kaupungissa! [in the city!]

Tomorrow morning Lydia and I leave for a four-day trip to Helsinki. We are very excited at the thought of being back in Helsinki again, walking the streets, hearing the language and enjoying the sunshine. It is a great place to visit; the perfect city break! 

One of the many busy squares in the city centre   

There is however a real urgency to our trip this time. Since the summer, when we spent over a month in Helsinki, we have been working on a relocation plan to allow us to be back there on a permanent basis this summer. This has involved research, language lessons, maintaining contact with the super friends we have got to know out there, job applications, Skype interviews, writing speculative letters and emails to possible employers and of course much prayer. Even with the wonders of modern technology, there is only so much we are able to do from our home here in Kent. We are therefore desperate to see some tangible positive steps and doors opening as a result of this trip. Lydia now has three job interviews lined up for positions in kindergartens. Two are in Espoo [a neighbouring district connected to Helsinki], this is a family area which is slightly cheaper than the expensive city centre. The third interview is in Helsinki itself. This is very positive; we now need one of these places to make a concrete job offer. 

Lydia at the tram stop   

We are also delighted to have opportunity to see the friends we have been in regular contact with from our visit in the summer. They have since the summer pioneered a small house-church type missional community. They are a super bunch and have been so kind to us translating letters, giving advice and generally being so encouraging and behind us. We can’t wait to see them again and are thrilled to have been invited to a get together with their house church friends who want to meet and hear from us also. It is such a privilege to be invited into a network of relationships, which they have fought so hard to establish.  We value their openness and commitment to us.

Finally, we have had great difficulty affording this trip. Although in Europe, Helsinki is not a cheap place to get to or to be in. Like many we struggle to manage financially as a family without adding expensive trips into the mix. We are so thrilled though to say that through various gifts and expressions of support that we have ended up just £4.00 short of all we need to cover the entire cost of the trip! We are so grateful to experience the love and support of the family of God who catch the heart of our calling and are so eager to partner with us!

Please pray for:

• Lydia’s interviews, for a job offer[s] which will also give us some clarity as to which neighborhood we can focus on. 
• Developments with finding suitable and affordable accommodation. 
• Our time with the house-church friends; that we can be a blessing to them, that our relationships deepen and continue to flourish, and that they feel encouraged to continue to help and support us too. 
• The children [Edith, Johan & Barnabas] as they stay at home with grandparents, but knowing that our trip is connected to our relocation to Helsinki as a family 
• Me as I meet with some university contacts with a view to finding a suitable career path for me in Helsinki. 
• On-going financial provision, that should we get a job offer that we will be able to afford all of the relocation costs [shipping, travel, deposit for an apartment, other taxes and fees etc.]