I've always been drawn to the giant sports manufacturing company's logo: 'Just do it'. You see, I'm not one for just sitting around and talking about the big dreams of what we can do. I'm one of those characters that likes to be on the field of play, trying to make things happen.

A little while ago I was watching TV and I saw a commercial from a well known bank with some workers sitting around a table, while one of their co-workers is choking to death. What caught my attention is that, while their friend is choking, all they do is talk about what needs to be done to help him. As they're talking, someone from another table walks over and performs a Heimlich manoeuvre and saves his life.

The message is simple: talk is no substitute for action. Make it happen!

One of the things that we have to ask as a church is: what is God waiting for us to do while we are simply talking about it? Our understanding here at Trinity is that we are to be doers of the Word and not just hearers. We dream big dreams that sometimes turn into nightmares. Why? Because we lack the drive to see it through. We don't risk because we fear the possibility of failure. But the truth is, the path to success is littered with failure. There is no reward without risk. In fact, in church life, the riskiest thing we can do is to play it safe. So here at Trinity we want to go big, we want to keep growing, we want to keep expanding in our dream, and we want to make it happen!

In Philippians 4:13 Paul says that we can do all things through Christ, who provides us with the resources (strength). I wonder what you are waiting on? What's holding you back?

As I dream about what God has in store for my life and for Trinity Cheltenham, I get fired up, I'm excited, I'm passionate. I see Trinity, with its multiple congregations, reaching out into this community and beyond, making a difference in their lives as people connect with the life-changing message of Jesus, through the variety of ministries that are on offer through the life of this church.

The last thing I want to see happen is that it only becomes a pipe dream and never comes true because we never move past the stage of talking about it. So we want to continue to say: Look out Cheltenham, and look out Gloucestershire, because here we come.

Mark BaileyLead Pastor

If you’re looking for God, it’s great that you’re here at Trinity Cheltenham. We are a community of

people who are committed to following Jesus Christ with our whole lives, committed to loving and

serving each other and the wider community around us. We are a community of people whose

identity is in God. We exist to serve and glorify Him. We are a church only because He has brought us

together and shaped us into what we are today. As God has led and grown us, His mission for Trinity has

gradually become clearer: we believe we are a church called to make committed followers of Jesus, who

change communities and nations for Him.

More than a building, a name or a weekend gathering, Trinity is a community of people. We are living

together the adventure for which God has created us, pursuing Christ and being changed by Him. At

Trinity, community means connection and relationship, built on shared purpose and passion. It happens

in weekly celebration services, in the smaller gatherings during the week, as we pray, serve and reach

out to those around us, and in partnerships with other churches and organisations in this country and

around the world.

God doesn’t want us to stay the same. In fact He tells us to be transformed through the renewing of our

minds. Trinity is a community of seekers and learners. We’re seeking to know God better, hear His voice

and respond to Him with the whole of our lives. The more we seek Him, the more God reveals of Himself

- and of who He wants us to be.

God’s movement has always been revealed through the lives He has changed and then used to influence

others. As God changes and refines Trinity, He calls us to invest all that we are into being catalysts for

other lives and churches that need change. To this end, we are constantly seeking out new ways of

effectively reaching today’s generation with the good news of Jesus Christ.

Trinity began as a church for the local community. As God has gathered people and brought us

opportunities and experiences, He has shown us that He wants our doors to open wider and our reach

to extend further. Whenever, wherever, whatever the cost, we desire to be a church that sees where God

is moving and responds without hesitation to follow His lead.

Our hope is that you might join us on this journey.

in this issue:

2 - Trinity Kidz

6 - Kenya

9 - Tom Hale

14 - Cluster Spotlight

16 - Gareth Dickinson

18 - India

20 - Angels, MPs and the Dead Sea Scrolls

23 - Love Life

26 - Trinity Youth

28 - All Roads Lead from Cheltenham

32 - Ashley Collishaw

36 - St Paul’s Church

38 - 70’s and 80’s Night

40 - Trinity Women

46 - Trinity Men

48 - Healing on the Streets

50 - Alpha

52 - Building Project

Magazine Copyright 2009 Trinity PublishingEditor: Neil Bennetts

Commissioning Editors: Jancie Hills, Jude GreenScript Editing: Neil Bennetts, Ben Booth, Martha Williams

Design: Neil Bennetts, Jess WilcoxProofreading: Anne Bate-Williams, Ben Booth, Simon Carpenter, Jill Cheesman,

Chris Leigh, Jonathon Watkins, Katharine WatkinsPhotography: Neil Bennetts, Tom Johnson, Chris Leigh, Andrew McConnochie, Jess Wilcox,

Jonathon Watkins www.photoglow.co.uk, William Watling www.illuminessence.co.uk

2

3

4

This is a picture of community that is attractive.

Many of us want to belong to a community that is real and genuine and one where we are accepted. In the book of Acts in the Bible we are told that with the new church the reputation of the people of God was such that others had a high regard for them. To be in an environment where everyone is accepted and can be trusted is a dream desired by many but one that is hard to find. Small groups have the potential to be precisely this rich community. Small groups - with smaller numbers of either boys or girls than Sunday activities can cater for - are a safe place for children to be honest and grow deeper relationships. This is why it is important and can make that community experience which is so vital to the development of their faith.

If we want our children to stay connected to church and to grow in their relationship with God it is important to invest in their small groups. It is through friendships in their own age group and with children at their stage of life who will be their greatest support

and whose advice will appear the most relevant and meaningful to them. As they grapple with real issues of living a life of faith in today's culture, they will flourish so much more with the support and shared experience of their peers than without it.

However cool you may be as a parent you will never convince your child that you really understand what it is like to be 10 or 11 years old in 2009. Of course the wisdom of the group leaders will help the group to stay on track and measure opinions and views from the perspective of the Bible as the children develop in godly wisdom for themselves.

One of the leaders from Fizzy Friends - the small group for Year 5 & 6 girls - writes:

“Fizzy Friends is a small group for Year 5 & 6 girls which meets once a month for craft, Bible study and prayer. Our socials, which have included a ramble, swimming and a Christmas meal, are great fun. It has been a rewarding experience co-leading the group, being a great chance to get to know the girls better and share and influence

“I love my small group, it is fun, with good games and good friends. I like being there and know I can share anything that is bothering me,” said one boy about Wild Warriors, the small group for Year 5 & 6 boys.

5

them in their spiritual walk with Jesus.

“The girls have so many questions, several of which we have to say, “Ask when you get to Heaven!” They have a much better understanding of matters than we often give them credit for. It’s lovely to hear them encouraging one another and praying for one another. The group has meant that the girls have got to know each other outside of Sunday church and have made good Christian friendships which we hope will support them through their teenage years. They are a fun-loving group and we have fun sharing with and teaching them too!"

Wild warriors is led by Dave Clarke. This group was set up a few years ago for year 5 & 6 boys.

Dave writes:

“When I was a young boy of similar age to the Wild Warriors I attended a group called the Boys Brigade. This was a Christian organisation which originally started in 1883 by Sir William Alexander Smith. His vision was to advance Christ's Kingdom amongst boys and to promote habits of obedience, reverence, discipline, self-respect and all that tends towards ‘true Christian manliness.’

“This organisation helped me to develop and grow in my own Christian walk and I have wanted to repeat that experience with young boys of a similar age. It is my hope that we will create an environment where the boys at Wild Warriors may learn for themselves biblical truths from Gods word, and also meet male role models who are living Spirit-led lives displaying, as Sir William describes, 'True Christian manliness'

“Typical evenings include a male guest speaker - someone from within the church - who is interviewed by the boys, before giving a short talk on a passage of scripture and ending with their testimony. The guests are members of the church that the boys may have seen and who could be role models for them.

“This term we have been looking at the armour of God, Ephesians 6:10-19. Luke Briner demonstrated the belt of truth whereas Pete Hills discussed the 'body armour of right living,' with pictures and testimonies of healing from a recent mission trip. David Gate spoke on 'the shoes of the good news,' and his celebrity meeting with David Beckham and Pierce Brosnan (ex-007). Jon Hills talked on the ‘shield of faith,’ and Geoff Routledge discussed his baptism and the 'helmet of salvation'. We normally read the whole biblical passage to put it in context, which starts quite usefully with 'children obey your parents.'

“During the evening we also have worship, prayer, quizzes and games and usually a cool prize or gadget is on offer at some point. In the past we have made shields out of wood and hose pipe, had a strong man contest and enjoyed a snowball fight followed by chocolate brownies. We have the occasional Pizza Hut social and there are always doughnuts and squash at the end of the session without fail. We ask all the boys to keep their own journal to record things they feel are relevant such as prayers, dreams or Bible verses.”

Small group - “I love it!”

6

David died a few days after our visit. At 38 years old his emaciated body, ravaged by the effects of HIV/AIDS, gave him the appearance of a man twice that age. Shrouded in a filthy blanket, confined to a straw mattress on the mud floor of his tiny dung-walled hut, the only sound he had left in him was a raking cough.

Gone were the last of the meagre funds raised from selling his plot of land for a handful of pain-relieving drugs. Gone were his two daughters, to find opportunity elsewhere.A decaying pineapple – the only food in the place – stood untouched in a corner.

The stench of squalor and the bark of a stray dog were David’s companions as life and hope drained away in the darkness.

Just a couple of tea-plantations away, another mud hut, another world. Happy kids running barefoot amongst the bushes, squealing with delight at their imaginary games. Serene women bent over cooking pots, adjusting the burning twigs beneath to regulate the heat, all smiles and constant chatter, their periodic bursts of laughter rising with the smoke into the dazzling blue sky. A group of men in the shade, chewing chapatti and politics, sharing news and views, and welcoming the white ‘muzungu’ visitors into their circle with warm interest and dignified hospitality.

