Meet our Son...

Caleb Austin was born at 12:30pm on 26 Jan. He weighed 7lb 9oz and was 20.5 in long. After several hours of contractions his heart rate began to drop drastically during each contraction - even stopping for a second at times. At 12:15pm the doctor made the decision to perform a c-section. It's never preferred and we were definitely nervous, but without a doubt we know that God is always in control and He alone created the ability that these doctors have to see a new life enter into this world. Not long after the decision was made we met our healthy son. Turns out the umbilical cord had wrapped around his neck. Now we are recovering and getting to know this little new life. You can see pics and vids at:

www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=153202&l=2c6d41094a&id=508436435

www.youtube.com/ChrislynchUK

Future Comfirmed

On Monday we were approved by out company's trustees. We will return to London mid- May.

Angie still hasn't had the baby but the doctor has scheduled an induction for Tuesday, 26 January if he has not come yet. Keep an eye out for future news and pics.

Our future...

Monday (18 January) at 7:15pm (EST) the Board of Trustees for our organisation will vote on our future position. Well, actually, they vote on us. Our representative, Larry, will have 10 minutes to present us to the Board and they will do their best to hear from the Holy Spirit and make a decision about our future position. Please pray that God will give these wise men direction and discernment. Pray that Larry will accurately represent us and effectively communicate what God is doing in London through and around us.

Christmas with Family

If you didn't already know, we are in the U.S. We arrived safely in October after some frantic packing and preparation to leave the UK. Why do I always try to fit so much in such a short period of time? We have had a great few months in the States so far, seeing family and friends, sharing with several churches about what God is doing in London, figuring out all of the things we need to know about having a baby, and just breathing.

Please continue to pray for Caleb as he grows and prepares for this world we find ourself in. He has been moving all over the place the last few weeks!

Pray for...

...Continued adjustment back to life in the US

...Opportunities to share the hope that we have in Jesus with people here

...The Circle

...Connection with a faith community here that we can spur on towards Christ and who will encourage us

As always, you are loved and appreciated. Happy Christmas!

The rains are coming but the sun still shines.

It's a rainy day today. We've enjoyed so much sun over the past few months. Thanks God!

We are trying to take it a bit easy this week. A partner team from Canton, Georgia arrives on Sunday and will walk with us for a week. It will be a busy time for sure. Then we only have 3 weeks until our departure for the US! EEK!

I (Chris) have several things to do this week to prepare for this partner team as well as our pending move. We appreciate your prayers as we tie up some loose ends before our time in the States.

Pray for continued, healthy partnerships with Acton Baptist Church (Pastor Mick), Acton Community Forum (Lavonne, Steve, and Rachel), The Hoodies Project (Colin, Neil, Carlie, and the rest), The Trust (Lucy), Regenerate UK (Andy and Louis), South Hanwell Baptist Church (Stuart), and Hillsong Connect group-Acton. These are important relationships in what God is doing in London.

Hillary, our intern who was denied entry into the UK a month ago has now arrived! We met her at the train station yesterday and are SO happy to have her with us. She is acclamating to the city and getting to know the other interns this week. God is doing great things through this lot. I'll blog about it soon. Promise;)

Angie and the baby are doing well. Still no sickness. Still no aversions. My blood test results came back and I am not a cystic fibrosis carrier. Praise God!

Phoning home

Ever since I (Chris) moved from my parents' house my mom has reminded me that they like to hear what is happening in my life. As the internet continues to shrink the world it becomes more and more simple to communicate across vast distances. I can't imagine what it would have been like when the ships first left this island for the new world. But I think I might have been better suited for the communication of that time. At least then three months without communication would have been like the blink of an eye. Now, as I look at the date of my last post, it seems like an eternity. And I suppose it is.

What has happened...

South Acton Street Party
Everything has comtinued to move forward. The issue with the date has been sorted. We are preparing for FBC Canton to arrive on 20 Sept. I have heard from several local believers that they are excited by this opportunity. As I write this post I am on my way to meet with Lavonne at the Community Forum.

iGo
We had an amazing month with 150 American teenagers partnering with us in July. There were innumerable faith conversations and 12 people expressed the first signs of choosing to follow Jesus. We are now in the process of follow up and discipleship with these people.

