Visit with the Harmons

Greetings to you from “rainy” Henley.  Finally after weeks of sunshine the rain has come.  The locals tell me that this is normal for this time of year (ever heard that before?).  I mowed the back yard (it is called a garden even though it is grass and weeds) with a mower called a Flymo.  I have never seen such a mower.  There are no wheels on it, it just glides on the plastic bottom across the grass and the end result is a scalped lawn.  But with the rain, it’s coming back nice and green.

We took a weekend off and went with some friends to Wales.  It happened to be the weekend of a ‘Bank Holiday’ (and of course it rained some).  The locals tell me that it always rains on holiday weekends.  Wales was very beautiful with green hills covered with sheep.  We stayed in a place called Porthmadog (Porth-mad-ugh).  On Sunday, when it came time to go to church, we had to attend a Presbyterian Church in the neighboring town of Criccieth (Crickey-uth).  Sadly to report, the Baptist churches in Porthmadog and Criccith had closed down.    The Presbyterian Church has 2 services (one in Welsh and the other in English).  The church is without a pastor and so they bring in pastors who speak both Welsh and English.  The preacher for the day was an older man and he preached a wonderful sermon on Jeremiah.  The church building was well cared for (both inside and out).  The pews were hard (but padded) with gates at the end of the row (talk about a “captive” audience).  The worship was led by the organ or the organist, who was vigorous in his playing, as was the congregation in its singing.  As we drove around Wales, I saw many Baptist Churches closed and boarded up.  Perhaps you have heard of the Welsh revivals of years past.  I think it is time for another outpouring of God’s Spirit on that country.

Things in Henley are going great.  We are preparing for a baptism on the 10th of June.  Robert Hutton, aged 61, came to faith in Christ about a month ago.  I had the privilege of sharing the gospel with him and he was ready to receive Christ.  He is currently preparing his testimony to share on that day.  Please pray for Robert that his faith will grow and mature.  Henley Baptist has a tremendous task ahead in its discipleship responsibilities to Robert.  I would ask that you pray also for John and Violet Hammond.  They began to attend on our first Sunday (back in January).  I have shared the gospel with them and I believe they are getting close to making a commitment to Christ.  John had a setback when he suffered chest pains, resulting in a five way bypass.  Yesterday was his first Sunday back to church. 

I am excited by what God is doing here.  We continually have visitors checking us out.  Over a month ago Malcolm Williams showed up for church and hasn’t missed a service.  He is a tenor for a men’s choir in the area and loves music.  He is to have surgery for a throat problem in about a week.  Please remember him in your prayers.  And please pray for Muriel Wanklin who struggles with cancer (the Dr. pulled her off her chemo treatments).  Her sister, Joyce Dunscombe, is to have a cancer surgery assessment at the end of the month.  I would ask you to remember all these with health issues.  

Miss Edna Gane has been in church for several weeks  now after missing a few Sundays.  Edna is in her 100th year and really loves the Lord and her church.  She is special to everyone in the church and to us as well.

Please join us in praying for revival in Henley and throughout this country.  Pray that God might touch the hearts of folks who live here.  The Henley Market is to close in September to make room for about 80 homes.  I pray for some Baptists to move into these homes as well as people who are hungry for the gospel of Jesus Christ.  As Henley Baptist Church grows, pray that the church can focus on developing fully devoted followers of Christ.  God has much work to do here. 

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Nadine’s Corner:

Hi everyone, are you ready for some more fun with our language differences??  Good.

This is from Rick Steve’s “British-Yankee Vocabulary”

AFTERS                       Dessert

BANGER                      Sausage

BANK HOLIDAY            Legal Holiday (Not just the banks)

BIRO                           Ballpoint Pen

BLACK PUDDING         Sausage made from dried blood  (No kidding)

BRACES                       Suspenders

CHOCK-A-BLOCK         Jam-packed

DONKEY’S YEARS         Until the COWS come home

FAGGED                       Exhuasted

FAGGOT                       Meatball 

FIRST FLOOR               Second Floor  (that one makes me shake my head)

Hope these have made you smile!