Trinity Cheltenham is developing long-term links with the church and community in Kenya. After visiting the area recently, Tim Grew shares some of his thoughts.

7

This is Cheribo village, Kericho district, 100 miles north-west of Nairobi and just one of many sharply contrasting experiences from a journey of discovery into this place of extremes and multiple paradox: death sits side by side with life, infectious laughter with infectious disease, drought with monsoon rain, abject poverty with inspiring generosity, desperate need and astonishing contentedness, the beautiful majesty of African savannah and the ugly mess of urban sprawl.

In the midst of it all, beacons of light are shining brightly.

We found church communities in both towns and rural villages at the forefront of offering hope, building confidence and holding out the prospect of a better future for all.

Here are men and women and children, often in the context of scandalous deprivation and wholesale injustice, gripped by the grace, love and joy of God.

In simple ways they are working together with what they’ve got, working together to make a difference where they are.

A new classroom here, a small dispensing clinic there. A water-hole, a tree-growing scheme, a milk cooperative, a handmade crafts business, computer training - practical programmes to raise some income, to bring a sense of purpose and self-respect and to improve health and well-being.

The love of Jesus in action.

We sang and prayed together, we listened and shared stories, ate

and looked, taught and played, opened the scriptures, laughed, cried, encouraged. And understood just a little bit better. Had our hearts stretched a little bit wider.

For some time it has been part of the dream and vision of Trinity to form a long-term partnership with the local church in a disadvantaged area of the world. A partnership of genuine mutual benefit, where enduring friendships are built across cultural divides; where God is honoured and believers strengthened; where poverty, sickness and injustice loosen their grip; where the lives of individuals and whole communities are touched and changed by God’s grace at work through his people pulling together, declaring the good news of Jesus Christ in word and deed.

The Trinity-Kericho Partnership is the beginning of the realization of that dream. With the support and facilitation of TEAR Fund, initial visits have been made to explore possibilities, gain understanding and develop key relationships. The potential to make a difference – and to be made different in the process - is enormous. We’ve been hugely encouraged by the immediate sense of personal connection, shared values and myriad opportunities for working together.

I hope that my own visit will be the first of many trips, many stories, the start of many years of joyful, heart-stretching, eye-opening, faith-raising, life-enhancing, Kingdom-building mission partnership between Trinity and our brothers and sisters in western Kenya.

In the inspiring words of the inspiring Bishop Jackson Ole Sapit, as he bade us farewell, “if you want to go fast, go alone; but if you want to go far, go with others”.

By God’s grace, we intend to go far – together.

8

KERICHO

The total population of the region is around 1.5 million.

The main challenges in the region are:

High levels of disease, especially HIV/AIDS and malariaSevere water shortagesHigh levels of unemploymentLow literacy ratesPoor roadsFew industriesLarge scale farming in tea and wheat which is dominated by foreign multinationals.Recent political unrest.

The church in Kenya:

The Anglican Church of Kenya has opened a new diocese (area of governance) in Kericho. The Kericho Diocese covers a vast area of the South Rift Valley in western Kenya. There are three major urban areas – Narok, Kericho & Kilgoris – which serve as administrative bases for the whole Diocese, which has over 100 local church congregations, mainly in rural settings. The new Diocese is headed by Bishop Jackson Ole Sapit.

The vision of the new diocese, he said, is to have members who demonstrate faith, hope and love in their lives by actively bearing witness to the perfect will of God for mankind through Jesus Christ.

He said that he hoped that this will be achieved through missions and evangelism, capacity building and training, social responsibility, resource mobilization and good governance. The new Anglican Diocese of Kericho will not live in isolation but will work for “peace, tolerance and peaceful coexistence among communities.”

TRInITy-KERICHO PaRTnERsHIP OPPORTunITIEs

As the Trinity-Kericho partnership evolves over the coming months and years, we anticipate that our involvement will grow to include many construction, educational, business, leadership and medical projects:

Laying foundations for, and the building of new administrative offices.

Development of a conference centre and the building and decorating of associated guest house facilities in Narok.

Building of medical clinics and expansion of medical training and provision.

Assisting in schools through teaching, encouraging students, and coaching sports.

Leadership training for local pastors and leaders.

Provision of IT and office training and skills for many of the projects.

Encouraging of local churches with preaching, teaching, worship leading, kidz and youth activities.

Helping with existing small business development projects and community mobilization programmes.

“Here are men and women and children, often in the context of scandalous deprivation and wholesale injustice, gripped by the grace, love and joy of God.”

9

10

1943: The Great Day: our wartime wedding, with the air-raid shelter in the background.

11

1936: Divine Intervention! The total destruction of the Barking Citadel of the Salvation army.

12

1941: Our somewhat depleted wartime Salvation Army band, with me seated second in from the right.

1942: Rescue ahead; our RAF Air/Sea Rescue launch with me in the aft turret.

13

14

Central cluster is led by Alice Vigor and Ollie Workman. Alice is a secondary school science teacher, and Ollie is a chartered accountant in the housing sector.

Generally Central is made up of 20-35s, mostly single people but with some married couples. Central comprises four small groups, each of which includes between 8-14 people. We always meet on a Wednesday and vary whether we meet as a cluster or as small groups. Every week we try to eat together and take it in turn to cook for one another. This has really encouraged hospitality within the group and friendships have been built up over our meals together.

Recently, as we have got larger we have tended to focus more on our small groups, and making sure people feel they belong. God has really blessed Central with amazing friendships and that is an integral part of the Cluster life. In our cluster meetings we will sometimes have sung worship

as a group. Every week we do Bible studies, whether that is in small group or cluster.

Over the last couple of terms we have been looking at faith. Last term we used Hebrews 11 as a basis and then investigated all the heroes of the faith that are mentioned. This was a really exciting and challenging time as we searched through the Old Testament to look at these amazing people. This term, still on the topic of faith, we’re looking at really putting it into action for ourselves, so alongside studying the book of James we have been involved in several Noise projects, doing gardening projects on Manser Street in St Paul’s. In June we went back and put on a BBQ in one of the gardens – it was fantastic to build relationships and get to know some of the members of that community. It was also a real challenge to us as a cluster and some are still involved in activities in that area.

The social side of Central is fantastic as well, and that is not

15

really the leaders’ doing. So many things are organized by the members of the cluster and there is a real sense of belonging within the group. We all seem to be part of each other’s lives.

We think that clusters are a vital part of being a member of Trinity Cheltenham. It says in the Bible that we should meet together and encourage one another and I think that in a church as big as Trinity it’s easy just to go along for the ride. Within a cluster you are stretched and challenged, equipped and encouraged and hopefully should see your relationship with Jesus grow. A cluster is where your gifts should be identified and encouraged and where leadership potential is realized. You really get out what you put in!

Central has been running now for about three years and through that time we have seen God do amazing things in people’s lives. We’ve seen growth in numbers,

from our starting point of one small group, to forming two, three and then four small groups and then at the beginning of the year we branched off to form another cluster called Foundation which is now an independent cluster within Trinity. Since that point Central has continued to grow and we have many new or young Christians within the group, including many from Alpha. We are still four small groups. This is a truly exciting time for the cluster, but I’ve never known a time that wasn’t! We just hope that members of Central will continue to see genuine growth in relationship with Jesus and more fruit because of it. The vast majority of us have secular jobs and Wednesday nights help to equip us and encourage us for the week ahead.

In Central we want to see Christians who are hungry for God and His Word and go all out to put it into action in their lives.

16

I originally hail from the north of England, but don’t worry, I am house trained! I grew-up most of my life in a small village just outside Bury in Lancashire, surrounded by beautiful rolling hills and cows! Now, given that Bury is only a few miles outside of Manchester, I am justifiably allowed to be a supporter of the best team in the world…Manchester United.

I love to watch and play football, though as the years have increased so my skill level has rapidly decreased, but don’t get me wrong: the passion is still very much alive! I sadly have resigned myself to playing for the veterans’ team.

I was fortunate to grow up in a Christian home and as a family we attended a local Anglican church, which means I have distant memories of ‘flan-o-graph’ slide projector presentations of Garth Hewitt’s ‘The Champion’ and numerous church summer holiday clubs. However, I pretty much avoided any personal commitment to God and happily enjoyed many a ‘Harvest Supper’ which served Lancashire hotpot with red cabbage, followed by the obligatory church ‘Barn Dance’, though I was less keen on ‘Missionary Sunday’ when all we were allowed to eat was rice mixed with soup.

I understood why, but how is that going to build the muscles on a young boy of 11? Actually, I was a chubby kid at school…oh the irony of me playing the starring role and asking for more gruel in the school musical ‘Oliver’. Like a chipmunk, I had food reserves to last me a couple of weeks!

Thankfully, despite my best efforts of avoiding going to church my parents persevered and no doubt prayed that I would find God for myself, which I did. In the summer of 1983 my parents wisely let me go on a church ‘Pathfinder’ camp: a Christian holiday in South Devon. I went with the intention of having a great deal of fun, meeting girls, playing sport and generally doing my best to avoid going to the evening meetings.

The evening meetings in my mind were basically a combination of boring Bible teaching, poor worship and badly performed sketches. Looking back I realise that wasn’t the case but more my attitude towards anything ‘churchy.’ Anyway, during one of the evening meetings, half-way through the camp, I distinctly remember something quite strange happening which took me by surprise.

We met in a large marquee for the evening meeting and the electricity was run from a generator, but during the meeting the generator kept cutting out which meant the lights would go off. Someone would then fix it and the power would come back on. This happened about four or five times. In addition to this, a heavy wind began to blow throughout the marquee causing the suspended fluorescent lights to violently swing and the tent walls to flap quite aggressively.

