Hello All! Let's take a brief pause and have an update!
It's about half way through the semester for most colleges here. In the States, the word combo of "mid-term" strikes fear in many hearts. But here, instead of test anxiety, students in Ireland look forward to mid-term, as it is their long-awaited break.
For the Alpha course in Carlow, they have seen many positive things during the first half of the term. There was one person who decided to give their life to Jesus. A few more are still searching but enjoying the discussion they get at Alpha (and who doesn't like a little pizza, too?). There are students regularly attending who are from multiple nationalities and faith backgrounds. Alpha has developed a good reputation on the campus, which is an answer to prayer! Portia has a couple of fellow leaders named Frank and Amanda who have truly been amazing as discussion leaders and people who genuinely care about their fellow students.
In our family, Eden and Eli and growing and changing by the day! Eden is blossoming in his preschool and making a few little friends of his own. We are in the process of potty training, which has its good and bad days. So far, #2 is not happening. So, any tips from parents out there would be much-appreciated. Eli is teething already! He is chewing on everything in sight but still a relatively chill baby. Thank the Lord for that! We love getting to watch them grow and are continually seeking God for wisdom in balancing family life with work and church life. It is a journey for us.
At the St. Marks South church plant, we've seen lots of friendships in the making and longer friendships deepening. We are off to a good start developing trust in the area, thanks to those who went before us when they began meeting there on Sunday nights last year.
We are so grateful for everyone praying for us and supporting us in many other ways. We could not do this without everyone on the team!