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Good intentions...It's my intention to "journal" this 6 week trip a bit and periodically send the journal out. So here's installment #1 with various and sundry pseudo-chronological entries!
Just to give you that true "European" feeling (for those of you not already here), I'll be putting the dates in "day-month-year" format (drives my computer-oriented-date-sorting-brain nuts!)
16-10-00 (in a hundred years I'll regret that "00") - We had intended to leave around 8am to drive to the S.E. suburbs of London and we got out about 8:30-8:40. I'd say that was probably quite SUCCESSFUL for a group our size (19 in 3 vehicles). The drive was smooth and very pretty in parts, and the kids managed the drive quite well. All of that was SUCCESSFUL.
In the car (we're taking two mini vans and our 5-seater Ford Escort), Angela and I continued to listen to the "Life of David" tape series by Mike Bickle (excellent...I HIGHLY recommend them). He has a saying/motto/etc. that goes like this "I am loved (by God) and I'm a lover (of God), therefore I am
SUCCESSFUL".
When we got to the London area, through lack of clear communication on my part, we took a different route than planned . It was too circuitous and full of traffic for the novice London driver (all of us) and so we struggled to make the correct decisions and we waited in SLOOOWWWW traffic and probably got in two hours later than we, perhaps, could of. SUCCESSFUL? I guess it depends on your definition...
...off to explore...and pray for...LONDON!
19-10-00 As I write, we're on the ferry from Portsmouth, England to Ouistreham, France (at the mouth of the Orne river...just up the river from Caen). Hard to believe we just whizzed through London and we're on our way to France now. Our team gained valuable experience in the process of moving as a team in a big city...even in some rain yesterday. The kids were real troopers! We spent time praying in front of St. Paul's cathedral on the first day. On the second day, we prayed near the "Cabinet War Rooms" (where Churchill and his staff did their strategizing during the War) and then toured them. We did some other sight-seeing as well as a group and as a family. Each day involved train and subway riding so it will be good practice for our longer time in Paris.
Tonight we drive on the right side of the road again and have to speak French! If I get my Internet connectivity worked out quickly, there won't be much more update before I send this...otherwise, I'll just keep writing until I'm able to send it!
20-10-00 Ok, we made it! The Lord has blessed us with a beautiful house a block from the ocean (actually the English Channel). It's a Christian ministry called Domain l'Estuaire which roughly translates into "safe haven". It's a wonderful setup as far as we can see (which can sometimes be quite near-sited). We have a day of planning today, then two days off and then we hit the ground praying on Monday.
More as we have it but I'm off to try and send this now!
Blessings,
David
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