Babies...
Chris' youngest brother and sister-in-law had their first child this week. We are very excited for them. We can't wait to see them in November. Angie is doing really well. She hasn't been sick at all. No crazy cravings or aversions. Just tired and hungry:) The baby is healthy and growing. 19 weeks on. We did find out that Angie is a cystic fibrosis carrier so they are testing Chris' blood. No word yet but the doctoer wasn't too worried after the last ultrasound. We do know that it is a boy and we plan to...yes, I'm putting it in writing...we plan to call him Caleb Austin.

New Church...
A few weeks ago I (Chris) got a phone call from Lucy, our partner at World's End in Chelsea. Several of the teenagers that she knows and mentors have asked about starting a new church. They don't click with the forms of church that they know and, to be honest, are completely put off from church by them. Lucy was stunned and overwhelmed by the conversations. So we began a dialogue between ourselves as well as with these teenagers. I have met up with the group once now and today they drive back from a week away together discussing and praying over all of this. It amazes me that when I follow the Holy Spirit in every day life He begins to work around me in ways I could never imagined. I haven't made any of this happen. I simply find myself in the midst of God's plan.

Future...
Most of you will know that we have decided to apply for career status with our organisation. With the economic crisis our org has had to make drastic cutbacks. We have been unsure about how this would affect us but recently we were given unofficial word that things look good. We are confident that God has us in London for the next few years at least but we continue to pray that we will be aware of His direction in whatever form it comes. Currently we plan to

15 October...Return to the US (DFW)
19-24 October...Richmond, VA for interviews
December...Trustee approval
26 January...Angie's due date
2-4 March...Appointment (Tennessee?)
15 April...Return to London

We have spoken with a few of you about speaking at your church so we may see you there.

We are also looking for a car to use for those six months. If you know of any options please let us know. Love you all.

Urgent!

I just spoke with our contact at Acton Community Forum and she mentioned in passing a possible need to change the dates for the Street Party in South Acton on which we were hoping to work together. I am concerned because we can't change our date. It is the only time that our partner church can come to host the event. We are excited about the possibility of working with the Community Forum and don't want to miss this opportunity if at all possible. Please pray that God will sort this before we meet this Friday!

And don't miss the latest update just below.

Announcement

For those who have not yet heard, Angie is pregnant! She has had her first doctor's visit and we saw the heart beating strong. He even performed a bit for us. We expect the baby in mid-January while we are in the US. It's truly amazing how God sorts it all in the end. We couldn't have planned out a better timeline if we tried. We will depart London in mid-October for 6 months in the US, which will give us time to settle in and connect with a local doctor before the baby arrives. And then we hope to return to London at the end of April.

We still don't know what God really has in our future. We are as sure as we can be that He wants us in London, but we are still waiting for our approval to return with the company.

In the meantime, we have hit the busiest time of year for us in London. We have 18 interns here now, preparing for ~60 teenagers to arrive next week and another ~60 in three weeks. We are well excited about the potential for God's glory over the next month.

Chris will be leading the morning trainings during this time and walking with a smaller group in South Acton to connect with teenagers in the community.

We also connected with South Acton Community Forum a month ago to discuss the street party that one of our US partners will host in September. A few weeks after I received a phone call from them saying that they have decided to cancel tentative plans that they had for an event in August in order to partner with us in September. Praise God for invitations into the community!

Praise Him!

We received an email today with great news. The extension of our term was approved through 31 October. Next step, career aplication approval.

Quick Update

Thank you for your prayers over the past two days. We received an email yesterday letting us know that somehow our finish date was input incorrectly and, in fact, our term does not end until 04 August. That's great news. But please continue to pray for our extension until October.

Thursday, 03 June is election day in the UK. Pray that these elections will allow us to live in peace in this country.

URGENT!

I just received an email that could potentially cause quite a few problems. It has been our understanding that this term ends on 06 August. However, our file apparently lists 05 June as the end date. That's NOT GOOD! That is only four days away. Even if you don't understand all of the implications or workings of our organisation, I'm sure that you can see the urgency.

In addition, our supervisor requested an extension of our term last September, but apparently a formal petition was not recorded. And now the organisation is under financial strains, so all extensions are being strictly questioned. We have also begun the process to return to London as career, but with the financial issues, our supervisor and other leaders in Western Europe will have to advocate for us. We have great leadership around us who support us and are vieing for this, but everything is currently uncertain.

