1st anniversary and new beginnings....

As i write this blog I am celebrating my first year here in Nigeria as a Missionary !! how the time has flown, It seems not that long ago since I arrived in Jos and yet so many things have also happened in that time . I am thankful to God that he has provided all that I have needed for this year, financially, emotionally, physically and spiritually. He has protected me throughout and has kept me well :) no small thing here I can assure you.

I am amazed at all the things that i just accept as normal now and don't even notice. We had some new girls arrive this week and as I was orientating them i was reminded of some of the unusual things I don't even notice anymore...the way that Ladies carry large quantities of things on their heads and babies on their backs , the amount of people fitting into a taxi, the goat being carried on a motorbike, the constant tooting of horns,the fact we wash every food in bleach before we eat it, the fact that nothing is priced and everything is battered for, and you have to go many places to find what you need, no one shop sells everything, the way the people arrange their pyramids of tomatoes for sale by the side of the road, that we drink bottled water, that we have security guards 24 hours, that we are constantly wearing skirts, that we have to make all food from scratch nothing is ready made and so cooking takes a lot longer, that we all have househelp to cook and clean and shop for us...

There are definitely some things that i will never get used to....the driving, the roads full of potholes, the crazy motorbikes which weave in and out of traffic and come on both sides, it is so hard to not hit them....constantly being stared at for being white, the noise and lack of open spaces to relax in, the corruption, the way things always break down in and around your home and the way nobody ever finishes a job completely !!!

But I am praising God that I have enjoyed my year, have done many things and have gone in many new directions I would not have dreamed possible a year ago as he has lead me in to many new areas of ministry. In many ways i know i am a changed person and it is difficult to imagine my life back in England this all seems so normal to me now.

The last few days I have been involved in co leading a leadership orientation for our new leader in Gyero. Rev Ayuba is joining us and it is so important that we all as a team put all the difficulties behind us and strive to look to the year ahead, learning the lessons and moving on.

on the left is Rev Ayuba being officially welcomed by our Manager Rev Haruna this weekend. Please pray for him as he leads this new phase at Gyero.

Tomorrow we begin another new thing a week of camp for our girls...we are all very excited as the preparatons are complete and we can begin. Jamie and Corrine (below) and Anna and myself will be leading, please pray we have a great time loving on our girls...

I look forward to the next year ahead and am excited to see all that God will do through the ministry to impact the lives of the children he puts into our care.