Dick told you about our visit to Wales - well partially anyway - and I want to share the language with you.  This you won’t believe unless you’ve actually been there!

They were having a political election locally and we were lucky enough to receive a great periodical that I can share some excerpts with you:

“Bydd ein rhaglen ni yn cyfarfod anghenion led led Cymru, gan gynnwys cefn gwlad, ble mae angen ymyrraeth cyhoeddus Llywodraeth i gynnal swyddi a gwasanaethau.  Bydd ein polisiau yn gwneud gwahaniaeth i Ddwyfor Meirionnydd ac i Gymru.  Gyda’ch cefnogaeth ar 3 Mai rwy’n addo i weithio’n ddiflino ar eich rhan.”

Whew!  (Note:  If I made a mistake with spelling, WHO WILL KNOW?  I mean, I could walk up and down on my keyboard and it would like similar!)

TRANSLATION:  “Our programme will address need throughout Wales, including rural Wales, where Government public intervention is required to sustain jobs and services.  Our policies will make a difference to Dwyfor Meirionnydd (the candidate’s name) and to Wales.  With your support on 3 May I promise to work tirelessly on your behalf.”

IS THAT ENOUGH TO BLOW YOUR MIND???   IT WAS FUN.  Thank goodness all the road signs and shop signs were in English as well as Welsh.  We really would have felt like foreigners otherwise!  Ha.  Actually, English is Wales’ second language.  We were told that if a sign doesn’t have both English and Welsh, it’s  torn down!  Interesting.

In trying to speak Welsh you have to do a lot of throat clearing to make the correct sounds.  Even Prince Charles made the comment that the Welsh language was very difficult to learn.  (Amen to that!)  He had to learn it when he was installed as Prince of Wales at the age of 21.  It was fun trying to pronounce the names of things.  I think our friends John and Gloria got a big kick out of us trying! 

It was truly a wonderful experience that we will never forget!  Beautiful…beautiful…beautiful - -  We’re just sorry that every one of you could not experience it with us. 

And to think I hesitated at the thought of coming here.  That’s a huge lesson in willingness to do God’s will, is it not?  When we are faithful, we experience blessings beyond imagination. 

We received a phone call from our sweet Pastor Todd in Virginia.  It was a welcome phone call and made us feel close to all of you.  It’s hard to believe how far away we are, isn’t it?  I know how J.J and Kate must feel sometimes.  They’re even further away than we are.  And yet, there are so many times that we feel like we’re “home” and I know they must have those same feelings.  I think that God instills in a missionary’s heart the ability to love those you serve with an inordinate zeal - even though things are so strange and different in your life, it just doesn’t matter because you’re doing HIS will, loving HIS people, and trusting HIM to take care of you, your family, your possessions and your business matters.  WHAT A LOVING GOD WE SERVE !!!!!

Until next time, God bless you all and thank you all for the part you play with your prayers in our ministry here in this wonderful place!

Our love to all of you,

The Harmons 

Easter has come and gone but not without a great deal of activity.  Henley Baptist Church rolled out the red carpet to welcome folks for Easter services.  There was a Maundy Thursday communion service (which I had to miss because of the flu).  Then our church hosted a community Good Friday breakfast that was well attended and well prepared by Gordon Trinder and Pat Williams.  Shortly after the breakfast, folks joined at the market cross on High Street for a brief service led by the pastor of the Anglican church.  Then at 10:30, people gathered back at Henley Baptist for the Good Friday service.  It was an honor for me to get to bring the message, while the other pastors in town had a part in the service.  Right after the service, Nadine and I caught a train for London, where we met our daughter and son-in-law, Susan and Russ Underwood, from Stafford, Virginia. We spent the night in London right next to the Thames River and about a block from Big Ben.  On Saturday, we returned to Henley on the train (but not without incident).  When we arrived at our destination (Dorridge), the train stopped to allow pasengers to get off/on.  We were gathered at the rear door with all of our luggage (4 people remember) but our door did not open.  Soon the train was on its way to the next stop (Solihull), as we stood watching our station fade in the distance.  You should have seen our faces!  Talk about shocked!   A kind lady told us to get off at the next station and catch the returning train back to Dorridge, which we did.  We laughed a lot when it was over!     After we arrived safely at home, we took the kids to Stratford on Avon for a walk through one of our favorite historical and beautiful towns (Shakespeare’s birthplace & home).

