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Here is the April 2004 e-Bulletin.
| They have been a long time coming, but we're very excited about our new appointments- Full Story |
| Our 'Collected Thoughts' section includes musings from Paul on the Kingdom and the Passion, thoughts from Mark on the reason we do the things we do, and, as we couldn't think where else to put it, a little update on cash flow. As a special treat this month, we squeezed some thoughts from the Office Manager's chair as Karen leaves us - Full Story |
| Updates & Adverts: Rock Solid, Schools, Spark and some resources - Full Story |
| Discover the why we think training is key, and find out about some upcoming opportunities, in 'Breaking the 80/20 Rule' - Full Story |
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And finally, the 'Virtual Back Page' contains the usual assortment of things which don't fit elsewhere, from dates to prayer pointers - Full Story |
We hope you enjoy our new format e-Bulletin. As ever, we want this to be a useful piece of information for you to stay in touch with what's going on in NYFC, and we would really appreciate your feedback on the new format, good or bad. So please, let us know your thoughts by emailing bulletin@norwichyfc.co.uk
You’ll remember from the last bulletin that we were in the midst of recruitment. We are delighted to say that we have a new office manager, a new clubworker and a new fusion worker for Heartsease. Meet Fliss and Matthew in this issue, and since he’ll be starting a bit later we’ll introduce Danny in the next edition.
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Hello, I’m Fliss, the new Office Manager. As
my face pops up at a variety of NYFC activities, (see below) there are
people who already think I am a NYFC worker! However, I have been working
for the past six and a half years at Norwich Union, three of those years
having been in a training team, which I have been managing. I have loved
my time there, but am excited about my new adventure with NYFC and using
my skills learnt with NU. I am passionate about NYFC and its values and
I know that this is God’s plan and the next step on my journey with
him.
A volunteer: I’ve been a volunteer with Norwich Youth for Christ for over 10 years, having many different roles. I have been involved in youth events at Fridays, Living Waters and Soul Survivor, I worked with Tracey in Ikon Nightclub and helped run a female discipleship group. I am, and have been for a while, in the Fridays worship band. One of my favourite things to do in life is Worship God with music, so this has been a big passion and blessing for me over the years. Prayer Meeting Plug! I also currently organise prayer meetings for NYFC. These happen every other month and last for exactly one hour as we appreciate that NYFC supporters are often very busy people, and we do not want these meetings to take up too much precious time. They provide a chance to catch up on all the NYFC gossip and amazing things that God has been doing, and to find out the latest prayer requests. I get really excited at these prayer meetings to see what God has been doing. It has been a privilege to be part of these. If you would like to come along to these, it would be lovely to see you…Next on is 10th June |
New ClubworkerOur new clubworker brings a variety of new skills to us as an organisation. Matt will continue to communicate the gospel into what to many of us is the unknown world of nightclubs and also help us bridge the significant gap between clubbers and church. If nothing else hymns from the 1700s or songs based on 1970’s rock are a world away from club music. Below is a brief intro and we’ll bring more on Matt in future editions. Name: Matt Stevenson AKA DJ Fly
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I’ve recently seen the film the Passion of the Christ. Many of you I’m sure will have followed the controversy in the press. I was reminded that the gospel is even more controversial than it’s film portrayal. The Gospel is a ‘stumbling block’, life changing, radical, awe-inspiring, mind-blowing yet my life…? I wonder how controversial my life is? Does my life reflect a safe and sanitised Gospel or experience of God or does it mirror the passion and radical mission of my saviour.
Pray for us as a team in our communication of faith to young people. Pray that we don’t get squeezed into the worlds mould but rather demonstrate the radicalness of God’s kingdom to young people and help them experience it for themselves.
I hope you enjoy this bumper Bulletin! It’s full of exciting news, resources
and will give you an insight into what makes us tick as an organisation. Our
hope is that in reading our newsletters you understand and get to know the
team, but perhaps more importantly you feel part of something. We pray that
you feel you yourself are part of Norwich Youth for Christ. Part of a adventure
of faith, working with young people and sharing God with them. Whether you
pray for us, pay for us or volunteer with us you are valued by us as a staff
team. Thanks for all you do.
Do you remember the story of the prodigal son? It’s a well-known tale, so sometimes there is a danger we forget what it is saying to us. In the parable, we find an ungrateful, selfish, materialistic child rebelling against his parent, even going so far as to have the cheek to ask for his inheritance early. The child then leaves, to spend the cash, without looking back. Can we imagine the emotions of the Dad as this is going on? Can we imagine how it might feel to have the precious son, whom we love more than anything else in the world, whom we have spent many years providing for, caring for, nurturing, teaching and playing with, how would it feel to have this son spit in our face? Probably we all know of families where things have gone wrong, where a son or daughter has left home, burning the bridges on their way. Sometimes the response of the parent is to shut down the love, and build a nest for bitterness. Sometimes the response is a grief-filled life.
