[12/30 Tuesday]

UKSTM Half-time

We started Day 2 of VBS feeling better prepared. After our experiences from Day 1, we found that some of the crafts were overly complicated, so we enlisted the local helpers to pre-make some of the crafts for the younger group — this helped us keep tasks on time and allowed us to provide more individual attention to the children who needed it. We also had the helpers take turns at lunch so the children were better supervised. With those changes, the activities flowed more smoothly, allowing us to better focus on connecting with the children.

Today’s lessons covered "God loves me" and "God forgives me". We saw the latter happening in real time, as a child apologized to another over grievances from the previous day and received forgiveness in return. We also saw the children warming up to the messages and to each other as we heard them humming the theme music, dancing, and playing with each other.

Alwin had a starring role as Jesus in the story of the Samaritan woman and the living water. He decided to costume up and sought feedback. The coworkers’ feedback was, "Are you trying to be Jesus or the Samaritan woman?" Well, he was relieved to see they had at least ruled out the well. Fortunately, the youths came to his rescue, and the v2 costume was "lowkey accurate", per his more fashionable coworkers.

On the other end, Pastor Frank and Pam CMo’s teen parenting workshop went quite well, and they were able to have some in-depth discussions and sharing with the parents of teens on both the successes and struggles in this phase. Unfortunately, this reporter did not have enough information to report further on the topic, and he resolved to get better intel the next day.

We had a relatively open evening, thanks to Pam CMo’s preparation of another yummy homemade dinner. The time was much-needed, as we still had to figure out what to do in the extra afternoon session the next day. We discussed how best to deliver the EV message to our children, and also brainstormed various games and crafts that would be meaningful for the group.

Please pray for the end of the VBS tomorrow, and especially for the hearts of the children. May this VBS be a seed that will blossom.

[12/29 Monday]

Magnified!

As the VBS team swarmed around the church making final touches, the air was buzzing with excitement and anticipation. Was the AV for the rally ready? Did we remember today's bible verse? Were the supplies all set for the crafts and snack stations? Before we could ask more questions, the children started arriving. Our wondering time was over, and we leapt into action.

Our VBS class is comprised of 24 children, with a median age of around 7. They were separated into two groups and participated in worship rallies, Bible, games, snack and craft stations. Throughout the day, we got to know this class of adorable children better. One showed us her favorite stuffed animal right when she arrived; another excitedly explained his craft design; one generously offered to share her boxed lunch when a helper said he didn't bring one (don't worry - the church fed us very well!). It was easy to see why Jesus loved the little children.

That's not to say everything went perfectly. There were crafts and snack spills to be cleaned up, overrun schedules, and the occasional child who may have been overly excited at a game or needed encouragement to join more hands-on activities. We adjusted the best we could at those moments, and they made for good debriefing topics at the end of the day, which also helped us connected with the local helpers as well.

Pastor Frank and Pam CMo held a parenting workshop alongside the VBS. We had a small group of participants there, which allowed them to have a more intimate dialogue on the specific struggles they were facing.

We finished the day with a group dinner hosted by some of the CCCC families. We were grateful for their fellowship and thoughtfulness, and, of course, the yummy food.

Please pray for the next 2 days of VBS and workshops — in particular for the patience and wisdom of the VBS helpers to support the kids in need.

[12/28 Sunday]

Connecting in Unity

On our first Sunday with CCCC, we took on in a few different roles:

• Adults: Pastor Frank preached in Cantonese congregation, and all adults + Sophie led the English / Mandarin joint worship.

• Youths: our youths led youth worship, games, and a Bible study on forgiveness.

• Children: Our adults taught a lesson on forgiveness, and a woven heart craft in the Sunday school.

The moment that particularly left an impression with many of us was at the adult joint worship. When we sang the song 從心合一 Unity, some in the congregation spontaneously connected hand in hand and raised them high in closing. It was a touching moment for us all.

At lunch with their Cantonese fellowship, we learned more about the lives of the local HongKongers. Many of them had come in the last 3-5 years and are facing challenges and uncertainties with the changing immigration requirements, which have made obtaining citizenship more difficult. Interestingly, we also noted the locals' habit of bringing their own bowls and utensils for the church lunch, something that may have stemmed from a practice more common at HK churches.

After lunch, we began our VBS preparation in earnest: setting up rooms, organizing supplies, decorating, testing out AV, etc. The list of tasks seemed daunting; however, the local helpers and youths we befriended were eager to step up to support us. With their assistance, we managed to complete our work by around 6pm.

We were quite tired and hungry by the time we headed home. Thankfully, Pam CMo and Pastor Frank had already gone grocery shopping, and whipped up a homemade meal for us all when we got back. A warm belly in PJs was a good way to wind down for the night.

Please pray for a smooth first day of VBS alongside with Pastor Frank and Pam CMo's workshop tomorrow!

[12/27 Saturday]

Our First Act

Today our team rose early for the 1.5 hr drive from Milton Keynes to Birmingham, where we met COCM's Rev Lawrence Sin and the local Birmingham Chinese Gospel Church (BCGC) coworkers for lunch. There, we learned more about the local church situation and needs. The full team then jumped into action helping with their Saturday service — Pastor Frank delivered the message at the adult worship, and while many youths and adults led a youth gospel event titled "Experiencing God: When Love Becomes Real.", a few of us led the children's Bible session on forgiveness.

We saw how God blessed these different ministries. The children's Sunday school teacher mentioned the ~12 kids were quite engaged compared to usual. The youths put together a heartfelt worship and sharing, connecting with the few who attended meaningfully. Pastor Frank’s message was well-received as well.

After the Birmingham event, it was finally time for the two halves of our team to bid each another goodbye. Hugs were exchanged as we wished each other safe travels. The Coventry team then drove over to Coventry Chinese Christian Church (CCCC) to meet the local team for dinner and rehearsed for the Sunday worship on the next day. By the time we returned to our lodging for the night, many of us were already quite exhausted.

On a positive note, the newbie UK drivers are getting more comfortable with the roundabouts, judging by how often we get honked. We are also thankful for the lodging; having the full team living under one roof is a blessing, and the home is well-appointed to serve as our base for the remainder of our Coventry stay.

Please pray for our service at CCCC tomorrow, as our team supports their worship / message / Bible study.

[12/26 Friday]

The Fellowship of the UKSTM

Today is the day - our team came together at Milton Keynes!

The mission sounded simple enough - rent a car, drive over, meet with team. However, God definitely had more interesting plans for us. This being the day right after Christmas, there were far more rental pickups than returns. Our team was stuck for nearly two hours at the airport, and that was only the beginning of the challenge of driving in the UK. God did watch over us though; we all got cars in the end, the luggage fit (barely), and we arrived on time safely. Everyone was relieved and excited to meet up and recount our adventures.

Our group spent the evening at Chinese Overseas Christian Mission (COCM), and shared dinner with visitors from 7 other North American churches who were about to start a year-end camp for Mandarin students in the UK. It was interesting to learn of COCM's work and Pastor Henry Lu's connection with Dr. Phil - it is indeed a small world after all.

We returned to the hotel preparing for the upcoming week - charting out plans for tomorrow's Birmingham event, rehearsing worship, and sorting out our VBS inventory, among other things. We also reminded each other that with all the errands going on, it is more important to connect with the people than to deliver our tasks on-target.

Please pray for willing hearts at the youth gospel event at Birmingham tomorrow, as we serve as a combined team, and also our safe travels there and to Coventry afterwards.