Thank you for your continued prayers despite the infrequency of updates over the past several months. The Art Exhibit went well. 50 - 60 people came to the Artists' Reception (most of whom we had never met) and another 20 or so came through the exhibit over the next few days. We will start a photography club this Saturday. Please ask God to stir the hearts of the teenagers that we have invited to come along, especially those who we have just recently met.

So many things going on. I'll keep our calendar on the right updated so that you can pray over the direction that God is leading us. We greatly appreciate you.

"Acclimate" is not a word in Britain...

Apparently you do not acclimate to a new environment in England, you "acclimatise".

Sorry again for the silence between posts. We have much to be thankful for and much to pray over.

Chris led a Seminar for Parents of Teenagers on Saturday. We had a low turnout, but we WERE competing with a Bank Holiday weekend and BRILLIANT weather! In the end, I was happy with it all.

From the seminar, we are starting a parenting community (with Tim and Sheila) that will meet for 6 weeks from 13 May (and hopefully continue on from there). I received a phone call from a parent yesterday who had received a flyer for the seminar and was very interested, but her family was away on the day. She asked if we had another seminar planned in the area. Currently we don't have another seminar in the diary, but I did tell her about the parenting community. She and her husband are now very excited to be a part of this community and wants to invite friends. I have had similar responses from 2 single mothers as well, not to mention the contacts that Tim and Sheila have.

So, all in all, it's rather exciting. It's all so new, but we have glimpses of great things.

You can see our upcoming schedule to the right. Please be in prayer over these things - not for our own fulfillment, but for the glory of God.

He gives beauty for ashes, strength for fear, gladness for mourning, peace for despair...

I just received one of the most exciting phone calls that I've received in a long time. We now have our first official registration for the Parents of Teenagers Seminar! We have just begun putting out flyers in local businesses and distributing them through our social networks. Please pray diligently that God will stir the hearts of parents, especially fathers.

-We have begun a conversation with a local partner about coming under their umbrella for Limited Liability Insurance. We hope to know this week if their insurance would extend to other locations.
-A new member to our London team arrives on Thursday. Christie will teach one of the children of a family on our team and work with South Asian women teaching English classes. She has arrived in a good time of year (the sun is beginning to peak through the clouds and the days are getting longer), but she still has a difficult three months ahead of her as she adjusts to this drastically different culture.
-We will begin inquiries this week into space for our art exhibit as long as I can muster the motivation. Honestly, it's the one part that I'm least excited about.

Life can only be put into perspective by death...

So we stepped away from it all for a bit to holiday in Rome and hit the ground running when we got back. I really don't feel like I have taken a breath since. Sorry for not updating our prayer space in SO long, but thank you so much for your prayers.

We received news on Monday that my brother, Philip's, best friend since he was young died in a tragic accident (as if any accident wouldn't be tragic). I grew up with Logan. He has always just been part of the family, and since I moved out it has never been uncommon to see his face when I walk through my parents' front door. It's a bit surreal for me right now. Even after talking with my family and Logan's mum, I can't imagine the shock of it all for them.

So I'm going through these days with a bit of my heart back in Texas (more than usual). But God is so good in so many ways.

-Both Acton High School and Twyford High School are VERY keen to partner with us on the art exhibit for teenagers that we will host in May. Praise God!
-We are still looking for a location for thie SPACE.
-We have reserved a space at Elthorne High School for the Seminar for Parents of Teenagers on 2 May. Every step of the way I realise how much our success with parents has little to do with us and everything to do with God's plan for His Glory.
-Elthorne High School is requiring us to have Limited Liability Insurance in order to use the space. I am hoping that one of our local partners will serve as an umbrella for us on this.

Keep checking this space for updates or subscribe to our RSS feed.

When's the last time that you stepped away from the chaos and stress in the middle of it all?

I am sitting in Rome right now updating this section. It's a bit surreal sometimes when I look around and realise where we are and where we have been. By American standards this probably isn't the best time for us to be away for 6 days, but it has been SO GOOD to have little responsibility and no stress. We have a seminar for parents of teenagers coming up on 2 May and an art exhibit for teenagers on 28-30 May. That's just around the corner and several pieces to the puzzle have yet to fall into place. But with your prayers we have no doubt that God will bring glory to His name through our efforts to follow him closely.