The next thing that happened was an even bigger surprise to me - I began to cry. Now I don’t want you to think I was scared of the dark or the wind, I wasn’t. I began to cry because for the first time I realized just how much God loved me and exactly what Jesus had done for me in dying on the cross. I knew that my life was about me but that Jesus was inviting me to put my life in His and trust Him for the future.

Since that summer camp in 1983 I’ve come to truly know for myself that God is very clearly at work seeking to demonstrate to the world through the church that He is alive and means business. Now given my childhood dislike for church, I genuinely would never have thought that twenty-six years later I would have become a Vicar. Being a Vicar is not in the list of boyhood dreams alongside professional football player and Formula One racing car driver is it? However that is the amazing, rollercoaster of a journey in life that God has led me and called me to.

I guess there are two things that really float my boat and make me tick. The first is seeing people come to faith in Jesus and growing as followers of Jesus. The second is identifying the raw giftedness in people, the untapped potential, and encouraging, training and equipping people to step out into new areas of leadership in life and in the church as the Spirit of God empowers them. Now of course I love all the other areas of church life, clusters, social transformation, praying for people etc… but for me there is nothing more exciting than being involved in equipping the church to see friends, families and colleagues come to faith and then journey with them to lead others to faith in Jesus.

and so to Trinity Cheltenham

Cheltenham, wow, it’s very quiet.

Coming from central London I’m used to a few more police cars at night and my fair share of noisy neighbours. I think my neighbours might be dead!

Seriously, it’s so quiet where I live. Don’t get me wrong, I love it!

The other thing that I love is the fact that I can look out of my window and see hills and trees. It is absolutely beautiful where we live. You can’t think that the countryside surrounding us is some random cosmic explosion, come on! Be serious. This place has been designed for a purpose!

Now Trinity, Trinity is quite simply family. People are so welcoming at Trinity. I’ve had my fair share of dinner invites. I reckon I could put together a fine list of families to visit for a pleasurable cuisine experience.

But putting my stomach to one side for a moment, which is difficult, the thing that really grabs my

17

attention at Trinity is the genuine desire by the leadership and the church to pursue God in everything that we do.

If God isn’t with us, what’s the point? We might as well pack-up and go home. So ‘Hungry for God’, Sunday Celebrations, Clusters and our weekly meetings are all points along the journey where we can make space to connect with God, seek His face and be propelled into a world of pain, imprisonment and darkness to bring healing, freedom and the light of Christ.

The building up and sending out is the critical element of the mission of Trinity Cheltenham and that is something I live for!

I guess I see my role in a number of ways: Firstly, to press into God for my own journey of faith with Him and for the Mission and Community element of life at Trinity. I want to continually grow in my relationship with Christ and as I do, I hope that that influences and impacts how I serve Trinity, the team I lead and the Mission and Community aspect of our church’s life.

Secondly, to support and encourage my team, who are all just brilliant by the way, they are a pleasure to lead. I take my hat off to them for their commitment to the vision of Trinity and for modelling something that others can also follow.

Thirdly, to do all I can to equip Trinity to make committed followers of Jesus, who change communities and nations for Him. It’s not rocket science but there is a lost and broken world full of people who do not know the God who loves them and we all have a responsibility to introduce them to Him.

So I want to do all I can in helping our church to introduce people to the most important, exciting, life-giving person who has ever walked the face of planet earth, namely Jesus! There is nothing more important.

And then fourthly, have a whole load of fun!

“I want to do all I can in helping our church to introduce people to the most important, exciting, life-giving person who has ever walked the face of planet earth”

18

Let me take you from the romantic India of travel brochures, of bygone days of empire and the Raj, where everything is gold, encrusted with jewels, to what is twenty-first century India as it is, raw and real. Today India is still searching for its identity in the world, it’s economy growing at a pace that most in the country are struggling to keep up with.

India is a country of extremes, so much so that it offends the senses. In a few steps you’re taken from the smell of raw sewage in the hot air, so thick you can see it, to a wonderful temple devoted to ‘western style’ living where everything is expensive and flashy. In just a few seconds you cross the threshold between people groups; those struggling for existence at the bottom of the pile and those surrounded by a luxury lifestyle. How can such polar opposites be neighbours?

Maybe this is why over the years so many - from the Beatles to your next door neighbour - have gone to India for an ‘awakening’. It is in this environment of the stark contrasts of the realities of life that so many are forced to go deeper, to find themselves, to find what is real. When this tension is present, when it can’t be escaped, it has to be explained. Is this why there is such a spiritual diversity in India? Is this why so many individuals find themselves imprisoned in a caste system?

Is this an adequate explanation, or has it become more convenient for people to think that not all people are made equal? ‘You were born a “dalit” therefore you are worthless; you are crushed by poverty because the gods ordained it.’ This opinion has almost become institutionalised in Indian society.

But there is a greater truth, there is a greater reality than this and it certainly is not simply a convenient explanation.

This truth, in the familiar words from the American Civil Rights movement, is that ‘all men are made equal’. Where did Martin Luther-King see such a revolutionary truth? He found it in the person of Jesus. The truth is that He loves the least and the most; there is no divide, they are equal in His sight.

This is so revolutionary that it changes and shapes nations. We can only look at this movement to see how this totally rocks institutions and indeed whole nations to the core, so much so that some 50 years later a black President now governs the most powerful nation on earth.

The truth is that ‘all men are made equal’ and I believe India is on the cusp of a similar shaking, a similar awakening as that of the Civil Rights movement.

Trinity recently took a team of people out to Mumbai to lead week a of teaching and training for a group of young leaders from the slum areas of the city.

19The mission trip to India over the ‘diwali’ festival last year aimed to take those ‘at the bottom of the pile’, young men and women, mostly from the slums of Mumbai, on a camp in order to equip them in being the ‘change-makers’; to bring the good news that God loves all equally, that we are all entitled to His love. This truth was not just mere words; God confirmed this fundamental truth again and again over the course of the camp. He demonstrated this truth through power, through miracles and through the overwhelming sense of His love.

One amazing miracle I remember vividly is of a guy who came to the camp who was severely short-sighted, so much so he could not even read words projected onto a large screen in the meetings. The Team of 12 from the UK wanted to show that God loves to demonstrate His love, it’s not just words, and so we began to pray for people for healing and this guy was prayed for. After receiving prayer he felt compelled to go to the farthest corner of the large conference hall. From the farthest corner he could see the words on the screen at the front of the conference hall with crystal clear vision. He shared this with the 120 youth on the camp. God was proving His nature, His care for some that the world would call ‘the least’ but to Him they are certainly not.

We weren’t there just for these one-off experiences or to be the western ‘gurus’ of Christianity. We were there to show God is more interested in using the least of these to share His goodness. That was the theme of what we shared in the main meetings throughout the four day camp at the village of Nilshi, a three and a half hour bumpy bus ride away from Mumbai. We wanted them to know that they were the ones who could take this same message back to where they are from: the Southern tip of India at Kerala through Mumbai into the Punjab and up to the Northern extreme of Himachal-Pradesh.

We can read in the book of Acts the impact of 120 on the world as we know it. It's not presumptuous to say that these 120 at this camp, full of passion and with a life-changing message could initiate a new awakening in their nation.

I know that for the ones we invested in on this camp, their journey from now on may not be easy. They will be faced with the perils of persecution, imprisonment or even death, but just as the message of Martin Luther-King lived on and burned brighter in the hearts and minds of those left behind, so this message that these 120 carry will grow stronger and burn brighter through these trials. We rejoice now that 50 years on Barack Obama presides over the United States. I want to think that in 50 years time we will rejoice over a transformed India, with a culture marked by equality and truth that is girded with love.

Chris Banwell

20

a journey in faith

I grew up in Sheffield in an academic family and developed a deep interest in Christian spirituality aged 14. As a young teenager I wanted to be involved in politics and when I was 17 I was planning to study economics at university. But as I thought about the economics I was being taught I realised that it was based on shaky foundations. It’s just not true, for example, that human beings are rational and make rational choices about how to spend their money.

I became interested in theology because it offered a chance to honestly investigate the fundamental questions of life. At first it was painful—everything I had been taught was thrown into question. But I was fortunate to have some great teachers at Oxford and after the initial shock I loved everything I was studying; it allowed me to think about the big picture in relation to my own personal aspirations and struggles. In a sense, I did the economics and the politics because they are covered by a theological exploration of the way God and the world work. (Though sadly many other theologians seemed not to appreciate that). After the undergraduate degree I stayed at Oxford to do a doctorate. I was wrestling over what topic to choose. It boiled down to either one verse in one of Paul’s shorter letters or a broader look at angels in ancient Judaism and Luke’s gospel.

For Mary, my wife, there really was nothing to debate.

I did the angels.

It was a good time for that topic; I rode the crest of a wave of new interest in the study of angels across the world. A small community have made significant discoveries in the last 20 years. Sometimes these have been publicized in the press, but mostly their impact on the church and our understanding of Christianity and of ancient Judaism will only be fully appreciated in the decades to come.

Breakthroughs have partly come with the publication of Dead Sea Scrolls from the caves 20 miles east of Jerusalem. The writers of these texts had an intense interest in angels and the secrets of the heavenly realm. Some of these texts were only made freely available in the 90s. Others had been transcribed, or deciphered, and translated in the 60s and 70s by the first generation of scholars (who were mostly western Christians).

But, as I was working on my doctorate, a new wave of specialists—including Jewish scholars with a better understanding of ancient Jewish language and culture—began to show that they had sometimes been misinterpreted by the first generation of Qumran scholars. We now know that the Scrolls describe Jews intimately involved in the workings of the heavenly realm, worshipping alongside the angels, whilst engaged in quite developed mystical and magical practices.

