Last year's President was the Revd Dr Kate Coleman. Kate's theme for the presidency was also her personal signature for which she has become well known, 'Stay Focused!'
She writes, "In the midst of so many distractions and diversions, it is unfortunately relatively easy to forget why we do what we do, and for whom we do it." Kate is passionate about 'prayerfully staying focused', in the areas of leadership, mission and diversity. She adds, "Jesus himself modelled these themes, they are therefore vital to our Christian reflection and engagement".
Below are the monthly articles Kate wrote throughout her Presidential year.
May 2007: Hopes of an outgoing president .
I hope that I will not have been the exception.
I hope that as a family of churches we won't congratulate ourselves with an air of self-satisfaction and say, 'we've done the black thing and the woman thing now.'
I hope to see more women and ethnic minority presidents in the future.
I hope that we'll recognise our need to apply their unique insights to old tasks.
I hope to see more church planters, pastors of smaller churches, youth leaders, singles and younger people (I mean under 35!) among our presidents.
I hope that we'll seek to have prophets, apostles and evangelists among our presidents and not just the familiar pastor-teachers.
I hope that we'll provide robust support for presidents, so that they can effectively exercise their responsibilities without ending up in the divorce courts, burning out, on Prozac or totally abandoning the very ministry that so uniquely defines them. With this in mind, I hope that we'll remember that single people don't have 'pastor's wives' to help them out and that pastors of smaller churches have fewer human resources at their disposal.
I hope that we'll be able to build on the collected wisdom of past presidents with their diverse perspective and experience of the life and health of the Union.
I hope that we'll put scripture back into the centre of our lives.
I hope that we'll develop a thirst that only the Holy Spirit can quench.
I hope that we'll regain our confidence in the 'power' of the gospel to 'save' as well as to 'help'.
I hope that we'll continue to 'Centre the Margins' (Assembly 2006) even as we now go 'In Search of Freedom' (Assembly 2007).
I hope that we will truly value diversity, love the stranger and set those captive, free.
I hope that these hopes will one day become a reality.
I hope that we will truly get focused and STAY FOCUSED!
April 2007: God Will Be God!
Just before Easter, I received news of the tragic and untimely death of an old friend. This reminded me once again of the significance of Holy week, certainly the most significant week of the Christian calendar. It outlines a journey mirroring the most important experiences of the Christian journey, marking the process of growth and development experienced by individuals, families and churches everywhere. Our spiritual health often depends upon our willingness to submit ourselves, like Jesus, to a similar path where we may find ourselves at times crying out, 'Father, not my will but your will be done'.
Familiarity with the end of the story provides the necessary reassurance that the journey will not end in the events of Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday or Saturday. Although the final destination is the glorious resurrection experience of Sunday, the journey and life itself is much more than a mere destination. Each event and experience has some significance of its own. For example, we can choose to enjoy the sense of celebration of that first Palm Sunday throughout the many challenges of the entire journey, such were the plots and deceptions taking place from the Monday to the Wednesday. We may even experience the betrayal of someone close to us and the subsequent sense of being deserted and abandoned, just like Jesus, on the Thursday. We may know the denial and rejection of close friends or endure false accusations from those looking for ways to discredit us. Friday of course, cannot be bypassed, in spite of the death, depression and despair of the cross.
This time of greatest shadow, darkest night and deepest valley is a reminder that there is always baggage from our past experiences, our present day traumas, including individual, familial or corporate attitudes that grieve the heart of God, which must be well and truly nailed to the cross. Such an experience promises to be nothing less than unpleasant, violent and deathlike. Saturday is also a reminder that there are times when we sit in confusion like the disciples, as together they hid away wondering where it all went wrong and how their perfect dream had turned into their worst possible nightmare! Once again, unlike us, they could not benefit from hindsight. While very little was taking place in human terms, victory over death, defeat, lies, sickness, decay, injustice, pain, negativity and fear was being secured in an unseen realm. As for Sunday, as far as the disciples were concerned three days could only confirm their worst fears, that Jesus was not only merely dead but was now clearly undoubtedly dead!
This is precisely the glory of Holy week, it provides a constant reminder of what Jesus has personally done for us and also of what God continues to do for us. It is a reminder that as we journey through the many challenges and tragedies of life, God is not bound by the laws of rationality, He has little interest in human reasoning and that He constantly breaks through the boundaries of our expectations! For as much as it is true to say, that without death resurrection is unnecessary, it is also true that resurrection is evidence that death, the impossible or the improbable IS NEVER THE FINAL WORD ON ANY SUBJECT! In other words GOD will, thankfully, always be GOD!!
