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Dean and Paula in Blighty, autumn 2025 -
Dean and Paula pastor The Gathering -
Our beloved Palace - FA Cup winners 2025 -
The Gathering -
Baptising in the name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit -
Leaders preparing to serve at The Gathering's Soup Kitchen -
Soup Kitchen Xmas lunch
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Serving hands - the heart of The Gatheirng -
Thankful Thursdays -
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HOPE Home Based Care Team -
Gathering Ground -
The Helderberg - The prettiest of the mountains we face
Oh how we long for Summer!! This week has been hideous and exhausting. Joel kicked off with a nasty bout of flu one week ago which in true Joel style led to bronchialitis. He hates his medication and it is a real trial getting it down him. He has also been off of Play Group all week - oh brother! Then, on the routine trip to the doctor with Joel, Eli was diagnosed again with a double ear infection on top of his cold, so he has been miserable and on antibiotics. To cap it all Dean has been quickly sliding downhill only to be diagnosed today with bronchitis. Our doctor is becoming quite a family friend!! He is now on the same medication as Joel but 3 times the dosage. Whilst there, the doctor showed concern about Eli and inspected him again. It seems that his ear infections have got worse and he is now on a 10 day course of powerful antibiotic (his 3rd different type in 2½ weeks). This is all very wearing physically and emotionally and we have also found it very expensive. Much as we may have moaned about the NHS in the past, we have spent the best part of £80 this week alone on doctor's visits and medication, none of which is covered by medical aid.
Joel went with Twinkle Tots to the local fire station this morning and had a great time, despite the awful weather. Joel was a bit disappointed not to see Fireman Sam but was quite pleased to see Fireman Michael who is a real fireman. All the kids seemed to have a great time and there was an unusually good turnout of dads!
Our good friends Nikki & Rian recently moved to the UK for work and we miss them a lot! However, they are now online and have joined the 'Blogosphere' with their own Blog 'Carstens Experiences' where you can read about their new lives and see some great photos of their gorgeous kids.
This morning Dean attended Douglas' funeral and these were his thoughts afterwards:
So, how do you address the congregation at a funeral where you had little respect for the deceased and really didn't like him very much. After all, I only knew the man as a cantankerous old drunkard who placed a heavy burden on his son and never showed any appreciation for his loyalty and unconditional love.
So, how do you address the congregation at a funeral where you had little respect for the deceased and really didn't like him very much. After all, I only knew the man as a cantankerous old drunkard who placed a heavy burden on his son and never showed any appreciation for his loyalty and unconditional love.
I spoke to Michael this morning to find out what's happening with Douglas, as when we visited him in hospital on Friday evening he was unaware of why he was in hospital and what was going to be happening. I managed to explain to Douglas (with Michael's help) that he was due to have both his legs removed due to gangrene. As you could imagine Douglas was very upset, whilst Michael was just cross that the hospital staff hadn't informed Douglas about the impending surgery.
Watching 'Spikey', both Joel & Eli seem to enjoy watching Spikey, Joel enjoys feeding him bread (although we were told-off last time!)
We took a gamble on Saturday and decided to go to Hermanus to see if we could see any whales as the 'official' season is just about on us. Thankfully the weather was great and we did see a couple of whales although they weren't very close to the shore. Joel was excited but we could tell he was a little disappointed that we couldn't get a really clear view of the whales.Just before lunch it clouded over and the swell was increasing so we decided to go home via the coast road (the same road where Jaguar filmed their ad for the new XK!) and as we were about 15Kms from Gordon's Bay we saw a whale really close to the beach. Hope you enjoy the photos below.
My first week back in Chris Nissen was mainly taken up with visiting friends and reassuring folk that we had returned – it’s nice to know that we were missed. By and large, things seem to have ticked over quite well in our absence with the members of our groups having held onto some of the key teachings we imparted just prior to our leave. In particular, gossip amongst the brethren appears to have reduced which is an amazing answer to prayer! We now need to build on this and help people to move forwards, building on the works God is doing in their lives. As such, our groups will press on with basic biblical teachings and discipleship which is really key to seeing personal spiritual growth.
I (Paula) have arrived back in Somerset West with a bang. My first week was hectic, not least getting everyone used to the old routines again! It is very hard to get out of bed at 7 am when it is freezing and dark.... convincing Joel that it is time to get ready for nursery when it is like this is even harder!! Nonetheless, it has been good to catch up with old friends and to meet 6 newborn babies from the last 6 weeks! (still 4 more to come!! Eli is going to have a huge peer group and hopefully plenty of future wives to choose from!!). One of these is the new daughter of 2 teenagers in Chris Nissen. I went to see her on Friday with her mum and both are doing really well. It is so hard to believe that 7 months have gone by since Eli was that little! Also encouraging in Chris Nissen are 2 new groups set up by social welfare for pensioners and the ongoing creche which keeps going despite very limited resources, praise God!