In some ways the evidence of the Scrolls is contributing to a revolution in our understanding of ancient Judaism. Indeed, out of this there is emerging a much clearer understanding of the meaning of Jesus’ words and actions. This is what interests me most. I’ve now

21written two books and numerous other articles on the relationship between ancient Judaism and early Christianity, not just in the Dead Sea Scrolls.

There has never been a better, more exciting time, for research in this field.

Theological developments

There are so many exciting developments in theology that it has seemed to me a shame that the structural gap between the theological academy and the church has only tended to get wider in the last few decades.

About 12 years ago I began to get a vision for a different kind of theological ‘career’ and a new institution that would focus on the needs and the wisdom of local churches that are looking to bring creativity, healing and transformation to their communities. Because of our great national history, theological resources in the UK have become concentrated in two overgrown medieval monastic towns (Oxford and Cambridge), some way from where most people now live. Until 2004 I had worked (and taught) in three great university theology departments (Kings College, London, Durham and Nottingham).

Then I felt it was time for a new approach and I was offered a position as ‘Resident Theologian’ at a church in central London. Teaching academic theology in a large church was exhilarating and we quickly stirred up demand for more intentional programmatic study. So in 2006 we set up the Westminster Theological Centre (WTC). Over the last three years a team of likeminded theologians have delivered modules in theology to over 200 students and have helped train a cohort of Church of England ordinands for the priesthood. We started in just one local church, before a network of churches—the New Wine Network—became interested in what we were doing and now we have a partnership—the New Wine Training Partnership—to deliver theological education and training across the country. There is still a training Hub in the London Church (St Mary’s Bryanston Square). We moved west this summer to be based at

a leading New Wine church (Trinity) and take advantage of the fabulous working environment that is Cheltenham.

A lot of theology over the last century has been boring, irrelevant and even destructive. The story goes that in the mid-60’s the Vatican dug up a grave in Jerusalem and found an ossuary that stored the bones of a first century Jew. On the outside of the ossuary there was inscribed the name ‘Jeshua ben Joseph’. Understandably, alarmed at thought that they had discovered Jesus’ bones they rang around a few theologians. They explained to one famous German theologian—Paul Tillich—their situation. There was a long silence on the German end of the phone and then Prof. Tillich said, ‘Ah … so he really did exist!’.

That’s where theology has been for much of the last century and we are still feeling its effects in the church today. But thankfully, professional theologians have all moved on now. There is so much that we agree about. No serious scholar doubts that Jesus existed. All agree that the Kingdom of God was the centre of his message and that he healed the sick.

I think we are beginning to see a huge shift in the theological world. In the last 20 years we have even had strong historical arguments that key indisputable facts of early Christian history are inexplicable unless Jesus really was resurrected from the dead. So, theology excites me because this is a time of both creativity and rediscovery, and Christian faith is beginning to look a lot more intellectually coherent and believable than it used to. I was led to theology in my late teens because I believed it offered tools to face life’s burning questions and I believe this now more than ever before. Here’s one example. In the last three years I’ve become involved with a group of business people, especially entrepreneurs, who are investing time and energy in theological exploration. Together we are doing theology because we

want to know: how does Scripture equip us to live effective lives that will maximize the return on investment on our daily activities? How does theology help me position my business when all around me is collapsing? How does a study of the history of Christian spirituality teach me to live a fulfilled live at work and a healthy, full life at home?

I should also be honest and say I’m wired as a thinker. Theology is fulfilling for me because it allows me to worship God—with my mind—in the way that he has made me. And over the last few years teaching in the Church I have met many who are like me: people who just want an opportunity to run free with their minds and explore the awesome ramifications of who God is and how he is present and at work in all the world.

Introducing people in the classroom to this experience is a privilege that regularly overwhelms me.

Theology and politics

There are remarkable things happening in politics right now. What is reported in the press (both mainstream and Christian) is largely blind to developments at the heart of the political culture. In the last few years, Christians across the parties have begun to work together and just as the state seems hell-bent on attacking parts of ‘orthodox’ Christianity a rediscovery of the need for faith seems to be taking place. The likes of Richard Dawkins sell copy with their relentless attack on the Christian character of our national history and identity.

22

Many MPs who are not professing Christians are alarmed by a kind of intolerant ‘fundamentalism’ that has grabbed the public limelight.

The opportunities I have had to make a contribution here have come through a friend—Dr David Landrum—who is administrative head of Christians In Parliament. Dr Landrum organizes Bible studies for MPs and parliamentarians throughout the year and it has been a privilege to sit, study and pray with them over the last few years.

Clearly, the Bible does not prescribe a neat political blueprint for a ‘Christian’ country.

Really, what I am discovering is that there are challenges facing MPs that are common to us all: how do I sustain myself psychologically, socially, spiritually whilst I pour out my life for the cause that I think I have been given? When should I do what seems pragmatically necessary and when should I stick to my principles? Is there a way to live that is pragmatically effective that also has integrity, authenticity and ‘truth’?

These, I think, are the great questions of our age.

Westminster Theological Centre

WTC is a baby.

It is dangerous to put expectations on a child as it grows up. Changes in the economics of tertiary education, across the UK and in the church sector, also mean an unpredictable future for any Theological institution like ours. We have a rough idea where we might be

in 10 or 20 years, but I think part of the fun of a venture like ours is the uncertainty, the spontaneity of the journeying. I see change as an opportunity. I hope that in the coming years we will discover a culture of creativity that can rise to the practical challenges of the future. We have begun to take advantage of new technologies in content delivery. This is going to redefine the industry, I am sure. We also have an opportunity now, through the New Wine Training Partnership, to facilitate a convergence between dynamic, life-giving theology and the energy of churches focused on service and mission.

I also think WTC is called to discover both what works—what delivers life-giving, transformative training—and that which is true or beautiful. That means learning how a healthy organisation functions in such a way that individuals—who are made to be God’s image—within it can truly thrive. I have been inspired by recently studying the case of 12th century monasticism.

The Cistercians revolutionized monastic life with a focus on hard work as worship and a completely new model of management and organisational structure that facilitated rapid expansion across northern Europe, the domestication of wild and dangerous terrain and the major technological developments that laid the foundations for the industrial revolution.

I think we need a similar kind of revolution in church life and training in the 21st century and it would be wonderful if WTC could make some small contribution to that in the coming decades.

23

God loves - Come away with me...you have stolen my heart with one glance of your eyes...(Song of Songs 4:8-9, The Bible) Spend your time with Me. I desire for you to spend time with Me. I long for your presence. Let the world go its way, and spend time with Me. You will see things in their true perspective. (Do not think in terms of gender. This is a spiritual picture of My relationship with My church.) You have ravished My heart with one look of your eyes. Your eyes are the windows of your soul. As I look into your eyes I see to the very depths of you, into your true self, into your spirit and I love what I see. (Message from God – based on Song of Songs, The Bible)

24

Love ourselves – Do not wait for somebody to come to complete you and solve your issues - God loves you and has a plan for you NOW! We often look to one person to fulfil all our dreams, wants and expectations!! God has provided an earthly family and friendship groups which can fulfil different roles and activities in our lives. There are different seasons: sometimes we give and other times people will be there to give and support us. Working out what makes you tick and someone else feel valued can really help in all relationships. Here are five ways through which we can show and be shown love:Loving Words, Quality Time, Thoughtful Presents, Kind Actions, Physical Affection

singleness top tips – Enjoy your own duvet and bed! Make the most of your opportunities (e.g. holidays with friends). Work out what God’s best plan for your life would be now and do it without comparison...Make a careful exploration of who you are and the work you have been given, and then sink yourself into that. Don't be impressed with yourself. Don't compare yourself with others. Each of you must take responsibility for doing the creative best you can with your own life. (Galatians 6:4-5, The Bible). Realise you are never alone...I will never leave you or forsake you. (Hebrews 13:5, The Bible) Remember you have a family wider than your own biological one...We are like one body with many parts (1 Corinthians 12, The Bible)

Coupledom tips - As iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another (Proverbs 27:17 - The Bible) ...therefore speak truth to each other (motivated by love) and accept advice from those who care about you. Relive happy memories (honeymoon destinations, visit old haunts). Have date nights / time away together. Pursue common interests and dreams as well as having your own individual ones! Maintain friendships outside of your relationship. Also remember people are NOT buildings that need your DIY improvements...accept and respect each other and your differences and let God change and shape you for his purposes.

What about sex – well Biblically sex IS marriage – it's the tying together (called yoking in the Bible) and the giving of yourself to someone spiritually, emotionally and physically. In Song of Songs chapter 8 we are told we will be honoured when we act more like walls (protecting ourselves and others) than doors (allowing easy access)

P.S. Here are some cheesy chat ups to be avoided at all costs!How heavy is a polar bear...I don't know either but it breaks the ice!If I could rearrange the alphabet, I would put U and I together.Excuse me, do you have any raisins? How about a date?I'm new in town can you direct me to your house?

25

26

27

28

We all know that when it comes to moving on and moving up into a new season of our lives a whole forest full of fresh changes and challenges, doubts and decisions bloom. Here we talk to four young people about the glorious Spring ahead of them and the building blocks they’re putting in place to make sure they bloom in their future, friendships and faith.

29

30

Hannah has been at Trinity with her family since she was nine. Having finished 6th form at Balcarras she is taking a gap year to learn more about God and his plans for her before university.

I tend to be a bit of a joker around my friends and love having fun and a laugh with them. What makes me happiest is having people around me who I am close to and who I feel comfortable with. I think my major annoyance is not knowing what the future holds, but as I have learnt, this tends to be something I have to trust God on!

