Partners taking good news relevantly to every young person in Bath
Autumn 2017
Director Writes I have recently returned from Cape Town, following a mission trip to Elsiesriver. You can read about it in this edition of Partners. Whilst there, listening to the stories of people and the community, I began to ask myself a question. What is the story that I live? In other words ‘what story does my life tell?’ The community we stayed in is a tough one. The headlines in the local press are primarily negative. The story they tell is one of a poor community struggling to respond to issues of drugs, gangs and shootings. Two weeks before we arrived, 13 people had been shot, resulting in 4 deaths. During our visit, whilst dropping one of the local team off, Jerome and I stumbled on a police road block, minutes after someone had been shot. It is hard to avoid this story. Although it is not the only story, sadly it is the one that
hogs the narrative. It is the story the local people tell and all too often the only one they believe. There is another story. The Gospel. Jerome and his team are living that story as they serve children and young people, as they feed them, share Good News of Jesus with them and mentor them. Jerome’s team - Eban and Lerato - in spite of very difficult personal stories (both have lost parents), are also trying to live a different story. Whilst there I met a young journalist who was local, but knew nothing of
Bath YFC Partners Evening & AGM Thursday 19th October 2017 (AGM 7.00 – 7.30pm, Partners evening 7.45 – 9.45pm) @ St Luke’s Church, Wellsway, Bath, BA2 2BD The Partners evening is a celebration of what God has done and is doing through the work of Bath YFC. The evening will feature live dance, films of various Bath YFC projects, interviews, presentations and an opportunity to talk with Bath YFC staff and trustees about the work.
the work of Pinnacle. He was blown away by the work and wanted to tell this different story with the whole community. He saw the importance of a different narrative. As people of hope we are called to live a different story. What story does your life tell? The challenges are a little less stark in the UK, but we, God’s people, are called to be those who by our words and actions tell a different story to the narratives in our media and society at large. We can live a different story because Christ lived, died and rose again. As we kickoff into a new term, pray for the team as our work starts again, that we will live and speak a story of hope, one that breaks through the prevailing narratives and brings life. James Vaughton