Diocese of Winchester General Synod Hustings

As I wrote last week, I am standing to be a member of General Synod. Rather than doing a physical hustings, the Diocese of Winchester gave members of the Deanery Synods a chance to ask written questions to all the candidates. The responses from the candidates for the Houses of Laity and House of Clergy, in the Diocese of Winchester, for the 2015 General Synod Elections are below:

Question 1

What do you see as the single greatest challenge the Church must face over the next 5 years, and how would you seek to address it?

Question 2

As we seek to ‘re-imagine the Church’ what are the changes and developments you would hope to see?

Question 3

How should the Church respond to the current refugee crisis?

Question 4

A majority of the parishes in our Diocese are in rural and semi-rural areas. What is your understanding of the challenges of Rural Ministry and how would you seek to address them?

Question 5

What are your hopes and prayers for the current programme of Shared Conversations around Human Sexuality?

September 23, 2015

I’m standing for General Synod

I am standing for the Church of England General Synod, as a member of the laity, in the Diocese of Winchester. You can find out information about the other Laity and Clergy candidates in the Diocese of Winchester here. Find out more about the General Synod here.

Here’s my election address:

The Diocese of Winchester has a tradition of sending to General Synod experienced men and women, with many years of service to the Diocese and considerable understanding of a range of issues. I hope to complement that experience and understanding with my own fresh perspective, and links to young people across the Diocese. Currently I am a lay member of the Lyndhurst Deanery Synod, the Diocesan Synod, and one of the five lay members of the Bishop’s Council.

I believe strongly in a representative group of both lay and ordained sharing in the governance of the church. I am passionate about collaborative ministry and have experienced, and can worship God through, the rich diversity of churchmanship across our diocese.

I am married to Hannah (since 2004), and we have two children, Daniel (aged 5) and Joshua (aged 3). I enjoy sport, blogging (www.chriskidd.co.uk) and reading.

My Faith Background

Having been brought up in a Christian family I have always been involved in, and enthusiastic about, church. I became aware of the need to make a response to Christ as a teenager at the Sheffield Alliance Music Festival in 1997 where someone spoke on the need to not be an armchair Christian. This sparked something in me, I realised that Christianity is about being an active disciple of Jesus, not just knowing Bible stories. Support and follow up from my youth leaders led me to make a commitment to Jesus, and to be Confirmed in 1998.

I greatly enjoyed my studies in 2001-2004 at Exeter University in the Theology Department. I felt that this was positive and challenging and that it deepened my understanding of the Bible and the Christian faith. Theology gave me the skills to both ask questions about faith, but also to answer other people’s questions.

Children’s & Youth Work

Over the last 11 years since leaving university I have worked as a Children’s & Youth Worker for three different churches. Currently I co-ordinate a team of over 60 volunteers who run the programmes and activities for nearly 250 children and young people aged 0-18 for St. Andrew’s Church in Dibden Purlieu. I am passionate about encouraging children and young people to engage with their faith in a holistic way.

I am involved both in the church and the local community. I was a Local Authority Governor and Vice-Chair for a Federation of Schools (2012-2015), I chair the Partnership Board for the local Children’s Centre. I also sit on the New Forest Local Children’s Trust Board developing strong links with statutory bodies.

I was privileged to attend Cape Town 2010 – The Third Lausanne Congress as one of 4,000 delegates, where I led a small group of six people from four continents, and was the Lead Blogger for the Congress. In the summer of 2016 I will be attending the Younger Leaders Gathering in Jakarta.

Key Issues for General Synod

A Missing Generation: I am eager for children and young people to have life changing encounters with Jesus. I am passionate about people discovering that they are loved by God and the holistic hope that can bring them. I want people to realise that faith has an impact now and not just in eternity. We are missing a generation in our churches and so we must keep mission and evangelism as the highest priority for the Church, facilitating the new and ancient ways of sharing the hope and the life transformation that the gospel brings.