I became a Christian very early on in my childhood when I was three years old. I can remember listening to someone at Sunday school talking about Jesus living in their heart. Later on I asked my Mum how I could have Jesus living in my heart. This happened when I was so young because my parents had a very open relationship with Christ. Trinity Youth and Hungry for God have been vital for helping me come to my decision on my gap year and making sure the decision I made was definitely right. These places have given me the opportunity to meet with God and get wisdom from the people around me. Trinity Youth has been such an encouraging atmosphere and has taught me more about God. As my relationship with Him has developed I have learnt that I am able to trust Him with everything. This is going to help me so much in stepping away from my old life, as it were, into what God has for me now.

I have wanted to do a gap year since I was very young however my idea for my gap year has changed dramatically since. Originally I wanted to spend a year doing mission in Uganda. This was a desire in my heart after God had given me a passion for that country. I have now realised that although that will happen at some point God needs to prepare me for what’s next. From this revelation I have decided to spend a month in South Africa, gaining support from a close family atmosphere around me. After this I am hoping to go to Canada for five months to the School of Ministry at Toronto Airport Christian Fellowship. This will be four months of conference-like sessions, where the aim is to get completely healed up and create a strong foundation of God’s love in you. After these four months everyone on the course goes on outreach for a month.

I think the biggest challenge for me is going to Canada and living with a big group of girls. This is because it will be completely different to where I imagined myself going. I have been learning recently that putting my trust in God is vital to him working in my life in the bigger ways that I desire him to. It also has meant that I have a hunger and faith for new things, which is amazing.

sophie is eighteen and the eldest of four sisters. she is taking a gap year to work with soul action, an organisation that responds to God’s heart for justice, taking the good news of Jesus in practical ways to the last, the least and the lost.

I gave my life to God at the age of four when I realised who he was, and ever since then it’s been a continuous journey towards serving Him fully. There have always been choices I have had to make to bring me closer to

God. Recently He’s been trying to teach me obedience as I’m a very strong-minded person but I’ve been going through an amazing time with Him.

My passion in life is to help people, always be there for them, teach them things I have learnt from experience and others, and to show Jesus' love to them.

Last year has made me more independent as friends older that me have left and I’ve taken on more roles within Trinity Youth. I’ve learnt even more how to worship even when I don’t feel like it or everyone leaves or sits down. I have been praying for ages about what to do and really felt God say take a gap year, so I obeyed and then thought He told me to wait. So many people kept pestering me (in loving concern of course) about what I should do, but I was adamant God was going to come through and give me something in His own perfect timing. I met this woman who offered to email me with some options because she worked with Soul Action. Eventually I got this email, she had been praying and heard from God for me about the call on my life etc. There were quite a few options - one looked amazing but was very expensive and didn’t offer a trip abroad which is what I wanted to do. Another was a three month thing doing mission in Durban, South Africa. I had seen it but didn't really know what to do with the rest of the year.

She also suggested doing an internship with her in Watford, working for Soul Action, for the rest of the year. Anyway it suddenly just all ‘clicked’ in my head. They found me a place on a project that I hadn't previously seen, working in Montclair on three different projects: a privileged pre-primary school for underprivileged children with a youth group focussing on evangelism and discipleship; a scheme called ‘think twice’ to teach about HIV and AIDS; and a pregnancy care unit which gives counselling and practical help to women in difficult situations. This was even better than the other options for me as God gave me a heart for women who were either prostitutes or women deciding to have abortions.

Still being at school I had absolutely no idea how to help but it seems God had another idea! Everything has fitted into place, every single detail, and I'm so excited because I really know where God wants me to be now.

Emily is eighteen and lives with her parents, two younger brothers and a dog. she hopes to go to Bath university to study Politics and International Relations.

I just enjoy simple things like having a good chat with friends or walking the dog or reading - I’m determined to one day make it to the end of Bleak House! I get really frustrated though when I can’t do things, like failing a driving test...or two!

31Having grown up in a Christian family I’ve always had some kind of relationship with God but it’s developed throughout my teens into a personal one. I’m the first to admit that having a relationship with God can be hard at times. When you feel rubbish and have had a tough time it’s often very easy to pull away from God but I’ve learned over the last few years that actually moving closer to God and making the effort may be the harder option at the time but things are oddly always easier in the long run.

Trinity Youth over the past year has helped to reinforce the idea of independence and maturity in your own relationship with God. The teaching and support has helped give a sense of independence of faith, that whilst it’s important to be able to meet with friends and in groups as we do on a Sunday evening, it’s equally vital to be able to stand on your own and still have a strong personal relationship with God, one that is going to survive and grow stronger when facing the challenges of a new environment.

I think the major challenge that comes from moving away from home and gaining an unprecedented level of independence is being able to define yourself away from your family, friends, church, school or whatever. Being away from these things that have been such a huge part of your life to suddenly being submerged into a completely different environment, perhaps with people that have had totally different experiences to you, will definitely be exciting but also challenging, at least at first.

Simple things like making time to read my Bible and to pray and just reflect on God daily I think are the most valuable building blocks that will ensure a continuing growth in my relationship with God, especially when moving into the unknown of university life. I think I will have to make a real conscious effort to make enough time, make sure spending time with God doesn’t get swept away in favour of other things and that I carry God with me into new experiences with boldness.

Will has lived in Cheltenham with his family for eleven years and has been at Trinity for ten.

I’m a very bubbly, chatty and outgoing type of guy and love being around people but also like my chill out times. I like a bit of retail therapy as well, sorry men! I love playing my sport and after a good Sunday roast watching a bit of rugby or football on the TV.

I dislike people pointing the finger at you without checking the evidence before and cowards such as bullies; I would love to understand why they bully others. I’m also not a fan of people waffling around the point, if they have something to say they should be brave and say it.

I have been a Christian for around seven years. I don’t remember a set date, time and place when I gave my life to the Lord. I have been brought up

knowing about God but only started understanding the full concept of God’s power and love later on. There has been one problem in my walk with God that keeps drawing me away from my relationship with Him and that’s being ‘lukewarm’. I come to church and praise God then go to college on Monday and go back to my normal ways of swearing and not being what God wants me to be. God doesn’t just want Sunday relationships; he loves us 24/7 so he deserves much better. But Trinity Youth leaders have supported me, without forcing things upon me, just gently guiding me then leaving me to make my own mind up.

After the summer of 2008 I became spiritually tired and fed up with God and church. I then lost my Granny over Christmas. I came back to God briefly and knew He was there but then went away again. I tried to come back to God but couldn’t, something was blocking me. But recently with the youth group we went to a conference at Bath City Church called Epidemic Life. That weekend I went deeper with God and it’s been life changing. After that week I was on fire and was given a new dream to change the hospitality industry. My aspiration is to become manager of a luxury boutique hotel that will have Christian staff on fire for God and that the guests will feel something special in the hotel.

I believe God has called me to go to Bath and it’s time to step outside the comfort zone and live on the edge. The main things that will challenge me when I move on to my new life in Bath will be missing my family and friends, creating friendships and settling into a new church and job. The challenge of fulfilling my dream to change the hotel that I’m going to work in will be the biggest. I will need God more than ever and I will have to confront being lukewarm. But I’m up for that battle.

[since writing this, things have moved on for Will, as he explains....]

This summer having gained three distinctions in my BTEC Hospitality Diploma, I had an awesome opportunity to work in a very reputable Michelin starred restaurant/hotel in Bath. I truly believe this was from the Lord and an answer to prayer as my visit to Bath City Church at Easter had been a great inspiration. I felt excited about the possibility of being able to worship there and make a life for myself in Bath. However it didn’t work out as planned. After a month of working 80 hours a week for less than £3 per hour and challenging the management about their breach of contract I had no alternative but to resign.

I was exhausted and upset that such bad management practice, lack of value and respect for the staff existed in such a fabulous place. Perhaps this was what God wanted me to experience, so that when I am in a position of influence I can make sure that staff are always treated properly, trained, respected and thanked for the work they do. It doesn’t take much to put an arm around someone’s shoulder to say thank you and well done, does it?

God is so good as immediately another offer came which meant I could continue to live at home and worship at Trinity whilst training as Duty Manager at Barnsley House, a lovely chic country house hotel, where I have been happy for the past couple of months.

32

I was born and raised in Nottingham, the middle child of three, and remain a firm Forest fan. Unfortunately my wife, Alex, is a rabid Man U supporter which was a significant obstacle to us getting together (I think my brother still struggles with it). When we first started a family we wrestled with the dilemma of whether to bring our kids up as United or Forest but in the end decided they could support any team – as long as it wasn’t Arsenal.

We have three children (Bryony, Ben and Zac), all under 6, and have managed so far to train them to shout for any team in red but haven’t been able to get more specific than that.

I studied acting at the Royal Scottish Academy in Glasgow and worked as a professional actor for around eight years. I have also

33

in my time worked in catering, painting and decorating, webdesign, auxiliary nursing, furniture sales and as a DSS officer.

I stopped acting just over ten years ago and found myself working for a new church in London led by John Peters. It’s a bit of a haze what I actually did there for five years but I remember it involved laughing a lot and frequently wearing fancy dress. Whilst I was there I met Alex, my then wife-to-be, who also worked for the church. Around this time God started to nudge me towards becoming a full-time minister and in 2003 we moved to Oxford where I studied Theology at Wycliffe Hall. I have spent the last four years as Curate of All Saints church in Worcester which has brought great challenges and joys as well as wonderful friendships and signs of God on the move.

34I grew up in a loving do-as-you-would-be-done-by family that went to church at Christmas and Easter but apart from that didn’t pay God too much attention. As a young teenager I decided any faith that attempted to be universally ‘true’ must by default be wrong and so I created my own religion from bits and bobs I came across that suited me. I suppose my pride needed to find a ‘secret’ that nobody else knew, something that made my understanding superior to others’. I was fascinated with Eastern Mysticism and New Age philosophy and by the time my parents unexpectedly divorced I was happily pursuing the Buddhist ‘middle way’. Travelling on serenely, I remained outwardly untouched by the emotion of the event.

