One of the things I have been able to do while out off action with sciatica is to find a bit more time to pray and read the Scriptures. So yes, congregations of St Andrew's and St Michael's, I may not have been able to get to church and pray with you on Sunday, but I have been able to pray for you while stuck at home. So if you have any prayer requests you'd like to pass on, please e-mail them in!

One of the Scripture verses I read today says,

God has chosen to make known the glorious riches of this mystery, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory - Colossians 1:27

I was so encouraged by this verse! Though I'm currently bedridden and feeling frustrated about not being out and about, laying the foundations for this new ministry, the foundations are in fact already there - Christ in you, the hope of glory. Even though I struggle to see the point of it all at times - Christ in you, the hope of glory. Paul writes this when he himself is suffering - see v.24 - and is reflecting on Jesus' own ministry through suffering - v.22: - Christ in you is still the hope of glory when pain and suffering are there too.

How amazing that Christ Himself, the King of Glory, should come and live in our hearts, and bring the hope of his glory there, a solid foundation for our lives in good times and bad, never to be taken away. I'm glowing just thinking about it!

I've been a bit mis the last few days. I've trapped a nerve in my back which is giving me nasty pains down my leg. I can't really stand up or sit down for long without pain so it's lying in bed for me. It's been going on since Tuesday and it's not much fun. In fact it's literally a pain in the backside.

I've missed Ben and Izzie's wedding which I was due to conduct on Saturday up in Walsall and I'm gutted about that. And I've missed worshipping with my brothers and sisters in Horton and Wraysbury on Sunday so that's really disappointing too. I was supposed to be playing guitar for the New Life Service band which was great fun last time... And of course as the new vicar I want to put myself about, get to know people and make a good impression - which isn't always the best motivation, I know.

Well I thought I'd better ask the Lord what he's saying through all this, as a person paid to pray. I wasn't quite sure so I asked the osteopath what he thought. He said these things usually come about through overdoing it, and my body's message at least is, "Give it a rest mate" - which is something Jesus approved of too. It has been a bit mad for months now, what with trying to sort everything out before leaving St Matt's, moving house, flying to Bolivia, and setting up in a new post in Wraysbury...

So I'll just have to accept this as a "Come unto me and rest" time and do the best I can to enjoy lying about in bed, doing the old Dame aux Camellias routine. At least it doesn't hurt so much now, and I hope to be up and about in a few days. I'm off to see the osteopath tomorrow and hope to get a better idea of how it might all pan out then.

So greetings to:
- Ben and Izzie, sorry I missed it all, God bless your exciting new journey together!
- Praying types, remember me - especially at 3.15 tomorrow when I'm back with the osteopath: and give thanks for slow but steady improvements.
- Worshippers, I hope you had a really uplifting and inspiring time on Sunday and I look forward to rejoining you soon.

Love Colin x x

Thank you, thank you, thank you for such a wonderful farewell service on Sunday. We are going out on a tidal wave of love and booze: thank you for so many bottles! Perhaps I'll give up being a vicar when I get to Wraysbury and we'll set up an off-licence instead...

I don't think any vicar can ever have had such a warm, uplifting, exciting and inspiring service. What a great atmosphere of worship, love, togetherness and awe. Elisa and I were deeply moved by sharing with so many people who have wonderfully enriched our lives. We're saying thank you for the service, but that service itself is just a reflection of all that we have shared together, the ups and the downs, over the last eleven years.

Now don't forget the things I told you. We looked at Joshua chapter 1, remember, where Moses makes way because Joshua is coming! God sends a new person for a new phase, a new plan from the Lord. The old leader Moses has to make way for Joshua and for the new thing God is about to do. You are moving steadily forward as a church into the good things God has for you. So what the Lord said to Joshua, I now say to you in His name: Be bold! Be courageous! He will be with you always, He will give you every place where you set the sole of your foot, He will never fail you nor forsake you. God has great plans for St Matthew's and you are in for some exciting times!

Secondly, we looked at some of the wonderful achievements of the past eleven years while I have enjoyed the huge privilege of being your Rector. This is not about nostalgia for the past but instead it reminds us that the same God who has been with us through those things is leading us on. Those achievements were about the future: the God who has done great things for us will continue to do so!

And they are not my achievements., They are your achievements: see a previous post on this blog where we thought about your vision, energy, enthusiasm, perseverance, the things that under the grace of God made it all happen. I'm telling you this because there is one fault I have found with in Walsall people during my eleven years of ministry to you. You put yourselves down too much! Look at all you have done, know that you are a great Church, God loves you, He has blessed you and He wants to bless you even more!

Thank you for everything. We'll never forget you! And neither will God…

With all our love,

Colin, Elisa and the Gibsons x x 

PS Be bold, be strong, do not be discouraged! For the Lord your God is with you wherever you go! Joshua 1:9.

Don't forget it's my farewell service at St Matthew's this Sunday, 2 June, at 6.30pm. I hope to see you there! I'm bringing a big pack of tissues...

I will also be at the morning services at 8am and 10am. I commend to you the world premiere of the Universal Prayer Answering Machine at the all-age service at 10 o'clock - it will be awesome! Don't miss it!

