Direction June 2012 Taster

ALL CHANGE AT ELIM BIBLE WEEK 2012 New format proves a recipe for success

PLUS ELIM HISTORY IN THE MAKING

John Glass voted in for historic fourth term as GS

CELEBRATING NEW ELIM ORDINANDS

B TIP ET S LI T FO FE ER R A

EBW 2012 ordination service for 27 new ministers

LOOKING FORWARD AFTER COLLAPSE Amazing grace as Ilford’s new building comes down How hard man Les Deane found faith

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‘I WANTED TO PUNCH PASTOR’

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JUNE 2012 Issue 129 £1.70

CONTENTS  ELIM BIBLE WEEK FOCUS

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EDITORIAL John Glass looks at Negative Olympians

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ELIM BIBLE WEEK IN PICTURES We take a pictorial look at the all new Elim Bible Week, held in Telford for the first time

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A JOY TO JOIN OUR ORDINANDS A highlight of Bible Week is the service for new ministers. Mark Pugh introduces them

14 BRITAIN MUST RETURN TO GOSPEL Elim Bible Week speaker RT Kendall says the Church in the UK has a job to do 18 WE’VE A GREAT FUTURE AHEAD John Glass talks about Elim’s future as he is elected GS for an historic fourth term 21 ASPIRE GETS AMAZING RESPONSE Hundreds of women were impacted during Elim Bible Week, reports Marilyn Glass 22 NEWS from Elim and the wider church 24 OUT AND ABOUT WITH THE GS John Glass opens his diary 26 MOVING ON FROM BUILDING FALL Steve Derbyshire looks forward after the collapse of their new building at Ilford 28 CHURCH MUST RAISE ITS PROFILE Elim Yeovil’s Howard Davenport looks at how to put your local church on the map

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32 I WENT TO CHURCH TO HIT PASTOR! Receiving an invitation to church left Les Deane fuming but the visit changed his life 36 YOUR CHURCH MUST BE INVITING Being confident helps when talking to your friends about church, says Janet Whitehead 37 WHAT’S IN A NAME? asks Alan Patterson, a leadership team member at Discovery Church, Penzance 38 ARE YOU IN A SPOT OF BOTHER? Dr Sharon Kane explodes some myths about acne and offers teens advice 40 FITTING ALL THE PIECES TOGETHER A revolutionary product has been launched to help churches with children’s ministry 41 BOOK REVIEWS with Richard Dodge 43 WE ARE ALL CALLED TO TAKE RISKS We must have faith if we are to see a lost world changed, argues Sarah Whittleston 44 HOW TO MAKE THE MOST OF LIFE Sound advice for a better life from Elim’s Director of Training Nigel Tween 45 MUSIC REVIEWS with Ian Yates 49 ANSWERS with Andrew Fadoju 50 AND FINALLY with John Lancaster

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Direction Magazine is the official publication of the Elim Pentecostal Church @elimpentecostal www.elim.org.uk 0845 302 6750

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Elim Pentecostal Church

Editor-in-Chief: John Glass, General Superintendent Publishers: Elim Pentecostal Church Elim International Centre, De Walden Road, West Malvern, Worcestershire, WR14 4DF Charity no. 251549 (England)

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Disclaimer: Views expressed in articles and news reports do not necessarily reflect the view of the Editor or the official position of the Elim Pentecostal Church.

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By submitting articles, writers accept their articles may be edited.

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BIBLE WEEK 2012 IN PICTURES Ian Yates takes a session during Bible Week

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Ben Cooley from Hope for Justice

Elim Sound in a seminar

Philippa Hanna entertains

 Jonathan Oloyede, Global Day of Prayer convener

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One of the highlights of Elim Bible Week 2012 was the inspiring service when the Movement’s newest ministers were ordained.

Mark Pugh introduces them

A joy to gather around our ordinands What have you got in your hand?

I guess it’s a Direction Magazine... and, for our multi-tasking readers, possibly a cup of coffee too. When God asked the same question to the likely suntanned, bearded Moses, his answer was far less sophisticated.

Prior to the days of Elim’s glossy monthly magazine and the Church’s love affair with a caffeine-filled beverage, it seems that ‘a staff’ was a very likely answer for a desert dwelling shepherd.

Few would have stopped Moses to compliment or admire this inanimate object. It wouldn’t have been the cause of envious aspirations among his community. It was a dead piece of wood that had found some recycled use in the hands of its owner.

