Gospel Needs in the North of England
A while back we did some number crunching for the gospel needs of Sunderland and its surrounding area. Sunderland has a population of around 280,000 people. If just 1% of the population were in evangelical churches of 80-100 people there would need to be around 30 gospel churches. If only we had that many! And that […]
How Do I Decide?
Ephesians 5:15-17 At every stage of our lives, we will find ourselves needing to make decisions. Whether it’s about a job, a spouse, a house, or something else, it’s right that we want to include God in our decision-making and that we want to do what pleases Him. But we don’t need to wait for […]
Raising up workers in non-student churches
So many of us became Christians in a student setting, or were significantly discipled there, that it left its fingerprints all over us. That’s where we learnt to read the Bible for ourselves, lead a Bible study for others, and making a convincing case for Christ to an unbelieving friend. That all this happened at […]
Lessons in Prayer from Daniel 9
The above photo is of a panel which was once part of King Nebuchadnezzar’s throne room in his palace in Babylon. You can view it at the Vorderasiatisches Museum in Berlin. It’s worth being clear: the Bible is not about me! It is about God. And the book of Daniel makes this point strongly… it […]
From Student to Starting out in Full-time Ministry
We interviewed Charlie Butler about his experiences going from bring a student to working for a church as a Ministry Trainee. 1. Charlie, what are you currently doing? I am currently in my 2nd year of training for ordained Anglican ministry at Oak Hill Theological College. 2. How did you decide to do […]
Persevering in Ministry – Advice for the next generation
In what ways could testing the waters of full-time gospel ministry, via a church-based ministry training scheme, be a help or a hindrance when it comes to persevering for a lifetime of ministry? I think a church apprenticeship type scheme is particularly useful in two situations. The first is when someone is uncertain, but trying […]
Persevering in Ministry – Dangers and lessons learnt
It’s not uncommon to hear or read shocking statistics about how many people give up on full-time gospel ministry; what, in your experience, are the most common reasons people do so? I’m afraid I think that one of the chief reasons is that many probably shouldn’t have been in full-time ministry in the first place. […]
Persevering in Ministry – the fruitfulness of forgetfulness
I’m in my 20th year in full-time gospel ministry, and there have been many highs and lows, though sometimes the agony and the ecstasy has been near inseparable. That seems often to be the way, and I have come to realise that what Paul articulates in 1 Cor 16:8 is an abiding principle of all […]
From Secular Work to Full-time Ministry
Rob, what are you doing now? I’m a Curate at St John’s Chapeltown in Sheffield; I’ve been there since July 2015, so I’ve been in full-time ministry for around 18 months. You’re not the youngest of spring chickens, are you? Let’s say mid forties. Just about. I’m married to Caroline and we have three school-aged […]
The 4 Fs a Preacher Needs To Be
1. Faithful Paul was determined to know nothing among the people except Jesus Christ and Him crucified. It is the cross of Christ which is to be the theme of our message; from it derive all the blessings which God longs to give to men and women. Preaching is not about telling stories or jokes, […]
Trainee to Maths Teacher
When I left university, I was considering whether or not full-time, paid gospel ministry was for me. So, partly in order to answer that question, I spent two years as a Ministry Trainee at St John’s, Lindow, in Wilmslow, Cheshire. My role mostly involved Bible teaching (sermons, Bible studies, youth groups and one-to-ones etc.), which […]
Writing your first evangelistic talk
The Lord gave the word; great was the company of those who proclaimed it. (Psalm 68:11). I remember hearing Baroness Margaret Thatcher speak for 75 minutes without notes, in Leeds Town Hall. It was an impressive performance. I delight in hearing good oratory. But it is not the same as preaching. It is a thrill […]