The last couple of weeks have been exciting to live through.  After three years of using our last venue for Cor Deo (for which we are so thankful, it was a great facility generously offered to us), we have had to find a new venue at short notice.  The agents we spoke to said it would take at least six weeks to get into a commercial property, perhaps up to three or four months.  Somehow, despite people not working over Christmas and the New Year, we have been able to view about 10 potential new venues for Cor Deo.  None of them fit the bill, until the last one.  The last one we saw just ten days before the Intensive began this Monday.

So does it fit the bill and when can we get in?  It fits the bill wonderfully.  Lots of floor space divided up perfectly into the rooms we need.  And amazingly, we were able to take possession of the keys six days after first seeing it!  Unbelievable.  What’s more, we were able to get a friend in to decorate before we were officially in, another friend has finished off a thirty-foot partition with an expert plastering job, and we’ve been able to find the furniture we needed to buy within a few days, plus a photocopier, etc.

So on Monday we welcomed the first group of Cor Deo participants to our new home and the Intensive has been going wonderfully.  We are so thankful for God’s provision in this new venue.  It feels like the ministry has been blessed with a wonderful step forward.  Next week the full-time programme begins and we are very excited to get the nine of us together and dive into the season of growth that lies before us.  Please pray for Ron, David, Mike (team administrator) and I, as well as the team for this year: Paul, Jake, Phil, Brian and Charlie.

Melanie’s Health – we continue to value prayer for Melanie’s health.  She has had back-to-back viruses that have completely wiped her out, and this has been exacerbated by (or has exacerbated) sleeplessness over the past few weeks.  She has had a couple of better nights this week, but she is running on a very empty tank.  Please pray for her to be able to sleep, to fight off the throat/sinus problem and be able to build up her strength.

Joel’s Quote – Hannah was asking if she could walk over to the Searights after dinner.  They live in our neighbourhood but it’s still a little walk to get there.  Peter said, “No, it’s too dark.  A girl shouldn’t be out walking alone in the dark.”

Joel said, “Yeah, well, boys can do it though, from about age seven and up . . .  because wolves like to eat girls better than boys.”

Glad he’s figured out the main threat in our neighbourhood!