Calling – part 1

You might be wondering, ‘why Bangladesh?’ That’s a good question. Some people have been asking me ‘have you always wanted to do something like this?’ and the answer really, is no. So where’s this all come from? Why give up a great job with a church that has become home and family to me?

I have known since I was 16 years old that I was called to work in church. I was worshipping in a service one Sunday night and I felt God say to me ‘you’re always going to be doing this’. I knew what He meant was that I’d always work in and for the church. For the past 15 years the church has been my passion. For all the moments church is painful, I’ve also seen ways it is redemptive. At its best, church is the fullest expression of humans being together on earth. This is what reveals what God is like to a waiting and wondering world.

My journey to St Mary’s (the church I’m about to leave) came about in a surprising way (a story for another time) but in truth, was the kind of church I’d longed to work for. As those from St Mary’s and Sale West know, the past few years have also been this crazy adventure into building a new congregation to reach and release young people to know Father, Jesus and Holy Spirit. My sense of call for this was that God has put on my heart to see our youth congregation, Fuel, established.

I had always wondered, ‘how will I know when this is established?’ I mean, where’s the line between something being established and not being established? Anyway, in June 2018 I felt God say to me ‘you’re at the beginning of the end of your time at St Mary’s’. What did that mean? How long was ‘the end’? I was pretty devastated because I didn’t want the end to be approaching!

It turned out God was kindly giving me some advanced notice. I think deeply about things and so I need time to process significant information… especially stuff like this. It wasn’t until January 2019 that I began to see what was happening… Fuel was established. I saw a team that flourished and brought their gifts of leadership in such a way that I knew the vision was inside of them, in the same way that it was inside of me. I saw Fuel flourishing whether or not I was there. (Holidays in my early days at St Mary’s used to be stressful to return from as I’d arrive back to tales of woe from the team: ‘there was a riot!’ ‘We couldn’t control them!’ Or worst of all ‘You need to call _’s parents.’) Now I was returning from holidays to testimonies and reports of how great it was when I was away!

Now before I inadvertently give the church permission to recall my salary from 2019, I obviously still have a lot of work to do during the week to prepare for Fuel – work that a volunteer team don’t have the time or resources needed to accomplish. But the point was, I saw Fuel was established because I saw the team was established. It was never about me but lately there was a shift – the leadership was now in the room whether I was there or not. And that’s an incredible gift to discover.

I didn’t need to ask any more.

The final bit of knowing Fuel was established came when Fuel did a ‘takeover’ of our 7pm congregation in April 2019. One of the prophets in our church came and gave me an entire page of things she felt God was saying about Fuel. The page started with ‘The foundations are established…’

I didn’t need to ask any more. Fuel was established. So what was I supposed to do next?

I met with Steve, our vicar, and told him. I cried because I didn’t want to finish. And then I began waiting for God to make clear how I was to move on.

I didn’t have to wait long for Him to give me some pointers as to what was next…

~ More next time ~

Each post I’ll be asking anyone who’s willing to, to pray for some things. Right now I’d appreciate prayer for the church as they appoint a new Youth Pastor, that God would guide the decision that is made, and for the final practical preparations for my trip to Bangladesh to be smooth and favoured by God.