Safeguarding: We can barely comprehend the terrible damage that has been inflicted on those vulnerable children and adults for whom the Church should have been a place of safety and hope. In my role working with some of the most broken youngsters in our local community I understand how crucial it is that nationally, and locally, we continue the great strides in improving our safeguarding practices, training, and policies so that the church truly can be a place of safety and hope for the most vulnerable in our communities.

Poverty & Welfare: Through my work I am sadly all too aware of the need of an increasing proportion of our communities for basic necessities. It is essential that everyone works together to highlight these issues and that the Church focuses its resources towards the communities most at need.

Lay Leadership: I long to see the Church committed to making disciples and releasing its members to serve Jesus in the church and in the world. To enable this I want to see clergy and local lay leaders supported and developed so that every congregation is encouraged in maturity and growth. The Archbishops’ programme for Reform and Renewal will be critical for this, and I will support initiatives that free up the laity to live out their Christian potential.

With all issues that will be discussed at General Synod, I will prayerfully consider each on merit. Listening carefully to all sides of the argument, both locally and nationally, whilst at the same time seeking to be obedient to what I understand the Bible to be saying and the Holy Spirit to be prompting.

Your vote is important in this election. I ask for your first preference vote and should I be elected, your prayer in the months ahead.

Do please contact me if you have any questions or would like to discuss any issue.

August 26, 2015

Diocese of Winchester appoints new Diocesan Youth Adviser

It’s great to hear that Sarah has been appointed to be the new Diocesan Youth Adviser – I’m looking forward to working with her over the coming months and years:

We’re pleased to confirm that Sarah Long has been appointed Youth Adviser in the School of Mission, and will start work on 7 September 2015.

Sarah has been working most recently with Romance Academy, a national charity that helps young people both inside and outside the church to explore how to build healthy relationships. In addition to engaging directly with young people, she has had the pleasure of working with youth workers and parents across the UK to tackle tricky topics well with their teenagers.

Prior to this she was Youth director at St Paul’s Church, Camberley, heading up youth work in line with their vision “Living Christ in Camberley”.

Sarah says:

“It’s a real privilege to be joining the diocese and the School of Mission. I’m really looking forward to meeting and working with all those involved in youth ministry, as we begin to discover together what the 4 Strategic Priorities look like amongst the young people of the Winchester diocese.”

September 8, 2014

Did you get confirmed in the last 12 months in the Winchester diocese?

If so, then you should have received an invitation to the Diocese of Winchester Confirmation Celebration! Saturday 27 September, 10.15am for worship and activities, finishing with a BBQ, Ice Cream van and Bouncy Castle.

It’s an event for all ages, so bring family and friends for a brilliant opportunity to celebrate being confirmed, to chat to the Bishops (and others) and to have a whole lot of fun!

For catering purposes they really need to know attendance, so please make sure you email helen.gunner@winchester.anglican.org to let them know you’re coming.

April 7, 2014

Appointment in Winchester Diocese of the Archdeacon for Mission Development

Dear Friends

I am delighted to be able to announce that the Reverend Canon Dr Paul Moore has been appointed as the first Archdeacon for Mission Development in this Diocese. In this innovative new role, the first of its kind in the Church of England, Paul will be leading a newly formed Mission Development Team working across five key areas: developing and over-seeing fresh expressions of church and pioneering work across the Diocese, promoting social engagement (including establishing social enterprises), education, world mission partnerships, and enabling all forms of mission and training through the School of Mission.

Paul joins the Diocese of Winchester having served in the Diocese of Portsmouth for over a decade and as a parish priest for over 25 years. In that time he has become a leading figure in developing new ideas to welcome and encourage people into church and to reach beyond the church to people previously untouched by it. Paul is one of the founders of Messy Church, which is about to celebrate its 10th anniversary, a form of church where adults and children can explore faith together through imaginative and often messy craft activities and experience Christian community through interactive participative worship and a shared meal.

