Trust

September 13th, 2024

Dear church family

Yesterday we opened a Ruah space for people to spend time with God in and we fasted and prayed together, listening intentionally to God's voice for Paula and whether she is called to be a full-time pastor here when she finishes her training and for the future of our partnership with Brabourne. We finished the day in worship and prayer, and it was such a joy being together thanking God for His goodness and sharing what we felt God was saying.

We had so many people write down what they felt God was saying which is amazing. I won't share them all with you here or it will be the longest weekly update in history! I do want to share with you just one theme that cropped up multiple times…

TRUST | Isaiah 40:26 | Psalm 25 | Isaiah 36 | Deuteronomy 31:8

There were a few notes sensing that God is inviting us to trust Him, that He is trustworthy, and He has everything in His hands.

One word that stuck out to me was one that referenced Isaiah 36 where Sennacherib is threatening Jerusalem, and they send a field commander out to taunt the people. The field commander challenges their trust in God, trying to undermine their confidence in Him. But time and time again the LORD assures them that He will deliver them and of course He does.

It hit me that as we step into God's promises and purposes, the enemy is going to try and undermine our trust and confidence in God, and we have to hold on to the truth that He is faithful, trustworthy and will deliver us through hard times!

God is inviting us to trust Him so that when He calls us to step forwards as a church family (as He is already) we know that He has got us and that He is calling us to step out in faith because that is His best for us. Like Peter who walked on water, as soon as we take our eyes off Jesus, we can quickly feel overwhelmed and start sinking but when our eyes are on Him, we can walk on water.

Let us not allow doubts or fears to stop us but let us be fearlessly seeking after Him! We must not allow the enemy to hold us back, but we must keep walking in obedience and faith!

Many other beautiful words were written down for our church, for Brabourne and for Paula. Thank you for being a church that listen to His voice.

Lots of love,

Katie x

SUNDAY GATHERING - 10:30AM Join us this Sunday as we continue our sermon series 'The Book of Daniel - Resilient Faith'. For those who are unable to attend in person please join us on YouTube: https://youtu.be/-IuqlJ9YJXU

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CHURCH FAMILY MEETING THIS SUNDAY On the 15th September, we will be gathering as church family to make some key decisions around the long-term life of our Partnership with Brabourne but equally importantly, to make a decision on whether to call Paula Chegwin as our third, full-time pastor at the completion of her training, beginning in July 2025. Please make this meeting a priority - and please bring some food with you

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Family Meeting - Church Meeting AGM Sept 2024-01.png

LEAD THEOLOGY COURSE Our LEAD Theology Course will be held over 6 Saturdays throughout the year - starting on 5th October. Each session will be divided in to parts - some with a focus on exploring a section of the Bible and others focussed on an aspect of practical theology and how it applies to our discipleship and leadership. The sessions will be taught by the pastors at WBC plus a number of guest teachers throughout the year specialising in different fields.

This year we are also introducing LEAD+. These are standalone training days on various topics including preaching and communication, worship, leadership and so much more taught by specialists in that area. These training days are for anyone who is interested in the topic and those who have previously done the LEAD Theology Course.
For more information, to see the course schedule and to sign up, visit our website: https://www.willesboroughbaptist.church/lead

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LEAD - Theology Course Socials 2024-2025 - SOCIALS 2.png

IMMERSE Encounter, Engage, Empower! Join us for these worship & prayer Sunday evening services - running once a month in Sept, Oct & Nov

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DEAF AWARENESS TRAINING Join us for the next session on Thursday 19th September. We would like as many of our church family to attend as possible, especially if you volunteer in any area of WBC life, including the Well Cafe and Welcome teams.

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Deaf Awareness Training - Socials_94 SEPT OCT.png

VOLUNTEERS DESPERATELY NEEDED We desperately need volunteers to help with our Tots team on a Monday or it will no longer be able to run

Preferably someone who is:
- Available on Mondays (or every other Monday)
- Is trained in The Well
We also need help with the Kids work team (we have a couple of children who need consistent 1:1 support).
If you are able to help in this area of the church please speak to Izzy
(Email ejhirst47@hotmail.com)

THANK YOU!

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CAP - ASHFORD LIFE SKILLS COURSE STARTING OCT Our church partners with Christians Against Poverty (CAP UK) to support local people here in Ashford who are facing financial challenges. This course is open to all and starts Friday 4th October! To sign up or for more info please visit our website:
https://www.willesboroughbaptist.church/cap

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CAP - Ashford Life Skills - Socials OCT 2024-01 SOCIALS.png

NEW JOB OPPORTUNITY MAF International has a new position for a Quality, Safety & Security Administrator based at our Ashford office. This would suit an experienced administrator. Closing date 18th September
Apply here: https://appurl.io/qqlAu2N6j-

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