Yet out of all the questions God could have asked a startled barefooted Moses at this holy non-burning bush moment, he chose to ask Moses about ‘the staff’. God was engaged in convincing Moses that he was chosen to lead an audacious revolution that would have an impact on multiple thousands of people.

God was calling him to address, defy and oppose the most powerful nation in the region – possibly the world – yet he asked about the seemingly

Above Mark Pugh Main image Herb McGowan speaks at the ordination service

ordinary object in his hand. If I was God I may have wanted to see Moses’ CV or possibly taken him through a rigorous Alan Sugar style interview process.

We like to see competency before commissioning someone. If I were putting a music band together I would want to know that the musicians were able to play their instruments well before appointing them.

If I were employing a workman to build an extension to my home I would want to know they have the ability to do so. If I were on the operating theatre bed at the hospital, about to

be injected with anaesthetic, I would want to know that the man wearing the white coat knew what he was doing. As God engaged with Moses in a profound moment of calling and commission, there didn’t seem to be anything outstanding in his ‘competencies’ portfolio.

There have been many times I’ve stared into the apparent ordinary skills and abilities in my hands and felt highly inadequate.

There are times when it feels like God is asking me to fly when I’ve not displayed any evidence that I can do so.

But when God calls us, he doesn’t just commission – he also empowers. As Moses rattled off his disqualifications, God listened and responded.

Moses felt as insignificant as the staff he was holding – yet God was about to demonstrate that he can transform the ordinary, weak and lowly things of this world and confound people.

As Moses threw down the staff it turned into a big snake.

When he found the courage to pick it back up again it turned back into a staff. God takes ordinary things, transforms them and astounds people, showing it is all about his power, his strength, his purposes – not our weakness or inadequacies.

You and I may not feel very spectacular, we may not have

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Elim ordinands 2012

Paul McMichael, who hails from Glasgow, has been a youth pastor at Southport Elim since September 2010.

Alexander Morgan.

Alex’s home church is Fraserbugh. He was appointed to Newcastle as assistant minister in August 2009.

Matthew Paton is an assistant minister and youth leader at HeartCry Family Church in Ainsdale. He is engaged to Maria Buckley and the couple hope to marry next year.

Mark Price is senior minister at Hereford. He is married to Rebecca and the couple have two daughters, Bethany and Amelia.

Mark Savage, a teacher, is the youth Leader at his home church, Father’s House, Lancaster. He and his wife, Nicola, have two sons, Theo and Joel.

Trudi Smythi hails from Northern Ireland and her home church is Markethill.

She is the senior minister of the Malvern Hills church and is married to Robert, and they have two children.

Mark Stone is an assistant minister at Huddersfield.

He is married to Sarah and the couple have two daughters, Hannah-Faith and Esther-Joy.

Philip Thomas was a missionary in Turkey but returned to become senior minister at Pontrypridd in September. He is married to Lynda and has two children.

Penelope Upson is an assistant minister at Elim Cathedral of Hope, Christchurch, New Zealand. She will return to the UK in October to continue her ministry.

David Walker has ministered in Guernsey and Delancey and became senior minister at Romsey in 2009. He is married to Jackie.

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Elim Bible Week 2012 saw John Glass elected to an historic fourth term as Elim’s General Superintendent. He talked to Peter Wreford about his 12 years in the role and his plans for the Movement as it prepares for its centenary celebrations and beyond

We have a great future ahead of us First of all, congratulations on being elected for an historic fourth term as Elim’s General Superintendent Thank you, it has been a massive privilege and honour to serve Elim in this way for the past twelve years and in my final four-year term I am believing that, together, our Movement will become increasingly effective in reaching our nation with the gospel.

Am I right in thinking that this is the first time in Elim’s history that a GS has served four terms?

Yes, only two General Superintendents have fulfilled more than one term: myself, and my predecessor, Wynne Lewis. He led our Movement with distinction for eight years.

What have been the highlights for you in the past 12 years?

There have been several but the list would certainly include the move to our new International Centre in Malvern, the inception of Serious4God, a full-time Director of Training, the ordination of women, the launch of Aspire and the ‘Big Centenary Ask’ initiative.