This weekend is predicted to be the coldest of the year with snow falls on most mountains in the Western & Eastern Cape. Certainly it is very cold at the moment and after 5 weeks of decent weather in Blighty we're not really prepared for this.This is a picture of some ice we found in the garden this morning, just to prove it really is cold!
We certainly hit the ground running when we got home. Joel is back in the swing of nursery and friends which is great, he certainly seems to have got his rhythm back. Eli is about to start at a weekly baby group with Paula, whilst Paula has had to debrief our last FYP volunteer as well as juggle life.
Dean spent Monday afternoon in Chris Nissen visiting his friends and saying 'Hello' & catching up with many people. It was great to be there again and we definitely feel affirmed that this is where God wants us to be which is great as there is no better place to be!
Dean spent Monday afternoon in Chris Nissen visiting his friends and saying 'Hello' & catching up with many people. It was great to be there again and we definitely feel affirmed that this is where God wants us to be which is great as there is no better place to be!
We had a god time back in Blighty although it is good to be back home here in Somerset West. We didn't get to spend as much time with friends as we would have liked (hopefully we've not offended too many of you) but we were able to spend some quality time with a few friends who are special to the kids and we hope you enjoy the photos below.
The most excellent news on our arrival home was that Eli's name change is now 100% legal as we have his new birth certificate and ID number stating that Eli Thomas Finnie is here!
We are so grateful to God for this massive answer to prayer as it means we can now crack on and get other bits of paperwork sorted such as passports, residency etc.
We are so grateful to God for this massive answer to prayer as it means we can now crack on and get other bits of paperwork sorted such as passports, residency etc.
After an 11½ hour flight we're home and in one piece with no missing or damaged luggage!
We arrived at Heathrow quite early and had to wait to check in which went smoothly once it happened. We managed to find the only bit of terminal 4 from which you can watch the planes coming and going and Joel really enjoyed that. We had some dinner before boarding and that's when our evening started to go downhill. The manager of the restaurant told us that we'd have to take our trolley out of the restaurant (though it was causing less obstruction than the pushchair) and we had a bit of an argument over this. We couldn't believe how pedantic he was being, plus we didn't want to lose the trolley, so eventually we agreed that he could take the trolley on the condition that he finds us one after our meal. To cut it short, he stored the trolley in the entrance to the restaurant which caused mayhem and resulted in them losing several customers! Pathetic really.
We arrived at Heathrow quite early and had to wait to check in which went smoothly once it happened. We managed to find the only bit of terminal 4 from which you can watch the planes coming and going and Joel really enjoyed that. We had some dinner before boarding and that's when our evening started to go downhill. The manager of the restaurant told us that we'd have to take our trolley out of the restaurant (though it was causing less obstruction than the pushchair) and we had a bit of an argument over this. We couldn't believe how pedantic he was being, plus we didn't want to lose the trolley, so eventually we agreed that he could take the trolley on the condition that he finds us one after our meal. To cut it short, he stored the trolley in the entrance to the restaurant which caused mayhem and resulted in them losing several customers! Pathetic really.
We're in the last 24 hours of our time here in the UK as we fly out of Heathrow around 7pm on Saturday. Things are getting a bit tense in our house as we struggle with the packing and making sure that we're within our weight allowance, thankful we have just over 100Kgs allowance to return with which is a blessing.
On Tuesday Dad, Grandad and Joel went on the Romney, Hythe & Dymchurch Railway, a real boys day out. We had a lot of fun and hopefully will repeat the event next time we're home, so that Eli can join us.
Life has been very hectic since leaving the Lakes. We had an excellent Sunday with Holy Trinity at Gee Cross, and it was a pleasure staying overnight with Norma! After giving our Powerpoint presentation in the morning service we had a shared lunch in the church hall which was a great opportunity to meet people and to renew old acquaintances. Straight after lunch we shot off to Sheffield to stay with Roger, George, Yas' & Theo which was brilliant. Sadly it was a real flying visit as we had to get home on the Monday afternoon as we had a commitment on the Tue morning.
Below is the text which should have accompanied the post below:
We arrived in Cheadle on Saturday afternoon and just had time to settle the boys down before we were off to the Upper Room in Cheadle to speak at an evening meeting which was part of the Stockport ‘Big Deal’. The evening was excellent and despite a slight technical glitch with the laptop and data projector the presentation went well. We had a lot of positive feedback and were encouraged by the response. It was also great to see some old friends such as John & Helen.