March 2007: A Time to Remember
The Bible states that: There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under heaven (Ecclesiastes 3:1).
I never cease to be astonished at the 'unseemly haste' with which the horrors of the transatlantic slave trade are dispensed with, particularly by those who prefer to engage in 'earnest' discussions about the horrors of modern day slavery.
200 years ago, on the 25th March 1807, the Slave Trade Abolition Bill was finally passed in parliament. This historic act was passed only after millions of Africans had been forcibly separated from their families, transported overseas under inhumane conditions or had died brutal and wretched deaths during the middle passage. The act of abolition was a direct result of the resistance of slaves, ex-slaves and dedicated British men and women committed to exposing the true horrors of the trade. The act required an ongoing parliamentary debate that lasted nearly 20 years. So why not pause to consider that alongside this act of parliamentary leadership we, in Britain, were also leading the European trade in human cargo. A trade that generated an insatiable demand for human beings that resulted in the kind of lateral black on black violence that we tend to associate with troubled post-colonial Africa and our inner cities today.
We should be encouraged that many Christians both black and white, including Baptists, were numbered amongst those who fought against the blight of slavery. We should also be willing to feel the pain of admission that committed Christians were also numbered amongst the strongest advocates of the trade in human beings and actually fought to maintain the status quo of the slave trade.
Throughout 2007 and March in particular, the Set All Free (www.setallfree.net) Churches Together in England, campaign will be undertaking the challenging task of calling Christians to remember, reflect and respond. This will not be easy, especially for those who would rather change the subject to anything less emotionally taxing and guilt inducing or for those who would rather forget this aspect of Britain's past altogether.
However, there are dangers in trying to gloss over a past, in which the Western world largely condoned and benefited from the trade in human misery. Nearly 200 years after the act of abolition, men and women in the UK today of all complexions continue to live with the legacy of what made slavery possible in the first place. Disturbingly, today there are now more people enslaved than there were during the transatlantic trade. The speed with which the horrors of the past are sometimes dispensed with belies the very real disaster of our modern day behaviours and begs the question, are we prepared to learn anything at all from our own past? In the words of 18th Century African abolitionist Olaudah Equiano, After all, what makes any event important, unless by its observation we become better and wiser, and learn 'to do justly, to love mercy, and walk humbly before God'?
Stay focused!
February 2007: Oh Brother! Lessons from Balaam's Ass
It's official! Shilpa Shetty has been declared the undisputed winner of Celebrity Big Brother!
As Christians we may have issues with both the concept and televising of a reality show like Big Brother, all in the name of entertainment. I personally have a number of objections to the show, but recognise that even Balaam's ass was given the power to prophecy! Big Brother has provided the British public with the opportunity to engage in a level of national self-scrutiny, seldom experienced in the UK. Did Shilpa experience racism or classism? Was it just straightforward bullying or overt racist abuse? Such questions continue to be debated in our homes, pubs, clubs and even in our political arenas across the UK.
I have personally received a number of phone calls from Christians and non-Christians alike, of varying complexions from white to Brown to black. These individuals have all expressed similar sentiments ranging from despair to dismay and depression, they have also included feelings of outrage. Comments such as, 'this happens to me everyday', or 'this is just a reflection of wider British society', to 'why is the British public surprised at witnessing sentiments and behaviours that they themselves may occasionally exhibit?'
People often forget that serious damage is being caused at many levels as a result of these exchanges. However, the harm is not primarily to the bruised pride of the British public coming to terms with a pervasive racism in their midst. Instead injury is being inflicted on the psychosocial and spiritual well being of those on the receiving end of abuse. This can effectively bury true feelings and perspectives deeper underground. In other words it is not simply the much vaunted 'community cohesion' that is at stake here, it is a cohesion based on truth speaking that is actually under threat.
This year some of our communities are currently experiencing increasing levels of anger and frustration at the 'discriminate' targeting of British citizens who may or may not be terrorists. In addition, concerns have been raised surrounding the insensitive and heavy-handed display of police tactics in raids around the Birmingham area. It seems that the heavily publicised antics of Jade Goody and friends may be masking a more serious development, as another Big Brother once again eludes much needed public scrutiny.
January 2007: New Year: Resolutions or Expectations?