You mentioned Aspire in that list. How does Marilyn

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‘No one could be more committed to Elim than I am, but we are only a part of the wider Church which is made up of all those who have committed their lives to Christ’

Opposite page John Glass in his office in Malvern

feel about another four years as the wife of the leader of the Elim Movement?

Well, let me answer the second issue first. Marilyn has never been status-orientated. She has enjoyed being a pastor’s wife in the local church and was very fulfilled in the work she did alongside me when I was the Regional Leader for Scotland for eight years.

It was quite a sacrifice for her to leave our last church and her friends there when I was first elected as GS in 1999 but she has loved working alongside me as we have visited the churches, and her experience in local church and previously as the wife of a Regional Leader has been a great benefit in her connections with the wives of our pastors.

As far as Aspire is concerned, Marilyn has done a phenomenal job with that. She has a great team of women around her at national and regional level and, apart from the national events they have put on, many churches are increasingly linking their women’s events with the Aspire brand. I love the name because it carries with it the sense of honouring, dignity and aspiration that we want the women in our Movement to feel about themselves and their role. I see Aspire developing and

expanding greatly in the next few years.

Apart from your work within the Movement your term of office has also been marked by the influence and opportunities that have been afforded to you in the wider Evangelical community and beyond. Which groups have you been invited to give input to and how important has that been to what you see as your ministry?

More than being important for me as an individual I think that it has been very important for Elim as a Movement. No one could be more committed to Elim than I am, but we are only a part of the wider Church which is made up of all those who have committed their lives to Christ and are trusting in Christ, and Christ alone, for their salvation.

I have recently been elected for a fur ther six years as a member of the Council of the Evangelical Alliance, which is very ably led by Steve Clifford and which represents 1.5 million Evangelicals in the UK. I have also been invited by Gavin Calver to sit on the council of reference of British Youth for Christ, having previously served in that capacity when Roy Crowne gave leadership

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BIBLE WEEK 2012 Hundreds of women were impacted by Aspire at Elim Bible Week. Marilyn Glass reports

Aspire

An amazing response at a great conference The Aspire stand is always a favourite place to shop and catch up with friends. This year was no exception and the added bonus of a professional free manicure was a great attraction.

More connections are made and friendships formed through women chatting and sharing parts of their journey in a relaxed environment. It also gives us as a team an opportunity to listen and appreciate the great work that is being accomplished across the nation.

The marvellous volunteers on our stand did an exceptional job as did the young women who took hours setting it up with creative flair. The whole atmosphere of the hub area was alive with chat and of course the ones doing so at length grabbed a coffee together in the food area.

The amazing facilities at Telford enabled Aspire to have the use of a conference room in which we had morning streams.

These events were packed to capacity and sometimes people didn’t manage to get in.

The speakers were all professionals in their given subject, but included God’s principles in their talks too. What a wealth

of blessing each day brought and what a lot to take home and fully digest. The topics covered were Aspire2Business, Aspire2Wellbeing (emotional health), Aspire2Wellbeing (physical fitness) and Aspire2Soar (spiritual health).

God is interested in all areas of our lives and we plan to build on these streams and address more particular subjects as the ministry continues to develop.

Jeff Lucas excelled at bringing humour into a powerfully anointed word at our Aspire4Gold event on the Thursday afternoon in the main venue. The word was different to his planned message and afterwards we understood his bold obedience in sharing what God had on his heart for the women present.

Lara Martin and a great worship team ministered in a very sensitive way. The response from the afternoon was amazing as lives were touched and God did a deep work in many lives.

While thanking God for all that he accomplished at Elim Bible Week 2012, we are planning for greater things and an exciting and relevant programme for 2013.

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Being confident helps so much when you’re talking to your friends about church. Janet Whitehead, of the REACH team, tells how

It’s up to us to make church inviting David Hume, the 18th century British philosopher who rejected Christianity, once met a friend hurrying along a London street and asked where he was going in such a rush. The friend said he was off to hear George Whitefield preach. Hume said, “But surely you don’t believe what Whitefield preaches, do you?” His friend replied, “No, I don’t, but he does!”

There is clearly something very intriguing and attractive about confidence. Many people have a really bad or distorted perception of the Church – so how will that ever change?

Through you and me! We have an incredible opportunity to show society that Church is real, relevant, alive, vibrant and active and that it’s an ideal place to understand and encounter the living God. Church is clearly not the ultimate aim – experiencing a relationship with God is.