Sunday morning, about a dozen or so gathered on the mount overlooking Henley for a brief Communion Service.  My family couldn’t answer the bell (so to speak) but did get up in time for the main Easter service at 11am.  We had a great service with a wonderful attendance.  After lunch, I took the kids to Warwick Castle (which they thoroughly enjoyed).  Monday was filled with travels to the Cotswolds (Stow on the Wold, Bourton on the Water and Chipping Campden).  Tuesday, we travelled north to the Peak District to visit Pemberly, for you Pride and Prejudice fans.  In reality it is Chatsworth House, home of the Duke and Duchess of Devonshire.  But to P&P buffs, it is the home of       Mr. Darcy from the 2005 film starring Keira Knightly and Matthew MacFadyen.  Ever since I read Jane Austen’s novels, I have wanted to see Pemberly.  There are actually 2 homes used as Pemberly (Chatsworth House and Lyme Park).  Lyme Park was the Darcy home in the BBC version in 2001 starring Jennifer Ehle and Colin Firth.  For me, personally, it was a great delight to walk the halls of Pemberly and try to invision what Lizzie would have thought about it (’And of all this I might have been mistress’ she said).  To live as the folks of Chatsworth (Cavendish family) did blows my mind.  It far exceeded my dreams of what such a home would be like.  Visiting Chatsworth was great, especially knowing that we were walking through the rooms shown in the movie version where Keira Knightly walked.  It was entertainingly delightful.  One room (the sculptor room) had a bust of Matthew MacFadyen near one of the walls.  I photographed my daughter standing next to it.  ( We DIDN’T have to twist her arm, I must say !)

On Wednesday, we visited Bath and Stonehenge (places I have visited before).  Both were great to see again and brought back wonderful memories.  The weather for these visits was perfect (plenty of sunshine and warmth).  On Thursday, we put our Russ and Susan on the train for their trip to the Portsmouth area so Russ could visit with a friend and co-worker.

As we toured parts of England, I was reminded of how beautiful the countryside is here.  The flowers are in bloom, the trees are leafing out, the grass is as about as green as it could ever get, the streams are full, the birds are chirping, and the folks of the UK are out and about.  By the way, I did manage to drive through the country without incident.  What struck me is that here was a country that has been blessed with great beauty by our Heavenly Father, with churches and abbeys and cathedrals all over the place as reminders of God’s hand upon this country, but it seems that England has forgotten God.  How sad to even think about. But America is following England’s footsteps of neglecting God.  In the US there seems to be (in many places) a real hunger for God, and I guess that would be true here as well (in places).  But for the most part God seems forgotten or not needed.  How I long for a genuine revival here, a   heaven-sent revival which calls people from every village and town and city to seek the heart of God and long to live for Him.  Join me in praying that God may make Himself known here in a powerful way.  My prayer is that Henley Baptist Church would be the place where such a  revival would begin.  As we seek God’s face and turn from our selfish ways, God will hear from Heaven, forgive our sins and heal this land.   

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Nadine’s Corner: 

Hi everyone.   It’s hard to believe that we are halfway through our stay here in this beautiful country.  