Yet what we learn from the prodigal son story, is that it’s actually the story of the loving father. We see how as soon as the son starts to draw close to home again, the father hitches up his coat and runs to embrace his son, without the slightest regard for what anybody thinks. We see how the father holds no grudge, but instead throws the biggest party he can to celebrate the return of the son he thought was gone forever.
When we work with young people, no matter whether it’s in nightclubs, schools, youth groups or on the internet, we know there will be moments that test us. Our resolve, our determination, our capacity for love, our confidence in ourselves and even in God, will all be tested. Perhaps the young person we have been dealing with for a year suddenly u-turns and returns to those old things that drag them down. Perhaps we give our best every week, and yet there is no visible difference in anyone. Perhaps we feel that the young people have as their sole objective making our lives difficult.
The thing is, that was most of us at some point, but somebody loved us enough to put up with whatever we threw at them, and hang in there for the day when they could throw the biggest party they could manage.
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After an amazing couple of years Karen is moving. Her contribution, often behind the scenes very much appreciated by staff and trustees. Here she shares her thoughts as she moves on. We wish her well with what God calls her to next. “The time to move on has come, I know this is God’s plan for Andrew and I but it is very hard to leave behind Norwich, our many friends and it is of course very hard to leave Norwich Youth For Christ. |
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"We are already in the process of moving. Over Christmas my brother in law recounted how his move had come about and how God had prepared the way. When he talked about his house selling in a stagnant market within a week, I thought 'Yes Lord, Please Lord for us too.' And He has, Andrew and I have been amazed, encouraged and overwhelmed by God’s generosity at this time and He is confirming to us over and over again that we should move.
"Many Christians seem to think that to work for a missionary organisation is the pinnacle of one’s Christian life and something we should be striving for. I am not an evangelist or even a youthworker. No one is more surprised than I that God brought me here. I have worked for most of my career as a Retail Manager and thought it would be quite nice to work in an office and get Bank Holidays off and be at home at the weekend! Retailing is a hard life and as I got older I realised I did not want to stay in it until I retired. I had no idea how this would be achieved – God of course did. Coming to work for NYFC has taught me much about Christian ministry. Most importantly that we are all part of one body and we each have a part to play, for most of us that is outside ‘fulltime, paid Christian work’, otherwise how can the Kingdom grow. He calls us to live in the world and to do that we must have contact with it. Some of us are given this opportunity. Being here has enabled me to develop administration skills which I hope to use for the rest of my career, whether in paid ministry or out of it.
"Working for NYFC has taught me how valuable their work is to the young people of the city and county. They work as part of the church in Norwich which seeks to reach young people where they are at. Have you tried the NYFC Forum? Probably not, but 500 young people are currently members of it and it reaches them where they are at. Have you passed St Mary Magdalene Church on a ‘Fridays’ night and thought the music too loud, maybe? Inside over 100 young people are worshipping Jesus. Not only that, it is valued so much by them. They are brought into the city from all over the county. THEY WANT TO WORSHIP. NYFC is standing with them and encouraging them in their walk with Him.
"In my two and a half years here I have been able to meet many of our supporters and it has been a privilege to meet the people whose names appear month after month on our bank statement. It encourages the team so much to meet supporters who say 'I pray for you every day, week or regularly.' Your gift of time and/or money is the reason NYFC is still going nearly three decades later. However, and there is always a however, working with the finance of NYFC has been a challenging experience. It is a sad fact that only 10 churches in Greater Norwich support the ministry on a known regular basis, a further 4 churches from Norfolk support us in a known regular way. This has been a real test for me, and again and again I have seen God answer our prayers, it has given me an amazing lesson in trusting Him.
"For me this time with NYFC has developed me spiritually. I was not a Christian when I came to Norwich twelve years ago and have been a member of only one church, my experience of church life was quite limited. Working with NYFC has taken me to places, events and people that have enabled me to grow spiritually. That in turn has challenged my view of church and what it could be. And as another page is turned in my life I am really excited about all that He will do.”
Our income comes from you, our supporters, as well as some trust funding. We do not get money from National YFC, in fact we contribute to them. We have now passed the half year mark of our financial year. How are we doing?
There has been some encouragement. February/March is often a very dry period for our income, one of two troughs we often experience (the other being the summer). This year we have not experienced that. New people and churches have signed up to be regular givers. We have been able to pay salaries in full and on time.