We arrived in Cheadle on Saturday afternoon and just had time to settle the boys down before we were off to the Upper Room in Cheadle to speak at an evening meeting which was part of the Stockport ‘Big Deal’. The evening was excellent and despite a slight technical glitch with the laptop and data projector the presentation went well. We had a lot of positive feedback and were encouraged by the response. It was also great to see some old friends such as John & Helen.
We've had a busy time giving our powerpoint presentation, having spoken on Saturday evening at St. Mary's Cheadle and again at the 11.15 service on Sunday morning. We were also interviewed in the 9.30 service, so we were really pleased to be in the Lake district for a week after that before speaking at Gee Cross next Sunday.The Boys have been an absolute credit to us as they cope with so many new and different people almost daily, they've also carried on in their routines brilliantly which makes our lives much easier. We know many of you are praying for Joel & Eli in this respect and we know that God is faithfully answering these prayers.
Below are some photos of our time in then Lakes so far.
Joel was at the Weald playgroup this morning and really enjoyed himself there. This is a real blessing for us as it allows us to get some stuff done without having to drag him around with us. Eli remains 'under the weather', we're sure he's got hay fever but will keep an eye on him. Please pray against hay fever as he already has a lactose intolerance and suffers eczema quite badly so he really doesn't need any further allergies.
We've also updated Finnie's In Focus so feel free to take a look at that Blog too.
Eli enjoying the garden but getting a bit bunged up as he appears to have hay fever.
Our Mission Education has begun in earnest with the weekend being spent in Wimbledon. We had a great time with Susan and catching up with old friends from Queen's Road Church. We also met up with John & Sophie who served on the Frontier Year Project who were also hosting our friends Nikki & Rian who recently moved to the UK from SA. Joel especially enjoyed seeing Nikki & Rian as he got to play with his friend Sean.On Saturday afternoon we gatecrashed Catherine's 40th Birthday party (she's Susan's youngest), one of the activities they'd laid on was African drumming which Joel really enjoyed.
On Sunday we had Eli dedicated at St. George's Weald. We decided to have the dedication in the UK rather than SA as family are here and we want them to be involved in Eli's life. The service was excellent and was followed by a massive lunch which several good friends joined us for. Many thanks to Lisa for putting so much effort into a magnificent spread!
Dean went mountain biking again last night with the regular crowd and again had a real blast on the mountains in Sir Lowry's Pass. The sunset is simply stunning up there as the moutains turn a pinky orange and the light through the trees is almost surreal. Once at the limit of where you can cycle to the views looking back over False Bay and Table Mountain are superb!
Last night Dean and the gang met a troop of Baboons out on the tracks and had some fun winding them up, although one has to be very careful and ready to sprint off VERY quickly should the alpha male take umbrage.
Experiencing nature so closely and in such peace is a real privilege and after a few stressful days in Chris Nissen it's great to be able to escape into the mountains, even if it is only far a couple of hours.
Last night Dean and the gang met a troop of Baboons out on the tracks and had some fun winding them up, although one has to be very careful and ready to sprint off VERY quickly should the alpha male take umbrage.
Experiencing nature so closely and in such peace is a real privilege and after a few stressful days in Chris Nissen it's great to be able to escape into the mountains, even if it is only far a couple of hours.
We had a 'Soup Social' at church last Friday for the folk in Chris Nissen whom we are directly involved with, church members, the men from Dean's bible study group and the ladies from Paula's cell group plus children.A good fun evening was had by all and we plan to hold a few more socials in our efforts to get our church members and other Christians in the community to unite and stand together.
For those of you who don't know yet, we managed to get Eli's passport fiasco sorted out, thanks to our living God who is a lot more accessible than the British high commissioner in SA! We really value your prayers, and can confirm that God did indeed answer them.
A friend at church emailed this to me today and having read it thought
it would be fun to post it and see what reaction (if any) it solicits.
Hope you enjoy it as much as I did...
I'm reading some pretty interesting philosophy lately and came across this quote in an academic book on Christian Philosophy. Read it carefully and seriously... ; )
Plantinga and the "Real" Meaning of Fundamentalist
Having just stated that his Aquinas/Calvin model involves his belief in the “internal instigation of the Holy Spirit,” noetic effects of sin, and other specifically Christian beliefs, Plantinga writes this bit on what it really means to be called a “fundamentalist,”
I'm reading some pretty interesting philosophy lately and came across this quote in an academic book on Christian Philosophy. Read it carefully and seriously... ; )
Plantinga and the "Real" Meaning of Fundamentalist
Having just stated that his Aquinas/Calvin model involves his belief in the “internal instigation of the Holy Spirit,” noetic effects of sin, and other specifically Christian beliefs, Plantinga writes this bit on what it really means to be called a “fundamentalist,”
Below are some photos of the A380 on its way to Heathrow taken by members of the public. Hope you enjoy them as much as I did (Joel thought they were quite cool too).