I thought you might enjoy some humor here and there.  Checking out the British-Yankee Vocabulary is pretty interesting and thought I’d share a little each time with you:

Bangers and Mash                                Sausage & mashed potatoes

Bap                                                        Hamburger bun

Bomb                                                     Success

Bonnet                                                   Car hood

Boot                                                       Car trunk

Bubble & squeak                                    Cold meat fried with cabbage and potatoes

Chemist                                                  Pharmacist

Chips                                                      French Fries

Crisps                                                     Potato chips

Isn’t it fun?  I love it.  I love the differences.  I think sometimes differences bother us or even scare us, but  as my daughter Susan has reminded me many times:  Different’s not bad - it’s just different!   Our God has such a wonderful sense of humor, doesn’t He?   He never ceases to amaze me when He shares a miracle with me or when He presents me with gifts of new friends, new things, new ideas (this one’s tough for me), new ministries, new places and new chances to learn how to be more like Him.  I want to know Him more and I want to learn to love those He has given me to serve.  I want to learn to love the unexpected experiences, the unexpected joys and I want to learn how to be the kind of “missionary” that will make a difference to my world.

I think this experience has helped me grow in my faith tremendously.  It has helped me to be willing to leave the unknown in God’s capable hands and trust Him to meet our needs.  I prayed that God would take care of my Dad so that I would not have to leave here before our term is up in July.  The last report is that the Doctor told him he would not need anymore of his radiation treatments.  What an answer to prayer!  I worried that I would be terribly lonesome for the great friendships God gave to us in Virginia.  He has given us some special people to be our friends here.  We’re not lonely, we are fulfilled as God fills us up day by day.  I worried that our daughter would be needing us back in Virginia and she has been our #1 cheerleader the whole time.  I worried that we would not have the money to remain here for 6 months.  God laid it on people’s hearts to give of their means to our ministry and we’ve had plenty!   I worried that we might not fit in - we like to have fun and THEY like to have fun, and we are loved.  I worried that my health would be an issue and the Lord has seen to it that my diabetes has been kept under control by meds and I just got a really good report from the Doctor here about my latest bloodwork.   One by one, God has taken my doubts, my worries, my lack of faith - and has proven, day by day, that He is Lord of all!!   That’s not to say that we’ve not had some vascillating moments about this and that, but God is helping us work through that as well.  He never leaves us, does He?  He’s always there, waiting for us to come to Him. 

We don’t know what our future holds.  We don’t know what the Lord is going to ask us to do in the months to follow.  We don’t know that our time here will always be as smooth and happy as it is right this minute.  But this we do know:  We have people praying for us in Virginia, Texas, Arizona, New Mexico and California and we believe in the power of prayer!  Thank you for all your prayers and your support while we are serving the Lord God that we all have in common.  We couldn’t do it without you.  You are as much a part of our ministry as we are and I know if Henley in Arden Baptist Church could, they would also want to say THANK YOU.

Our love to all of you. 

Two months have passed since we first arrived.  Daffodils have bloomed.  Spring has sprung.  So, why does it still look like winter?  We’ve  had snow (a little), ice (a little), rain (a little), sun (a little), and much to do (a lot).  Since we last wrote, we have visited Worcester Cathedral (pronounced Wooster Cathedral), Banbury, several new tea shops, and Warwick Castle (pronounced Warrick Castle).  We have attended some concerts: The Warwickshire Symphony Orchestra played in Stratford upon Avon; a trio of young musicians from the Czech Republic played Baroque music in a village called Moseley (the guitar player played what looked like an eight foot stringed instrument); and last Sunday we went to Birmingham to hear the Symphonic Orchestra.  It consisted of their string section only.  There were 40 in the group, and I discovered that 19 of them were wearing glasses (A little trivia for you).  Sometimes I get a little distracted!  One of the symphonies was written by a young man (he was 18 years old at the time it was written) who appeared for a bow at the end of the concert.  We were quite impressed.

Things are getting busier in the next couple of weeks with Easter on the horizon.  On Thursday this week, I will lead a Lenten class at the local Church of England.  As an American and a Baptist, I have not had many dealings with Lenten things.  When someone mentions  Lent, I start looking to see if there is any thread or string or fuzz on my sweater! 

