Christmas Greetings from Kildare

So, only a few days to go….. We hope all your plans are going well.

We have spent the last few weeks moving and settling into our new home, in Kilcullen, Co. Kildare. We really love our apartment – three bedrooms, so plenty of space… for visitors! The location is handy as well – we are close to the village and it’s only a short drive to ‘the big shops’

Annmarie will be working from home, but will be in the office once a week and with my piano lessons in Dublin we will be back and forward often. I am hoping to pick up some work locally – we have an advert in the Kilcullen Diary http://kilcullenbridge.blogspot.com/ and our profile will be raised as we have been interviewed by the local newspaper.

We have joined Brannockstown Baptist Church and are beginning to get involved. I will do some preaching and help with the music. Annmarie will be helping with Sunday School. It is great to be part of this fellowship, and serve the Lord here.

We will be in Newport for a week over Christmas, we look forward to seeing some of you then!

Thank you all for your prayers over the past year, we really do appreciate it. Please get in touch if you would like our new address and landline number.

A very Happy Christmas and New Year to you all.

Today in the town of David a Saviour has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord. Luke 2:11 (NIV)

God bless, R and A xx

Richard’s Reflections on 3 months of Ministry

We have been back in Ireland almost 2 weeks. So I’ve had a little time to consider and reflect upon out time there. We didn’t know that we were going to Cyprus until just a few weeks beforehand, so we didn’t have much time to prepare.

The sun goes down on our time in Cyprus

We spent the first 10 days in Larnaca giving us time to ‘acclimatise’ and prepare. My main focus of ministry was preaching each Sunday morning and leading a Bible Study on a Wednesday evening. I certainly appreciated the benefits of being able to preach systematically through a book; I did 8 sermons on 2 Timothy and then 3 on Abraham. God was so good. He enabled me to present the message to the congregation, the vast majority of whom did not have English as first language. I had to be very simple in the language that I used, and had to make sure my illustrations were applicable to them. I didn’t ALWAYS get it right though… On one occasion, I gave an illustration about going for a walk in the mountains and taking precautions for rain and wind. Of course, for those listening, when going for a mountain walk it would be necessary to prepare for intense heat rather than the weather conditions of Britain and Ireland!

I found it helpful to step aside from the lectern and speak to the congregation directly with plenty of eye contact. I used briefer notes, so had to make sure that I was very familiar with the message that I was to give. As I said, God was very gracious, and there were times when I was preaching that I really felt his presence with me. The Wednesday studies were more informal, the idea being that others would contribute to the discussion. I found it most useful to explain the passage first, then I used some questions to encourage discussion and application. It did not always happen as again, some were not confident to speak in English but we had a number of great discussions. Subjects included some Psalms and then a few of the parables of Jesus.

Meeting so many different people from all over the world was a real blessing. As we left, we really felt that they had become friends, and already we’ve been in touch through email, Skype etc. It was a privilege to share in their joys and sorrows, and we continue to pray for them, in many cases they are facing great difficulties.

The supposed sight of the Apostle Paul's persecution in Paphos

This work in Limassol is part of the Middle East Reformed Fellowship (MERF), whose headquarters is in Larnaca, about 60 km away. We kept in close contact, visiting the HQ at least twice a week. Our last two days were spent at their annual council meetings. We gained tremendous insight into gospel work in the Middle East. We intend to write separately about that, but for now let’s just say that our whole perspective was changed by those meetings. There is so much more I could write – about Cyprus itself, the climate and culture. The great thing is that, because of all the people we met, we gained lots of insight into many cultures.

Please continue to pray for the work in Limassol. Pray for Peter and Joke (pronounced Yoka) who are looking after the congregation until early January. Pray for the longer term, that the right people will be sent to take on the work permanently.

Thank you all for your continued prayers for us, we are looking to the Lord as we move to Kildare, but that is for another blog post……

Blessings and Encouragments (some of them in disguise)

Rich writes:

We’ve really been blessed over the last couple of weeks.

We mentioned the Bring and Share lunch last time and it’s great to see the fellowship and other social get togethers that it has encouraged. With temporary ‘pastors’ coming and going we’ve felt it is really important that this group find encouragement and true fellowship with each other. Praise God we can see it happening. We ourselves have been invited out more in the last couple of weeks too and we’ve really enjoyed the fellowship and fun.

Bulgarian sausage on the bbq

Iranian Kebabs

... with Mauritian salads

I have come to the end of both my sermon series in 2 Timothy and mid week Bible studies in the Psalms. They seem to have been well received and a couple of people have been kind enough to mention how much they’ve enjoyed them. I’m now preaching a short (3week) serried on Abraham and looking at some Parables at our midweek meeting. Thanks so much for your prayers as I’ve been preparing. I have really enjoyed both the prepping and the preaching and feel I have learned a lot.

I’ve recently started English lessons with some Iranians from the church and also with 2 other Iranians. We are hoping that the couple who take over will continue with the lessons.

So as to let the pupils be the teachers for a time

This is Farsi for... 'The Bible' Good amn't I!

Annmarie is trying to learn a few Farsi (Iranian) words…

Annmarie writes:

On Sunday gone we had 6 of the ladies from the Philippines here for lunch. 5 of them have left family to work to pay school/medical fees etc as everything has to be paid for there. I asked them to tell me about their families and how long since they had seen them and I was stunned! One lady has not been home for 8 years, another for 15! There was also a younger girl who just arrived 4 weeks ago leaving her 2 young children with her husband. We would ask that you please pray for these ladies. Leah, has been away for 2 years. Her husband had a good job but Leah had to leave when he took ill and as he wasn’t working they couldn’t afford his medical bills. Her husband will go into hospital for ‘observation’ indefinitely soon. To be honest Leah doesn’t know what that really means as far as a prognosis goes. Leah’s 4 yr old son will go to other family. She had tears in her eyes as she told me and I literally did not know what to say.