We are...
1) still searching for a space for the art exhbit. A space on the high street in Acton with a large enough open plan to ehibit art and interact with teenagers.
2) waiting to hear anything from Elthorne High School about providing a space at the school for the parents seminar.
3) developing some new relationships with some guys in London that have a heart for teenagers and passion for Jesus with a vision that matches up with ours. (www.regenerateuk.co.uk)

What's God doing? We can't always see it but recently we have seen...
- our UK license for sponsorship granted by the Home Office. This means that we will be able to keep people with our company in the UK and will allow new personnel to enter the country.
- Acton High school agree to provide art from their students for the art show. We hope that this will open a door for continuing partnership.

We're in Rome until 11 March, soaking up the sunshine!

When your internal motivation fails you, what makes you press on?

Nick and Shannan have settled in Lisbon, Portugal for the next 4 months. Thank you for praying for them while we all listened intently for God's direction.

Visas
We have been informed by the UK Border Agency that our company can apply to be a sponsor of our own personnel in the UK since we pay taxes and own property here. This is a huge answer to prayer!

Our business office is applying this week with the UK Border Agency. We have to submit a letter from the company stating that we operate in the UK as International Board, as well as information about what we do, and lastly, proof of property ownership and payment of taxes. It seems pretty straight forward, but we need all the prayer support we can get.

The good news is, the UK Border Agency said we can apply for as many “Certificates of Sponsorship” as we need. We have two new team members meant to arrive in April who need visas. We are praying that God will grant our sponsorship by the end of the month.

Art in Acton
We are working towards hosting an art exhibit by and with teenagers at the end of May. This space will allow us to begin building appropriate relationships with local teens who are distant from the church. At the event, we will promote a photography club for teenagers. We are still developing the details of the club, but basically we will meet up each Saturday and go somewhere to take pictures together. We will set a schedule of themes (like landscapes, architecture, urban graffiti, sport, etc) for each week and the group will share ideas and knowledge. The point is to regularly be alongside of the same teenagers.

Ultimately, we desire to see teenagers recognise the life that they can have following Jesus. Everything that we do is about sifting through to find where the Holy Spirit is already working. We hope that through this club we will find a handful of teenagers that God begins to speak to and we can begin to disciple (not just do Bible studies with but truly disciple in life).

We are praying:
1) that we find a space for the art exhibit in May.
2) that the art teachers at Acton High School will be keen to partner with us.
3) that this will build a natural bridge into the community.

Have you ever actually seen the crystals of a snowflake with your naked eye?

Today we were blessed with a London blizzard! Eight inches of snow in 24 hours. It was gorgeous. The entire city ground to a halt and families came out to play together. We are so blessed by the friends that we have here and their constant example of humility before God. We spent the day with two families from our team and a friend who is praying about coming to work with us here. It is good to slow down and just be.

To follow up on our last note, we have been unsuccessful in our attempts for Nick and Shannan to enter the UK. On Friday afternoon we received word from the last possible sponsor, and informed Nick and Shannan on Saturday. We are disappointed to say the least, but we press on with them in faith that God does not cease to remain the creator and Lord simply because we cannot understand life.

Nick and Shannan (along with two other interns who were bound for Cardiff) should make a decision this week about their new home for the next 5 months. Please pray for them as they sort through God's direction in their life and make disciples of Jesus as they go. Pray that they will have opportunities to talk about the hope that they have and the courage and faith to share life with these people.

The grant application for the Hoodies youth centre was sent in today. Pray that this group will receive the proper funds to continue in the vision.

Angie and I will be working this week on our vision and goals for the next 6 months. God has begun to give shape to some of our passions. Pray for wisdom and guidance.

Landree has been with us for nearly a week now and will return to Texas on Wednesday. Please pray for her as she listens for God's voice in the midst of the chaos of this world. Right now we look forward to her joining us in the autumn, but we always want to leave room for God to change directions. For now we will begin a conversation about her fit within the vision that God is shaping in front of us.

When it all goes wrong...

I am amazed by the number of people that have told me recently that they are praying for what God is doing through and around us in London. Thank you for your love and encouragement.