For Easter, we will have a Good Friday Breakfast at our church (for the community), then march to the Market Cross for a service of hymns and readings, then back to our church for the Good Friday service.  Each of the local pastors will participate (Anglican, Catholic, Methodist, and I will do the preaching).  Then, on Easter, we go up a nearby hill (called “the mount”) for communion at 8 am, then our special Easter Service at 11 am.  It is a shame, but in England, Easter is no big deal.  Unlike the States where almost everyone attends Easter Service, hardly anyone from the community makes any effort to attend.  This is something that we have been praying about and I have asked the church to join us in praying that this year we might promote the service in such a way that folks in the community will attend.  Easter is at the heart of the gospel (as Paul said, if Christ is not risen we are still lost in our sins).  Easter is all about what God has done,  the celebration of the Risen Lord and His victory over death and hell.  We have the Good News to share and we must figure out a way to do it so the message is shared with the entire town.  Easter is all about hope and the eternal grace of God.  Easter is about Jesus.  The message of Easter is for more than those who already know the story.  It’s a message worthy of the ears of every man, woman, youth, and child on this planet.  God has this whole world on His heart.  The message of Easter is still the hottest topic we have to share.

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It has been an exciting two months.  I have had the honor of playing the piano, along with the organist (she’s wonderful).  We hit it off immediately and have fun playing together during our Sunday morning services.  I also sing with several of the ladies now and then.  We have a good time making “joyful noises unto the Lord” !!

We’ve seen some great sights since we wrote last and are still investigating new and wonderful places.  We have had to slow down a little since we first came.  Dick is getting too old to keep up with me!  So now, we only have a long Friday every other week (mostly).  But our friends Stan and Wendy Gregory still take us to lunch and touring around the local spots every Saturday.  It’s pretty great stuff.

We are enjoying the differences in our languages (even though it’s all “English”).  The English put the syllable in different places and spell things a little differently.  It’s very interesting to see how the dialects change from one location to another.  I guess it’s kind of like being from Texas or the deep south compared to Californians and Virginians / S. Carolinians.  It’s really a lot of fun.  We come in contact with quite a few Scots and we enjoy listening to them as well.  There have only been a few that we cannot understand and it’s usually because they talk so FAST.  We’re still hanging on the first word and they’re through with their sentence!  Did you know that WE have an “accent”??  It’s so fun to have someone tell us they “love” our accent!  What a hoot!

You couldn’t find a better, more loving group of people than here in Henley.  We are so honored to have been placed here.  Boy, God just keeps gettin’ better ‘n better !!  They felt sorry for this little Yankee because there was no clothes dryer here (many people don’t have one) and so our friends Stan and Wendy brought one over and installed it for us!  Hey….I’m in hog’s heaven.  I’ll never take my clothes dryers for granted again!  We constantly had the wash drying all over the upstairs bedrooms and in the bathroom.  Had to do a major move to take a shower on wash day! 

They have all been so expressive with their love and have shown great concern for our happiness.

When we found out that my Dad has lung cancer, they immediately insisted that we go home if we needed to and they wanted to pay our way (as long as we came back to them!).  They also insisted that I call my Dad as often as I want to.  This is another great example of how they have expressed their love to us.

By the way, my Dad is doing really good for the time being and I’m so grateful to our Heavenly Father for taking care of him while I am not able to!  He has to take a series of 35 radiation treatments.  He has taken almost 2 weeks of it already and has had no side effects yet.  He met a woman who had taken the same treatments and she told him she did not have any side effects at all.  So we’re hoping that he can say the same at the end of his treatments.  We appreciate your prayers and concerns.  Thank you. 

To those of you who helped make this journey possible financially, thank you, thank you, thank you!

We love you.

Greetings in the name of the Lord,

 One month has passed and it is amazing to see how fast time gets along.  We continue to be busy with the ministry at Henley Baptist Church.  We are enjoying the fellowship and are having a great time.  The Sunday morning attendance continues to grow.  We are meeting new folks every week, as people stop by the church during the week for coffee/tea and scones.  As we introduce ourselves to newcomers, it seems that our reputation preceeds us.  Or as we greet people, they say, “You must be the new pastor.”  It is not so important that they know who I am, but who Jesus is.  That is why we are here.

