The tree went up on the 1st night of Christmas (if you are counting 12 days), the next day we sang the Twelve Days of Christmas with our English as a second language class and tonight Carol is putting the lights on the tree. Next cookies, the cards, and wrapping gifts. It is going to be a busy Christmas and very different from last year. Last year, we had Saied (a friend from Iran who is seeking asylum here) living with us and we had snow & ice starting at the beginning of November. Now it is rain and Saied has his own place, but not his visa (yet!).
I thought I could give a brief update about our family, business and ministry over the last few months. First our family. The kids are all doing well in school and each have a special activity – Sophie is in Voice Factory (a city choir) every Saturday along with participating in ballet. Lily is doing ballet twice a week, one being the Scottish Ballet Youth program (her 2nd year). Harrison is in martial arts twice a week and has is red belt black tag. Carol is busy with a youth club every other week through the church and a women’s bible study along with our kids ministry on Sunday’s for Mosaic. I am keeping my head above water at the shop and still doing the finance/admin for the church as well as doing kids ministry on Sunday. I also am helping with a class we host at the bead shop – Teaching English as a Second Language (TESL) – that Mosaic folk are contributing their time and talent towards. These weekly activities along with school and family time keep us busy. Oh and I forgot Frodo our dog is keeping us active on daily walks (me first thing in the morning for 30 minutes).
Our business is weathering the economic storm and we are grateful for how it provides for us. It has been a lean year and I have had to cut back on growing our product line in order to pay off bills and make sure we sell what we have already invested in. I am hopeful but often find myself praying for God’s peace to free me from worry and/or to turn my attention to Him and what he has for me here and now; regardless of the future. We have seen many new customers over the last few months and it reminds me that God is providing and although the business isn’t booming like it was in 2009, the sales are there to keep us going. If we can make it through this economic climate, I think we will thrive in the good times!
Ministry: As I have written previously, Mosaic is growing in new ways (here is a video link of a recent church gathering). Mainly through asylum seekers and those who have a heart for justice and to help those in need. The West End is wealthy area and there is a unique opportunity for us to share our faith and learn from oen another. Our gatherings often have times of prayer or speaking in Farsi and English. Out of this has blossomed some unique relationships. I have found a brother in Saied, Mohsen and Reza. They have found children, sisters and friends as well. We have learned to enjoy different cultures, languages, foods and share a laugh as we stumble over these same things. From kids club, to English class, to our normal gatherings we are finding a rhythm and new way to blend our life, business and ministry together. I’ll post some photos and a video of one of gathering shortly to show you how this all looks. Here is a video link of a fun activity we did at our Christmas party for our English class at the shop: http://youtu.be/JmzIY0Gkt58
In the meantime, as the nights draw in (the 21st is the longest!), we anticipate the birth of our Lord and Saviour Jesus, and we enter into a New Year, we say thank you for loving and praying and supporting us through our ongoing journey of faith in Glasgow!
Mike, Carol, Harrison, Lily & Sophie
Filed under: Uncategorized
The Chinese (Mandarin) tongue twister is:
Chī pútao bù tǔ pú tao pí. Bù chī pú tao dào tǔ pú tao pí er…..
“If you eat a grape, spit out the grape’s skin. If you don’t eat a grape, don’t spit out the skin.”