Second Corinthians 5:14 says, “Christ’s love compels us, because we are convinced that he died for all.” If we are genuinely convinced that Jesus is the answer for people’s lives, we should be compelled to reveal church to people with confidence. Here are some practical tips on how we might do just that: Talk naturally Include in your conversations normal and natural references to your church life, as you would

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any other significant aspect of your world. Don’t relegate church to an odd secret part.

People find it weird when they find out much later down the track that you ‘do church’ – and just what does that convey to them?

‘We have an incredible opportunity to show society that Church is real, relevant, alive, vibrant and active’

Above Janet Whitehead

Step into opportunities Occasionally the conversation heads in a way with such an obvious opening or connection that we see it coming... and yet we sometimes do the very opposite and steer it away to ‘safer’ subjects! Let’s not step away, but step into these moments.

Respond to God Sometimes we can sense the Holy Spirit prompting us to talk about our faith or about church and how it impacts us. It might not necessarily be an obvious subject to bring up with someone, but we should be sensitive to the nudge of the Holy Spirit.

Just think what might be if we were courageous and confident enough to partner with God. Avoid overkill The other end of the spectrum is to be too enthusiastic or unstoppable once we start! This equally paints an unrealistic and slightly crazy perspective of church. We can think that once we’ve dived into the church subject we cannot quit until the other person has drowned! Be sensible, real and sensitive to the other person’s interest and

body language and allow them to surface when they want.

Be invitational Even if we feel comfortable about talking church with others, it can still be a massive step to invite them along to something. A survey some years ago said that many people would come to church IF someone invited them… and yet we are so hesitant. Why not decide at the end of a church or faithrelated conversation to always ask, “Well, anytime you want to come along just let me know.”

Maintain helpfulness If someone – perhaps a colleague – seems interested, it may be that they do not live locally to you or your church, so do some legwork for them by checking out some churches in their vicinity. You are then armed if they suggest, “I might go to church if I knew one near me.” Think kingdom – not just about your own church!

Make it easy If someone shows interest, make it easy for them by arranging to meet them at the front door, in the car park, or even better, offer to pick them up.

Explain to them what to expect and how things generally go.

Anything you can do to help familiarise them with what might be a strange environment will go a long way to helping them feel confident and comfortable.

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God wants to know whether you are a grasshopper or a giant, writes Sarah Whittleston

We’re called to take risks and have faith The match strikes, the familiar music begins and you enter the world of improbable stunts.

There are amazing coincidences and airbrushed movie stars are saving the world.

That’s life at the cinema, but as Christians, we are called to be adventurous, take risks and have faith in God if we are to see a lost world saved and our own lives transformed. But at times, it can seem like Mission Impossible.

In the Bible, the people of Israel faced their own far-fetched dream, but only two men stood up – and stood out – because of their no-holds-barred faith in God. Let me set the scene: the Israelites, rescued from generations of Egyptian slavery, are led

by Moses through the miraculous parting of the Red Sea to freedom. God promises them a land of their own.

That moment came when 12 men were sent in to spy out the land. But when they reported back, it was very much Mission Impossible as only Joshua and Caleb activated their faith and believed that with God’s help they could overcome.

What was so different about Joshua and Caleb? FAITH!

were led by fear rather than faith.

They saw themselves as grasshoppers compared to giants, but weren’t looking at the situation from God’s point of view.

When he makes a promise he will always fulfil it. We must have an understanding of the faithful God we follow and allow our trust and faith in him to grow by responding to what he asks of us. As we go, God meets with us and provides along the way.

Possibilities and potential The spies explored and found amazing potential but became more concerned with the problems. This good news/bad news scenario shifted their focus from possibility to obstacle, and they

Do the impossible!

British missionary William Carey said, “Expect great things from God; attempt great things for God.” Joshua and Caleb were willing to believe God for their Mission

Rely on God Someone once said that it’s not the size of your faith that makes the difference, but the size of the God that you put your faith in. Caleb measured the ‘giants’ against God, believing in the Lord’s power and provision.

Why is faith so important?

The Bible says that without faith it is impossible to please God. That is a huge statement! Faith, trust and belief in God are central to Christian life.

God cannot be pleased when we are unwilling to obey and place little confidence in him.

Joshua and Caleb trusted that God was in control and was able to fulfil his promises. The same can be true for us today.