Once again we have crossed the threshold of a new year. Some have struggled to get here, others are stumbling in. A few, like one of my best friends, will literally discover a new beginning as they adapt to a new climate and work to serve God in new ways and/or in new places. Some will hope that by this time next year they will be looking thinner, for others that they will be looking fitter. Still others will be hoping that 2007 will look more spiritual, profitable, fruitful, more studious or perhaps even more exciting than 2006.
There are those who will hope that the issues that have plagued them for years will finally be resolved. Many churches will be praying that 2007 will herald for them, a change in fortune or indeed increasing opportunities to preach the gospel and remember the poor. Of course there are those for whom the idea of a new beginning will be very far from their minds as they face the same hardships and uncertainties that they have always faced.
At the end of 2006 I particularly thought about the Iraqi people and wondered if they had really expected the execution of Saddam Hussein to herald the start of a new era or whether they always knew, unlike many Western observers, that their desperate circumstances would require nothing less than a miracle to bring about the change necessary to quell the escalation of anger and hatred in some parts of the Moslem world towards the British and American occupation of their country. Today for example, the Somali people (although perhaps not the fledgling transitional government) wonder what sovereignty really means when an American bomber can drop its payload with little fear of international repercussions.
In 2007 the world is indeed a changed place, however, the jury is still out deciding whether it has changed for the better. However, one thing is certain, the making of New Year resolutions will ring hollow for those in the UK and abroad who are relatively powerless and feel unable to affect or change their destiny.
Let's pray for such people and ask that God will release his presence both to convict and arrest the perpetrators of injustice, while comforting and strengthening those who are most frequently on the receiving end of armchair decision-makers who operate from the comfort of air conditioned offices.
Stay focused!
December 2006: Seasonal Amnesia
Two Christmas's ago, one of my 'not yet' Christian friends invited me to spend some time with him and his wife over Christmas. He proceeded to tell me just how much they loved Christmas and how they took time to fully enter into the 'spirit' of the season. "Christmas" he proceeded to tell me, "is all about decorating the big Christmas tree together, presents, parties, tinsel, food and the whole Father Christmas thing. We love spending time with special friends and family and eating Christmas pudding." At this point he suddenly stopped talking, looked at me earnestly and blurted out, 'of course, it's also about the baby Jesus!' We still laugh about the moment that he remembered he was speaking to a Christian minister.
It doesn't take a journalist or a social scientist to notice that in spite of the rhetoric of joy surrounding Christmas festivities we live in a very troubled world. July 7 th and September 11 th continue to be catch phrases for the worst excesses of human behaviour, both in terms of evils that perpetrated these events and the subsequent and escalating evils unleashed by them. As we approach Christmas let's not forget the families of those killed in the UK, US and Afghanistan. Let's not forget those struggling in less publicized circumstances such as Montserrat, Southern Sudan and the Middle East including Israel, Iraq and Iran. Let's also remember Christians in China and Eastern Europe. I suspect that we could all name many such places worthy of note. We could also all probably think of individuals for whom Christmas day will be a day like any other. No glitter, no gifts and no parties, just continuing hardship and uncertainty.
But then Christmas isn't just a time for parties, it's also a time for remembering that there is hope for hopeless situations. Two thousand years ago in the midst of continuing hardship and struggle, the most unlikely event occurred. God stepped into helpless human flesh and shared our humanity. Into the midst of all the madness a saviour was born and for the first time in biblical history, choirs of angels heralded the birth of a child. Even the words of the prophet Isaiah were recalled:
The people walking in darkness have seen a great light; on those living in the land of the shadow of death a light has dawned.
Light is only necessary where there is darkness. So Christmas should never be a time for escaping reality, instead it marks a time for facing reality, difficulty, failure, trouble, hardship and fear. As we do so we are reminded that there is someone who is greater than our reality itself. Similarly, there is no situation or circumstance being faced in the world today that God through Jesus Christ cannot respond to. Indeed, there is no depth of human need, pain or distress that He hasn't entered into and overcome. Christmas is a time of great traditions, people, unfortunately, traditionally forget what Christ Mass is all about.
Stay focused!
November 2006: From Small Beginnings
When Jesus told the story of the mustard seed, he described how the smallest seed known to agriculturalists of his time, faithfully nurtured, could become the largest of garden plants (Mark 4:30-34).
