BIG UPDATE

Hello to all my readers, and supporters!

This is going to be a big update, spread over a few blog posts... There are a few reasons to why I haven't posted anything for 6 months, and why there hasn't been a paper newsletter...

Firstly, the first year of marriage is a hard one! However much people say that nothing will change when you get married, it does, it will, and it will keep changing... so I have taken a break to settle into this new life... I feel bad as there are many people neither of us have spoken to since the wedding or the blessing, or even published pictures for people to see... and it's not that we don't like you, it's just a lot to take in. I think the first year of marriage is the hardest because you have to make changes for the other person. I don't agree with people who say that they won't change or can't change... change is hard, but any marriage to work, both parties must be willing to change and adapt... and TALK! Next weekend is our 1 Year Anniversary, very exciting times.

From our Official Wedding Album

Secondly, so much has happened in the ministry, we have seen growth, and some of the youth going deeper in their faith. This term we started Youth Alpha, (for those who haven't heard of it , it's the Alpha Course for young people. If you haven't heard of Alpha, google it!) and also I created a small team of young leaders. There are many potential leaders in this group, but I needed to start with a few, and I have invested a lot of time to them too... So when I have had time off and holiday, time I would usualy spend blogging, or writing a newsletter, I have been spending time with my wife, and sleeping, and switching off with Netflix (Something which I have given up for lent, in order to spend more time blogging, reading the bible and talking to my wife...brownie points have come in their hundreds this month).

From our Youth Alpha Course we are currently in the middle of. 

So over the next few week I will be updating you all on what has been going on this year, the first Youth retreat in October last year, young leadership, Youth Alpha, the Youth Alpha away day where God met us and worked in my tiredness and weakness, the agreed extension to my time at Fishers Creek, our future plans (including Annie's exceptance for ordination in Sweden's free church, Equmeniakyrkan), and how you can help in prayer and financially). plus much more which all a little mushed in my head right now.

2 of the youth at the our Youth Alpha Weekend away! 

I will also be interspersing a few theological posts, using some of my sermons that I have been pretty happy with, and some of the teaching that I have been through with the youth, and the journey God has taken us all on. Last term we spent some a few months discussing mask's that we wear, either we choose them, or we don't realise we are wearing them and how finding our identity in Christ can help these masks crumble and that we can be way more true to ourselves that we ever though possible.

This is going to be fun, and good to reflect back on a very busy but fruitful year of ministry so far... not that I am bragging, just grateful for the position God has got me in, and the work He is using me in. It is all for His glory!

Over and out,

The Captain

Sermon on the Creek - Social Revolution

Yesterday I preached at Fishers Creek. It was my first full sermon to the congregation. I have done many talks, some as long as 45minutes to the youth and a few 10-15 minute short sermons and discussion introductions in the main church, but this was the first time I was providing the main teaching of the meeting. And it went well. Over the last 3 years full time, and 2 years in volunteering I have been training, for all different types of ministry, also including relationship building and discipleship, the gift of teaching is something I have really been praying for. In the last year, I have been starting off/carrying on a youth ministry and within that, I have been preparing from 2 to 4 lots of teaching a week, on all different areas of the bible and the Christian life. So it was a nice feeling to have done my first full sermon.

The title was Social Revolution and was on 1 Corinthians 7:17-24. It was a hard passage as it was in the middle of Paul's instruction on marriage so could be quite confusing as to why it was there. I looked deeper and found something quite remarkable. Paul was challenging the attitudes of the people who were struggling to see that they were free in Christ, and also under Christs authority at the same time. The metaphors of circumcision and slavery can be confusing but as always with biblical interpretation you need to understand the context a book or letter was written in to get the full meaning. 

It comes with a challenge for us though, to look at the attitudes of the situations we are in at the moment. We constantly want to be in better places, and have better jobs. We want better smart phones and technology (my struggle here), some people want better friends who can do more for them. But maybe we are in the place God wants us to be already. We are free, but not free to do whatever we want to without a care in the world, but we are free to choose God, and to choose His way. These are just a few highlights, if you want to read the full thing, then there is a link below. My favorite thing, was the structure of this passage, it can be compared to a club sandwich, an image I used from a book by Kenneth Bailey on the Culture of Paul's letter to Corinth. (Not the actual title). It worked very well for the sermon. 

I am pleased it went well, not in a proud 'I'm so good' kind of way, but in humilty, pleased that my prayers for this gift are being answered and humbled that I could be used to encourage the rest of the congregation in this way. I really enjoy teaching and I hope I get many more chances in different settings. I will try and share more of my teaching with you, and I will share future full sermons.