Impossible. Not content with being held back by fear, they wanted all that God had for them and were willing to walk in faith to see it happen.

Demonstrating audacious faith and trusting in God’s faithfulness, Caleb, at the age of 85, saw the promise realised. Joshua and Caleb knew and proved that with God, nothing is impossible.

‘We must have an understanding of the faithful God we follow and allow our trust and faith in him to grow’

What about us?

What is your Mission Impossible?

We all have areas of our lives where it’s tough to believe for change, where we’ve said that a certain situation is impossible to conquer. But we are called to live with faith, trust, hope and expectancy in a God who specialises in the impossible!

All 12 men saw the same land and people, whereas ten saw giants too big to conquer. But by faith, Joshua and Caleb stood on the promise of God and eventually overcame.

You can too!

• Sarah Whittleston is associate minister at Elim Kingstanding

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DI R E C T I O N

A n d f i n a L Ly . . .

by John Lancaster

The Queen’s reign has been based on faith On the occasion of the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee visit to Parliament in Westminster Hall, the speaker of the House of Commons, John Bercow, addressed her as ‘a kaleidoscope Queen in a kaleidoscope country’. His words evoked widespread criticism and, judging by the look on his face, the severe displeasure of the Prime Minister.

The criticism arose because of his use of the word ‘kaleidoscope’, partly because it appeared to have a subtle underlying sexual connotation – the speaker is honorary president of the Kaleidoscope Trust which suppor ts homosexual interests, but mainly because of its wholly inappropriate and inaccurate use of the term.

The pattern observed through a kaleidoscope is completely random and simply achieved through shaking the instrument – hardly an apt description of the Queen’s outstanding reign of 60 devoted years!

Presumably, Mr Speaker’s intention was to pay tribute to the enduring personal qualities in Queen Elizabeth’s life while contrasting them with the dramatic changes in the pattern of our national life through those 60 years. Unfortunately, he chose a very unsuitable analogy.

No invisible hand of fate has shaken a kaleidoscope, but the changes have come through many factors, and most of them through human choices. As the Queen remarked, during her reign, she has dealt with 12 Prime Ministers and added her signature, if not her personal

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‘Her life has been determined by a faith-based dedication that has stood strong amidst all the winds of change’ Above HM The Queen reminds us of Queen Esther who pledged herself to seek the good of her people • John Lancaster’s latest book Reflections is based on many of his articles in Direction. Priced at £7.99 + £1.50 p&p, copies are available from the author at 75 Penny Lane Way, Leeds, LS10 1EA. Or telephone 0113 271 3846

approval, to 3,500 bills, some of which have had a great effect for good, but many of which have resulted in the rejection of the biblical principles which shaped the structures of British society.

In contrast, the Queen has set an example that has won not only respect, but also affection. Again, the pattern of her personal and public life has been determined not by the fortuitous shaking of a kaleidoscope, but by a faith-based dedication that has stood strong amidst all the winds of change.

As she indicated in her speech in Westminster, she has dedicated herself afresh to the commitment she made as a young queen, a commitment she has expressed in terms of strong Christian faith and the values that are the foundation of the righteousness that exalts a nation. In this commitment she

reminds us of Queen Esther, who pledged herself to seek the good of her people, even if it involved personal sacrifice. Reminded that she had come to the kingdom ‘for such a time as this’, Esther called upon her people to give themselves to fasting and prayer for divine intervention at a moment of extreme crisis.

It is not likely that we will receive a Jubilee call to prayer and fasting, but the serious threats to our national life in ‘such a time as this’ demand an urgent response from us. The biblically-based foundations are being broken up by the noisy pneumatic drills of militant atheists, homosexual activists and politically correct pressure groups who clamour loudly for the removal of any faith-based influences, and by those who, in a distorted pursuit of so-called ‘tolerance’ and ‘equality’, show growing intolerance themselves, especially towards Christians.

“When the foundations are being destroyed,” cried the psalmist (Psalm 11:3), “What can the righteous do?” He answered by pointing upwards to the throne of God and declaring, “Upright men will seek his face.”

As individuals and churches we need to make a clear-cut stand for righteousness, and in practical ways support the work of agencies like Care and the Christian Institute who have direct access to parliament. But more than that, we need to give ourselves to earnest intercessory prayer, crying with the words of Psalm 119:126, “It is time for you to work, O Lord, your law is being broken.”