Dear Family & Friends,
 
This month marked several significant dates in our lives, and even though I'm embarrassed to admit it, one of those dates was my 60th birthday! The other day marked 26 years since our arrival in Moscow with our 3 small children. If you are like me, then you’re probably like me wondering where all the years went. Several years ago God impressed on me to write our story so our future generations could read how God worked in our lives. It’s important that I started because I’m already forgetting some of the details. It has also been vital for me to think about the past and how God was so faithful to provide for us through your generous support and constant prayers. Thank you for partnering with us for so many years!
 
The UK is a great place to live, although it is a bit more expensive than in Germany. The people here are friendly and helpful, but we are learning that even though we speak the same language, we don’t always understand the words or the accents. We traveled to London, Liverpool, Edinburgh, and Glasgow, where we met many church planters and denominational leaders. In Edinburgh, we stayed with Neil and Louise, who are involved in church planting, counseling, networking, and training. Louise asked me, “Why would you want to celebrate your birthday here with us? If I were you, I would have been at a spa.” I replied, “I know this sounds crazy, but I love meeting with church planters and hearing how God is working in them and through them to reach their cities with the gospel.”
 
This week we attended a conference organized by Birmingham 20/20, which was started by the pastors who invited us to move to Birmingham. Around 100 church leaders participated in the meeting to hear what God is doing in their city through church planting and to learn how to reach the next generation. Since Birmingham is Europe’s youngest city, 38% under 25 years old, an expert in reaching youth came to help us understand Generation Z. The vision for 20 new churches by 2020 is almost, and a new vision will be made for 2030. As Bobby and I travel to 20 cities in the UK, we desire to help others focus on church planting and networking together.
 
Next week we will be in Frankfurt, Germany for meetings with the City to City Executive team, discussing strategy for Europe. A few days later we are off to Warsaw, Krakow, and then to Brussels to meet with church planters. Please pray God will give us wisdom, strength, and discernment. 
 
 After visiting many of the plants in Birmingham, we decided to attend one near our apartment in the city center and hopefully be a blessing to this part of the city. This is one of the more depressed areas of the city with 36 different languages spoken. We have Iranians, Africans, Asians, and others visiting.
 
 Below are just a few pictures of some of the church planters we’ve met in the UK and a few who attended the conference from Albania and Hungary (the last pic).
 
Bobby and Teresa LaDage
Church Planting Catalysts
United World Mission/Redeemer City to City