If you want to read it further, you can download it here

And look out for a year review newsletter coming your way in the summer. 

Over and out,

The Captain

New Newsletter!

So I have finally got my new newsletter out. It should have been a few weeks sooner, but the end of term is a month sooner in Sweden (they only have 2 terms of school), so by the time we were back from the honeymoon and the blessing in England, we both realised exactly how much work we had to do. Including a new newsletter for those of you who have been praying for me and supporting me in different ways.

I will post soon with details about the wedding, and the blessing with pictures but for now I wanted to give you access to my new newsletter and update you on a few more things. Here is the link to the PDF that you can download. 

I have also been talking a lot about how this would be a weekly blog and I would be sending a lot more updates your way. That was the plan, however things haven't happened that way, and I am just reflecting now on what has stopped me from doing that. One of the reasons that could contribute to it is a fear that a lot of people in ministry have, and that is the fear of failing, or the fear of being wrong. 

My first blog, Writings of a recently born-again Christian, had a lot more theological content and I felt more confident. I was new to be a Christian and I felt I couldn't really go wrong, but now I am in a position of authority in some way, I am on a leadership team of a church and sent as a mission partner to another country. In a sense I have a way to fall if something I say isn't really right. 7 years ago, if I was wrong I was new and humble enough to be corrected. But shouldn't it be the other way around? Shouldn't I be in a position of having more humility now? Shouldn't I be more accepting that I am human and can make mistakes? Instead it seems I have fallen into the trap of being proud of where I have gotten to, and have a fear of losing this. So much that if I am quiet then I can't say anything wrong. 

Now some of you might think that, yes, that is fine, proverbs 17:28 says 

Even fools are thought wise when they keep silent;

with their mouths shut, they seem intelligent.

Which has its place, for sure. If you go back one verse it talks of how the truly wise have fewer words today, and in the next chapter of proverbs, we read that fools have no understanding, they just want to air their own opinions. Now I know I might upset some friends who are also bloggers, but this has been on my mind when I have considered blogging about a subject. I don't want to come across as just airing my opinions, but for what I have to say to have some kind of theological base. I have seen all to often in the Internet where someone has made a comment that is not quite theologically accurate whether it was a mistake or they meant to write it, to have the comment section full of other believers correcting them in full 'preaching' essays, or some judging fools telling them they are blaspheming and have somehow lost their salvation by writing that post. Very rarely do I see loving comments, or intellectual conversation around the subject. And to the onlooking eyes, which could easily be from someone who is considering the Gospel as truth, this is not giving a good picture of a Christian set apart for Christ.

I am very aware that I have lost my cover of being a new believer, so I can't hide behind that, but I think seeing those responses has put me off my desire for blogging about relevant subjects of how we can respond to our culture through our faith, in a world where being a Christian is harder and harder, and people are choosing to live easier lives within the distractions that the world has to offer. But I also remember that 7 years ago, my blogging sharpened my understanding of scripture, because conversations would lead me there. It also gave me the desire to know more, which was a factor in leading me to retrain as a youth pastor, and work with the awesome youth I work with now. 

Those who know me, know I am an extrovert and need to process outwardly. I also encourage people to question things. Even ask the hard questions of our own faith, to challenge of belief so that we can end up in closer relationship with Jesus. I am reminded of the man who doubted Jesus, and said 'if' you can... Then in his repentance declared 'Lord, I belief, help my unbelief.' How many of you readers need to pray this once in a while? I think in the Christian lifestyle, nothing is simple. Things happen daily to shake our faith in Jesus. And it is in those times we need to pray this pray. 'Lord, I believe in you, I believe you love me, and died for me, despite what I see in the news of the hurt and pain. Please Lord help my unbelief and help me overcome my doubt.' When we doubt we lose hope, and without hope we lose sight of Jesus, and His work on the Cross. If we weren't to doubt I often wonder what the result would be. We would have our faith, but our relationship with Jesus wouldn't go anywhere. It's like having a friend who you know is there, but you have no interest in knowing more, knowing why they do the things they do, or what their aim in life is. It's almost like a dead end. This doesn't fit into what Jesus says a life following Him would look like. He says that He came so that we could have life, and have to the full (John 10:10), so lets ask ourselves the questions, and expect answers that go beyond our wildest dreams, answers that will open up our minds and see what God really wanted for His people, and we might even catch a glimpse of heaven.