What I have learned while at St Matthew's

As part of the process of seeking a new appointment I had to summarise what I have learned while at St Matthew's. So, for the benefit of future generations, here is the fruit of my accumulated wisdom:-

•           Make good appointments. Our present curate and family and children's worker are brilliant. Our high hopes of new administrator Carrie are being realised too.

•           Focus on discipleship. The quality of the Christian life of members of the church is what will tell in the end.

•           Build Teams that socialise and pray together.

•           Keep people motivated. If the congregation feel good about being Christians and belonging to the church there is little you can't do, under the grace of God.

•           Stay solvent. When I arrived at St Matthew's we owed £75,000 in unpaid parish share and the only way we could sort it out was to cut back our investment in ministry. The church really struggled as a result. We are now in a much happier position.

•           Promotion is worth the money. The church today must compete in a market place of ideas.

•           Links with the community. Our three church schools for example are a rich and fruitful source of contact with families and children.

 

•           Above all, pray a lot!

But in retrospect, those are all very well for the sort of thing you need to put forward in interviews and on CVs but are not actually the main things for me. Those are actually much more personal and spiritual. I think of one or two people (no names - I don't want to embarrass anyone) whom I give communion to. The look of complete devotion and love for the Lord that comes over their faces is awe inspiring. I think of the commitment, the discipleship, the kindness and especially the love that so many at St Matthew's have shared with me. I think of the practical people who show their passion for the Lord in seemingly endless hard work. I think of people in serious pain who just seem to glow with God's lovely presence. I think of behind the scenes people who give incredible caring to others who are struggling, and get no credit at all for it because nobody knows, except that after a long while a little bit of what you do gets back to the vicar... You are wonderful.

This for me is the really important stuff. It's about how to follow Jesus, and I have learned far more about it from St Matthew's than you have from me!

So another big thank you to St Matthew's Walsall - this time for the deeper things...

A Huge Thank You!

Colin and Elisa would like to say a huge thank you to everyone for all your kindness to us. We have been showered with good wishes, kind words, cards, gifts of all sorts, delicious meals, hugs, kisses and prayers – not to mention that amazing party last week! What a wonderful send-off it was. You are making it very difficult for us to leave you! We are going to miss you all so much.

It's so hard to believe that this will be our last Sunday with you. I hope as many of you as possible will be able to get along to the farewell service on Sunday evening – but don't worry if you can't. I appreciate it's half term and Bank Holiday week: the eleven years we've spent together counts for far more than the final fling.

Those eleven years have seen some huge achievements, many new members and lots of changes – it hasn't all been easy. But the more I look at the achievements, the less I can take credit for them. Through the grace of God was you who had the generosity to pay off our huge debts when I first arrived, you who had the hospitality to welcome our Asian congregation, you who patiently completed the St Matthew's Centre project and got it flourishing, your vision and energy that have set up Messy Church and brought about real growth, your awe in God's presence that touches me every time I come to worship at St Matthew's.

You are an awesome church! Keep it up, brothers and sisters! The vicar may be leaving but the Lord isn't and He has great plans for you. Just you wait and see!

This was my last article for the Pioneer magazine, the issue currently in circulation. Please note that my Farewell Service is on Sunday 2 June at 6.30pm. It would be great to see you there if you can possibly make it.

A Sad Announcement

I am writing this article the day after announcing at St Matthew's that some time this summer I will move on to be vicar of the parish of Horton and Wraysbury, near London. I am putting my announcement in the Pioneer because I know I have many friends out in the community as well as in church.

It's eleven years since Elisa and I arrived in Walsall. Our youngest, Ben, started at Blue Coat Juniors when we arrived and he's 19 now and doing a gap year in Bolivia! All sorts of wonderful things have happened during our time at St Matthew's. 

·        We started St Matthew's Asian Congregation for Punjabi Christians, which now has a worldwide reach through its broadcasting and internet ministries

·        We have restructured and produced a highly motivated and effective team with a wonderfully positive attitude and a great group spirit

·        We had a massive project on our church hall and re-opened as the St Matthew's Centre, which is doing some amazing work in the community.

·        Family and Children's Work has really taken off since the appointment in 2010 of Liz Burley, our Family and Children's Worker. Messy Church, the holiday club and the school clubs are amazing!

·        We have rebranded St Matthew's through an overhaul of the website, logos, and first class promotional material.

·        We have emphasised ministry to and by young people through Church Hill Praise, outreach through Alpha and other courses, schools work in partnership with the three Blue Coat schools.

But most of all, we have seen God at work – healings, answered prayers, enriching encounters with God in our worship week by week, people coming to faith through the life-changing news that God loves them, people growing personally as God moves in their lives…

None of these are my achievements as vicar. They are our achievements as God's family together. I am in awe of my congregation: they are so full of warmth, enthusiasm, passion, energy, determination, love, faith and fun and Elisa and I are going to miss them all terribly. I feel the time is right, for them as well as for me, for St Matthew's to have a new vicar, to get some fresh vision and energy, and see where God will take us in the next part of His plan. I am sure it will be amazing.

People of Walsall, you have a great resource up there on the hill top at St Matthew's Church. Don't waste it! Make good use of it! Enjoy it! Surprise yourself and get involved! Or as the Bible puts it, "Taste and see that the Lord is good." You will be glad you did.

God bless you and thank you for everything!