Lee Abbey Devon to Lee Abbey Knowle West Community in Bristol
Thu 10th May : Day 1
After meeting last night to discuss the itinerary, (and an insight by Esther about wine bottle tops), the intrepid group (Paul, Sheila and Tim from Scargill and Esther and Jonathan from Lee Abbey) prepared for the off.
The cars were loaded high. Should we have brought a trailer and some roadies? We’ve agreed not to talk too much about the sizes of our individual bags in case we lose our sense of shared harmony (a diplomatic way of avoiding reference to the size of Paul’s suitcase). This must be how it was for the disciples – only I thought they agreed not to carry bags?
The send off from Lee Abbey was amazing. We, and another mission team destined for South Wales left at the same time, with the Lee Abbey community praying for us as we prepared to leave. Amidst a fanfare, party poppers and bunting we finally left.
The sun shone brightly and the coastline was amazing. 15 minutes later the decision was taken to stop for lunch at a coastal beauty spot – the sun beaming. And 3 minutes after that it rained. Paul’s shorts?
The Lee Abbey Knowle West Community in Bristol was our first proper ‘journey destination’. ‘PK’ (who has previously served at both Lee Abbey and Scargill) joined us here. Having flown in from Budapest this morning, he will now travel with us to Derby.
We received a warm welcome and met with some of the people closely associated with this Community, which represents a beacon of light within the locality, working hard to bring new hope to the area. We gained a greater understanding of the locality and work of the Community through guided prayer walks, and were able to offer our own prayers of blessing and hope.
We’re so thankful for the wonderful hospitality – food, conversation, insight and learning at Lee Abbey Knowle West, and for being made so welcome.
And tomorrow, after helping out at two school assemblies, we travel onward to the next leg of the journey : Lee Abbey London…