I have meant to update this section for over a week now but have been bombarded with unexpected events. Some of you will know that our Hands On interns were meant to arrive this past Sunday. Well, unfortunately they have yet to put their feet on the ground in London. After a brilliant week of orientation in Paris, we headed for the train to journey across the channel. But it wasn't to happen. Border control had questions about their entry and in the end decided that they would not be allowed into the UK.

On 24 November the visa regulations for the UK drastically changed. However, a colleague had attended a seminar to learn about the changes and was assured that the volunteer sector would not be affected until later this year. On Sunday we found out the hard way that he had received bad information. After about a half hour of waiting for the border control's decision, Nick and Shannan were issued papers outlining their denial to enter the UK. Confused and taken off guard, we wandered back into Paris. They are still in Paris with colleagues while I work with our company here in the UK to sort this mess.

We have researched and are currently pursuing our options. Without going deep into the details, we must locate a sponsor willing to serve as an umbrella organisation in this instance. We have several contacts that are considering their involvement. All we can do now is pray fervently for God's glory. Please pray with us today that God would provide for Nick and Shannan (and two other interns meant to be in Cardiff, Wales) a sponsor to enter the UK. They have all followed God's direction in their life and prepared dilligently to be here. We are praying that God will receive glory in their obedience.

There's probably no god...

_

...says an advertisement campaign on 800 buses across Britain. Some of you may have heard the news. On 6 January the ad campaign was officially introduced.

God is always at work around us if we will just take the time to look. Originally, the word "probably" was not included in the adverts. However, the organiser of the campaign said in October that the word "probably" was included to ensure the posters did not breach transit advertising regulations, which stipulate ads should not offend religious people. God at work.

The whole campaign is an AMAZING thing for us! Just yesterday I spoke with one of the teenagers that I hang out with about a conversation he had this week with one of his mates about the signs. They talked about God in a way that they never would have without the adverts.

If you pray for this, pray that Christians in London will not take offense, but will take every opportunity to share the love of Christ. Pray that conversations about God will arise where they otherwise would not have. Pray that people in London will begin to consider the place of God in their life.

Thanks for the prayers. Read the actual article at http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/comment/faith/article5459138.ece

• Chris will meet our interns in Paris on the 19th for Orientation. They are currently packing their house and attempting to sell both the house and a vehicle. Please pray fervantly for Nick and Shannan as they prepare to make this move.
• The Hoodies project continues to go well. Last night we had a great meeting that included discussion of ways to engage the teen community in South Acton (a town in the Borough of Ealing, West London)
• We have a meeting in the diary for next week to begin talking about hosting a Seminar for Parents of Teenagers this spring in Elthorne. Please pray that we will find a person of influence in the local high school who is supportive of our efforts.
  

What if we miss the miracles around us everyday because we expect them to look like magic, instead of God's redemption of this corrupted world?

So, I thought I'd start titling our new prayer updates with an interesting question or random thought. We'll see how long that lasts;)

We had a great 2 weeks with our friend from the States. We also had a conversation with the people at Crossroads Baptist Church in Leesburg, VA this afternoon via Skype. We shared a bit of what God is doing through and around us, and had the privilege of encouraging them to support so many people like us through the Lottie Moon Christmas Offering (Video). If you're visiting our site from Leesburg, welcome and thank you for your support.

Please pray this week...

- that we would thrive in spite of the darkness, both spiritual and physical. The days continue to get shorter (currently the sun rises at 8am and sets at 4pm) and the clouds hover for long periods of time. It's easy to see why the people of this city could be so closed off.

- for a promising lead on housing for our interns who arrive in January.

- that we will seek God and hear from Him. It's easy to build momentum and then begin to run on our own strength. Well, I say it's easy, but in the end it's not. It is easy to be decieved and begin to think that we have everything under control. But we know that only God has life in control and our efforts are futile. We've been encouraged by several things recently, but with the good can come the temptation to take control.

- for our good friend Jeremy who is interviewing at 1pm our time on Monday for a job in Cairo. Ask God to give him wisdom and discernment. He hasn't lost his job and wasn't looking to move. But this opportunity was set before him. The job would mean a significant move for his wife and two kids. Pray that God would give him clarity and that he would consider God's glory in his decision.

There's always so much more. Please continue to pray that God will be glorified in the areas mentioned in the last update as well.

We love you...