Psalms
Key Facts:
Project Name: Psalms training programme
Programme: Equip
Partner organisation: Painswick and Stroud Area Local Ministries (PSALMS)
Location: Gloucestershire, UK
Key contact: Ian Marsh - Chairman, Psalms
Support provided: Course fees, travel expenses and partial cover of Youth Minister’s salary to enable attendance at weekly Cornhill Bible Training Course at St Ebbe’s in Oxford
Summary:
During the academic year 2006/7, JMT has been providing funds to enable the Youth Minister (Sports Specialist) to undergo in-depth training in Bible teaching one day a week in Oxford to compliment his previous training in Sports Leadership and Evangelism (2004/5) and Christians in Sport Academy (2005/6). This has significantly increased his confidence and competence in handling the Bible and using it to disciple the growing group of young people attending his ‘SORTED’ Youth Group. His wife, who is the Children’s worker in the PSALMS, has also been able to attend the training in her own time and has benefited similarly. The impact on the children and young people (and indeed on the volunteer helpers) in both areas of work has been very significant. Although the Youth Minister will take up a new and high profile position as Sports Ambassador in the Nottingham Diocese early in 2008, the benefits of the training in ministry terms will continue to accrue.
Details and background:
Psalms was set up in 2005 as a result of ‘Mission Action Planning’ in the Gloucester Diocese and specifically in the Bisley Deanery, of which the towns of Stroud and Painswick form a significant part. The vision was to employ a Youth Minister who was a Sports Specialist and a Children’s/Schools worker at Primary level. The former position was associated with Christians in Sport and the latter with Scripture Union. Tim and Kerstin friend, recently married and graduated from All Nations, joined PSALMS in September 2005, having been introduced by the Christians in Sport Youth Department.
Tim (pictured left) quickly established himself at Painswick RFU where there are 160 youngsters every Sunday morning and was soon coaching one of the age groups. Entry into both Secondary schools of the area followed quickly, where he was welcomed to do rugby coaching, lead assemblies and RE lessons initially but later to fulfil other roles too. This enabled him to build relationships with youngsters and to invite them to attend either the Player’s Group (14-18 yr olds) on a Sunday evening or SORTED (11-14 yr olds) on a Monday evening. These have continued to grow (Sorted now numbers around 30 and is only constrained by space- it is shortly to split to two evenings to allow further growth!). The evenings follow a pattern of games/fun , refreshments, imput from Tim and then Bible study in small groups. Most of these youngsters are ‘unchurched’ but find nothing strange in opening bibles to study and discuss, and even to pray. Interestingly, and presumably because of the link through sport, the club has an excellent ‘profile’ of sporty youngsters ( in contrast to our experience of most church Youth Clubs in the area) which serves to attract other youngsters. Other events such a Night of Champions (run jointly with CiS) have enabled the young people to invite their friends along to outreach events. In summer 2006, some 15+ young people attended CiS, Selah or Soul Survivor camps/holidays with really encouraging outcomes and many commitments to Jesus.
Playing cricket at CiS Sports Plus Sports pavilion and club in Painswick
The Children’s work has flourished in much the same way. Scripture Union SupaClubs were quickly established in each of the Primary schools and have gone from strength to strength. Holiday clubs now are fully pre- booked at a capacity of 60 and several children signed up for Scripture Union camps last summer.Support prayer groups are established in two of the schools and the current vision is to ‘create church’ for young families in the local school. All this work is deeply immersed in Scriptural teaching (using mainly SU resources.)
As the process of replacing both these folk in 2008 begins, the challenge is going to be to there will find someone (in the case of Youth) who not only is passionate about, and proficient in, Sport (to be able to gain entry to the schools and sports clubs), but someone who sees the potential for sharing their faith through this avenue and has the experience, knowledge and gifting in Bible teaching necessary. This is where the Cornhill Course (or it’s equivalent) can play such an important part in this work.
It would not have been possible to justify a third consecutive year of training for the Youth support of JMT whose trustees see this as equipping the job holder for present and future ministry, a view that has been endorsed in his appointment to the exciting new challenge in Nottingham.
Latest updates:
The Youth Minister position has been recognised by the Diocese of Gloucester and Tim (and hopefully his successor) are to take on the additional role of Strategic Youth minister over a wider area, opening the door for replicating the model of Sports Ministry over a wider area. This comes with additional funding from the Diocese, allowing PSALMS to grow the work through additional recruitment. This will, of course, increase the training need and it is hoped that this can be achieved through the now well established course in Oxford.
Links and info:
Check out about the approach of Christians in Sport on www.christiansinsport.org and the work and resources of Scripture Union on www.scriptureunion.org.uk . The PSALMS project can be viewed on www.beaconbenefice.co.uk.
Ways to get involved:
Financial support: there will be a need to fund training in Bible teaching in 2008 for volunteers and the new employees.
Prayer: Please pray for the recruitment process within PSALMS that God will lead to the right person(s). Also, for those young people who have become Christians recently.
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