Praise & Prayer Notes From Anna Guazzelli

Thanks and praise to God that I feel much better. Earlier this year my shoulder became so powerful that I was no longer able to reach books on the high shelves at the Christian bookshop in Florence, and hardly able to handle the items and money at the till. Thanks God for the physiotherapist who has put me through a strenuous routine of exercises. They have greatly improved not only my shoulder but also the scoliosis in my back. I have discovered that I really like the exercises, which I must continue to do regularly. They make me feel a lot better both in body and in mind!

Three years ago I reached retirement age and retired from the Christian Literature Crusade after 22 years of happy service, mostly as manager of my Florence shop. Since then I have continued on a voluntary basis, reducing my hours as my energy level has lowered. Now with the ever increasing changes in technology and bureaucracy, it is clearly time for me to consider a move. At the same time the Lord has opened a new door for me. My brother and his family of three married children, my only relatives, live in a country town between Milan and Torino. They are all, at least nominally, Roman Catholics, as I was before the Lord graciously saved me while I was training at the old Edgware General hospital in 1978. My older niece’s baby was christened recently. the priest instructed her to repeat after him a promise to bring the child up in the RC church and teach him the way of the Lord. She spoke these words, and meant them, but afterward remarked to the priest that she needed to be taught the way of the Lord herself before she could teach her child. He said that for just one person there was nothing he could do to help. She was so disappointed that she has asked me to come and help her understand the Bible! My sister-in-law owns a place near them and has invited me to come and live there at a rent far below what I have to pay in Florence! I am planning to move there in the spring of 2009. When I move I will need a computer to keep in touch with everyone.

Please pray that I will be able to find a good church. Probably the nearest is in the town of Pravia, about half an hour away by car. They have a cell group not far from where I will be living. Pray for my relatives. My nephew has had a fish sticker on his car. When he was a boy he got fed up with the church and left it. He and others say they are not interested in church unless there is one like what Auntie Anna goes to. Pray for my family, for my witness to them, and for getting them in contact with a good church.

Also pray for the bookshop. The economic downtown has meant that there have been far fewer tourists in Florence this year, and even Christians are spending less on books and recordings. It’s a crisis time for all businesses in Florence, not only Christian ones. If the shop is to continue its ministry, it needs a new manager. The manager must be:

• a Christian clearly called to his work, a Mary and a Martha
• business-minded, with a good knowledge of Christian literature
• computer-literate and able to speak Italian and English at least
• prepared to work for less than 50% of normal pay, on a temporary contract

Pray for my visit with my relatives for a week at Christmas time.