your shoe on it…” I advised “…and I’ll kill it in the morning, if its survived the smell!” LOL!

Needless to say, sleep was hard to come by for the next hour as we both listened for any telltale sound and jumped alarmingly at the other’s slightest movement. When dawn mercifully arrived, I got up and went to fetch a piece of kitchen-roll and an anti-bacterial wipe to remove the little blighter only to discover that there was another one in the lounge that needed my attention, as Anneliis was about to play with it. I had just disposed of him (stamping works well) when I saw a third one flash across the floor and into the study! Lucas’ wooden jigsaw came in handy that time! It was starting to feel like an invasion… the carcasses were piling up beside me. It was like a scene from the Alamo… there I was, last man standing… clad in bermuda shorts, flip-flops and armed with a can of BOP. Eventually, the only enemy left was the original one in the bedroom… he was still holed up under Emma’s shoe. We lost a lot of good men kitchen-roll that day! I can only surmise that the rain is what’s driving them in, but whatever the reason, they’re really not welcome. We’ve seen rats, crabs, ants, beetles, kestrels and a possible sighting of a Possum (it was too dark to tell), but there is something hauntingly disgusting about cockroaches that gives one the heebie-jeebies.

On a more pleasant note, the lecture went well this week.We had 10 visitors and our own Bro. Eddie gave the talk. He dealt with the subject of Judgement Day very well, using Powerpoint slides to illustrate what he had to say and handling questions afterwards. Its really positive to see someone flourish and begin to employ some of the skills you’ve shared with them. The final talk is planned for next Wednesday so we pray that our fly-billing might bring one or two new faces as well as the existing contacts that continue to support us.

Crime seems to be on people’s mind at present and there have been a spate of shootings in Castries… mostly drug or gang related, but we pray that the violence doesn’t explode as it has done in Jamaica. Our prayers are with the brothers and sisters in Kingston at this time. How much we need the return of the Lord. One wonders how worse it will get before God decides to intervene? Perhaps there are still others to be saved before the day of opportunity passes, but we pray for strength that our faith may not fail and the cares of this life do not overtake us.

The medical report [though report may be rather too grand, given that it only contained 5 words!] read NO OBVIOUS BONY ABNORMALITY APPRECIATED  [and indeed it was!]. I can only imagine it made sense to the Radiologist when he wrote it.

So its back to normal here… dancing the Hokey Cokey… swinging the light fantastic [or is it tripping?... I forget now... old age set in last Sunday]. We marked the occasion by sharing a piece of cake with the ecclesia… oops that sounds rather stingy… I mean that every member had a piece of cake, by way of celebration and laboured their way through “For he’s a jolly good fellow” after the Sunday meeting. We also invited a few members round on the Saturday for a BBQ and then did the readings and played some games. Bible Pictionary seemed to be the most popular and caused much mirth, mostly over my depiction of Moses holding 2 slices of toast on the top of Mt Sinai!

We have just started a new lecture series on the theme The Time of the End with 3 talks planned based around the Kingdom, the Judgement and the Return of Christ. 9 visitors attended the first one last Wednesday and we hope that others may come to the rest. We have been blessed with the visit of Emma’s parents and Bro Ken Hardy has helped out in a speaking capacity. We are also looking forward to the visit of Bro Martin Webster in a weeks time to assist us as well. If anyone else fancies a holiday combined with a bit of mission work activity, we have a large gap between June and September with no one here, but us… just let us know.

We placed adverts in 2 newspapers recently for the Correspondence Course and the thisisyourbible website. Within a few days they had yielded 10 responses online so that was encouraging. Our newsletter is gaining momentum and we managed to double the length of it for this month so it now has 4 pages instead of 2. We have also had some success with our fortnightly literature table. We had barely got set up, this week, in the town square when a lady came up to me and said “I need help with praying… I’m sorry to bother you, but I need someone to talk to… can you help me to pray”. Wow… how’s that for a conversation opener?! This was later followed by a meaningful discussion with another gentleman about “being born again” and a less meaningful debate with Rastafarians over Christ’s supremacy and kingship. If anyone has any ideas about Ps 87:4 and why God should countenance one born in Ethiopia, I’d be interested to hear them.

The children continue to grow up fast. Lucas now communicates in grunts (its like he’s a teenager already!) and is close to breaking the land speed record for crawling. Anneliis is showing a considerable interest in driving and often likes to make her way to the front of the car to fiddle with all the knobs and levers. She has also developed my sense of impatience with other (less skilled) drivers, of which St Lucia has its fair share. While sitting in traffic the other day, waiting for someone slow at the front of the queue, her voice piped up from the back… “Come on, shift it!”