Shortly after the divorce my mother committed intellectual suicide and become a Christian. I made it my job to point out the error of her thinking and demonstrate that this was just a prop, a crutch. She struggled on with her faith in an atmosphere of mockery until around three years later when my younger brother had an ‘experience’ at a concert and became a Christian. It had such an impact on my sister that within a week she also became a Christian.

I decided to go with the ‘whatever makes you happy’ argument and in the late 80s moved to Glasgow to study at the drama school.

Away from the pressures of a now Christian family I found myself surrounded by a wonderful group of atheists, new agers and hedonists. I fitted right in. They were great folk, full of love and not a little wisdom too but Jesus wasn’t really part of the picture. Drama school does tend to force you to delve into yourself and more and more I realised that I was a mess as a person, having never really dealt with my parents’ split and with a feeling that deep within me was something quite ugly.

On the surface I was socially very adept but inside I was totally crippled. The Buddhist middle way had helped me avoid the pain of life but was also stopping me experiencing real joy too. I was self-contained, isolated and yet desperate to connect with others. I saw that anyone as broken as I was could never make himself perfect. For the first time I realised I needed a saviour and suddenly the Jesus stuff made sense. In February 1991 I prayed to a God I wasn’t sure existed and told him that if it was true I would throw myself completely in and become a Christian.

I told nobody about my prayer but five days later out of the blue I had a spiritual encounter that, for me, pretty much set the seal on the question.

Driven by Mission

I am driven by mission. I want to connect with people who don’t yet know Jesus, but ironically I have come to believe that effective evangelism cannot be separated from dynamic discipleship. Real faith must be incarnate. It must be walked out not just worked out. I don’t think we will draw people to faith in Jesus by just attempting to get them into our church buildings.

We will not convince our friends and families of the ‘truth’ of the Gospel unless they see it in practice, unless they see it works. Words are no longer enough, if they ever were.

That means that any church that is serious about evangelism must also be serious about personal transformation and healing (first and foremost their own) and real community, as well as engaging in mission in its broadest sense (acts of service, peace and justice).

When I first became a Christian it was simply a question of taking every opportunity to talk to people about Jesus and offer reasons to believe. I was never slow in expressing my opinions before coming to faith and those

who knew me would have found it strange if I hadn’t spoken about my faith once I had one.

As time has gone on I have realised that people, at least initially, are more interested in hearing my stories than hearing an explanation of the gospel. They are happy to look at Jesus and faith through the filter of an individual Christian’s life long before they are open to a presentation of Christianity. They are also very open to engaging with the supernatural side of the faith. One of the most potent points of connection is listening to their situation and asking, “would you like me to pray with/for you?”

The life of faith involves inviting people into our world rather than our church. They need to see us in our relationships, in our parenting, in our attitude to money, in our times of stress and in our times of celebration.

People are looking for ‘spiritual guides’ and they are drawn to anyone whose personal faith seems to work in real life. They are not looking for perfect people but they want to see that the things we all struggle with (work, kids, marriage, finance, self-esteem, shame, identity, intimacy, faithfulness, significance etc.) can be impacted by Jesus. This means hospitality, openness, community and generosity are key values. Throwing good parties is a spiritual gift.

But another key value is honesty. You can’t pretend to be more sorted than you are, to know more than you do or to be further down the road than you actually are.

How can we talk about the gospel of grace and of a God who loves us just as we are and then pretend we are in a place we’re not? The most powerful apologetic is a life transformed, but it will be most powerfully seen by those who knew the place we began.

To show ourselves as we truly are now is an act of faith that God will not leave us in this place but will give us a testimony for his glory. One other part of the picture for me is a belief that Jesus is already at work in the ‘non-Christian world’ (I actually don’t think there is a non-Christian world but that’s for another day). Which means we need to be prepared to step into the world and engage with it respectfully as well as critically.

When we talk with someone about faith we need to know that we are joining in with a conversation already happening between the other person and God. There will be

35other voices in there too but we need to enter the dialogue with humility and with an expectation that we will be enriched by the encounter rather than with a goal and a gameplan to win an argument.

Glenfall

The simple fact is that God drew us to Cheltenham. We had previously looked at a couple of other jobs in Cheltenham and Gloucester but God quickly closed the doors and then earlier in the year we heard that Glenfall might be looking for a new leader. We took a Sunday morning off and visited them incognito and just felt so welcomed. It was the warmth of the Glenfall people that convinced us that here was something of a hidden gem of a church.

The Trinity connection is also really exciting. On a personal level I am really looking forward to learning from Mark’s leadership, and from a church point of view there is so much that Trinity does brilliantly, with a level of resourcing and energy that a small church couldn’t hope to match. I think it makes sense for Glenfall to dive into what Trinity is doing in those areas that we would struggle to do alone. It also makes sense that there are advantages to doing some things locally. Part of the journey over the next wee while will be to work out which is which.

There may also be initiatives that Trinity has that could be best delivered on the south of the town through Glenfall and so we need to be available to serve a bigger vision too. Glenfall must be distinct, offering something complementary to Trinity whilst being clearly connected and part of the Trinity family.

I think it is too early to say specifically how I see Glenfall going forward, that will depend on getting to know the gifts and the dreams of those who are already part of the church. God will be bringing together a specific group of people ‘for such a time as this’ and part of my job will be matching the shape of that community to the shape of its ministry. However, a leader’s job is also to encourage the church to expand into a vision that is bigger than the sum of its people. To be ambitious for what God has in store. I was appointed with something of a mandate for mission and God has been asking me to pray over the past six months into four basic areas:

- that many would know Jesus for the first time- that there would be signs and wonders of his kingdom- that individuals’ lives would be transformed- that individuals would transform the places they live and work in

Nothing all that shiny and new, just the gospel really.

36

Imagine paying to go to church.

In fact, imagine paying more to be at the front.

Maybe that’s why no one sits at the front; nothing to do with the speakers being there and the volume’s a touch high, people think if they sit at the front they’ll have to pay.

Rewind nearly 200 years and that’s what happened. They didn’t have the speakers and bass bins at the front and people paid a premium to be close to the front. So keen were they to get their seat that they even bought season tickets!

In St Paul’s there’s a framed sign saying ‘all seats free’. It was the first church in Cheltenham to be built so that people who couldn’t pay could come to church. We keep that sign even though, of course, they’re free these days, because it reminds us of our heritage. It reminds us of why we are here. We are here so that people can hear about Jesus and get to know Him regardless of wealth or lack of it.

This was the mission that thirty folks decided they wanted to be a part of just over two years ago. Thirty folks who were happy at their church, thirty folks who were serving in their church, thirty folks who had friends and relatives at their church, thirty folks who were

integral to the life of their church; but thirty folks who knew that God was calling them to leave home and set up family half a mile down the road in a church where once upon a time, all the seats were free.

That was two years ago and the effects have been startling. We always knew, at St Paul’s, that our pace of change would accelerate, but few anticipated just how fast it would be. Today the group of people that gather on a Sunday morning to worship God is understandably different.

Along with our resident eccentric who heckles the sermon and occasionally swears quite loudly, somewhere close to a hundred adults and between fifteen and thirty children gather on a Sunday morning. They praise God together with songs they could be forgiven for thinking they heard on the radio on their way to church.

It’s not the number of people though, or their age profile or their musical taste that defines the pace of change, it’s the mission. This body of people are on a mission of transformation, a mission to transform their community by making committed followers of Jesus. It’s a mission that can’t be achieved by being limited to the four walls of the church, so people go out into the community and do what Jesus did. He left the comfort and joy of the heavenly realm

37

pictures of the new look St Paul’s

above left: Roger stands in the church buildingjust as the refurbishment is starting

to be born as a man into the earthly realm, and it was anything but comfortable or joyful; but He did it to identify with the people He was on a mission to save. That’s why we leave the usually warm and soon to be comfortable church and go to our community.

Different people do different things. One lady took a job as a community nurse and now visits many of the housebound and vulnerable. One man cuts the grass for an elderly gent who can no longer manage it.

Another lady regularly walks the streets and talks to the people she meets. Another man invited a group of lads to play football while another mentors a local teenager. One group of people adopted a street, another group picks up litter and prays. Jesus went to the community He was trying to reach, so it makes sense that we should too.

Jesus though, called people to Himself, and frankly, when you get to know Him, He’s pretty attractive. Not only do we go to people, but we also ask them to come to us. We ask them to come to a womens group, a parenting course, a mums & toddlers group, a teenage girls group, a teenage boys group, a mixed teenage group, a more mature afternoon group, a children’s group, a holiday club, an adventure weekend, a group in someone’s home, a fun day, a craft day, a picnic, a BBQ… oh and to church of course.

This inviting people in meant we needed to make some more changes.

The pace of change then, hasn’t actually slowed, it’s just moved into different settings.

The big change for us this year has been new heating, seating and staging inside church and recruiting a new member of staff to work with the young people of our community.

Those thirty people who left home two years ago have made quite a difference. A core benefit of making a difference is that it encourages others to do the same, so that the original thirty is now difficult to distinguish amongst all the people who want to make a difference.

For all the speed of our change however, community transformation takes a while. There are signs that things are happening: a handful of people from our community deciding to follow Jesus and seeing their lives turn around; a toddler group that will soon outgrow the hall; and invitations from schools, social services and local charities to assist them in the community.

The thing with change, though, is that you get used to it and start to want more of it.

Will the pace of change even out or slow up? Probably at some stage, although we’ll fight it with everything we’ve got and it certainly won’t be this year.

