On the Move.

Some news about Holmsted Manor:

Soaking up the sun on an abnormally warm day.

If you were to compare the Holmsted Manor of today to the Holmsted Manor of a year ago, you wouldn't believe that it's the same YWAM base. Not even 13 months ago Holmsted took on new base leaders, Darrin and Amiee Haase. They came to a large, empty house with only 9 staff and a growing chance of having to sell YWAM's 3rd oldest base, having not been used to it's fullest potential. By the grace of God, He has walked with Darrin and Amiee and allowed them to turn Holmsted a complete 180 degrees away from it's downward slope into a new, rapidly growing and exciting chapter for the manor. NOTE: I am just an observer of this change that I am seeing and what I have heard. I mean no harm, hurt, or shame to the old base directors.

Within a year, the amount of staff has rocketed to about 30 people, and is continually growing! There are so many projects going on and new ones are constantly starting that it is difficult to keep track of them all.

• There is a local portuguese church plant and a church plant in the Middle East. 
• There is an outreach to public schools. More schools want us, but we don't have enough staff yet.
• A preschool on the base is in the making. We're beginning to renovate the garage right now! 
• A cafe in the Manor is going to be open to the public. A team from Washington recently came and helped renovate the room.
• King's Kids. About 30 kids are coming on Wednesday for a week to share the gospel.
• We have empty land that has not reached it's potential, but will in the future.

These are just some of the things that I can remember off the top of my mind. Holmsted is rapidly moving forward and hasn't even moved at it's greatest speed yet. The Manor is so full of life, with staff, DTS students, and visitors all the time. Right now we have a DTS from Panama helping us out with renovations and Kings Kids. It's exciting to be a part of Holmsted in this exciting chapter of growth and rebirth. This land is fertile and it is going to bear much fruit.

Eating ice cream and brownies with Julia at the local pub.

My life at Holmsted:


I am about to begin my fifth week of DTS! Time is flying by. My days are full. My head is filled with information. I'm learning lots about God, the Bible, and myself. I'm trying to process as much as I can. I'm taking steps of faith. I'm loving living in community.

During the week I pretty much stay on base. For this, I look forward to getting out on the weekends. This past Saturday some friends and I took a taxi, two trains, and worked my way around the London Underground to reach the city of Oxford. It was a nice trip out and there was so much to see. We were able to walk to every location. We saw lots of old buildings. We went to the pub and used the loo where J.R.R. Tolkien and C.S. Lewis met up to discuss theology and their books. And we went to Christ Church, which inspired the Great Hall in Harry Potter and had a hall that was filmed in a few scenes. It also inspired some of Alice in Wonderland. Oxford really is a college town. The university is all over the city, with colleges placed on almost every corner. The history in this town is unbelievable. It was a perfect day trip!

St. Mary's Church

Last week we had exciting news: we learned our outreach locations! The options are Iceland, India, and Fiji! I know exactly where I'm going, but the teams aren't official yet, so it needs to be kept quiet until the teams are announced. I'll update when I know I can share that information. But let me tell you that I'm very excited for it! God's gonna do some good stuff on outreach! :)

We got kicked out of here for taking too many pictures.

A typical Oxford Street.

Where J.R.R. Tolkien and C.S. Lewis often met.