written by Beckie Cotton | Midlands, England
“When, in October 2021, we packed up our home and said goodbye to our friends and family in the Midlands to move to Lee Abbey, my husband Rob, our three children and I couldn’t have comprehended what the next few years would look like.
“Being an outdoorsy family, we were naturally captivated by the sheer beauty of the vast Lee Abbey estate, but we also knew something far greater had captivated our hearts. The presence of God is so evident in this place! And we wanted some of it!
“We were in a pretty broken state as a family when we got here, and I felt God say we need to learn to “just be,” which for an activist like me was pretty tough to hear! After almost four years of learning it – sometimes more begrudgingly than at other times – I think I finally get it and now see it as a real gift!
“Part of that gift was seeing my now four children (yes, we increased community numbers with the birth of our fourth child) thrive living here! They are surrounded by a loving community that is fun to hang out with and that teaches them what it means to be followers of Jesus (way better than their parents could because a lot of them are cool 20-30-year-olds). The community supports them (and us as parents) and loves them. There’s a real sense of doing life together inter-generationally, which is often missing from current societies in the UK.
“My kids love that there are always other young people to play with, whether guest or community children, and that there are always different social events. And what kid wouldn’t want the Lee Abbey estate and beach as their garden to explore and have adventures?
“They are equally plugged into the local community, attending school locally and developing lovely friendships there. We feel they get the absolute best of both worlds.
“Don’t get me wrong, community life is not always easy. But the growth I have seen in our whole family has been worth all the trickier moments. Living in community can bring out some of the bits of your character that you’re not keen for others to see, but being loved in and through those things has brought so much freedom to each of us. Our whole family has really blossomed in this place, and I would encourage anyone to visit and see what community living could look like for you, too.”