This summer as our heating, seating and staging was done, the church was a building site so we were forced outside. Driving past you may have wondered why those people were playing their music and sitting outside St Paul’s church at 10.30 on a Sunday morning - we weren’t mad, just going out as we made it easier for people to come in.

38

39

40I first became a Christian in the eighties, just down the road from here in St Paul’s Parish. For several years I’d been in two camps really. I liken it to being in no-man’s land. I was neither totally for God nor totally against him and I did quite a good impression of convincing people either way. I basically decided that I was going to come to Cheltenham to become a Christian. I deliberately left Cambridge, where I had been working, and came here to study midwifery. I quietly knelt by my bed one night and said ‘I’m giving You my life’, and I knew that it meant ‘total’. I got married in 1993. I had already met Russ about 9 years before then. I first met him at a wedding - I never quite remember whose wedding...! Looking back I like to think of him as a kind of ‘shaky foal’ at that time. He was a young Christian who had experienced a radical conversion. Despite having sought meaning in his life for many years, Christianity had never been on his agenda. But one day he found himself in absolute desperation on top of Cleeve Hill and cried out ‘God if you are there, help me!’ Out of nowhere a question came into his mind: ‘Why don’t you become a Christian?’ Sensing the presence of God, he asked forgiveness for wasting so much of his life. Russ was converted and his life was permanently changed. Over the following years God did tremendous healing within him as he set his mind on following Jesus.

I met him around that time but it was later when he was stronger that we actually got together. Russ and I had been married for just seven very happy years, and we had two little girls: five year old Rachel and three year old Lucy. Having previously been employed as a mushroom grower, he had retrained and was by then working as a senior analyst programmer and studying to be a lay minister. It was a time when he used to say ‘we’re living in a time of blessing’, and I think after all he’d gone through he particularly meant that. I probably never quite grasped how much it all meant to him. One afternoon in early summer of 2000, we returned home from a family trip to the swimming pool. We had been singing in the car. There was a telephone call from the doctor, ‘Can I come and see you?’ So I called up to Russ, ‘The doctor’s on the phone’ and he just said ‘Fine.’ The doctor came. He was a young doctor, children just like ours I think; it must have been very hard for him. He intimated to us that my husband had most likely got advanced leukemia. The next morning we were at the hospital, and six months later Russ had died. He was 38 years old. When we first heard that Russ had advanced leukemia I think there was just a feeling of shock, and I went into overdrive. I don’t really know quite how I handled it, I just went straight into it and we suddenly got on this rollercoaster of a ride. Of course, there was a lot of processing going on underneath, amidst immediate practicalities to deal with, because we were in the hospital the next day, with the consultant speaking about cross-matching for a bone marrow transplant. It was just so ‘boom, boom, boom’...

41 I think it registered further when I would drop Rachel at school. We had a school sports day soon after and I didn’t know the mothers well yet because my daughter was in reception. I was aware of tears inside as I looked at my little girl riding a pony and thought ‘my husband’s got leukemia’...it was taking a while to come to terms with. At times like this I think you just go into gear, and though I hate to say it, in a crazy sort of way it was a bit of a challenge to me, because I’d been at home with youngsters for a few years and I had nursed before. So I was suddenly flung back into the whole nursing set up and, to be honest, that was not too difficult because it was a familiar setting. We had to go to Bristol so Russ could have a transplant and we were there for three months. I remember the horrendous night we got there, when they put us up in a hotel because we had to stay over night before he was admitted the next morning. As a young mum I wanted the enormous sash window closed - I didn’t want the children to fall out - but he needed it open because it was too hot. It was just one of those crazy times. There were many crazy times obviously but we did know God’s presence right with us every step of the way and I think it was through the prayers of people and the support of family and friends that got us through...and letters. Letters meant a lot at that time because very often we didn’t know what the next day was going to bring. It was easier to find a moment to read a letter than cope with calls when tired, or arrange visitors when Russ might suddenly be whisked off to another department due to his changing condition. Letters too can be re-read and bring great comfort.

Some of the highs were sitting in the isolation room with him on warm evenings. They had a voluntary club called ‘radio lollypop’ for the girls, which was so great for them. I tried to make it all like an adventure for them. I would walk miles with them to beautiful parks, and take trips riding on the open top bus or up in the tethered air balloon. But all through this, both Russ and I felt very much ‘held’ by God, that is all I can say. I know that often people don’t feel the presence of God at times like this, and I don’t feel any better or worse than anyone else for that, I just have to say it as it was for me...and we both felt like there was this big hand underneath us, holding us. How did I come to terms with Russ’ death? If I’m honest, it’s a difficult question to answer. I didn’t have questions like ‘why has it happened?’ I knew that so much happens in the world - so why not me? I didn’t really have that problem. But surviving - that was different. I basically didn’t know how I was going to cope without him, without a father for the girls - I just didn’t know. I think some people are very gifted managers who can manage such situations very well. People would say to me a few days after ‘What are you going to do?’ and I used to think, ‘Goodness me, I don’t know what I’m going to do...I’m going to have to go day by day, half hour by half hour.’ That’s what you do, I think. It’s quite a familiar thing in grief and loss. But basically I didn’t know how I was going to manage. About four or five weeks later I was waiting in the car at

my parents’ house - they live a couple of hours away - and I was about to go to church. It was a very formal service, and I confess that I didn’t really expect to hear much from God at this particular service. Suddenly something came on the radio and it was an old familiar hymn which went like this: ‘Because He lives, I can face tomorrow...’ and for me that pulled me up with a bang...I’m following Jesus - and because He is alive I can go on...it was as if hope just surged into me. Of course I was also propelled into single parenthood. I didn’t want to acknowledge that for a while, but once I came to that point, I think the best thing to say is that God filled the gaps, He plugged the gaps for me. I didn’t want to be downstairs at night, I was quite frightened, to be honest. I really didn’t know if someone was going to come in the door. I had two little girls and I felt quite vulnerable, and it took a while to really feel safe in that respect. I remember one night sitting and my little girl just crying, and suddenly overwhelming tears came from my eldest daughter too. I’d been reading about just letting the grief out, just letting the tears flow. And I remember holding her, and just holding her, and then suddenly she stopped, and she said quite normally, ‘What are we going to do tomorrow?’ Things like that. I think there are seasons in grief and thankfully God plugged the gaps for me. I’m beginning to see that now, eight and a half years later. I didn’t always see at the time. Sometimes you see what you haven’t got but I look back now and I see that God so helped me. One of the things I’ve learned is the importance of coming in right close to Jesus in our daily lives. Jesus talks about Himself being the light of the world. It’s an expression He uses, and I often think of it as a torch light, shining on the way ahead. It was important to me that I stayed in that light and didn’t lurk back in the shadows. I feel that by the grace of God I’m in a different season now, and I think that’s why I feel I can talk in this way. I feel like I’ve actually come through - I’m not saying that there won’t be other valleys in my life to go through - but this particular valley I know I have gone through and I am standing now. I pray that something of my experience can help others.

I do have hope for the future, tremendous hope, and essentially that’s because Jesus is in my life. Other things are opening up for me, I’m able to put the past behind me in a way that I couldn’t before and I’m able to take things from the past. And I’m not crying quite so much anymore. I’ve got a little passage on my windowsill. It was given to me in the early days and it’s been there all the time. It’s from Proverbs and it says: ‘by experience, you will know that the Lord is good.’ This experience has deepened my knowledge of knowing that the Lord is good, and that He will always be there.

Judy has written in detail about these events, including two visions her husband experienced close to death. She describes how Jesus has helped her through her loss and ongoing path of single parenthood, and hopes to see her words published, bringing comfort and insight to many, both in and outside the church.

42

LOOKInG BaCK…

It was such an amazing thing to welcome so many gorgeous women to our Splendour day in June this year. The Town Hall really is a very fitting and convenient venue for Trinity Women and many from elsewhere to get together to enjoy God and one another.

"The joy of the Lord is our strength".

And we were truly able to enjoy that fact – encouraged by some amazing teaching by Ele Mumford and Hils Grew, together with stories of ordinary women like you and me. One of the men who served us said that his favourite part of the day was watching all the women leaving the building and walking down the Cheltenham Prom with a beautiful white rose in their hands … wow!!

43

LOOKInG FORWaRD... to next June

We will be going for it again, girls. So make a note of the date – Saturday 26th June, pop it in your diary, invite a friend and be ready to book. We are excited about com-ing together to drink from his fountain of grace again.

Love fromKaren x

44We only have to pick up a Closer or a Heat or a Now magazine to see how superficial glamour, prosperity, and material possessions are celebrated and how disaster and relationship breakdown are sensationalised. The fact is there is more money, more style, more advice, more everything available – all to create the perfect version of ourselves.

We live with an increasing number of cancers and other illnesses as more people are living longer. Treatments are getting better and more women are surviving. Stress is on the increase and may range from basic PMT (let’s face it, it can be awful) at the very least of it, to depression, which may be severe.

In one sense we have everything we need with financial provision (if squeezed in recent recession months), clothes on our backs, homes to live in and enough food. And in another sense we live vulnerable and complex lives as we negotiate the expectations and the reality of living life in the 21st century.

And the question is: How 2 be… focussed in my female life? How do I make the choices that bring me life and not death?

In his letter to the early Philippian church, where he is encouraging her to stand firm, Paul also emphasises the importance of choice. We need to keep choosing to be the women He intended us to be, in order that we may do life well.

This year, Trinity Women are looking at various aspects of ‘How 2 be’: How 2 be focussed, hopeful, outward looking, loving, relevant, joyful, forgiving, a good friend – all in the context of living lives that are fully reliant on our God, the one who gave us life in the first place – the one who makes life worth living at all!

