It's all a bit unreal

We have just 5 days to go before we leave to spend 2 to 3 years in Niger. We don't think we will be coming back during that time, and it will be the longest period any of us will have been away from "home". We've been to Niger before, virtually 4 years between us, but it will be different this time. We are excited that after nearly 5 years of thinking and preparing, the Lord has cleared the way for us to go. But it is still strange to think in less than a week we will be in a very different place.
We have hit the ice cream quite hard, and I've been trying to soak up the lush countryside around.
We are very grateful to Sarah Ingram and also Sally Driscoll, who have helped us with minding Samuel and Rachel, so that we can sort and pack in a more focused way. That has helped a lot.
At Christ Church there was a lunch and prayer time for us last Sunday. This was a great encouragement. We know that we are loved and will be prayed for by many at Christ Church. Also Dr. Tim Trumper was able to recognise us at the evening service of Seventh Reformed Church and we met with many of the congregation there, who also love us and will be praying for us. It is still weird to think we won't see these friends for over 2 years, and Samuel and Rachel will have grown a lot by then.

So the next blog from us will probably be from Niger. We commend ourselves and you to the Lord's gracious care until then.
Alan