A Daunting Task...

View over Radovlica

A couple of weeks have passed since I was officially accepted by ECM but it is only just starting to sink in that this is all really happening. I've spent part of the last week abroad, albeit in France rather than Slovenia but it started to highlight little things I will face when I move. For one thing I will need to get used to Euros - they all look the same! Learning the language will be another big challenge. Fortunately a lot of people there speak very good English but I can't rely on that. I also need to raise the money in order to go. If you feel that you would like to partner with me in this please let me know.

It's a daunting task I have ahead of me. Don't mistake me, I'm incredibly excited and look forward to living and working in Slovenia but at the same time I'm mildly terrified!

I know that this is where God is leading me and that all things are in His timing so if you would like to support me in prayer here are some prayer points:

• That God would be glorified by all of this
• That I would trust God fully and that I would remember that His timing is best
• That I would be able to raise the funds I need in order to go
• That I would be able to start planning the practical details of a cross cultural move
• For the church as they prepare for me joining the team
• For Peter and Lidija Novak and their family as they prepare to travel to Australia for a month
• For the country of Slovenia as many people have never heard the Gospel

Slovenia is a very spiritually needy country, there are so few Evangelical Christians. Have a look at their entry on Operation World: http://www.operationworld.org/country/slvn/owtext.html

Would you be able to support me financially in this? Please let me know if you can help by emailing me at s.re.deacon@gmail.com

View over Komenda

The Journey Begins...

March 2017

If you have spoken to me at all in the last year or so you may have heard me mention Slovenia once, twice, fifty times. The tourist board of Slovenia may as well have hired me to advertise their country! I've made no secret about it, I love Slovenia - the mountains, the people, the culture, the mountains, the history, did I mention the mountains?

I guess I should start at the beginning. Back in January 2016 I went on holiday to Ljubljana (Le-yub-li-yana), the capital of Slovenia,  with my sister Rachael. Neither of us knew much about the country but we wanted a few days away to somewhere we'd never been and that was quite cheap. After being inspired by an episode of Pointless (if you know me you know I love my quizzes!) we decided on Slovenia.

Lake Bled

From almost the moment we landed I fell in love with the country! When we got back to Britain I wanted to go back! That was the start of my calling to go serve God there.

It's felt like a long journey at times and I've often wondered if this is really where God wants me to go but He has been with me every step of the way.

The point of this post really is to let people know what I'm going to be doing when I get to Slovenia (If I haven't been clear already, I'm moving to Slovenia to serve God there).

This week I was accepted by ECM (European Christian Mission) to be sent by them to work in a church in Ljubljana for one year initially with possible extension. The church is called Reformirana Evangelijska Cerkev (Reformed Evangelical Church) or REC for short. The pastor there is called Peter Novak and he and his wife Lidija have three children; Eric, Charis and Lara. I visited them and the church there for a week back in March. They were incredibly welcoming and hospitable and I look forward to getting to know them better.

Lakes and mountains wherever you look

The plan is for me to work as a ministry trainee with four main parts to my role; work with youth and teenage girls, personal Bible study, language learning and any other jobs that the church requires of me. I think I will be kept pretty busy!

Well so what? What now?

I'm currently based in Swindon working full time as an archaeologist still but I would love to get out to Slovenia in the New Year. Obviously God is a big part of this equation and and it is all in His timing. I need to raise the funds and prayer support that will allow me to go. I'm aiming to keep this updated fairly frequently when I get to Slovenia and I will also produce a prayer letter.

If you would like to be added to the list to receive these, want more information or would like to support financially I would be extremely grateful and you can email me at s.re.deacon@gmail.com.

Did I mention the mountains?