Sunday, June 15, 2008

We're Getting Ready

It's been a busy month already. We've been getting travel documents in order for our trip to the UK starting July 3rd. We appreciate everyone's well wishes, prayers and support. The Centurymen never travel unnoticed. As you can imagine, 200+ folks traveling together require quite a bit of preparation and organization. Our travel guides and Centurymen leadership have invested many countless hours to make this a meaningful journey. Please pray for us and everyone that has prepared the way for The Centurymen as we present the word of God through music in the UK.

We'll be adding pictures, sound bites and links as the trip progresses. We'd like to have each of you that read messages here, comment and lift us up in prayer.

Here's our schedule for the trip:

  • July 3, Thursday - Day 1: Atlanta, GA - British Airways travel to the UK overnight, arriving the UK Gatwick Airport, July 4th 7:40 AM in the morning. Note: the UK is 6 hours ahead of Nashville.

  • July 4, Friday - Day 2: London - Arrive in London, Passport and Customs Control checkpoint. Highpoints for the day are visiting Wesley's Chapel, Bunhill Fields and St. Paul's Cathedral and of course trying to stay awake! The Centurymen will be practicing at All Souls Church, Langham Place. We'll be staying at the Holiday Inn Regent's Park. Not sure if we'll be posting to the blog during our stay, as internet access is 15 pounds ($30+).

  • July 5, Saturday - Day 3: London - Morning will be spent sightseeing London's West End and Westminster Abby. The Centurymen will be practicing all afternoon at Spurgeon's College, South Norwood Hill, London SE25 6DJ. Tel: 020 8653 0850. Our first concert is on Sunday, we hope everyone has been practicing their music!

  • July 6, Sunday - Day 4: London/Gloucester - Concert at 11:30AM at All Souls Church for the first morning worship service. By 1:00PM we'll be on our way, by touring coach, to Gloucester. In Gloucester, we'll be staying at the Gloucestershire Hotel. Pray for the group as they're rehearsing at the hotel, sans piano, until ???. I guess until we get it right.

  • July 7, Monday - Day 5: Gloucester/Coventry - English breakfast is an experience. Bacon, more like country ham, eggs, pastries, fruit, and tea. Alice loves English tea, so she's going to be happy. Today we'll visit Coventry Cathedral, check into the Coventry hotel and a formal concert at Central Hall Methodist Church, Warwick Lane, Coventry, CV1 2HA. Tel: 024 7622 3564. Imagine 100 men wearing tuxes, amazing. We'll post photos as we progress through the trip.

  • July 8, Tuesday - Day 6: Coventry - We'll be staying in Coventry for 3 nights and taking side tours to other cities close by. Today we tour to Olney, Parish Church of St. Peter & Paul where John Newton, former pastor, wrote "Amazing Grace". I'm getting goose bumps thinking about it. Imagine the sound of the Centurymen singing in these old cathedrals, truly a worship experience. The group will give a brief concert in the town center before rehearsal in the afternoon. Tonight will be a formal concert at Parish Church of St. Peter & Paul, in Olney.

  • July 9, Wednesday - Day 7: Coventry - Today we're traveling from Coventry to Moulton, where we'll visit a shoe cobbler shop where William Carey spent his days making shoes and praying for the people of the world who did not know God. In the afternoon, we'll travel to Kettering and stopping at the Widow Wallace's House where the Baptist Missionary Society was formed. They later sent William Carey, yes our beloved cobbler, as a missionary to India. The Centurymen will setup for a formal concert at Fuller Baptist Church.

  • July 10, Thursday - Day 8: Coventry/Bangor - Tour to Bangor through Chester. Rehearsal today will be at the Penrallt Baptist Church where we'll hold a formal concert in the evening.

  • July 11, Friday - Day 9: Bangor/Wetherby - Off to local schools for 15 - 20 minute concerts and travel to Wetherby. Traveling this morning to the charming town of:

    Llanfairpwllgwyngyllgogerychwyrndrobwllllantysiliogogogoch

    We'll just call it Llanfair, more on this lovely town later. The Centurymen will give a concert in front of the train station in Llanfair. Here's a link to the Wikipedia pronunciation:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Llanfairpwllgwyngyllgogerychwyrndrobwllllantysiliogogogoch.ogg

  • July 12, Saturday - Day 10: Wetherby/Stockton - Departing Wetherby to York Minster Cathedral. The Centurymen will be giving a concert in front of the Great East Window. Then off to Stockton-on-Tees with a formal concert at the Tabernacle Baptist church.

  • July 13, Sunday - Day 11: Stockton/Edinburgh - Off to Edinburgh and a worship service on our coach (bus). Formal concert this evening at St. Giles Cathedral.

  • July 14, Monday - Day 12: Edinburgh - Morning tour of Edinburgh Castle and setup in the Great Hall for a concert. This will be one of the only days we're allowed "on our own" free time in the afternoon. Whew!

  • July 15, Tuesday - Day 13: Edinburgh/Departure - We'll be flying out of Glasgow Airport then London Gatwick and returning to Atlanta, GA. Dan was born in Glasgow, Kentucy, and we'll be able to say we've been to Glasgow in the UK.

Our prayer request is for strength and safety to reach the lost in the UK and that God will prepare our hearts for the wonderful blessing he has in store for us.

Dan & Alice Arterburn

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