However, there are challenges ahead. We have new staff starting. Had they been here earlier we would have not been able to afford them. The trustees have taken the decision to raise salaries in September. After an exercise in comparing our salaries to other similar roles we realised that our payscales were significantly lower. As a result from September we expect our salary bill to increase, based on anticipated staffing by approx £10,000 per annum.
Please bear our finances in your prayers. Also if you would like more information on joining with us in reaching young people by supporting us financially please do get in touch.
As a new feature of our website you can now give securely on line. Go to www.norwichyfc.co.uk and click on the obvious button. This can be anonymous.
| The number of Rock Solid and Rock Solid 2 Clubs in the area continues to grow. We currently have 7 Rock Solid Clubs, primarily for outreach, and 4 RS 2 clubs which is aimed at those who want to go deeper with God and is ideal for use on Sundays and in midweek groups. Over the summer we have another 3 clubs about to begin training. The Clubs are all very different and cover a wide area of Norfolk, from Fakenham in the North to Pulham Market in the South. The leaders are just as diverse from 15 to ……years of age! Some have said they are too old to get involved in work with young people, I would like to dispel that myth and I could take you to a number of clubs which serve God very successfully with both young and older leaders. |
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I count it a real privilege to be able to go around the clubs meeting Christians from all denominations and of all ages. The diversity within the individual clubs has spoken to me quite clearly and made me appreciate the need for a variety of ways we need to reach out. Please understand I do not find a different message in each Club. It is the same Gospel and the One Way to Christ. The different churches have different approaches and enormously different teams on the face of it, but all reach out with the love of Christ to young people which is what Rock Solid is all about. The joy of doing this for Norwich Youth for Christ is that I don’t come from a Baptist, Anglican or free church base but as a Christian with a passion for encouraging young people on their walk with God. Norwich YFC gives an opportunity for a diverse number of people to serve God together and helps break down some of the man-made barriers between the denominations and work together for Jesus. The diversity in the church is good because we all reach different groups in different ways. We should rejoice in our diversity of method and our unity of message and spur each other on to greater things!
Ang Fox is a volunteer with NYFC and we are grateful for all that she does. Ang also co-ordinates Rock Solid training events for leaders as well as activity days (from these photos are taken) for clubs to join together. If you would like to know more about Rock Solid email Ang on rocksolid@norwichyfc.co.uk
Rebecca has been in contact with Blythe-Jex school for about a year now. She has helped out with anti-bullying road shows, a breakfast club and is running their ‘CU’ with their YMCA worker. For those who are unfamiliar with the concept of a ‘CU’ (Christian Union) it is a school Christian club which is usually made up of those who have a Christian faith, or are thinking about what it means to have one. Blythe-Jex is slightly different! The ‘CU’ is made up of only one Christian, and has in the last month grown to include several young people who do not have a faith and do not seem to have much knowledge of Christianity. This gives us a very exciting opportunity! Rebecca is currently evaluating the ‘CU’ and looking at ways of taking it forward. We’ll keep you all updated, so watch this space for more exciting schools news!
If you have ever been to a Spark event before, don’t expect the same thing on the 1st May! There will still be resources, music, videos, food and drink! There will, however, be a hour of prayer. This will be for the schools of Norwich, and the CU’s. If you find it hard praying for five minutes, let alone an hour don’t panic! The prayer time will be creative, fun and as prayer always is, effective. It would be great if you could let me know any prayer requests for any schools you may go to, work in or are aware of. I can then make sure they are prayed for. You can e-mail these to me using r.wright@norwichyfc.co.uk or phone me in the office. This prayer time is open to anyone. If you go to school, or if you haven’t been for 50 years, it would be great if you could come. Please feel free to come the whole afternoon or just 5 minutes!
Date: 1st May
Time: 1pm-4pm (Prayer hour 2-3pm)
Venue: Norwich Central Baptist Church, Goldsmith Street, Norwich.
One of the hardest things for many people when talking to young people is getting them to have a deeper conversation than just who they fancy. Something we’ve found very useful is to print out a stack of “would you rather?” questions and leave them around the room. Questions like:
Questions like these have proved to be brilliant at getting conversations started.
There is a book available by Doug Fields called 'Would You Rather…..?' with 600 of theses questions. You can order it through the office for only £6.75 plus postage and packing.
Here's an illustration to encourage young people to consider how the treat the world that they live in: It's very quick and simple, ask for a young person to volunteer to receive a present from you. Offer that person a beautifully wrapped large present and really stress what a wonderful present it is. Now stress that they can have this present but only if they jump on it first.
