Mr. Research Man!!

Some of the old buildings in Oxford are spectacular, but I think the upkeep of the Rhode's House is exceptional. Below, you see Steve in the Rhode's House Library doing his work, diligently. After a long day of research, we walk down this hall (pictured left) admiring the paintings and tapestries.
On the far right you meet one of the security guards. He makes sure we get out of there in time, so he can go home too!! Outside, the front of the Rhode's House building is pictured on
the left. There'll be more photos of this place in the coming weeks.

Oxford Centre for Mission Studies

WOW!! What an exciting day!! We met with Joshua (pictured below) at the Rhodes House doing PhD work in Missiology. He is a Korean missionary (from the largest church in the world, Seoul, Korea) in Kenya. He comes for 3 weeks and then goes back to
Kenya. He's doing his work through the Oxford Centre for Mission Studies (OCMS). He invited us to come for the chapel service today. Once we
found out where the OCMS was (a few blocks from Wycliffe Hall), we walked over. The street pictured above, gives you an idea of how small the streets are in Oxford. The man who spoke was a Jamaican, who is a businessman
living in Oxford. We were privileged to also meet Oliver, from Kenya, who is Deputy Secretary of the National Council of Churches, studying through OCMS for his PhD. We chatted with him for a while, when he was at Rhodes House, and in between his research. Another PhD student, American missionary with YWAM in India was ready to lecture, when we were asked if we would like to listen to what he has been studying. All these men have tremendous influence around the world. Their love for God and their passion for what they are doing emanated from them.

Wycliffe Hall in the Spring

Down in Oxford, we have been staying at Wycliffe Hall, named after John Wycliffe. The photo directly below, shows where Steve and I are staying.
Go down the steps to the door. On the ground floor, the set of 3 windows, left (that you can't see, but know they're there) on the ground floor is our room. The back yard (garden) at Wycliffe is pictured on the right. That handsome dude stopped to
take this photo, as he was on his way to Rhodes House to do
research. It's been so pretty outside, it's hard not to enjoy everything in bloom.

Oxford and the countryside

Oxford is full of tall buildings. We're in the center of town. We're at the Christ Church Cathedral and surroundings.

Above, left, is in downtown Oxford, where the road forks and there's St. Giles church in the middle. The walkway, in the middle of a graveyard with the pretty trees in bloom don't make the church and graveyard scary!! Immediate left, is typical this week of the country roads, trees in bloom and stone walls. They have moss and vines growing all over them. It's unique. Do you see any of that in USA?

St. Thomas of Canterbury in Elsfield, N. Oxford

This little "country" church had the bells going before the service. We
sat in the pews (not very comfortable), but had the original 12th century pillars still holding up part of the church.
Steve is standing at the entrance of the church with Pastor (Vicar) Tony who's been there for 20 years. As you can see parking at the Church Farm, we were introduced to the chickens and an
awesome peacock, at least that's what Steve says it is. It was a sunny day, but brisk.

After the service, we had a cup of coffee, and as usual, we were one of the last ones to leave. It was "WOW" kind of place. I wanted to take photos inside, but they were remodeling inside, and redoing the Mosaic on the back wall. Hubert Allen told us that the cost was about 150,000 pounds. No wonder it was gorgeous.

Boys Brigade

The Boys Brigade has several active boys and even 2 girls that would rather be in Boys Brigade than Girls Guides. I don't think the girls are
official members, but they rough and tumble just as much as the boys do.When you have an opportunity, maybe with a magnifying glass, read the Boys Brigade Prayer above. We pray this prayer will become part of their heart and mind as they grow up.

Samuel, regularly plays guitar and sings with the boys. The leaders have become good friends of Samuel. Sitting next to Samuel, is David. He loves the Bible Stories on Sundays and is never short of words. We've told his parents, we think God has something up His sleeve for David. They do say he has a tremendous amount of energy!!

Daffodil time!!

This time of the year is so beautiful, especially when the sun is out. They come out, helping us all enjoy nature, BUT they only
are out for a short time. To the right are the daffodils in the back yard garden. The left and below are from the front yard (garden).

Driving along to Lancaster University, you
can see the daffodils are everywhere!! It just makes you know that God is in the creation business!! As you also can see, "THE SUN IS SHINING!" It happens on occasion :)