 Last Sunday, Henley Baptist had a new member.  We are excited for the church and the Kingdom of God.  The lady is a former member who had moved to Wales some time back, then recently back to Henley.  Nadine and I visited in her home and encouraged her in the Lord.  I believe she will make a great member.

This coming Sunday, February 25, I will baptize our organist.  She has been a believer for a few years but has never been baptized.  This is going to be a great day for the church. 

I mentioned to you before that we have a lady who turned 100 in January, Miss Edna Gane.  She has been in the hospital for a few days in Stratford.  Nadine and I have visited her several times.  She was to come home today. She missed her home so much.  One day she will be heading for her heavenly home and will be rejoicing to finally get to her real home.

People are still responding to my sermons with words of encouragement.  Last Sunday, I was talking about how God helps us with our stress points.  I thought I would give the church a stress test.  I asked them to complete some sentences related to stress.  Sentences like: I am ready to throw in the ________; I want to resign from the human ________; I am just a bundle of _________; My life is falling ________.  Things like that.  Then I used one more sentence for them to complete (they were doing so well).  I said, “I am at the end of my _________.”  They were supposed to say ‘rope’.  Instead, they shocked me when they said ‘tether’.  I have never heard that folks could get to the end of their tether (you can tell I have a lot to learn).

Even though England is financially very strong and very modern, there are some areas where we find them to be a little different from the States.  Most of the homes, at least in Henley, do not have dishwashers.  Nor do they have clothes dryers.  Most of the flats are small but are very expensive.  They do not have garages (some of the larger homes have a single, or in rare instances, double car garage).  Many of the older ladies in the church do not have cars and have to walk or take a taxi to wherever they need to go.  Many of them walk to church, even on Wednesday night.  A lot of them walk about a mile each way to get to church or to town.  I was told that, in years past, folks walked 5-7 miles (one way) to church, many of them walked back for Sunday evening service.

Henley Baptist Church and Hockley Heath Baptist Church (I have been preaching at Hockley Heath on Sunday afternoons) were the beneficiary of the goodness of God and the kindness of a man named George Muntz, who many, many years ago, with his own money built the two church buildings.  He said that God laid it on his heart to do so and blessed him with the resources to build both churches.  Today, Henley Baptist Church is one of four Baptist churches in the entire country with a steeple (spire).  Three of them are indebted to Mr. George Muntz. 

On Saturday, February 24,  Nadine and I will travel with friends to a city called Sudbury (south east of Cambridge).  We will attend the induction service of Nigel Ford as he becomes the new pastor of Sudbury Baptist Church.  We first knew him at Stafford Baptist (north of Henley about 45 minutes) and then at Cirencester Baptist (south of here about an hour).  We are looking forward to our reunion with Nigel and Val.  They have been such good friends.  Sudbury Baptist Church is an exciting, growing congregation and I am looking forward to hearing great reports as God continues to work there.

More next time….

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It seems like we’ve been here a lot longer than a month for some reason.  There are many things about the States that we really miss, of course.  But there are so many things about England to love and we take great pride in being here to love these people and this country, and to represent the USA.  The people are so gracious to us and, get this, LOVE OUR ACCENT!  Well, I never thought about people from the States having an accent before.  I guess to them, it IS an accent!   

Today is Friday and our day off.  We will be touring around the local areas today and taking care of a few personal things as well.  It’s always a great day when we get to go find “new” tea rooms and places to experience FOOD!!  (Remember I don’t like to cook - you remember that, don’t you?)

England has a tea room on every corner!!  And we love it!  If we don’t come back home looking, speaking, and acting British, we’ll be surprised.  Have never had so many “biscuits” (cookies) and “scones” (biscuits) in our whole life.  Have to admit, though, we do miss our American food - like MEXICAN FOOD, YUMMY CHEESEBURGERS and the likes.  Oh well, I think we can do without a while longer in order to have the great experience that we’ve been privileged to be a part of so far.  Our kids both kept saying, “It’ll be such a great experience - you’ll have such a great time”.  And you know what, they were SO RIGHT!

