The 12th century ancestral home of George Washington is in the oldest part of the town of Washington. The Washington family, that lived in this house in the 1100s, gave the town its name. Each year the trustees of the Washington Old Hall hold a 4th of July celebration to commemorate American Independence Day. This year I was asked to read a portion of the Declaration of Independence and to give an address. Messages were also sent to the celebration from the Prime Minister, President Clinton, and Former President Carter. 14 Americans from the Broadway Church of Christ, here for the Bible Fayre, were also invited to attend as special guests and they were given special reception in the Old Hall. I must say that this was the most wonderful 4th of July celebration that I have ever attended. It was a day truly focused on remembering the principles upon which America was founded. It was truly an honour to have been able to be a part of such a great day.

During the run-up to Bible Fayre the group of Americans (16 from Lubbock, Texas and 1 from Memphis, Tennessee) along with some of our local members went to 5 primary schools in the area. They did drama presentations and puppet shows for more than 1500 students and teachers. This was a great opportunity to share the message of Jesus Christ with people in an environment officially sanctioned by the British education authorities. For Americans this is a strange experience, but here in the United Kingdom it is commonplace.

Bible Fayre                     (Lots of Photos Here)

On the 10th of July the largest outreach event in the history of the Washington church of Christ took place. We recreated a scene from Jerusalem A.D. 33 in the car park of the church building. We built a façade for the temple, a market place, a well, and a city gate. In this recreated scene we brought to life the miracles and lessons from the life of Jesus. People were able to experience what it would have been like when Jesus healed the lepers, the blind man, and when he taught his parables. There were Roman soldiers, donkeys, sheep, coin-makers, gymnasts, scribes, bakers, cloth-makers, a sculptor, carpenters, lamp dealers, a potter, fishermen and more. Over 2000 people passed through our gate in 5 hours on this sunny Saturday afternoon. Some people from the local area told us that this was best thing that they had ever seen in their local village.

On the evening of the 11th of July the group from the Broadway Church of Christ did a drama presentation called the "Sounds of the Cross". They had expected to be performing for around 40 of our members, but instead they came out to a packed house; there were 90 people present to hear the performance. At the end, of the very powerful and moving event, there were some who were in tears and all were visibly moved by the experience.

On the 11th of July Jonathan and Joshua left for Lubbock, Texas to spend 7 weeks in the United States. During this time they went on Summer Summit and to Rockcleft (Youth event sponsored by the Broadway Church of Christ). Joshua was baptised during his time at Rockcleft. Praise God.

On the 29th of July I received official notice that I had met the requirements for the completion of my Masters degree at the University of Durham. I was also invited to work on a PHD, part-time, at the university.

Jared had his 4th birthday on the 24th of August. He wanted to go to a farm to see animals for his birthday. At the farm one of the little boys (Kieran) that is almost 2 broke his leg. Kieran is doing fine and will get the cast off his leg on the 23rd of September.

We were blessed during the month of August to have several visitors from the Broadway Church. Dr. Paul Johnson, Marcia Johnson, Dr. Don Berry and Patty Berry came to England during the first week in August. Dr. Johnson was running in the Veterans Olympics. He won a gold and a silver medal and he and his team broke 2 world records. We are so proud of Paul. We were also honoured to have Dr. Berry preach for us 2 times and for Dr. Johnson to teach our adult class. On the 28th of August we also had a lovely visit from Stu Childre who is also an Elder at the Broadway Church.

At Bible camp this summer Craig Holder, the 14 year old son of members Martin and Cathy Holder was baptised into Christ at camp. We praise God for his new birth. Please remember Andrew Richardson, Alan Owens and Donna Forrest in your prayers (These are people that were touched in an extra special measure by the Bible Fayre). We pray that God will continue to work in their lives and lead them into a closer walk with him. Please pray for Paul Halliday, the intern, who has now arrived to work with our young people. He still needs about another 150 pounds of support each month in order to be able to live and work with the church here in Washington for this next year. Thank you all so much for your wonderful prayers and support.

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