Lately, I have been inspired by small beginnings, particularly within youth work and particularly with work initiated by youth themselves. Firstly, I participated in 'The Gathering' event organised by The LBA, in London. It was held during October and part of the event showcased the singing gifts of young people in a specially organised youth talent show. Secondly, I was invited to help facilitate the 'Re-Imagine' youth event organised by the Heart of England Baptist Association, where key youth came together from seven different Baptist churches in and around Birmingham to dream up ways of linking Baptist youth together for youth-led events. Thirdly, the youth mission pioneered by The Regeneration Centre in 2002 has now morphed into 'Transform', a collective of youth and youth leaders from six different churches from London and Birmingham.
Over consecutive years it has become increasingly youth driven and is about to enter another phase of growth. The common denominator in all of the above and the source of my recent inspiration, of course, has been the youth themselves. The recipe for getting something out of nothing it seems involves all the good old fashioned words like hard work, passion, creativity, willingness, commitment, inspiration and perspiration. I have loved the look of disbelief on their faces when they have been told that what they dreamed of may not be possible to deliver. They have been prepared to do just about anything to realise their dreams and their faith has been authentic, earnest and infectious. They deserve to succeed! All these events remind me that if we can inspire youth to work hard for the sake of the Kingdom of God now, not only will we be developing leaders for tomorrow's Church, we will effectively be producing the leaders of today.
Let's give thanks for all our youth workers and children's workers who sacrifice time and energy to nurture what is often little more than a mustard seed. But most of all, let's pray that our youth will work amongst their own peers, inspiring them to become followers of Jesus.
A few days ago I discovered the following Catholic liturgy for the blessing of youth and youth workers. Why not join me in praying this blessing over the youth of your church:
May the Lord bless their Eyes so that they see the goodness and uniqueness of God in every person they meet. May the Lord bless their Ears so that they may listen and remain open to the diversity of needs that exist within the community. May the Lord bless their Lips so that they may speak the truth honestly, openly, and powerfully in all that they do. And may the Lord bless their Hands that they may serve as an extension of Christ's as they reach out in compassionate service for the good of the Kingdom.
Stay focused!
October 2006: Colour Matters
Around fifteen years ago, a young Christian woman went through a huge crisis of faith and identity. At the time she was also the leader of her local Baptist church, so the timing of the crisis couldn't have been worse. During this period, she asked herself all kinds of disturbing and challenging questions, 'What does it mean to be black, a Christian and a woman? What does it mean to be a black Christian woman in an organisation that doesn't particularly recognise or promote people like me? In fact, she asked the question, 'God, if you're there at all, (a difficult one, since it assumes that someone is actually listening!) what on earth am I doing in this set up?'
It was a very difficult and challenging time for her, not least because she wasn't the only one asking questions. Other people, some personal friends, who eventually left the Church, asked her similar questions, 'Does God hate black people?' Or in the words of one book title, 'Is God a white racist?'
Overall, people who were part of the organisation she worked within couldn't really understand the nature of the problem, some even denied the existence of a problem because they didn't see her as black, to them, she was different. Others responded by saying that they didn't see colour anyway. At this point things got a little more interesting and intriguing as she began to realise that she didn't see colour either. In fact, she couldn't see colour amongst any of her church leaders, or in the leaders of her organisation. In fact, she couldn't see colour in any of her college topics, in her chosen subjects, in her textbooks or indeed, among any of her lecturers, she saw a modicum of colour amongst her fellow students. Little colour was present in leadership structures, in powerful institutions or in leading organisations. A keen theatre goer and film fan, she began to notice the absence of colour featured in the leading roles on the big screen.
In fact, she began to realise that colour mattered a great deal more than most people, including church, cared to admit, since there existed both a conscious and unconscious attempt to deny it, erase it or overlook it. In fact, the 'colour blindness' of those around her served to minimize the social and political inequities that are part of the day to day grind associated with colour. In this world, Black was a colour while White was not. This period of her life was deeply challenging, stretching and frequently exhausting. So this woman became proactive, she started to do personal research, in addition to the other work she was engaged in and thus began her journey of re-education. This process altered the way that she viewed the world and other human beings. Most importantly, it radicalised the way that she related to God and to herself.
This is my story, it may be yours too.
October is black History month, a rare occasion in the year when we deliberately and purposely pursue the significance of colour and how it may challenge or how it may enrich our lives.
The following are websites and Baptist Union Resources that may serve to educate, stimulate, or activate you. My prayer is that that God's gift of colour will bless you beyond this one month of October: www.blackhistorymonthuk.co.uk; www.blacknet.co.uk; www.blackpolkfolk.com; www.inventorsabout.com/cs/blackinventorsBaptist Union resources (available on the BUGB website) include: We Belong - Celebrating Cultural Diversity and living Hospitality; Many Nations, One Church and the September/October 2006 BUGB magazine.