We live in the world of ‘How 2 be’s.’ There are so many ways of doing this life. What draws Trinity women together is the fact that we can really encourage each other specifically as women by looking at particular aspects of life together in a safe and supportive environment. It helps to work out God’s ways with other women so that we can be all God intended us 2 be!

We are really excited about the prospect of the developing link that we are building with the Kericho diocese. Three of us went out for five days in October to explore possibilities of how we as women can work alongside and support the ministry to women out there. While the connection is still in its early stages, we are excited about the possibilities that are there.

We want to be difference-makers, and so do watch this space!

45

46

47

There is a new move, a new awakening, and a new arena.

It’s an arena where the Trinity Man can loose his pink shirt, swap his brogues for boots, untie his Cambridge scarf, discard his I’m-not-really-trying-to-look-like-a-grandad tank top. Yes indeed, there are no cream chinos here.

And that arena is HTF – Human Table Football. The HTF was just one event at the Stade-de-Cowley Olympic stadium where 72 men gathered in 6 teams for a day of extreme sports.

Well, maybe not extreme, but certainly not for girls.

72 men, 6 teams, 5 guns, a quiver of arrows and 1 ball.

“Lets Play!!” I heard them shout as the teams disappeared to load the shot guns and shoot some clays, nail that metal bunny with the air rifle and fill the bulls eye with a quiver of arrows. All great stuff.

Lots of grunting and groaning and big man-noises echoed across the Stade-de-Cowley as the clays exploded, the bunnies flipped, and the bulls eyes were perforated.

But it was the HTF that was the pinnacle of the day.

It was all pretty even-stevens for the six teams going into the evening’s final event. Colin Wellfair and Tim Grew had scores to settle from 2007 – talk about David and Goliath! (in this case, Goliath did emerge triumphant). Mark “Butcher” Bailey appeared but even his silky skills (sorry, did I say ‘silky’ - I meant ‘silly’) weren't enough to stop the Yellow team from being crowned as HTF Champions. But May 23rd 2009, will go down in history as the day Captain Dave Rowson and his team of dedicated, highly trained and focused individuals united together to form the winning team and lift the trophy of Team of the Day.

But the more coveted award, for the best individual, went to Garry “Sure Shot” McCrea who was crowned “King of the Hill”.

The question is: who is hungry enough to fight to be “King of The Hill” 2010 for the 2nd M.A.D day next year?

Are you up for it – May 2010?

48

During the last 12 months the familiar blue flag, and a team of people from Trinity have been regular features of Cheltenham town centre and, more recently, the car boot sale at Cheltenham Racecourse. That team of people are there to offer prayer for healing for anyone who wants it, and large numbers of people have taken up the offer and been prayed for.

Prayer is simply a conversation with God. And those conversations we have had with God on the streets - or at the Racecourse - have been simple conversations where we have ask God to heal people of physical and emotional difficulties.

Over the year we have seen some of those prayers answered in a very real and tangible way, and there are many great stories to tell.

Here are some of them.

saturday september 30th 2009

As part of the regular program of ‘Healing on the Streets’ a team of 8 people from Trinity offered prayer to people for all kinds of things – cancers, blood pressure, arthritis, shingles, bereavement and many other aches and pains and life situations. At one stage, queues formed as the number of people requesting prayer outstripped the available people to pray.

“It was solid for 3 hours” said one of the team, Ruth Duckworth. “We saw the evidence of God’s healing and restoration in many cases. One guy even became a follower of Jesus there and then and is about to start the Alpha course.”

“Another story is of a guy we prayed for who had prostrate cancer. He sat down looking very yellow. We prayed for him and we saw that some of the yellow colouring of the jaundice subsided. We continue to pray for him, and are hopeful that there will be more testimony of healing in this person’s life that will emerge.”

49

saturday 23rd May 2009

Half way through the morning a gentleman come up to one of the team and began to tell his story. He said that he had suffered two strokes and that the main problem with his body as a result was with his eyesight. He explained that he would often have 'episodes' where he would temporarily lose his sight completely apart from dots of white light. He was fearful that he would eventually lose his sight completely.

He had first come to us in January. We had prayed for him then, but nothing seemed to happen instantly. However, over the following week he said that he started to realise that his sight had returned to something close to normality. He had had one more 'episode' after we prayed for him, and then the 'episodes' stopped completely.

Since January, he had been trying to find us again on the streets, to tell us of what had happened, but as he lived in Malvern he had not had the opportunity to find us.

Now four months after we prayed for him, he testified to us that his sight was restored and that he had no more 'episodes'.

We then went on to ask him if he needed any more prayer. He said that his back was giving him a lot of pain as he had been a builder and essentially his back was crumbling. We sat with him again and prayed for him. We don't know whether his back has been healed. We continue to pray that it has.

saturday 6th June 2009

As one of the team was sharing testimonies of God's goodness over the microphone, they saw a lady stood about 100 yards away who was stuck to the spot. It was clear that she was listening intently to what was being said. Eventually she began to shuffle over to where the team was gathered.

As she spoke she said “Can you pray for me? I need a miracle”. She said that she had been suffering from Parkinson's for 3 years.

One of the team prayed for her, although there seemed to be no immediate change in her condition, and the lady shuffled away. (In fact the shuffling in her walk was thought to be a direct consequence of her condition).

However, around 10 minutes later the lady came back to see us – and she was no longer shuffling. She then kept kicking her feet up and shaking her legs. It was astonishing. She was almost skipping as she left us.

50

The best we can do is we live, eat and die? That’s it? Is that really true? Or is there more to the dimension of life in which we’ve been created? We’re looking for people who have the courage to ask those questions. There is nobody for whom that’s not a relevant question.

At one time or another, most of us will find ourselves asking questions about life and spirituality, but when do we ever take the conversation beyond the pub, dinner party or a momentary contemplation of what life is all about? The ALPHA course is all about asking and answering the bigger questions in life.

51I think if people want to explore questions of life and spirituality it is difficult to disregard Jesus. He continues to be the most influential spiritual leader that has ever affected our human history.

Most people tend to domesticate this man Jesus, make him somehow acceptable and lock Him away in a box and throw away the key.But the transformative power of the love of this man Jesus, is something that you can touch, taste and feel and it’s life changing. People find themselves becoming more loving, more peaceful, more generous, more kind, more purposeful and more alive.

Now who wouldn’t want that as a matter of interest?

Christians believe it is in encountering Jesus that lives are changed for the better. It is in a relationship with God that we begin to fully understand who we are, why we’re here, what we’re about and where we’re going?

The Alpha course is a great context in which people can explore their questions about life and spirituality.

What happens @ aLPHa?

Each evening we serve dinner, after which we have a short talk followed by much needed caffeine and small group discussion around the theme for the evening. If you come once and like it, that’s great, keep coming. If you decide not to come back, no-one is going to come hunting you down, it’ll be alright!

All questions and perspectives are welcome and encouraged in an atmosphere of mutual respect. After the evening is over, people migrate to the Conservatory Bar next to Trinity House to continue chatting through the issues, and to get to know one another better.

Alpha is relaxed, non-threatening, friendly, and fun. Alpha is open to everyone and anyone, wherever you are on the spiritual journey. Atheist and agnostic, believer and seeker, all are welcome on the Trinity Alpha Course.

The main Trinity Alpha Course takes place on a Tuesday evening over ten weeks, with an additional three sessions being held on a fun-packed weekend away in the Welsh countryside.

As well as Alpha on a Tuesday evening, we also run a daytime Alpha Course for women on Tuesdays.

Alpha is now nationally considered to be one of the most well attended courses ever run in the history of the Church. Currently over 13 million people have attended an Alpha course. The Alpha Course is run right across the world in tens of thousands of churches of virtually every denomination.

"What Alpha offers, and what is attracting thousands of people, is permission, rare in secular culture, to discuss the big questions - life and death and their meaning."The Guardian, London

"What distinguishes Alpha from other initiatives is the easy-going, relaxed feel of the proceedings - that, and its astonishing success."The Times, London

"Alpha is an unqualified triumph."The Daily Telegraph, London

"Alpha makes Christianity relevant to modern life."The Express, London

"The world's most popular course in Christianity."The Independent on Sunday, London

To sign up for Alpha, please complete a registration form and return it to the welcome desk at the back of the church or to the church office.

If, for whatever reason, you don’t get around to registering, just turn up on the night!

Read the story of Heidi Pay, who recently went on the Alpha course:

I grew up in a Christian home and went to church every Sunday until I went to University. Unfortunately at University even though I still thought of myself as a Christian I no longer attended church or prayed, I was too caught up in the more decadent side of University life. After graduating I qualified as an accountant and met and married my husband. Even though my life should have been happy and fulfilled I constantly felt something was missing.

In January 2009 I drove past Trinity and saw the banner for the Alpha course and decided there and then to sign up. On the first night I sat in my car outside watching people going in to see if anyone looked “normal” like me! I decided they did and was kindly assigned to a group of people my age. Everyone in my group was friendly with a different story to tell. The group leaders were supportive, caring and really listened. I told my group that I felt lost, angry all the time and constantly defensive.

It was not long after with the love and support of the leaders and the group that I realised I was missing my relationship with God and all I had to do was say to him that I was sorry, ask him to forgive my sins and come into my life. On the Alpha weekend away I did this and I really felt Jesus lifting my burdens and an overwhelming feeling of peace and happiness filled me.

I have now been attending Trinity Sunday evening service every week since and I feel fulfilled, happy and calm.

I would recommend the Alpha course to everyone as the topics covered each week answer important questions about the meaning of life, religion and what it means to be a Christian. I have made really good friends through the Alpha course and we continue to support each other. If anyone is unsure whether to attend the Alpha course, I would say they have nothing to lose but an awful lot to gain.

52

53

54

55