Hello everyone! Here's our final update from the UK!

 

NOW--->

 

Well, two weeks from today we will be back in the USA! It's been crazy the last month as we have been saying good bye, packing boxes, giving stuff away, throwing things out and deciding what few things we will take to Florida with us.

 

We started leading ELCO (English Language and Community Outreach) today. We have 11 participants from Germany, Switzerland, China, South Korea, Finland, Poland, Bulgaria and Romania. We are teaching English classes each morning and then doing community outreach each afternoon, working with a local church. We are excited to see what God will do through the group over the next two weeks!

 

THE NEXT FEW MONTHS-->

 

We are flying back on Sunday, August 5th. I have to fly back on Tuesday, August 7th because we are bringing our dog Toby back with us and the US customs don't work on weekends...

 

The kids have places at Indian Rocks Christian School and will be attending there this year. We are so blessed that the kids can attend such a great school that is high in academics and spiritual guidance. School starts on August 15th for the kids.

 

I will be meeting with OM USA as soon as we settle in at home and will be working out my next step with them. Most likely, I will be working with the College Ministry team mobilizing College/University students for missions. I'll let you all know the details as soon as I know them! It sounds very exciting for me and will allow me time to study theology part-time as I pursue my Master's Degree.

 

Lisa will be looking to teach English when we get back to Florida, both in church ministry and in a professional job.

 

We will be living with my sister and her family for the next few months as we work out getting our own home. Pray for them as they will be invaded by the 5 of us and Toby!

 

FINAL THOUGHTS AND FEELINGS-->

 

We are excited about moving back to Florida, but are very sad to leave here. This has been home for the past three years. We love our town, our church, our work and the people here. We love the weather (call us crazy!). We love our church, too. The church prayed for us in the morning service yesterday and it was encouraging to see how many people said how much we have impacted their lives over the past few years. God has been so good to us to allow us to serve at such a wonderful church and be a part of seeing God change lives. We will miss living here. We are sad to leave but excited to be going to Florida to see what God has in store for this next chapter in our lives.

 

May the Lord bless you all as much as He has blessed us,

 

Tommy Tully

I love bank holidays! It’s a lazy day here at the Tully house and we are getting together some care packages to send to Florida. All the shops are closed in the UK today so we are enjoying time together as a family.

 

Jack, Tess and I made cookies this morning and they are very yummy! Chocolate cookies with milk chocolate and white chocolate chips. Mmmm! We made loads of cookies and a nice mess, too.

 

I have been in Hungary for two weeks as part of a training team for the EquipT “Train the Trainer” course. Sixteen people from around Europe came to Hungary to learn practical training tips and skills to make them better trainers. It was a great time and I enjoyed working with a great training team as well as getting to know some great trainers from around Europe. It was so much fun watching “grown-ups” getting into activities and having fun while learning. You can tell from the photos, we had a great time with the interactive learning!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Lisa is teaching English 2 days a week now and we are starting some English classes for some Chinese restaurant workers in a few weeks. We are getting the materials together and ironing out the scheduling details. Exciting!

 

I am busy with developing the OM Lifehope training and looking after the community teams. My new role as Area Training Officer for Europe also has me busy developing a new model for European-wide training for 2008 as well as working with a team revising and developing a core study program that will be available to all OM fields around the world for training during people’s first year in OM.

 

 

Bless you,

 

Tommy

The newest Tully is named Toby! He is an adorable Jack Russell Terrier. He’s 9 weeks old and as cute as a button!

Hello everyone,

 

I have begun this update dozens of times in my head. I have thought of all kinds of clever opening sentences. I have had so many stories to share with all of you. But the truth is, I have been so involved in our ministry here that I have had little time to do much else but just keep going.

 

So much has happened since we returned home to England after a great 9-week visit to family and friends in Florida. We arrived on New Year’s Eve and have been busy ever since! 

 

Lisa is teaching English three days a week at the Brasshouse Language Centre, the same school that we took our courses last summer. It’s quite a bit of work, but she is learning so much from the other instructors and the professional experience she is receiving will help us as we continue developing English teaching ministries here at LUKE. Please pray for her! She spends quite a bit of time planning for each teaching day as well as teaching the 4-hour classes Monday through Wednesday.

 

I have been 110% involved in training here at LUKE. We have the largest group of new missionaries in training that we have had since I came here almost three years ago! It’s awesome! I have been teaching quite a bit and I am supervising and mentoring two of our community outreach teams here in Birmingham - Alum Rock and Smethwick. The teams are getting involved in ministry and are serving the communities with the love of Jesus. I love it!

 

The kids have wished many times that we could move back to Florida. They miss their cousins, grandparents, aunts and uncles and all of our extended family and friends. I won’t lie and say that it’s easy being here. We love what we are doing but we also are torn as we are far away from our family that we love so much. I have read Luke 14:26 before many times, but usually skipped over it since I never really understood or related to it. Jesus says, 

 

“If you want to be my disciple, you must hate everyone else by comparison—your father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters—yes, even your own life. Otherwise, you cannot be my disciple.”

 

This passage seemed to settle somewhere deep within me. Do I really have to HATE my family to follow Jesus? Because, I love them all so much. My heart aches to be with them. Then I began to understand what Jesus is saying. I heard Him saying to me that I was obeying what He had asked us to do - both Lisa and I. And by serving here in England we are acting out our faith in Him. We are choosing to follow Him here even though we have to leave our family and friends behind to do so. And Lisa and I know without a shadow of doubt that this is where God wants us to be. We feel as if we were made for this life that we are living now. And to tell you the truth, it feels pretty good...even though it hurts sometimes. 

 

Please keep in touch with us through email, letter or even call us on the phone is you would like! We love hearing from all of you!

 

Thanks for your love and support,

 

Tommy