Yet another new beginning.

The picture above says it all really. Over a year now of uncertainty and living on benefits. We never would have thought that this situation would be the vehicle that God would use to bring us together with a lovely church in the east of Cornwall. 

2 years ago now we followed the clear leading of the Lord and moved to Looe. We were excited by the prospect of evangelistic work in the town but it wasn't to be. Disappointment soon followed and the rest is history. We have gone through all of the emotions that we could ever imagine from euphoria on the day that I resigned and was free of what to me was stifling shackles to worry, fear, anger, judgmentalism and even  depression. I am not a depressive but I must admit that  this really did get me down. 

BUT

In the words of the old Rolling stones hit: "It's all over now!" Out of the problems of life has come the new opportunity of life. Last Thursday evening the Mustard Seed Evangelical Church in Callington had the final members meeting of a series where they have been working through the future of the church. During that meeting they voted and called me to join them as pastor. This is the most wonderful opportunity that we have together. They have had a difficult time and have had to make momentous decisions and we have struggled a bit. God has brought us together to worship Him and to witness for Him.

The Mustard Seed gets its name from the example of Jesus as to  how powerful faith  is. A mustard seed is small but the plant grows much larger than most other herbs. Faith even though small has great possibilities. I am so pleased that the church has this name because faith is all that we are about. God has given us a mighty task which by faith we can expect great results. We do not know what the results will be but we are called to obey His commands, to pray and to be faithful. When we do this in faith that He is at work then our efforts together will most certainly be blessed.

I am grateful to Plato for the above quote. Foundations are essential and so we must lay down a solid foundation as we work together as Christians in Callington. The only foundation that will stand the test of time is the foundation of the prophets and the apostles which is the bible. God has given a mandate for the church in the scriptures and it is my responsibility to explore what that means for us a s a church in 21st century Callington. The one thing that I am absolutely sure of is that I am not the great hope of the church, I am a servant alongside the elders and deacons for the benefit of the church and for the glory of the Lord jesus Christ who is the Hope of the Church.

As we move on into this new and exciting time of life we have a number of important decisions to make. Members of the church and friends are asking about whether we will move to Callington. That is currently impossible due to house contract responsibility. Gareth the owner very kindly changed use of the house from a holiday let to a private rental. We promised to stay long enough for that to be of benefit to him and until he can find other tenants. We will honour that promise. Also we have family commitments in the Looe area, it would be difficult to  be doting grandparents from that distance and also to be childminders when we are needed. We do not want to lose out on these great opportunities either. The other thing is that it has been clear ever since we left South Wales that Looe was where God was calling us to and we have no reason to believe currently that He has moved us on. We are open to moving but we would need some security of tenure as I do not think that at our grand old age we could easily cope with moving for the third time in 2 -3 years.

We will leave that all in our God's hands and pray that we will be faithful.

It is all about you Jesus, please lead us and guide us together with our people who are known as the Mustard Seed Evangelical Church in Callington.