Our prayers have been answered and Eli can accompany us to the UK in June! Today Dean flew to Jo'burg and then drove to Pretoria to get the document for Eli, all went very smoothly and wasn't too time consuming.
Dean has come home very tired but delighted with the result of his endeavour. We really appreciate all your prayers, God definitely smoothed the way and oiled the necessary cogs.
STOP PRESS!!!!
God is answering our prayers.... Paul Boeteng, the British High Commissioner has agreed to our appeal and Eli will be allowed to fly with us - praise God!!! HOWEVER, we must get his passport stamped officially in Pretoria. So, Dean is now looking for the best flight price to go on that little expedition!
Thank you so much for your prayers, we really can't tell you what stress we were under here
God is answering our prayers.... Paul Boeteng, the British High Commissioner has agreed to our appeal and Eli will be allowed to fly with us - praise God!!! HOWEVER, we must get his passport stamped officially in Pretoria. So, Dean is now looking for the best flight price to go on that little expedition!
Thank you so much for your prayers, we really can't tell you what stress we were under here
Two weeks after we applied for the temporary passport, the British Govt. very unhelpfully announced that South African temporary passports would no longer be accepted for entry into the UK. This has put us in a very difficult position as it is simply not possible to obtain a full passport for Eli until after the name change has been completed.
We're off to Franshoek in the morning for two nights 'sans' kids! We've been trying to organise this for ages (it's not easy when you have no familial support just around the corner) so Joel will be with his friends Caleb & Michelle and Eli will be with another couple who generously offered to help us out.
We really feel the need for this time off and are marvelling at God's timing. We tried to organise this for a couple of dates but it kept falling through, but now after Dean's return from Lesotho and some serious issues arising in CNP this mini break has come at just the right time.
We really feel the need for this time off and are marvelling at God's timing. We tried to organise this for a couple of dates but it kept falling through, but now after Dean's return from Lesotho and some serious issues arising in CNP this mini break has come at just the right time.
Just a quick update regarding Dean's Lesotho trip... after 12 hours of driving Dean arrived home 24 hours earlier than expected which was a really pleasant surprise for Paula and the boys, especially Joel!
In short, about 400 people were saved in Maseru and countless others were healed. We saw a massive out pouring of God's grace and healing in the city and are in awe of His saving power!
We'll post more later with some photos (Dean took about 650!) but for now bed is calling!
In short, about 400 people were saved in Maseru and countless others were healed. We saw a massive out pouring of God's grace and healing in the city and are in awe of His saving power!
We'll post more later with some photos (Dean took about 650!) but for now bed is calling!
On the way into town this morning we stopped to pray for a man who had collapsed at the side of the road. He was definitely healed and then gave his life to Jesus as we prayed for him! We then took him back to the SU centre for some food. What an awesome privilege to be involved in this man's salvation.
Please keep praying. After a long journey and a tyre blow out whilst Dean was driving, the team arrived in Lesotho safe and well. There are about 100 people from 11 churches in South Africa helping out. Dean says it is very exciting and that no one in Maseru can fail to know about the new church starting on Sunday. The evening meetings start on Thursday, so do pray.
There is much debate, speculation and misinformation circulating about the so called "Gospel of Judas", so rather than try to set out our stall in terms of how it does or does not impact on our faith and the Bible as we know it, We'll direct you to the Blog of Ben Witherington who has written some excellent and eminently readable stuff on this whole controversy. In fact, read his whole Blog, it's all really good stuff!Suffice to say that we agree with Ben's view.
As promised yesterday we're posting photos of the shack that Michael & Joyce are forced to live in (hopefully) temporarily. The first thing to say is that if we had a dog, we wouldn't let it live in these conditions! No-one should have to tolerate this and yet for many in Chris Nissen this is sadly the norm.The shack seen from the front
We then spent the afternoon in the zoo before flying back to Cape Town in the evening. Joel really enjoyed himself in the zoo, especially chasing the Cape Ground Squirrel which was incredibly tame.
We met with our social worker this afternoon who handed us the final adoption court order. The accompanying letter states quite clearly that: "According to the provisions of the Child Care Act 1983 (Act No. 74 of 1984), your adopted child is now regarded as if born to you."
WOW! PRAISE GOD!!!!!!!!!!
For the last few days Dean has been trying to help Michael sort out some alternative accommodation given that he and Joyce have been evicted from his father’s house and must leave there by midday on the 31st of March. The last two days have been particularly frustrating as we simply don’t have enough money between us to buy a ‘wendy house’ (we underestimated the full cost by half) despite some very generous gifts from some of you.
The municipality has at last acted in CNP and the netball court has been laid and marked out. Now we are just waiting for the posts, nets & balls to be delivered and then the ladies will start to compete properly.
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