I know the blog has been silent for quite some time, but if you've been following me on Twitter or Facebook, you'll know that we have arrived safely in England and have been busy getting adjusted to our new life here. Our trip over was uneventful, although there was a delay in the flight and about a forty-five minute wait at immigration. But we are here now, adjusted to the new time zone, and so far enjoying the much cooler weather (except for the day we arrived in the UK when it was 27°C, we've not seen over 20°C). Robin has started a blog to keep people up to date on our new life here.

The most enjoyable part of our trip for me was driving our hired Peugeot 207 from London Gatwick airport to Hull. This was my first time driving a right-hand drive vehicle, but I found the switch rather easy. The car was good to drive too; I've never driven a Peugeot before (I don't think you can even buy them in North America unless they've been imported by someone), but I have heard they have a reputation for being solid, reliable cars. The 207 we had was certainly a good little package, fitted with a 1.6L diesel and a 5-speed transmission. Even with the stop-and-go-but-mostly-stop on the London carpark (otherwise known as the M25), and congestion on parts of the M1, the car returned a fantastic 54mpg.

The church family at St John's has been so very welcoming, which has been a tremendous blessing. We have met so many people in these first two weeks, and we have been very encouraged by their faith and unity, and are excited to be a part of this community of believers. 

Yesterday, I began work here by spending the day with a colleague learning about the community project St John's has undertaken. One of the things I've been brought on to do is develop this project and find other ways that we as a church can minister to the city. One of my main priorities over the coming months will be to really get to know Hull and its needs.

I plan to return to regularly scheduled programming from here on in, by which I mean, of course, a return to the main subjects of this blog. It is good to be here in England, and back into a routine. I look forward to picking up the conversations here again soon.