This is a very exciting time for the Diocese and I am delighted that Paul will be taking on this role. His extensive experience in parish ministry is the perfect foundation for the work he will be undertaking in our existing communities and beyond. I am sure you will want to join me in welcoming him, his wife Lucy and their two children to the Diocese. We anticipate he will take up his new role at the beginning of September.

In faith, hope and love

+Tim

The Right Reverend Tim Dakin

The Bishop of Winchester

March 30, 2014April 18, 2014

Lent Course: Living the Mission of Jesus – 11-18 year olds

Here’s my adapted version of session 6 from the Winchester Lent course on Living the Mission of Jesus (Matthew 21:1-11) for 11-18 year olds:

Mission Outcome

We commit to living the mission of Jesus, working with him to reveal the kingdom.

Activity Ideas

Treasure hunt

Set up a treasure hunt for your group, but don’t tell them what the goal is. Make it as random and complicated as you like, inside and outside if it suits your group (remembering that you will need parental consent if you go off site). Have a copy of today’s reading (Matthew 21:1-11) at the end, either printed out on a sheet or marked in a Bible. You could also have some kind of treat: chocolates, cakes or something similar for your group to share.

Who drives what?

Car-mad boys should enjoy watching this clip of celebs and their cars (one of the celebs is Lady Gaga dancing in her underwear, just to warn you!).

[youtube id=”z9T3sXffIVY” width=”580″ height=”337″]

Spend some time chatting about why the celebs choose to drive these kinds of cars and what cars your group would like to own one day if money were no object. You’ll later reflect on why Jesus chose to ride a humble donkey into Jerusalem.

Creative Worship Ideas

Palm crosses

With your group make palm crosses. They’re very simple and you can find video instructions here (the sound isn’t great):

[youtube id=”oT-0Z6YSJoU” width=”580″ height=”337″]

Or a pdf from the Diocese of Birmingham: www.birmingham.anglican.org/upload/pdf/HowTo_PalmCross.pdf

As you make your crosses (use paper if you can’t hold of palm fronds) reflect together on the difference between the celebration of Palm Sunday and the tragedy of Good Friday.

Cloaked in praise

Lay a large piece of material on the floor, reminiscent of the cloaks that people laid on the ground in front of Jesus’ donkey. Using fabric pens or permanent markers, decorate it with praises from the passage:

‘Hosanna to the Son of David!’

‘Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!’

‘Hosanna in the highest heaven!’

‘This is Jesus, the prophet from Nazareth in Galilee.’

You may want to help your group think of contemporary phrases to replace these biblical texts. You may need to explain that ‘Hosanna’ means all sorts of things depending on where you look: in some places people say it is a word that expresses adoration, praise or joy; some say it means ‘Save us’ and in other translations it’s simply read as ‘Hooray!’

Bible Study Ideas/Questions

Video

You will still need to read the words from the Bible passage, but this clip would be good for setting the scene:

[youtube id=”qqI3dwDrB0M” width=”580″ height=”337″]

Sermon

What on earth was Jesus doing?

Illustration: Long Walk to Freedom is the autobiography of Nelson Mandela, who died at the end of 2013. It tells the story of how he gave his life to opposing racial oppression, and re-imagined a future where black and white could not just live in harmony, but play their part in changing the attitudes of the world towards this issue. From his leadership of the ANC, through his incarceration on Robben Island and his release on 11 February 1990, this account shows us how Nelson Mandela left a lasting legacy to our world. It wasn’t easy or straight forward – it was a long walk to freedom.

As Jesus approaches Jerusalem, he too is at the end of a long walk to freedom. Over three years he has taught, healed, loved, laughed, served and lived alongside the people of his time. But now his ‘long walk’ brings him to the last steps. Jesus enters Jerusalem, intentionally facing up to the cost of the eternal freedom of the sons and daughters of God. It doesn’t happen by chance: he knows what they are expecting and manages their expectations, and he knows what the Father has called him to do.

