What some Evangelists are doing across the Diocese

and beyond

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In Rochester Diocese Evangelists are commissioned and appointed to serve under their Incumbents and their job is enabling a personal awakening of faith in Christ among non-believers and lapsed faith. It involves sharing faith person to person, getting alongside people and being where they are.

Today the training can be tailored to fit the individual so they can go via the Diocesan two year route with a certificate in Theology and Ministry or a more limited training experience can be arranged via the Mission Shaped ministry course leading to associate status or a combination of either of these. Plus you can be part of a faith sharing team in the local church with a certificate of attendance or coming next year is the Five Session Mission Shaped Introduction Course which will be running in every Deanery beginning in January 2010.

Read what some of the Evangelists are up to -

“Having been in the wilderness for some time and getting ever more depressed I attended the latest evangelist training weekend and felt a faint spark - God was speaking to me - but he was very faint, the following day found me reading the lessons for the following Sunday and the story of Bartimaeus suddenly struck a loud cord, suddenly matters which had been blurred and out of focus made sense - I had a mission once more and knew what I had to do!”

As an evangelist in the church I am involved in many things, from coffee rota to prayer ministry, but coming alongside people and seeing them grow in faith is wonderful. I meet with Baptism enquirers and those on the Alpha course and to see them open up to the reality that God loves them and that they can have a relationship with him and that their lives can be different is pure joy to me and worth all the effort and time spent.

I helped set up their youth group which is aimed as much as non church as church children and grown from 2 to 20 and had a great weekend camping at the Solid Festival in Essex.

I have set up a group for those made unemployed in recession called ‘Working it Out’ where we meet early morning once a month for mutual encouragement and networking over a bacon butty. Church members and non church members attend.

I have just returned from visiting the Holy Land where I helped out in the refugee camp in Bethlehem. In November 2009, I am off to Gulu, Uganda again to help out with children.

Every Friday I run a breakfast cafe which is open to the community and is extremely busy.... we get all sorts.... young mums after dropping children at school; people on their way to a late train to London; a group of widowers; random workmen; teenagers on their way to school; those living nearby... to list a few. I even run up and down the road delivering to the local shops and businesses!! We sell bacon baguettes with a drink (fair trade filter coffee or tea) for £1 or a full English breakfast, drink (with top-up) and toast for £3!!!! An excellent bargain.... !!

I am now serving with 'Free on The Inside' working with offenders, ex offenders and those living on the edge of society hopefully helping them to turn their lives around once they come to know our Wonderful Saviour Jesus Christ. We run a three 'Four Day Weekend' three days learning about Jesus and how He was sent to save us then the 'Pilgrims' go into their 'Fourth Day' (the rest of their lives)

“I don't know if this counts, but I have just come up for air following our "Heaven's Outpost" Holiday Club. One hundred and forty kids enjoyed three days being Cowboys for Jesus. The Church was transformed into the Wild West, complete with scenery, a trading post, livery stable, the Holy Spirit Saloon and lots more, including a giant cactus. Many families came to the Service on Sunday, which was encouraging, and experienced "Heaven's Outpost" for themselves. Our Vicar won the Leaders' Challenge "hopper" Horse Race Challenge on that morning, but a stewards' enquiry was requested since there were allegations of cheating! We all had a wonderful time.”

Servant Evangelism - distributing Hot Cross Buns and giving away Easter eggs at Easter; Mince Pies at Christmas; Christmas Goodie bags with the interactive Christmas story in them at Christmas bazaars; flowers at village fêtes are amongst a few of the things Evangelists do for Servant Evangelism

Giveaways
At the moment to the run up to Christmas, it is time to get out on the streets for "giveaway".
Something is given away in relevance to the message being passed on. This year it is going to be
Sachets of tea, coffee, milk and sugar. We are giving away a book, so people can have a nice refreshing drink while they read the book. The other half of the “giveaway" is the carol singing, the same things will be dished out but the road or roads will get free carol singing at the same time.
A similar thing is done for Easter, apart from the carol singing.

Chaplaincy - at Bluewater, to the staff in the shops; at Asda, which is an opportunity to meet with staff at regular intervals, many of whom never go to church so would not get a biblical prospective on life's issues however big or small. As a Hospital Chaplaincy Visitor, listening to and praying with patients. As a Prison Chaplain, providing pastoral ministry in the community to both current and past residents of the Prison.

