Five Months in Manchester
Delana and I have now been in Manchester, UK, for just over five months. So many of you have supported us through prayer and giving, and we want to give you an update on what life has looked like since moving to Manchester. It has been a multifaceted season, and it would be difficult to capture everything in one post, so we’ll just hit the highlights.
Acclimation and Settling
Moving internationally with four children has come with a lot of learning opportunities. We’ve suddenly had to relearn basic things you take for granted in life: how to grocery shop, cell phone functionality, transportation, kids’ education, etc. We not only moved from the United States to the United Kingdom, but from a rural environment to an urban context. This has caused a reset in every area of our daily rhythm. At one point, Delana said to me, “It’s good for us to be learners again.” The acclimation and settling process has demanded a fresh humility as we learn from others and a fresh grace for ourselves as we find our way in this new season of life.
Investment into Ramp Church Manchester
In October 2017, Joe and Stacie Reeser officially launched Ramp Church Manchester. Since then, it has continued to grow into a thriving community of faith, contending for revival here in the UK. Since we’ve arrived, we’ve learned so much from this community, and we’ve also been able to invest into this local work. That has happened in a number of ways:
Team meetings - We strategize with other leaders, seeking the counsel of the Lord for Manchester.
Prayer meetings - Prayer happens in a variety of ways throughout the week, from pre-service prayer meetings to mid-week prayer communities to weekly staff prayer spaces. We regularly join and lead in these different prayer expressions.
Relational investment - It has been a joy to reconnect with old friends and also develop new relationships. Through these, we see the Lord strengthening hearts as we make a relational investment here.
Ramp Church services - We attend each Ramp Church service and regularly minister at them. We have been very moved by the congregation’s receptivity of us as we’ve ministered in worship and in the word.
University Engagement
In September 2022, Ramp Church launched a second location on Oxford Road, which is situated on the campus of the University of Manchester. Our hearts are gripped by the university students as they are coming to Sunday night services and joining the young adult small group communities. This is exciting as it touches one of the core prophetic words behind the Ramp’s work in Manchester: “I will raise up an army of the young . . . .”
Itinerant Ministry and Special Events
I’ve had the opportunity to preach at several events hosted by other ministries and churches. This has given me a fresh perspective on the condition of the youth here. There is certainly a need for spiritual awakening, but I don’t sense a resistance or rejection toward the word of the Lord. There is an openness and even a curiosity toward the things of God. It reminds me of the words of Jesus, describing the harvest as ripe and the need for laborers as great.
Delana and I partnered with James Aladiran in all night prayer, jointly hosted by Ramp Church Manchester and Prayer Storm. We led the 4:00–6:00 a.m. set, contending for revival and awakening on a national level. The sanctuary remained full all night long as all ages co-labored with God in prayer.
In November, it was such a joy to lead alongside Joe, Stacie, and the whole Ramp UK team for the November Ramp conference. Our hearts were so encouraged by the testimonies in the altars as we saw the same fruit here in the UK as a Ramp conference in the US. The presence of God changes lives.
Israel Happenings
One of the reasons we are here in the UK is greater clarity for the Ramp’s and our prophetic storyline regarding Israel. That process is underway as we continue to have odd God-happenings. Those have come in the form of unusual relationships and opportunities. We continue to meet people who have a call to (and/or a work among) the Jewish people.
Furthermore, I had the honor of co-leading a YWAM team to Israel. It was comprised of YWAM’s key global leaders. This trip comes at a crucial junction in YWAM’s organizational life as they are asking the Lord for strategic direction for the next generation. During the trip, they experienced a deep heart connection with the land and people. Now, they are prayerfully asking the Lord what it looks like for YWAM to engage Israel as a global missionary movement. YWAM is the largest missions organization in the world, and, perhaps, the largest in human history.
There is much more to report about the first five months, but we will limit this post to those updates. Delana and I can not thank you enough for being a part of this story. You, our family and friends, are very close to our hearts. We think about you daily, and we have felt the Lord’s sustaining hand through your prayers.
If you’d like more information on how to financially support us, you can find those details here.