Update from Newbliss, Ireland

Over the past several weeks a number of people have commented to me about the lack of updating to my blog. So here goes what may turn out to be the beginning of a more regular attending--or a one off entry!

Nancy and I are currently living in a small house, one of several in a row of houses built for workers on the now-defunct estate which used to own all this area. The big house was torn down some years ago and the small houses now form the core of what shows up on a map as Newbliss. The name supposedly was given the area when a woman from Dublin visited, and finding it so peaceful and calm, named it for her feelings. There is a butcher's shop, a Landis (corner grocery), a chip shop, and three pubs on the main street. At the edge of town is a fiberglass factory that used to produce boats but with the downturn in the economy has had to cut back and now produces various other fiberglass products.


The church I am serving for July and August here in Newbliss is on the outskirts of the village, on the road to Monaghan, and is one of the four in which I am preaching these months. There is a rotation system for Sundays which brings me to the Newbliss church each week, then alternately to the smaller churches of Stonebridge or Clones and Ballyhobridge. Just two weeks ago the congregations voted on a new minister who will begin in October, so I am just filling in while they wait.






It is hard to believe, but this is the seventh summer in a row that I have had the privilege of serving vacant churches in Ireland, and each has been different. This area is dairy and cattle farming area, and almost all in the churches live off the land. It has been a good year for milk prices, because of a drought in Australia, and the weather has been kind to the land in its production of silage. So things look good. While my main official responsibility is preaching, I also do a fair amount of visiting, which gives me a chance to see into the homes and lives of the people. The other night George and I were out visiting and ended up knocking on one door at 10:30, only to find the 80 year old owner outside cutting field grass that was growing onto the fence in the back. I found it curious that we would be out so late, but the farmers are in the fields until dark, and was encouraged by the energy and welcome of the man we came to visit...

 

Driving from the Clones church to the Ballyhobridge church is a short distance, but the road crosses from the Republic of Ireland into Northern Ireland (UK) and back again. Which is to say that we are on the border. The small roads used to be impassable (craters blown into them by the British army), while the larger roads all had checkpoints, but that is all past. Today the only indication of moving from one country to another is road signs in the North are only in English, not English and Irish, and the road side lines in the North are yellow while in the Republic they are white. On both sides of the border people are friendly, both with each other and with us strangers, and I sense no tensions at all. Having said that, the drawing of the border lines was quite contentious when done, and many Loyalists (Protestants) on this side felt betrayed by the North in the final results. Some even chose to move north, so the balance of population is changing, but there is peace and neighbors are neighbors.

 

While we are here Nancy and I plan on renewing acquaintances with as many of the people we have known in the past as possible. Our first day here we traveled to Galway for the celebration of the installation and induction of their new pastor. Three years ago I spent two months there, met some wonderful people, and was glad to see that pulpit finally filled. The family is coming to visit us next week, and the Enniscorthy-Wexford congregations have thankfully opened the vacant manse for them to use--so we will renew those relationships. We have already spent time with our dear friend Stuart Ferguson, and have seen friends and attended the Sunday night service at Elmwood, in Lisburn. The last Sunday in August I will be preaching in Dublin, at Adelaide Road Presbyterian Church, the church I served in 2007. And we hope to visit Carlow while in Enniscorthy, and Cahir and Fermoy some time as well. We are amazed by the number of friends we have on this island, and so grateful to God for the times we have spent and the ministry we have shared.

Needless to say I have had good opportunities to get out on my bike while here. The roads twist around fields in every direction, and while some are better than others, almost all are amenable to cyclists. It seems there has been an upsurge in interest in cycling, so much so that seldom do we go anywhere without seeing some local cyclist on the road. There is even a cycling club in Clones and there will be cycling activities in a couple weeks--as part of Newbliss' celebration weekend. Plus Brian, my friend from the North, and I have planned a trek through Italy, Switzerland and France for early September...

While I am here Nancy is continuing her work and ministry via the internet. She has just finished reviewing a class she will be teaching online starting tomorrow, continues her communication with hundreds of Afghani teenagers, keeps working on the Christian English Language Educators' Association, plus is getting ready for some online course teaching for Azusa Pacific University...

So--how's that for a quick catch up. All in all our lives keep moving along with joy, and with some sadness. One of my dearest friends, David Legters (Bito) passed away suddenly while I was in Mexico teaching this past spring, and another long-time friend and host in Albania, Bob Osborne, passed away also. These deaths were occasions for grief, of course, but at the same time brought back to me the importance of keeping on with the work of the Lord, knowing that at the end there is a great prize to be had--that prize being the welcome of a loving Father and the words "well done, good and faithful servant...and beloved son..."