“So how are you settling into Guildford then?” is probably the most frequent question I’ve been asked in the past 8 weeks,” writes Holly Dobson. “But it’s one that’s so easy to answer because I settled almost as soon as I arrived.

For those who don’t know me, I moved down to Guildford after finishing uni in Lancaster to ‘do Roots’ (http://uk.24-7prayer.com/features/24-7-roots-2/). Roots as a whole isn’t a course that’s put on for me or a scheduled learning programme planned for a set time, it’s more of an invitation to come and join the community here, experience every day life and explore Boiler Room values.

Nearly two months in, and I can say that it’s become clear, for the moment at least, I’m here to learn, and I’m here to serve: learning through serving, and serving because it’s the natural response to what I’m learning. It’s not a gap year for me (who knows how long I’m going to be here?) but it’s an important time and it’s a preparation time.

Guildford Boiler Room, on first impressions, is a an ordinary and somewhat random group of people who are exploring life together as a young community. They’re not neat, polished, sorted, or clued up with all the right answers – but they are family; they love one another, pray together, encourage each other, seek vision for the future together, share life and hang out – even with members of the community who are currently serving God around the globe. Passion, commitment and love for God and the wider community (both locally and globally) is at the heart of what the Boiler Room is all about – I’m really thankful to be doing life alongside and with them.

My Boiler Room ‘week’ is purposely more full than most of the other guys in the community as I want to see as much of what’s going on as possible – for now at least. What’s great about everything that I’m doing (like I said before) is that it’s not put on for me to go to – everything I do was happening anyway, and in my first couple of weeks as I got to know people, more and more invitations came my way.

• On a Monday night I meet with a small group of girls (and a guy) to do God’s Story – basically a journey through the Bible in a year, with Monday nights acting as a place to chat through what we’ve read, ask questions and pray.
• Tuesday nights I meet with guys from my collective  to eat together and pray (something I’ll be blogging about  in detail at a later date).
• On Wednesday’s the BR runs Alpha and so I’ve been serving by leading the prayer support team and helping to set up and pack down; we pray in another room while the speaker talks and the groups have their discussion – a real privilege looking back at how God has already been answering prayers for group dynamics, individuals, group leaders and the talks.
• Friday morning’s at the moment, are a time of prayer, worship and an in depth look each week at one of the Boiler Room values – we’ve been really privileged to have Jon Peterson and Brian Heasley talk through Prayer and Mission and I’m excited for the upcoming weeks on Creativity, Learning, Mercy/Justice and Hospitality.
• On Saturday evenings our collective meets for ‘Sabbath meal’ – a personal highlight of my week. We look back on the previous week and reflect on what God’s been showing/teaching/saying to us, we eat together, then we take communion together before having desert and finish by looking to the week ahead and dedicating it to God. It’s a really good time to focus on how God is woven into our lives, and also to hang out as community… although not exclusively as there are often visitors who come to Sabbath. In the time I’ve been here there have been a family from America, an Australian pastor, 24-7 Prayer friends from Gloucester, and a Benedictine monk from London researching new-monastic communities for his Masters degree. No doubt you’ll also hear more about Sabbath from me in the coming months as it’s a really significant point of the week.
• Every other Sunday, all the collectives meet together in Guildford as a whole to eat (spot a theme?!) tell and listen to stories, worship together and hear from the Word; and on alternative Sundays, there’s an encouragement to spend time with friends outside of the BR community.

So yep, it’s a busy week and the past 8 weeks in Guildford have been a whirlwind for me – there’s a lot more I could say about everything going on here, but I figure this is a good enough description and intro into what I’m doing for now…. More exciting stories to be blogged soon!”

You can follow Holly on her blog here

Check out this article for more on 24-7 Roots or if you’d like to find out about other 24-7 Learning opportunities check out the 24-7 learning pages here.