As God’s people today, what can we learn from this about living for Christ in this time and in this place as under God we seek to shape the future?

Jesus found his place in God’s story

Jesus lived out his calling among the people of his time.

Illustration: On Oscars’ night, stars of stage and screen are scrutinised, welcomed and photographed as they come to the awards dinner. Millions watch as they are feted and celebrated for their achievements and lives, both on and off the screen. And new fashions are born, as what they wear and do is copied in the public domain. In a first-century way, Jesus enters Jerusalem, with everything arranged, right down to the last detail. Instead of the limo we have the donkey colt, reminding everyone that, though he is a king, he is coming in peace. And rather than a red carpet, people put their (one and only) cloak on the dusty roadway to provide a royal welcome. And instead of cameras, we have people cutting down branches from the nearby trees, and cheering him along the way.

Jesus Christ became one of us, living among us, sharing our world for three short years. As the reading from Philippians reminds us, he was a celebrity even before he came to earth, and had to set aside his heavenly authority to become a human being. But he knew that what he had come to do could be done only from the inside out, by becoming fully human himself, by getting involved in what the Father was doing. And those round him recognised the symbolism of a king in their midst. No, he didn’t come parading slaves from the lands he had conquered. Instead he challenged their expectation of a glorious victory by harking back to Zechariah’s prophecy of a king riding a colt (Zechariah 9:9) and bringing judgement on the enemies of God’s people.

One of the real challenges for God’s people in the church today is how we find our place in God’s story. We can feel that the golden age of church-going is past. Christianity is now just one of a number of religions, and is often not even given the same credence given to others. How can we live the mission of Jesus today?

And the answer surely begins by getting involved in the issues of our day – we need to find our place in God’s story. No one will listen to us if we stand on the sidelines and yell, like armchair sports fans who want the best for their team. Our credibility comes from getting our hands dirty as we engage with the issues of our day, and do the Father’s work from the inside out. We all need to play our part as prophetic global citizens, living among people and

yet dancing to a different rhythm, the rhythm of the Spirit. Jesus himself said to his disciples: you are salt for a rotting and tasteless world; you are light for a world without streetlights that has been overtaken by darkness. You need to be out there among the structures and people of this world, working to see the kingdom come, preparing for the King to return. That’s what being prophetic global citizens is all about.

Jesus played his part to change God’s world

Jesus focused on his part in the great rescue plan of God.

I wonder how Jesus felt as the victory parade wound its way through the streets of Jerusalem? Perhaps he was re-imagining the temptations he faced at the start of his ministry, to do things his way rather than God’s. But here he showed he was focused on what he had come to do.

As he went by, the whole city began talking about him: he must be a great prophet. It was a real affirmation to be mentioned in the same sentence as Moses and Elijah; the great prophets of old. But the people could not see what he was doing. They could not hear what he wanted to say to them.

Matthew helpfully puts two different encounters before this happens in his Gospel account. First we have Jesus confronted by James and John, who want the best seats at the messianic banquet. ‘They’re not mine to give,’ says Jesus. And then Jesus’ encounter with the two blind men: ‘Have mercy on us, Lord, son of David,’ they cry out to him. Those who could physically see could not see Jesus for who he really was. Those who were physically blind had him taped! ‘What do you want from me?’ he asks the blind men. Their reply: ‘Lord, let our eyes be opened.’ And he gave them their sight and they followed him.

How can we see what God is calling us to do and to be? We need to be fully present to God, available to him. How do we do that? By focusing on our own walk with God – that’s what passionate personal spirituality is all about. What if we get things wrong? The bigger danger is not to try new things – we need pioneering faith communities to explore what God might be calling us to do and to be. And we need to take time to wrestle together with how we’re doing, through vision days, through retreats and quiet days, through robust PCC discussions. God expects us to use our minds to engage with the issues that surround us, and to listen to his still small voice.

