Worthing

Andrew Fadoju, pictured here with his wife Nicola, have been in Worthing for twenty years and has been the senior pastor for the past sixteen.

Most of my ministry appointments involve either being with a church on a Sunday or with groups of leaders across a region during the week.

Occasionally however I spend the evening with local church leaders.  This helps me to get to know our churches better and also for them to get to know more about the Movement's vision and values.

The evening began with an excellent meal followed by ministry and interaction.  It was great to be with such a welcoming grow of leaders from across the spectrum of the local church.

Barking

It was a delight for Marilyn and I  to spend the weekend with our good friends John and Trish Waller.

The Barking church has always been blessed with good leaders and the years in which John  and Trish have served this excellent church have seen great growth spiritually and numerically.  The two morning services see in excess of 400 people in attendance double what it was when they took over the pastorate.

Vibrant worship, a commitment to prayer, outreach and community engagement are four  of the keys to the expansion that Barking it is currently enjoying.

Connect Life, Caerphilly

It had been several years since I  last visited Connect Life church that stands in the shadow of the historic Caerphilly Castle.

For the past few years Roger Rowland, pictured here with his wife Janice , have led the church whose congregation is now the largest it has been in its long history.

Apart from pastoring a number of churches over the years, Roger served for ten years as Elim's national youth director prior to the formation of Serious4God.

With a great family atmosphere and its commitment to the town  through several community-based ministries, Caerphilly is well positioned for further growth and expansion in the future.

Hastings

 It was eight years since I was last in Hastings though Paul McMichael pictured here with Pennie, his wife of just four weeks, has been the minister there for under two years. 

I have known Paul since he was a small boy so  it was a great opportunity to spend time over lunch and meet Pennie for the first time.

There was a great family atmosphere in the church and it was good to meet a number of people who have been members for many years.

In a previous post regarding my visit to Ludlow I highlighted someone who had been dedicated as a baby in Elim and was now in his 80's.  So what a pleasure it was to meet Joyce Cripps (pictured) who was brought to an Elim church 90 years ago, just ten years after our Movement was founded, and who is now 94 years old.