News Update

It's carnival time in Europe and although sadly in some cases these few days give an excuse for uncontrolled drinking and licentiousness in its moderate form it seems to give every age group a happy party spirit. The pensioners of Utzenfeld had their monthly gathering in Haus Barnabas this past week and most of them arrived in funny hats! See our photo. The Kindergarten encouraged the children to go in fancy dress. This pleased Esther tremendously, as she loves dressing up. One day she went as a fairy and the next in Tom's pirate costume!
On the more positive side for us because the weekend, and for the schools also next week, is holiday we have had guests in the house. We are enjoying fellowship with an American couple based in Germany and also a Welsh-Irish lady living in Prague where she teaches at an international school. Meal times have been a delightful time of sharing cross-cultural experiences and our guests are entering whole-heartedly into our Sunday worship and fellowship meetings. The weather remains snowy with sub-zero temperatures and our teacher from Prague is looking forward to cross-country skiing this coming week.
Our Sunday sermon was based on Peter's enquiry 'Lord what about this man?' and Jesus' answer 'What is that to you? You follow me.' from John 21: 21-22.

News Update

It's good to be back in Utzenfeld even though we were welcomed back by snow. The worst of this had come a week earlier and the picture shows that despite the weather Haus Barnabas was still open for weary travellers and local villagers wanting an excuse for a walk and 'Kaffee und Kuchen'. It is unusual for the weather to bring life to a halt as is so often the case in the UK so Deb pulled Esther to Kindergarten on the sledge and Tom's bus to his school in the next village ran on time.
We have been working on the arrangements and programme for our proposed Easter house-party with Bible ministry and you will find details of this on our web page. Why not consider joining us for Easter? Or maybe it's not too late to come and enjoy the snow. The forecast is for the weather to get colder again and skiing conditions are ideal on the Feldberg and other slopes.
We got a lot of blessing from hymns from 'Praise' on the journey home here on Friday .... 'Through floods and flames He leads me safely on, and daily makes His sovereign goodness known'

News Update

Having been travelling around the southern counties of Britain this month it has been difficult to keep up the weekly news updates. My apologies to those of you who follow our activities for interest and prayer. We have had encouraging times with a number of different churches and also afternoons of 'reunions' with guests and friends in Stanmore and Basildon. The crowning blessing was the privilege of taking part in the baptism of Richard and Michelle Smith this past Sunday at Kingswood Baptist Church, Basildon. See picture.

Richard and Michelle came to Haus Barnabas with their children as part of the 'Family Week' last May and it was through that week that the Holy Spirit touched their hearts and as Richard said to me at the close of the week - 'I know my life has got to change'. After attending the services as his local Baptist Church and an Alpha Course they both responded to the call of Christ and see their baptism as the beginning of a new life of following Jesus with the help of His promised Holy Spirit. Please pray for them and their family of four children. They are due to come out to Haus Barnabas again in May 2010. (See http://www.kingswoodbaptistchurch.com/testimonies.html for Richard's and Michelle's testimonies.

Happy New Year

A happy and blessed new year to you all

Psalm 91

1 Those who live in the shelter of the Most High
will find rest in the shadow of the Almighty.
2 This I declare about the Lord:
He alone is my refuge, my place of safety;
he is my God, and I trust him.
3 For he will rescue you from every trap
and protect you from deadly disease.
4 He will cover you with his feathers.
He will shelter you with his wings.
His faithful promises are your armor and protection.
5 Do not be afraid of the terrors of the night,
nor the arrow that flies in the day.
6 Do not dread the disease that stalks in darkness,
nor the disaster that strikes at midday.
7 Though a thousand fall at your side,
though ten thousand are dying around you,
these evils will not touch you.
8 Just open your eyes,
and see how the wicked are punished.

9 If you make the Lord your refuge,
if you make the Most High your shelter,
10 no evil will conquer you;
no plague will come near your home.
11 For he will order his angels
to protect you wherever you go.
12 They will hold you up with their hands
so you won't even hurt your foot on a stone.
13 You will trample upon lions and cobras;
you will crush fierce lions and serpents under your feet!

14 The Lord says, "I will rescue those who love me.
I will protect those who trust in my name.
15 When they call on me, I will answer;
I will be with them in trouble.
I will rescue and honor them.
16 I will reward them with a long life
and give them my salvation."

Holy Bible, New Living Translation ®, copyright © 1996, 2004 by Tyndale Charitable Trust. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers. All rights reserved.

News Update

Our first significant personal contact with continental Europe came in 1972 when two au-pair girls from Switzerland came into the small Baptist chapel in Surrey where Len was pastor. Both found a personal faith in the Lord Jesus during their 6 months with us and this aroused in us an interest and prayerful concern for German speaking Europe. It was more than 10 years before we, Len & Phyl and our two sons, moved out to Basel in September 1983 to begin a new phase in our life and ministry, but the seed of God's call had been first sown on that Sunday evening when the two Erikas had come into our home after the evening service in Horley.

This past weekend the two Erikas visited us again. This time in Haus Barnabas in Utzenfeld. Much water has flowed under the bridges of our lives during these intervening 38 years and of course we have kept in touch to some degree, but it was great this weekend to spend time together, to worship together and encourage each other afresh.

News Update

We are encouraged to have about eight folk from the village coming regularly to special events we arrange and several of these are keeping in contact between times by coming into the cafe. It was good to welcome most of these to our Carol evening yesterday together with a few others from Todtnau and Schönau. We valued also the participation of our son Geoff with Ruth and Barney, Tim & Beatice. The picture shows some of the Utzenfeld villagers during a more serious moment of the proceedings.

Our Christmas arrangements with guests has developed in unexpected ways. A British couple expected are sadly now unable to come because of serious ill health, but over the Christmas/New Year period we are now expecting two individuals and a family from Switzerland.

We have had severe low temperatures and fairly substantial snow and were awaken last night by water cascading through the ceiling of our upstairs corridor, and to some degree down to the ground floor below, through a frozen pipe bursting and defrosting! Our work will be cut out to get everything dry and ship-shape before the first guest arrives on Christmas eve! There are no dull moments in Haus Barnabas but it is good too to see our Lord's providential timing of our problems. As friend Spurgeon once said, God makes his grace available in an unlimited way but metes out the gall and vinegar in carefully prescribed amounts.

News Update

Snow has arrived here in the Black Forest. The attached photo was taken by one of our guests on the Feldberg last week. In the far distance is a clear view of the snow-capped Swiss Alps and on the Feldberg itself there was sufficient snow for skiing to have begun.
In Haus Barnabas we are engrossed in preparations for Christmas and also for the on-going work in 2010. We are planning for a Carol service in our lounge on Sunday evening which will be mainly in German but including well know English carols and are also busy printing our own Black Forest calendar which also includes information about the house particularly for those thinking of visiting next year. We are happy to send a copy of this to you without charge on request either by email to len.holder@haus-barnabas.com or by telephone in the UK to Rosemary Edwards on 01227 363857.
Len & Phyl plan to be in England again in January and all are invited to our 'Reunion' meeting at Stanmore Chapel, Marsh Lane, HA7 4HP on Saturday afternoon 23rd January, commencing at 14.30.