Prompted by the Spirit

Followig the last PCC meeting I felt a very strong prompting from the Spirit to step up and take on the Churchwarden's role at Holy Trinity.  Since Alan left we have only had Vince to cover the work of two wardens; and Vince has always been very clear that he did not have the capacity to cover the whole job on his own.  Despite Su's poster campaign, no one has come forward, so I phoned Su and said I'd be willing to fill the void.  She was of course very pleased to have a full complement of churchwardens again.  We agreed to speak to Vince and Sheila at the weekend.  As it transpires, I can only officially become churchwarden by election at Parishioners’ Meeting, which will be in March.  Until then I can assist Vince as churchwarden with the PCC's approval.  I want to start this blog to keep everyone up to date with the challenges we face as a church, both in terms of maintaining our building structures and financing our mission.

I hope this can help us all to feel more connected as a community, and better informed of opportunities to volunteer and get involved with some of the more practical aspects of our church.  So if you have some DIY skills or perhaps you enjoy gardening, I hope I can find you something to do round the church that can be of benefit to all of us.  Please do let me know if you have skills that I might be able to employ from time to time.

My first couple of weeks have been spent with familiarising myself with the role I've taken on; with the church buildings and outstanding items, and with the most recent architect's inspection (called the "Quinqennial Report").  I'm pleased to find that my predecessors have left the church in a very good state of repair with no urgent work waiting to be done (and with a full tank of heating oil!).  There are, of course, many smaller and less urgent tasks to be seen to, and this where volunteers will be helpful in keeping down costs.  There is some gardening and painting of woodwork, though most of it will need to wait for more clement weather.  Beyond that, there is the long-term future of the church hall, which continues to require costly repairs beyond its ability to earn us letting fees.  We'll need to take a long and serious look at how we manage this facility and how it fits into our mission plan for our parish.

The next couple of weeks are going to be consumed with getting to know the record books, working out which keys fit which locks and prioritising the work that needs doing.  I've already started a list of current issues which runs to 4 pages.  I'll keep you all posted as I continue on this voyage of discovery.

In service of Our Lord Jesus

David Brown(Assistant to the Churchwarden)