However, I have seen this with pastors who are well know for their evangelism, and have done great things to open up faith, who have really asked these questions and helped people find answers and have been victimised by their church, but when newcomers ask the same questions they are praised for it, encouraged to ask these questions. Something doesn't seem right there. If anything, the pastors who are asking these questions are leading by example of a living faith in Jesus, who satisfies our every need.

So I want to blog more, and write about relevant subjects about faith in our culture, but I am afraid when I see pastors being accused of heresy because they want to reach out to more people. I believe the Gospel is relevant to all people, but everyone comes from a different angle, and views Christianity and the Bible differently, so we need to find out where people are at. I know I am blogging with the risk of people challenging me, and I am open to correction in my writings, but I know by looking through the Acts of the apostles that we need to take risks to challenge this generation, the next generation and many generations to come. I, like every single person on earth, am not complete, I am still being created. I will not be finished until my last day on earth, and I am learning constantly through experiences and passing these on. So please remember this when you read this blog and all other blogs for that matter. 

My prayer, is that we are all in 'iron sharpening iron' correspondence, and critiques can be given in love and received in humility. We might not get it right, but that's why we have Jesus to correct us and set us straight. We can't get it right on our own. Ever. 

Settling is hard...

So it has been a while. I enjoy blogging a lot but a lot of the time I have to want to write about something important that would take an interest, but in the last 4 months the start of my mission has been hard. For those of you who know me, my can-do attitude and positive mindset has been telling the rest of me that 'Sure, its easy to start/take on a new ministry, learn a new language, settle into a new country AND plan a wedding will be EASY. I can do that, I can do anything.'

Well I was wrong, it is not easy. There has been no time to settle, when my schedule was full from the start, Wedding planning with your wife-to-be is a challenge when you have a difference in organisation styles, not to mention a difference in style and culture. Swedish is probably the most difficult of the european languages to learn (not that I've tried many, but its definitely harder than French or Spanish). I'm just glad we aren't planning this wedding in Swedish. Then 'Ja, älskling!' (Yes, darling) would be my only response.

So after a good start with learning Swedish on the government funded course I have delayed my classes to concentrate more on the young people, and plan our wedding. I have learnt a lot about prioritising the right things in life, and that Annie who will be my wife in 28 days time is a high priority and making this day the best day is important for our marriage and our calling in God's kingdom. This was a hard decision as me learning Swedish i important for me to understand Annie's culture, and a huge part of being a missionary. The highest priority though must be God, and doing His will. There is a constant pressure in life between pleasing people and pleasing God. And I want to be pleasing God in all that I do.

Equal to that is the job that God has sent me here to do. I love the youth group, and the youth are brilliant, and I need to be spiritually and physically fit to lead them. At the moment we have been going through a series I have adapted from my time at St B's called the 'Soundtrack to Life', using music videos and current media to access life issues we all go through and look at what the Bible says about them. Last week I used Ed Sheeran's 'Lego House' to talk about Jesus as our rock, and that God has the power to rebuild us into what we were meant to be. This is the lego house I built for it...

This is my masterpiece. As you can see the bottom is not very well made, which made my point in the teaching. Maybe I'll share that with you someday.

The biggest thing I have learnt about being on long-term mission is to not jump in too fast to what you are doing. Take time to see what culture you are moving into, and don't feel the pressure to do more than you have to. I have seen burnout before, and I am no use to anyone in that state. But more than that, just being here, I know God is using me to do his work, even in the small.

I also want to that the people who are supporting me, God is providing for me very well here. I am starting to make new friends, however much I am missing friends and family in the UK. I will be sending out a newsletter very soon. If you haven't received my october newsletter yet, then please let me know and I can send you a link.

Anyway, some of the feedback I got from my blogging is that they are too long, so hopefully I will be writing shorter blogs and more often.

Thanks for reading,

The Captain

Ok, so that was a long day... or 5 months...

So hello again, that was a very long cup of tea and eventful to say the least. 5 months ago I was reflecting on what a crazy year it had been, and how God was doing incredible things amongst the youth of my church, and He's been at it again. Tonight I want to talk about one thing of many, and then I will be leading up to something very big that is changing my life and I need lots of prayer and support for, but lets sit back and relax and have a good time.