Both Dick and I miss all of you, but we hope that we’ll come back to you better people with bigger hearts and a more perfect love for others.  In the meantime, please remember us in your prayers.  DICK NEEDS IT !!  (I’m smiling here).

Our love and prayers to all of you,

Nadine 

Dear Friends and family,

We received about 2 inches of snow over night and it is still snowing at present.  It reminds me so much of God’s great covering, because of His mercy and grace, of how He covers our sins and wrong choices.  Today, take a moment to praise His Wonderful name for His goodness and love.

 I want to take just a moment to talk about 3 things, then Nadine wants to update you on our visit here.  The country of England is going through a time of transition.  Tony Blair is about to leave office after 10 years of serving as Prime Minister.  In my opinion, he has done a great job in the midst of troublesome times.  He has been heavily criticized, primarily because of his partnership with President George Bush in the war in Iraq.  I have talked to folks here about him and they agree with me that Tony Blair is a man of great character, integrity, and with a passion for serving his country.  Please pray for him and this country as they both transition.

The state of the church here is sad.  The Methodist Church has had to close over 300 congregations this past couple of years.  The Church of England is facing difficult times as well.  There are not enough pastors to care for the churches.  I met a retired pastor yesterday, who is 90 years old and still serving (part time) 17 churches in his area.  In a recent article, the Baptist Union reported that over 20,000 children have stopped attending Baptist churches in the past couple of years.  This country seems to have forgotten God and is paying the price for that lapse of memory.  Even though, in the Anglican churches I have visited, I see advertisements about Tony Campolo and have seen Rick Warren’s books for sale, and it appears that the church really does care.  Yet they are losing ground rapidly.

Henley Baptist Church (where we serve) is over 300 years old (1688).  At one time, according to Gordon Trinder, church administrator and town crier, this church had over 100 children in Sunday School.  Now there are none in attendance.  The church is getting older and as the older ones die off, what will its future be?  I asked Gordon what his vision for the church might be.  He told me that he longed to see children return to Sunday School as in the old days.  

Here are some prayer needs: 1) That we might be able to help the church regain her lost vision and help them develop a plan for the future  2) A full time pastor   3) That God will use us mightily while we are here   4) That God will bring about a spiritual awakening in this country which will begin in Henley Baptist Church. 

The church does hold its coffee and teas every week, but this is for the older crowd in the church and community.  I believe they want to grow, but have lacked leadership to guide them.  The church has been without a full time pastor for over 4 years.   It seems that the church is in a maintenance mode rather than a growth mode.  I want God to help us change that. 

Remember I mentioned to you that I looked for the stocks at Stow on the Wold?  Last week I let Nadine drive the car for the first time.  What flashed in my mind as I held on for dear life was, “Where are those stocks when they are really needed?”

Hey, it’s my turn now!!  I didn’t think the idea of those stocks was so funny!!  What would being out in the snow and rain do to my hair???

We are loving this country and its people.  What a joy they are.  They are the most hospitable people we’ve ever seen.  As we go into their homes to visit, we ALWAYS get to enjoy a cup of tea or coffee and either cake, a scone (a biscuit with raisins/cranberries), or a “biscuit” (cookies).  Confused?  Took us awhile too.  Needless to say, we are not neglected!

Being part of the traffic in this country is WILD!  I have sucked the air out of the car so many times it’s a wonder the tires aren’t flat!  Man, it’s something!  Dick does really great.  He has only pulled out on the wrong side a very few times, usually coming out of a parking lot before we get to the street.  For now I am content to be a passenger and BACK-SEAT DRIVER!!  Yeah.

The towns, villages and countryside are indescribeable.  You just can’t imagine what it’s like unless you’ve seen it with your own eyes.  Beautiful.  Everything is very, very old.  I guess if you’re not into old buildings/churches/castles, etc., you might not agree with us, but if you have an appreciation for things that are hundreds of years old, you would love everything about it.  I have to say that as we get “older”, Dick is cultivating a really big appreciation of the “old” stuff (me)!