September 2006: 9/11 or 24/7?
After five years, the impact of the 9/11 terrorist attacks continues unabated. International memorial events have inevitably been characterised by an outpouring of grief and pain as the horrific events of September 11 th 2001 are revisited. In the words of a mother who lost her daughter in the attack, "What's five years? To us I think it is just the same. The pain is always going to be there."
In the UK, remembrance events were relatively low key, while in the US people profiles were broadcast, documentaries made, silences observed, prayers offered, memorials erected, wreaths laid, books and films specifically commissioned. A plethora of activity, as people struggled to come to terms with feelings of shock, fear and bewilderment. In the midst of it all, America was also described as the 'centre of the world', the attack heralded as 'the end of the modern world', with an article, even referring to 9/11, as 'the two hours that shook the world'.
The reality is, that we live in a world where the centre of existence has never stopped shaking for many millions of people. Indeed, for many worldwide, grief is considered a state of human existence and trauma is perpetual. However, for such people their tragedies seldom receive the level of publicity commanded by powerful nations such as the US. Unfortunately, examples abound. These include Sri Lanka, still struggling to rebuild itself after the Boxing Day Tsunami, additionally experiencing increasing levels of violence and killings in the North and East of the country. Nepal once known as the worst trouble spot in South Asia, where more than ten thousand people were killed and thousands went missing or were made homeless. It has recently been declared a 'democratic secular state', moving along the slow road to recovery. The Democratic Republic of Congo was recently destabilised again by an outbreak of hostilities following the first democratic election results in forty years. Sudan's combination of war and drought has led to the death of tens of thousands, while nearly 2 million people have been displaced and three million depend on humanitarian aid. In the last two months twelve aid workers have been murdered. In May 2006, an earthquake hit Indonesia killing five thousand and displacing a further two hundred thousand. This event was briefly mentioned in the UK news but unfortunately, largely bypassed our so-called 'compassion fatigued' nation. Lebanon, in contrast, has captured our imaginations in the news lately. However, as the fragile ceasefire holds, we may overlook the very real crisis that continues to grip people, as they struggle to rebuild their homes, communities and their way of life. Indeed, 'pain' is not just 9/11 but 24/7.
Having just commissioned an overseas worker with BMS, this month I am particularly mindful of the work of organisations such as the BMS World Mission, whose personnel and partners work tirelessly in many of these largely forgotten and critical situations.
While most Christians in the UK struggle largely with questions of relevance, we may be in danger of forgetting that many sisters and brothers elsewhere, struggle largely with questions of survival. As the apostle Paul was preparing to make his missionary journey he was reminded by the Jerusalem church 'continue to remember the poor' (Galatians 2:10). Jesus challenged his disciples ' whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.' (Matthew 25:40) Today, Jesus continues to challenge us 24/7.
Please pray and support:
BMS partners and personnel
Brothers and sisters experiencing conflict, debt, persecution, poverty, terrorism and climate disaster
Men and women who struggle to believe that there will ever be anything other than the 'pain'
August 2006: Prayer & Fasting (aka starving, among the unitiated!)
'Thank you for challenging us about praying and fasting, some of us like our food too much!' These were the heartfelt words from a member of a church I recently visited.
When the disciples asked Jesus how he had managed to deliver a demonised boy (from a spirit that mimicked the effects of epilepsy), while they had failed miserably, his response was 'this kind comes out only by prayer and fasting'.
The challenge of fasting is exactly that: a challenge. However, for many Christians, particularly in the West, we have become accustomed to a secular faith that relies far more on our personal skills, charisma and capability than it does upon a dependence on God or abandonment to God.