So what has happened to me? Well I have gotten engaged to Annie, my wonderful Swedish girlfriend-now-fiancee, I have led a retreat for 14-18s, I have been to New Wine Sweden, secured a house and a job in Sweden, and currently seeking sponsorship for the job as I go to Sweden next month. So exciting and scary times. I have been reflecting on that a lot recently, and God reminded me that when I started Equip I had accepted that He would be calling me elsewhere at the end of the two years. I was just not aware that it would be overseas and that He would be using someone so close to me in order to get me there. Annie and I have an amazing relationship and we do our best to keep God involved as much as we can, and the proof in the pudding here is that God has blessed us so much with a future together in Sweden, at least the near future anyway... who knows where God will send us next.

So lets start with the first big moment of the last 5 months, or should I call it the biggest moment of my life. Getting engaged to Annie. Now girls who are already engaged or married, please do get jealous of the effort I went into for Annie if your spouse didn't go to the same effort I did, and those not yet engaged... This type of thing could be something to hope and pray for. Guys, take note. Ok, so I am getting a bit proud now but my main focus for this proposal was to make Annie feel special... and I think that worked. 

Now we had been talking about marriage quite a bit, and it got to the stage where I just had to do it. When we started the relationship we were already living in separate countries so we knew it had to be serious from the start, and we were committed from then, yes even me the commitment-phobe, or should I say now ex-commitment-phobe!!! Haha- in your face scaredy cat Jason of years before, I am making a commitment and its for life... what? for life...  hang on... have I really thought this through... ermm..... :) Of course I have. But it took a lot of processing in order to do that... anyway. On with the proposal. So I had to ask her dad for permission, in Swedish. He doesn't speak much English at all, and to be fair thats ok. He doesn't work internationally, and until his only daughter started dating a handsome English stud (yes thats me), he probably didn't really expect he would need to learn it. And in Sweden with the high level of equality, I didn't actually need to ask him for permission. But with my British tradition, morals and values, I would still ask as it is only polite and this would be a big moment for both of us. He said yes!!!  The hard part was over...ish. I had spoken nearly perfect Swedish to ask the second biggest question of my life. Now if that's not commitment to the cause, I don't know what is. 

So to skip a few parts, (I still need some stories for the wedding day...) I had chosen the date, Annie's next visit to England, the style, and got the ring. I had arranged for one of her best friends to meet up with us both on the day of her arrival, playing down the whole evening with a story about hanging out with friends to watch a film and scoff our faces with greasy pizza. What I actually had arranged was a 3 course meal for the two of us (cooked by me), candlelit of course, and a creation of light in my back garden. I found an excuse to leave Annie with her friend for a couple of hours, and for her friend, the wonderful Bianca to bring her to the house at an allotted time. She was in on the plan. Annie walked through the door to see the meal set out and me stood in the back garden with biggest, and probably very scary smile on my face. Annie then walked up to me at the back, and we exchanged pleasantries and I got down on to one knee. I don't feel it right to fully say everything we said as it was a very special time for us both and there needs to be something we can keep special. You might find more out on the wedding day or at the blessing back in England. But of course she said YES!!! The scariest and happiest moment of my live. Here are a few pictures to show exactly what it looked like. 

The best thing about the whole thing was that we both had the best night ever, and still think back to that night on the 20th February 2012; the day we chose to commit ourselves to each other for life and help lead each other closer to God in our relationship. The commitment of marriage is a special one and shouldn't be taken lightly but when you find that one person then do it in communion with God bringing Him into all your decisions and see how He really blesses you. We are still trying to fully do this and He has already blessed us so much with answered prayers and fruitful ministries, so how much more might He bless us if we can involve Him more. It also shows that God isn't after perfection, He achieves that for us when He forgives us and wipes our slate clean. But He is after faithfulness and obedience, and most importantly our love. The only way we really know how to love one another is by knowing God, because He is love and He showed us love first. Thats what it really comes down to. If we centre our relationships in that, then we can't go much wrong!

So that's been a bit of an insight of what I have gotten up to. Not so much youth work based, but it was such a big moment in my life, I felt I had to share it. Next I will be talking about the youth weekend away and then my next step to Sweden where you, my readers, can play a part in something big God is doing. 

Thanks for reading, and stay tuned for the next part of the 5 months. 

The Captain, Jason

Wow, Nearly a year since my last post...

I can't actually believe it, it has been 10 months. I could say I have been lazy and have found better things to do, but I have seriously been busy. I am also very busy right now, with essays and coursework coming out of my ear but after finishing a night of youth work, following a day of planning and setting up for the youth group, studying is the last thing I want to do.