Jesus had come to Jerusalem, the royal city, to finish the work he had been given – to die on the cross and to defeat evil once and for all. And nothing was going to dissuade him from that.

So what on earth do you think you’re doing?

Don’t make history – change the future. This is the provocative title of a book by Matt Summerfield, who works with young people and is passionate for them to live up to their calling. As he says in his book, ‘every single one of us will make history. The big question is what kind of history are we going to make?’ What legacy will we leave behind for the coming generations? What on earth are we doing with our lives?

And the key here is to keep on keeping on, to keep the main thing the main thing. We need to know what we are called to do and to be, and to continue to do and be that. There are some great challenges ahead, but God is with us in our long walk to freedom, just as he was with Adam and Eve in the garden, walking with them in the cool of the day. Just as Jesus was with the two disciples as they walked away from Jerusalem, disappointed after having seen him die. Just as the Holy Spirit walks alongside us now as another comforter. God is with us, and alongside us – and one day this world will be renewed, ready for the rule of King Jesus. What is our part in that?

Bible Study Ideas/Questions

Lectio Divina

This shorter passage is ideal for the Lectio Divina method described in Session 1. You could think about the emotions of the different people in the story as you read it through the three times: the disciples on the first read through, the crowd on the second read through and Jesus on the third read through. Reflect on the fact that only Jesus really knew what was coming next – nobody else would really have understood that he was riding to his death rather than to glory.

Questions

What might God be saying to us through these words?
What do we learn from the passage about what it means to be a follower of Jesus?
How is the kingdom of God revealed as Jesus enters the city?

Rest-of-the-week activities

As the last in the Lent course, this session is all about the rest of the week. It’s a time to review what you have discovered together over the previous six weeks and to explore how you think you will be changed as a group as you move forward. The hope is that, as we re-examine the strategic priorities together, we’ll be in a good place to plan what we can do together in the act of joining God’s mission.

Review

Have the four shortened versions of the strategic priorities printed out on pieces of paper and stuck in the middle of flipchart paper or similar large sheets. As a reminder these are:

We grow authentic disciples
We re-imagine church
We are agents of social transformation
We belong together in Christ

Allow the group some time to have a look at all the statements and to consider what they mean. Give each member of the group a glow stick, a pebble, a few post-it notes and a pen.

Encourage them to:

Put the glow stick on the statement with which they resonate the most
Put the pebble on the statement they find most difficult
Use the post-it notes to scribble thoughts and questions on any of the statements that bring up thoughts or questions

Plan

What if…? This is an exercise in dreaming. If at all possible, encourage your group to lie flat on their backs either with their eyes closed or looking up at the ceiling (if you can do this outside it would be even better – real blue-sky thinking!).

You may want to choose some chilled music to help them relax, or just silence if you prefer. Ask them to relax and be calm and to let the thoughts and considerations from the rest of the session wash over them.

Ask them to picture themselves as if they were looking in a mirror, and then to imagine that a clock ticking on the wall gets faster and faster, whizzing them into the future. As they look at themselves, bearing in mind what they’ve spent the last six weeks learning, how would they like to be in five years’ time? What difference might the Lent course have made to them? How will the kingdom of God be revealed through their actions?

Now ask them to picture their church, maybe a service on a Sunday morning with people in the congregation, or gathering at a social event, with all ages present. Again invite them to imagine the clock slowly picking up speed until it has whizzed them five years into the future. How does their congregation look now? Who is doing what in the services and in the gatherings? How has the community been changed by what the church has been doing?

Once a little time has passed, invite your group to sit up and talk about some of their hopes and dreams.

Act

Is there one dream that your group gets really excited about? Act on it, turn it into reality!

February 23, 2014March 23, 2014

Lent Course: The Kingdom of God – 6-11 year olds

Here’s my adapted version of session 1 from the Winchester Lent course on The Kingdom of God (Matthew 4:1-11) for 6-11 year olds:

Mission Outcome: We commit to living the mission of Jesus, working with him to reveal the kingdom.