Once they have done this, compare the illustration with how they treat the world that we live in, that is a present from God to us. We think it is stupid to jump on a present but how many of us do it to they world?
The phrase “good grief” is an example of an oxymoron, a two word phrase that has contradictory elements. Here are some more:
What about being a “lukewarm Christian” surely that’s a oxymoron too? In Revelation 3:16 it talks about being neither hot nor cold. Or in Matthew 6:24 it mentions not being able to have two masters.
This could be used as a challenge to young people (and ourselves) about whether we are cold or hot or just “lukewarm” with our faith.
Ask a church leader how many people are involved with running the churches activities and the answer tends to be that a relatively small number of people turn up again and again in the church’s activities. We end up with the 80/20 rule, whereby 20% of the people create the programmes which serve the other 80%.
There are two major difficulties with this situation: The obvious outcome is that this often leads to a split between an exhausted 20% and a dis-empowered and lethargic 80%; Participation is a primary factor in sustaining and developing faith and commitment. We continually see this demonstrated in our work with young people: at Fridays, for instance, it is those young people who are most involved in planning and running the event who seem to show most growth as time goes by. In fact it is because of this correlation that we are so keen to create new opportunities for young people to get involved with our work.
To us, the solution to breaking the grip of the 80/20 rule seems obvious, at least for some churches: get the young people involved! Any church with any young people present has a valuable resource within its congregation. They can be among the most enthusiastic, most passionate, most committed and most whole-hearted of believers. Biblical examples abound of God taking people much younger than some of us would care to risk and using them to fulfil his purposes – we need only think of Paul’s encouragement to Timothy or of Mary the teenage mother of Jesus for a couple of examples.
It’s a funny thing, but when the pulpit is at stake, suddenly our encouragements to young people to remember Paul’s words to Timothy in 1 Tim 4:12 seem to vanish and be replaced by a fear of the heresies that might spring from the mouths of these inexperienced young Christians! Leaders can be rightly concerned with ensuring the quality of teaching, preaching, reading, praying, etc. in services, but if this leads to neglecting the gifts present within the community has the pendulum perhaps swung too far?
There are things we can do to help young people make the best possible contribution to church life:
- Give them the opportunities – take the risk and let these young people loose!
- Give them the investment – they are, after all, the future of the church. Why not make them a priority for nurturing and discipleship?
- Give them training – help them to be excellent when given an opportunity.
NYFC aims to do all three of these, but we would love to see young people taking an active role in every church. Over the coming months we will be providing several training days aimed at equipping young people for their role with this community of God, and as you receive this the first event, looking at music and worship, will already have taken place.
Of course, it's not just young people who might want some training to help equip them, so we are happy to offer training sessions on a whole raft of subjects:
Well, these are just some of the training opportunities Norwich Youth For Christ could offer you and your church.
Evenings Of PrayerThe next meeting is on 10th June from 7:30-8:30 at Holy Trinity Church Hall, Cambridge Street. We will be finishing promptly so if you need to leave you can, if not it's then a great chance to meet some of the team. Thanks to those of you who completed our prayer questionnaire last time, if you haven't yet we'd love you to and if you lost it we can send you a new one! Pray For Us!If you are interested in praying for specific requests and/or would like more regular prayer updates please contact the office.
Be assured of our prayers for you, we pray regularly for our volunteers and supporters as a team. Youth AlphaMatt has just been appointed Youth Alpha representative for this area. If you are considering starting a Youth Alpha course then Matt is there to offer support. Why not call him on the office or drop him a line via the office or email. |
Soul In The CityNorwich Youth for Christ are taking a group of young people to London for Soul in the City. Dates: 1st – 7th August If you require more information please contact the Norwich Youth for Christ office. Dates1 May Spark7 May Fridays 23 May Reepham Deputation 28 May F2 2 June SNAP 2 Jul Fridays Contacting UsIf you want to email us our addresses are: office@norwichyfc.co.uk If you prefer the more traditional approach, then our postal address is: Norwich Youth For Christ, 3 Brigg Street, Norwich, NR2 1QN Our telephone number is 01603 620678
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Any Questions?Q. Who are
you people? Q. Why have
you sent me this? Q. This is
a great piece of communication, but why do I get this as well as a paper
copy? Q. I don't
want anymore of these sent to me? Q. Actually
I've changed my mind, I don't want to stop receiving this, in fact I
want all my friends to get it! How do I do this? If you prefer the more traditional approach, then our postal address is: Norwich Youth For Christ, 3 Brigg Street, Norwich, NR2 1QN Our telephone number is 01603 620678 Check out our website – www.norwichyfc.co.uk |
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