Sooooo I will start using this time to blog, and catch you, my committed readers (not committed in the neurological sense, but the loyalty sense), up on what I have been up to in the last year. It will be over a few posts, but my aim is to bring you up to speed, then carry on blogging after, sharing experiences, and building community. I am planning on moving to Sweden for a year (at least) in September, and realising the importance of sharing our skills and experiences to help each other and build each other up. Youth ministry can be lonely at times, but it doesn't need to be.

My amazing girlfriend has also gone skiing for a week, and has limited internet access, so I have a little spare time from that too. :)

I left you at Easter, after an exciting term with Friday Night Chill, and the 5 Weekender, and how they had been successful in different ways. At the end of term we hosted Time at the Cross for Youth, an interactive experience for 11 to 18s to experience and worship God, concentrating and reflecting on what the cross could mean for them. We have young people at all different stages of where they are at with their faith, so we had to cater for many areas. We ended up with a mural designed by my colleague Tristan, and painted by a group of young people. A prayer board drawn by one of the 16yr olds, and painted by 10 others, a chocolate cross, broken and given out at the end, which could be seen as a communion style ritual, each taking up a part of the Cross and choosing to 'nom' it (the local word for consume) and take it home. I know it isn't theologically sound, but it tasted good, and it was another way of breaking down how accessible the cross is to everyone. It also brought Tristan much closer to meeting Jesus on the day, when he choked on a part of the Cross, and ended up in me performing the heimlich maneuver on him to dislodge the oversized piece of chocolate. Well second time luck anyway. But fear not, he is still alive and well. This is the Cross in question:

The main youth hall consisted of a worship band, leading charismatic worship, followed by a dramatisation of a bullying story, written by Liz, our wonderful Youth Pastor. The story was read out in the pitch black room to really get a sense of being involved in the story. I could tell this touched on a few of the young peoples lives. This was then followed by more reflective worship involving lighting tealights as prayers and leaving them in a cliche but very fitting cross in the centre of the room.

After Easter, and a very relaxing time in Sweden with Annie and her family, we entered into our final term of the year. The weather wasn't as amazing as it was at Easter, and we had to cancel FNC In The Park in June because of heavy rain. That should put into perspective for you. The church also came out of a financial slum it had been in from the new year 2011. We acted in the way Nineveh acted when they heard God's judgement was coming, with prayer and fasting as a staff team. I just want to point out here that I didn't think God's judgement was coming upon us because of sinful ways, St Barnabas is far from that, but I certainly learned that prayer and fasting in any situation will certainly make you aware of God's mercy and grace, and give you that feeling of being in a life long embrace with Jesus himself.

St Barnabas is a church with a heavy missional focus, and the amount we do for the community, and the members and non-members alike is astounding, from the new-born children, through the youth, the young adults right up to the senior citizens. And reporting from the inside of this church, St Barnabas is a church with always brings the focus back to Jesus and give him the credit. Something that  has stuck in my head which explains this perfectly is something I heard from David White, Vicar at a local church to us. That is 'I can't, You never said I could! You can! YOU always said you would!'.

It is a faith centered church, with sound biblical doctrine and the prefect place for me to train. I can even go as far as saying it has helped me love the church, Jesus' church. And it isn't a walk in the park either doing the work we do. I have never understood the need for unity in the body of Christ more than I did from the Summer Term 2011. We need to love our church, in all its glory and failings! It's family. Need I say more.

I am loving this trainee worker scheme, which Equip was re-labelled as in September last year. I am completely living and loving my calling to youth ministry. There is still so much to learn, and probably still fail in, but I rest in the fact that the more I fail, the more I learn. Isn't that how Jesus teaches us?

I am continuing to be driven from my passion to see young people grow in relationship with Jesus, and lead each other in the right directions. The testimony from a young person to a young person is volumes louder than a testimony from me, and the influences young people have on each other are so heavy. I am realising more and more the importance to sow seeds where necessary and regularly, then eventually, you will sow them without even realising.

If you are a youth worker of any kind, volunteer, employed, in the church, or the secular world, training or qualified, my hat goes off to you all. This is important work, and God has called us all for a reason, and in our humility we need to refresh ourselves of our calling and follow His lead. This is not only the next generation rising up, its the current generation.

I feel the need for a cup of tea before I talk about the summer conferences and more things I have learned from the front line of youth ministry. Maybe a nap for a night. Thank you for reading this, and feel free to comment on this post, either via facebook, twitter or the comments section below.

All the best, (until tomorrow or in half an hour...)

The Captain :)