Children’s ministry
Using puppets to tell a Bible story, assisting with children’s workshop
Leading Crib, Easter and Pentecost Services for whole school in church
Help in the classroom
Taking assemblies
Working with Scripture Union as a Team member during the last three years, helping with their Holiday Clubs to bring Jesus to children of all ages in a fun and exciting way.
Assist with the preparation of children for communion
Leading All Age Services,
Leading Christingle service for KS 1 at school
Fun day during the summer

Elderly people’s ministry
We now head up their group at church which meet on a Thursday afternoon.
We hold bi-monthly a Hymns of Praise followed by (proper) afternoon tea on a Saturday and in the summer held a holiday at home which we called Seaside@home which was great fun! Most of our elderly are not church goers.

Preaching.
“As licensed preachers (where applicable) we ensure that "the work of evangelist’s” goes on in our main services at church.”

“I speak, preach, and participate in the spiritual life of the Kenward Trust’s therapeutic Christian Communities at Yalding and Edenbridge when required.”

Visiting - Pastoral visiting and taking Eucharist and other services in residential homes. Baptism visiting; visiting residential and nursing homes, for those with dementia and entertaining them as Polly the clown. There is prayer visiting round the parishes. Some have a ministry to the shops, pre-schools and businesses in the village where they visit once a week. Another Evangelist builds bridges between the community and the church and also collecting and circulating prayer requests.

Miscellaneous jobs and being where God has called them
On the rota of the second hand shop which is run by my church
Producing my church’s outreach magazine
Compiling and producing a Parish Prayer Diary
Running courses such as Alpha, Emmaus, leading seeker courses,
Give regular Bible studies in a Gillingham residential home and give talks on various topics to local non-church groups.
Compile the church magazine.
Being members of the Parochial Church Council and on the Deanery Synod
Being a member of the Pastoral Prayer Ministry Team at New Wine Conferences.
Carols round the parish every Christmas which involves live music, carol singers and giving away sweets and mince pies.
Quiz evening open to all
In process of starting to do Healing Prayer on the Streets
Street pastors in Gravesend working with Churches Together
Working as part of our Healing Team
Lead Welcome Training which involves preparing the material with our Curate and supervising the welcoming of people into the Church
Help to lead Faith Sharing Teaching

Diocesan role
We have a presence at the Dickens’ Festival in Rochester, and at the International War and Peace Show at Belting Hop Farm, Paddock Wood

Two out of three of those coordinating the Praying the Way for the Diocese are Evangelists

The Champion for Back to Church Sunday in the Diocese is an Evangelist

Beyond the Diocese -

Then I heard the voice of the Lord saying, "Whom shall I send? And who will go for us?"
And I said, "Here am I. Send me!" Isaiah 6:8

In mid July I traveled to Davao City in the Southern Philippines to work with a partner of OMF International, the Malikha Urban Poor Team/Taytayan Development Projects (TDP). I was away six weeks.

I supported MUPTeam working with street level communities which included the homeless, street kids, street youth and men and women in the sex trade; I also supported two Muslim communities teaching in pre-school and supporting women with their literacy.
The MUPTeam recognize the long history of distrust between Muslim and Christian communities in the Philippines so seek to be a catalyst in bridging relationships between Muslim and Christian communities. Their hope is that by sharing resources between Muslim urban poor and Christian communities through TDP they will demonstrate various means of constructing small bridges to heal centuries of broken relationships. In this process, they are very mindful to create an environment of mutual respect and credible services.
One of the most significant and humbling things I learned with the MUPTeam is as their team works with the urban poor is that there is no final solution to poverty. They are forced to acknowledge that much of their work is like "building castles in the sand." This being the case, the hard question for them is what makes it any different from other organizations working to alleviate poverty, no matter what their ethnic-cultural context may be?
The difference, they hope by God's grace, is the manner they approach poverty. They are different because of their vision, mission and values. By God's constant faithfulness, they engage with the poor because the message of the good news promises that the poor will be transformed by the power and authority of Jesus.
So, they take this and hope the impact they create as they engage with the poor honours their dignity and integrity as God's beloved creation.

But I have raised you up for this very purpose, that I might show you my power and that my name might be proclaimed in all the earth. Exodus 9:16
Follow my adventure on http://www.mupt-thephilippines.blogspot.com/

“What next for me? I suppose you could say I am in a 'wilderness experience' as I wait on where God is calling me next”