Introduction

We are going to spend the next few weeks discovering and learning more about what it means to love and follow Jesus with lots of different churches near and far will be!

Games

Bum Spelling

Description:

Ensure each team has a chair. One person is picked from the team. A person from one team stands on a chair, facing away from the other team. They then bend over, put their hands on their knees and move their legs and hips to ‘spell’ a word with their bottom. The other team has to guess what the word is and gets a point if they guess it correctly. Vary the length of the words to make it interesting. Give a prize to the team with the most points.

Polo Pass

Equipment required: Drinking straws for everyone, a packet of Polo mints for each team and some bowls.

Description: Split the group into equal teams. Each team needs to stand in a line. Give each person a straw, which they need to put in their mouth. At one end, give someone a Polo to thread onto their straw. To make the game longer you could give each team a packet of Polo mints with the winning team being the team who successfully pass all polos down the line.

When the leader gives the go ahead, the teams can start passing the polo on to next person in their team, threading the polo using the straws. Once the Polo has reached the end of the line, the last player needs to place the mint in a bowl.

Questions

1. What do you think God might be saying to us through this passage?

Read ‘Jesus in the desert’ from The Big Bible Storybook. Talk with the children about the idea that making choices is something God has allowed us to do. God wants us to choose to follow him, and to know his love in a special way.

2. What do Jesus’ choices reveal about the kingdom of God?

Ask the children to make a note of the temptations Jesus was given and how he responded each time. Ask if they have noticed one thing that was the same each time Jesus spoke to the devil. (If necessary, explain that Satan and the devil are the same person.) Draw out the observation that he quoted the Scriptures, which would have been the Old Testament section of our Bibles. Ask them why they think Jesus quoted the Bible each time. What does this tell us about the Bible and about Jesus’ attitude and the importance Jesus put on God’s Word?

Ask the children: ‘Why do you think the devil choose those three temptations in particular? What do you think he was trying to get Jesus to do?’ Explain that the devil wanted Jesus to rely less on God, saying: ‘Make your own food!’

Also, that his temptations offered Jesus short cuts to becoming ‘famous’. At this time, Jesus was not well known. He had not started telling people about God and no one had heard of him. If he did a publicity stunt, such as being saved from death during a fall from the Temple, he would be instantly famous, without the hassle of teaching and healing or building up a reputation. If he bowed down to Satan and received all the kingdoms of the world, then he would have everything straightaway! However, that would not be God’s way of doing things (as we have found out). God’s way are better and his kingdom is something God wants to build with his followers.

3. How can we use Lent to help us live the mission of Jesus?

Use this animation from the WordLive website to help your group think about the impact that a sacrifice can have.

You will need: a tray of dry sand. Talk together about what Jesus did when he was in the desert – what can everyone remember from all that you’ve looked at so far? As you talk, bring out the tray of sand.

Invite the children to put their hands in the sand. Encourage them to think about what they may like to change/give up over Lent to help them develop a greater love for and understanding of Jesus. Possibly share what you are going to do yourself. Maybe build in some time each week to update each other on how you are all getting on. Help them to see this is something they can make a real difference about in their own lives … it’s proactive.

After a time of chatting, pray for the children, yourself and the team helping you, for God to be at work in your lives over the coming weeks of Lent.

4.How will these words change the things we think, do and pray this week?

Finish your session with this reflective video clip as a response to the Bible passage. It may be important for the children to have their own space to watch and listen to it. You will find that your children will understand what it is about, even if they can’t articulate it in words. It’s a great way to draw together all that you have talked about, and discovered throughout the rest of the session:

[youtube id=”O5bfxGNMY9c” width=”580″ height=”337″]

Conclude your time together with a prayer, thanking God for what you have just watched and for your time together in this session.