News from England
Washington, England
March - April 1999
Special Visit
We were blessed On Easter
Sunday with a very special visit from Stu Childre, one of the elders
of the Broadway church of Christ. He is fast becoming a very special
friend to so many here in the congregation. Especially to 6 year old
Luke Gibson, who because of divorce seldom sees his father and
grandparents. Stu gave him some much needed attention and he followed
Stu everywhere. He has written to Stu and is very much counting the
days until he returns in mid-May.
Red Tape
We finally completed the
first step to allow us to perform an officially, recognised wedding in
our building here in Washington. This first step took almost 4 months,
numerous phone calls and letters as well as not a little frustration
on one American missionary that does not always appreciate the old
world charms of red tape and bureaucracy. We hope to have our first
official wedding in October with the
wedding of 2 of our members;
Andrew Hoseason and Sandra Parkinson.
We hope to do all that we can
to promote strong marriages in our region. There have been some rather
disturbing statistics published recently from the Government Office of
National Statistics. In our part of the north-east 62.2% of
pregnancies involved unmarried women. This is higher than the 50%
national average and the highest percentage in England and Wales.
Please pray for us as we teach and reach out to the people of this
part of the world.
Family News
Michele has continued to work
hard with all her various activities with the church, as a governor of
one of the local schools and as the chairwoman of the Trustees for a
local group that provides shelter to women who are the victims of
domestic violence.
 Heather continues to grow
like a weed and is now taking drama lessons once a week. Jonathan and
Joshua are still getting up and to work by around 7:00 AM each morning
to deliver their newspapers. Joshua is still feeling a little
vulnerable after being assaulted twice in March. He does not like to
walk anywhere alone. Jared continues to keep us laughing and wondering
what planet he comes from. He makes up stories about everything.
Recently he told his teacher at school that he was a plant and that
she should water him. Very strange.
Intern
In September we are hoping to
have Paul Halliday, a young man from Scotland come and work with us
for a year as an intern. He is actively involved with his local youth
programme and we know that he will be able to help us with our teens
here. Please be praying for him as he raises support to come and work
here for a year. After the year of internship he intends to attend
University nearby for the next 4 years. We know that the Lord will
bless us through his time here.
 Baptism
As a sneak preview for the
month of May God blessed the Church here by allowing us to witness the
baptism of Sharon Owens into the body of Christ. Sharon is the
daughter-in-law of Trevor and Doreen Owens. Please pray for her as she
begins her new walk as a dear sister in the Lord.
Thank You
We wish to thank each and
every one of you who supports the work here in England. Those who
support us with prayers and notes of encouragement and those of you
who support us financially. God is blessing the lives of the
north-east of England through your efforts. My God bless you all with
the fullness of His great riches.
The Thomas Family
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