Jonas Centre Blog 2017

How often do we stop? Stop what we're doing, put down our phones, and sit still and quietly. Not moving, not talking, not doing, just being in the moment.  I hardly ever do this. I'm always thinking of what job I need to do next, how long my to do list is, who I need to visit/ call/ text/ email/ WhatsApp/ Facebook. But this evening, I sat and watched my children mess around playing football. It's our last day at the Jonas Centre - rolling green fields surround us, the sky is blue at 8pm, the weather's warm, the atmosphere kind, uplifted, restful. And the boys and girls are kicking, scoring, tackling, saving, falling over each other and giggling non-stop. It's wonderful. My kids are having the time of their lives and I can't think of a better place to be. Watching them makes me laugh out loud and feel warm to my very core.  This evening, I'm sitting outside my cabin and everyone else is asleep. All I can hear is the gentle breeze in the

Thank you Simon and Jo for hosting us all and treating us with so much love and grace. Thank you to all our amazing children who worked so hard (Jamie, Luke and Edmund didn't stop!), played hard and have been kind to each other. They've served the Jonas Centre, served God and served each other.  Thank you to Becky for running our fantastic kids club (and the wonderful tile gift to the Jonas Centre) and to John, Joanna and Patricia for the music. Thank you Sarah, Gerry and Stephen for organising and praying for us all. Debbie for feeding us magnificently. And of course Julian and Emma for working tirelessly in the run up and over the last few days to make all this happen, so efficiently and so happily. Twice as many people means we've achieved twice as many jobs (and one happy Simon!).  And last but most importantly, thank you God for blessing us this week. The energy, sunshine, goodwill and good health have been down to You.

We've had such relaxing final day exploring the stunning countryside around the Jonas Centre. This morning lots of us climbed Penhill and others visited the Redmire and Aysgarth falls. After that, the ice creams at the nearby parlour were well deserved! A highlight of the day was Stephen Valter's quiz, which saw teams of six, fighting hard through several rounds but it was Team DJ Bowles who stormed it to victory. A huge thanks to John, Joanna and Patricia for leading the musicians this week. Thank you too, to Louise and the Crudgington family for leading our evening prayers and for reminding us how we have truly shone accomplishing what we have this week, as Jesus taught us to do. 'Let your light shine before others that they may see your good deeds and praise your father in heaven.' (Matthew 5, v16)

The weather is beautiful and so is Yorkshire. You could just stand and stare at Penhill all day, but there's work to do! Most of the children have chosen to work today, filling potholes, painting more fences and carrying rocks. Speaking of rocks, Duncan set the tone for the day with the parable of the man who built his house upon the rock. Encouraging us to do our best work, but also a reminder for us to live our lives on a strong foundation of faith.  Today, there's been more weeding, watering, painting, fence-building - and a small group of children, teens and adults worked through prayer on a Prayer Walk. They prayed for every part of the Jonas Centre, enjoying its peace as they blew bubbles of the Holy Spirit across its beautiful land.