Fridays are our personal days off and we have been seeing the surrounding areas and shopping (Mmmmmm) to my little heart’s content.  Well, not recklessly of course, but it’s been fun.  We went to a town called “Tewksbury” last Friday and saw their Abbey which was built over 900 years ago!  It really blows your mind to think of the technology they possessed that long ago.  Truly amazing (and beautiful).

I made my first scones this morning (from a box mix, of course) and my husband was impressed!  Well, okay, so he gets impressed easily when something comes from the oven!  Will let you know how my skills (?) progress.

TV is not too extensive over here, but at least they provided us with a television which I’m very thankful for.  We only get 5 channels, none of which are the Turner Classics much to husband’s chagrin!

Remember us in your prayers.  We love you all. 

 The Harmons

Dear Friends,

We arrived safely on the 17th of January.  We were met by two of the ladies from Henley Baptist Church.  Both had contacted us while we were still in the states.  Marion Dowding and Wendy Gregory are some of the leadership team at Henley Baptist Church.  The first Sunday, we were allowed to just observe the service so we could learn how things are done in the UK.  Last Sunday was my first official Sunday as pastor.  I had to lead the entire worship.  What I did was to announce the songs to be sung and then step away from the mic.  One deacon in the church, Gordon Trinder, has a strong voice (he is also the town crier) and unofficially led the congregation in singing worship songs, while at his place in the pew.  Then, I had the privilege to preach.  The message was well received.  On Sunday afternoon we went to a small church in the town of Hockley Heath (5 miles north of Henley).  We went to encourage the folks there.  I will preach there the next two Sunday afternoons.  They are without a pastor.  They do not have a Sunday morning service, only one at 4 PM.  After the service we enjoyed coffee, tea, and snacks.

Our church has a coffee and scones (biscuits) or biscuits (cookies) on Wednesday and Saturday mornings.  The church has been doing this for over 30 years.  The coffee on Wednesday morning is well attended by the community.  Any money made from the sale of the coffee and scones is used for mission work.  Nadine and I get to meet a lot of town people who come for the market and stop by for coffee or tea.  Saturdays attendance is mostly church folks.  We are busy getting acquainted with folks in the church.  We have visited in the homes of several of the folks.  The other day, while was out doing my morning walk, I met several folks from the church.  It was almost like going to Walmart and seeing so many people from the Mount.

We have been out touring the area as well.  Stratford upon Avon (Shakespear’s home town) is only 7 miles to the south.  We do our grocery shopping there.  Driving on the left side of the road is always a challenge.  I am getting better with roundabouts.  Nadine reminds me to get in the proper lane.  We drove down to Stow on the Wold last Friday.  It is a lovely town about 35-40 miles south and in the midst of the Cottswolds.  The name, Stow on the Wold, (according to Rick Steves) means ‘meeting place on the uplands’.  We had lunch, went into many of the shops and enjoyed our day.  There were supposed to be some stocks on the green.  I wanted to put Nadine in them and go about my visit, but I couldn’t find them.

On Mondays we meet with Marion (the church pianist/organist) and plan the worship service for the next Sunday.  We enjoy this time wth Marion as we discuss the songs that will compliment the message and the other parts of the service.  The English people enjoy singing to the Lord and they have many, many songs that we do not sing in the US.  The church has a web site and I encourage you to check it out.  It is www.henleybaptist.org.uk.

More next time,

Blessings to you all,

Dick and Nadine Harmon

We arrived safely on Wednesday morning after a great flight.  It is windy and rainy today (big surprise).  We are having dinner with the deacons and therir spouses this evening.  Have had a couple of driving outings so far and it has gone well.  One of the deacons is preaching this Sunday but I will cover the service at the rest home.

We’re excited about being here.  The manse is great and we are busy making it welcoming.  One of the boxes we shipped arrived today.  I do not know where the first one might be.

The church has coffee and scones for the community on Wednesday mornings and we got to meet a number of folks from the community and the church. 

We went shopping at a Tesco store today in Stratford upon Avon (Shakespear’s birth place).  Tesco is a mini Walmart store and it was very busy.

Will keep in touch,

Dick