This month the Archbishop of York was 'led' to 'sacrifice' his holiday in Salzburg, committing himself instead to fast and pray over the Israel-Hezbollah conflict in the Middle East. This act of engagement has been referred to in a number of different ways. The words 'vigil', 'hunger strike' and 'what?' have been heard from various quarters. Having announced his intentions, the Archbishop had his head shaved at the altar on Sunday 13 th August and then moved to York Minster. He will now sleep in a tent and drink only water for 7 days to highlight the terrible situation faced by those caught up in the conflict. By taking these steps he has epitomised the essence of a true fast (see Isaiah 58). Firstly, he has identified a cause on the heart of God and by engaging with it wholeheartedly, he has effectively consecrated himself to God. Secondly, he has acted in solidarity with the distressing conditions of others, thirdly his action is an act of 'witness', in this case for peace in the Middle East. Fourthly, he has committed himself to pray throughout. The latter of course is what separates fasting from bulimic dieting, hunger strike and/or just plain starving. Prayer is a factor that cannot be overstressed in a context that tends to look to men and women alone for answers to the worlds problems. A commitment to prayer is therefore neither a 'cop out' nor merely an option. Within days of the Archbishop's announcement, the Middle East peace process was brokered. The word 'coincidence' may indeed come to mind but may merely constitute a failure to recognise the reality of spiritual forces of wickedness in the situation. The Archbishop was not the only person fasting and praying regarding this issue but his high profile position enables him to express the sentiments of many who could not have hoped to publicise their efforts, concerns, solidarity with the distressed or in their belief that forces of evil are not merely human inventions but also include entities beyond human comprehension.
This coming weekend our new general secretary Jonathan Edwards will be 'prayed into' his new post. A fitting start for a man committed to 'prayer shaped churches'. Those of us who understand the spiritual dynamics of such an occasion may also wish to seize the opportunity to fast sometime during this week or the next in recognition that for Jonathan, the staff at Didcot, our regional ministers and local churches this next season must be marked by a commitment to 'pray AND FAST as if it all depended on God AND ACT as if it all depended on us'.
July 2006: Legacies
Having recently attended the funeral of the father of a close friend, the significance of what it means to leave a legacy has struck me once again. He died suddenly and unexpectedly, while overseas doing what he loved doing best: inspiring, encouraging and releasing mission personnel. What a time to be called home!
The word legacy carries many connotations, from the monies and gifts left by an individual to benefit another or some (hopefully) good cause, through to the impact of one person's life on others.
Attending his funeral and witnessing the testimony and faith of the whole family, reminded me once again that death is not the worst thing that can happen to a believer. Having nothing to show for a lifetime's residence on earth is far worse. The things we leave behind are not necessarily as tangible as brick and mortar. Instead, they are the evidence of a life spent in service to God. One particular sentiment shared in his Eulogy rang a cord with me (possibly because it is also an African proverb):
If somebody wants to eat, they must have food. If they want to eat during one week, they must fill their storehouse; if they want to eat during one, two, three months, they must cultivate a field; and if they want to eat during ten years, they must plant trees. And if they want to eat during a hundred years they must plant people.
Legacies in this life are the result of investments made in the lives of friends and strangers around us. A word of wisdom or encouragement, a word of challenge or inspiration, time we sometimes consider 'wasted' or inconsequential in conversation with a child or with a 'non-important' member of the community.
How people may or may not choose to remember us is somehow less important than the impact we are having on them right now. Are we leaving 'gifts' that look and feel like Jesus in peoples' hearts? Do our gifts have eternal value and are we making our world a better place for others to live in? I pray so.
STAY FOCUSSED!
June 2006: Just Starting Out (?)
Welcome to the first month of President's Focus . Thanks to those who have sent encouraging messages, especially Margaret Jarman, the previous (and only second!) woman President of the Baptist Union.
Your prayers are vital as I, with many others, begin a new chapter of ministry. Remember David Coffey, outgoing General Secretary of BUGB, who will be engaging more fully in his role as President of the BWA. Jonathan Edwards, now preparing to take up his new role as General Secretary and my predecessor Roy Searle, now formally the ex-President of BUGB (apparently an official title!). Roy will soon be on his way to Ireland and I for one, will miss his wit and wisdom, although I guess I could always just get a cheap flight out to the Emerald Isle and disturb his peace. (don't worry, he has been warned!).
I have been very warmly received on my travels so far. However, it has been a long time since I heard black people referred to as 'coloured'. I fear that this may well be an indication of how far some of our churches still need to journey, away from paradigms and concepts (not just racial) that are outdated, outmoded and potentially offensive.
Also, let's not forget the ministers and missionaries we welcomed and prayed for during the Baptist Assembly, many of whom have embarked on new ministries. According to the statistics, at least some of them will lose heart and physically or emotionally abandon church ministry within their first ten years. One minister shared with me recently, 'I used to be so passionate about Jesus and communicating the gospel, until I realised that I was possibly the only one in my church who felt that way'. Even with the aid of the Holy Spirit we were not created to undertake ministry without the support of our sisters and brothers.
For those who are just starting out, let's pray that God will provide Jethros to encourage them, Aarons and Hurs to support them and Joshuas who will fight for and with them.
STAY FOCUSSED!