All my whinging over 4 weeks apart!!!!!

So we are starting our countdown towards home. Just as we feel that we are making friends, people are comfortable to open up we have to get ready to say goodbye. I’m no fan of goodbyes as you probably know. But we are going to enjoy our last two weeks. We’ve decided to do some touristy things and try to see more of Cyprus before we leave. We’ve also got a couple more meals etc planned with folk from the church so it will be great.

We’d appreciate your prayers. For the fellowship, for us and for the wider mission as they seek God for his guidance for the local and other work across the Middle East.

God bless and thanks again for keeping in touch J

R n’ A

A Day in the Life…..

Hi Rich here.

One of the things that I am learning as the weeks go by is that it is very easy for a pattern to form, and for things to become very routine. It seems to me, that it is part and parcel of ministry. It is not always spectacular,

Planes, Planes and Automobiles!

So we are reunited after 4 weeks. thanks so much for all the messages and prayers.

Richard Miles BA Hons

It has been a week of travel one way or another. Rich got back to Ireland last Thurs (22nd). Then, his mum jean, sister Linda and brother in law Ed arrived on Friday. On Sat we attended Richard’s graduation and it was a great day. As well as BMus Rich now has a BA Hons in Applied Theology. The graduation was a great celebration of all the hard work done by the students and a chance to pray for the new and contiuing students (like me )

On Sunday we drove to  Brannockstown Baptist Church where Richard preached and the family were looked after very well for lunch by a couple in the church. We’re really looking forward to being a part of the church when we get back to Ireland and already feel very much at home there.

Rich stand up!!!!

And now we’re back in Cyprus! And it was a long journey. We took a taxi to the airport at 10.00 am on Tuesday, a flight to Frankfurt at 12.00, another flight to Athens at 6.00 pm (local time) and a final flight to Larnaca arriving at 12.00 am on Wednesday. It was then a taxi journey to the John Calvin Centre for our overnight stay, and a drive for us back to Limassol the following morning. So we were a little tired when we arrived.

Rich takes over….

It is back to normal now; leading a Bible Study in Limassol on Wednesday evening, leading a Bible Study in Larnaca last night, and preparation for preaching on Sunday morning. God has been very good, and given the energy needed.

View from the roof garden. A great place to rest and relax

Please continue to pray for the small fellowship in Limassol, that God would speak through his Word, and that people would be blessed, encouraged and challenged.

Please pray for us too that we would settle back into routine quickly and get (and give) the best we can over the next few weeks.

Further updates next week…..

Nearly End of Part 1

An update from Rich….

 

So I’m nearly at the end of the first leg of my time here in Cyprus. On Thursday, I will be travelling to Ireland for my graduation, and will see Annmarie for the first time in 4 weeks – I have really missed her!

We both return to Cyprus next Tuesday for part 2, and will stay until 9^th November.

So what have I learned in the last 7 weeks?

• Cyprus is hot! For someone who lives in Ireland where the Summer temperature is often about 16 degrees, to be here where it has been 30 – 35 has taken some getting used to. I’m sure I will feel cold when I get back to Dublin!
• Preparing a sermon and a Bible Study for each week is hard work. I knew something of that before, having preached from time to time, but having to come up with something for each week is in a different league.
• Preaching a sermon each week has been a great privilege too. I have realised how big a responsibility that has been. But I have known God’s enabling – I could have done nothing without him. We pray that he will continue to speak to people from his Word, and that the Holy Spirit will be at work to change lives.
• Meeting and getting to know a congregation has been a challenge and a blessing! It has been great to have people share things with me, but knowing to deal with them, and the finding the right thing to say (as well as when to say nothing) has needed wisdom from the Lord.

All in all a great experience. It has shown me first hand what it is like to be involved in ministry, and what a privilege and responsibility that is. I am sure that it will stand to me in the future.

Please pray for safe travel on Thursday and next Tuesday, and that we will have a great weekend. As well as the graduation, I am preaching in Brannockstown on Sunday morning. So no break then.

Many thanks, as always, for your continuing prayers. We will update the Blog at the end of next week when we are back.

 

I have nothing to say really…. I’m just sitting waiting for him to come home A xx

Thanks for the prayers!

Hi all, Annmarie here

thanks so much for all the prayers and messages. Rich is doing great in Limassol and I am spending time with family here. With that and working and a return to my knitting I’m kept busy.

I’ve spent the past 2 Sunday mornings in the church I went to when I was first saved. It has been great to catch up with everyone and see how the church is growing and reaching out to the community in West Tallaght.

My one prayer request is to get lots of MA work over the next couple of weeks. I really need to hand in a paper before i go back to Cyprus!

An update from Rich below.
A xx

Just a quick update from Limassol to say thank you so much for your prayers for last week (Sun 4th). I really did know God’s enabling presence. I would not be able or want to continue in my own strength.
I was preaching from the first part of 2 Timothy 2 in the morning, an encouragement to keep going for the gospel even though things may be tough. In the evening I preached from Colossians 1: 15 – 20 on the supremacy of Christ.

Yesterday (11th), I just had the one service here in Limassol, where I continued the 2 Timothy series.
It was a joy to have 22 people in church yesterday morning.

I would value your continued prayers, both for the preaching and as I get to know the people in the congregation here. Some of them are beginning to open up and share things. Wisdom needed!

Please pray for one particularly serious and difficult situation that I am trying to help with .

Also, please continue to pray for Annmarie. Only a week and a half to go!

Thanks again. God bless, Richard