The mission of UK for Jesus is to SERVE, EVANGELISE and TEACH, bringing the light, hope and truth of the Gospel of Jesus Christ to young people and families in rural and deprived communities of the UK through help to the local church, training-up of leaders and ministers and personal outreach to those in need.
SERVE
Provide Help & Support to the Local Church
This is a highly rural region. Thriving church communities here are generally quite small (avg 20-80), and many are even smaller. Most staff are part-time and voluntary. Specialised skills which are prevalent in most American churches or big cities are much harder to come by here but are still desperately needed to reach and connect to an evolving culture that is fast-paced, online-based and sensory-driven. We are blessed to give our time and talents to support Pastor David Flanders and Souls Harbour Church, with Trevor in the role of Associate Pastor and Connie helping with some aspects of administration. David already has a fantastic team of people who do an amazing job volunteering to lead many aspects of church ministry (worship teams, children’s workers, multi-media support, community outreach groups, etc.). We’re able to supplement this, helping them progress in some areas and break new ground in others. We also provide help and support by leading worship, speaking, etc., here and at other churches and events connected to our network in this area.
EVANGELISE
Share the Hope & Truth of the Gospel of Jesus Christ
Jesus reached out to people meeting both physical needs and spiritual needs. God has led us to insert ourselves deeper into the community to meet people right where they are and SHOW them the Gospel, the love of Jesus, in tangible ways that connect to them on a personal level. The Grow Centre, birthed in early 2019 and now our primary outreach focus, is a unique and significant way to do this. As a hub for community support in a poor and deprived area, the Grow Centre provides practical help and encouragement in an uplifting environment. We show God’s love to individuals and families in need and/or crisis by providing emergency food parcels, new and gently used clothing, toiletries and cleaning supplies, children’s toys and books along with connections to debt counselling services, workshops for resume writing, job skills, computer literacy and more.
The creative arts also provide a unique opportunity to share our faith in a different and relatable way: life stories. Everyone can relate to love, loss, worry, pain, confusion, hope, disappointment, joy, excitement, etc. God has gifted Trevor to capture his own life story - the many ups and downs and God’s presence through it all - through lyric and song. With moving melodies, memorable lyrics, some good old fashioned fun and his Texas-style country roots showing through, the stories and songs capture and connect to an audience in a truly special way. For this branch of outreach ministry (which is separate from our church and worship music ministry), Trevor is using his first and middle names, going by Trevor Wade. We’re hoping to develop and utilise this outreach tool more broadly both inside and outside the walls of the church to impact this community and region.
TEACH
Train Up the Next Generation of Ministers and Leaders
Many young and/or newly called leaders are being raised up to have the direct ministry impact and influence to this generation of young people. But they need support - training, teaching, guidance, coaching - to fill that role effectively. The same is true for many church workers - worship leaders, youth workers, other leaders (who, in this area, are nearly all exclusively voluntary/unpaid roles) - who are eager to serve and fill a need but don’t always have experience and/or resources. They need support, encouragement and sometimes even basic practical training to be effective in their calling to support their local church and its critically-needed impact to their community. From practical to spiritual to apologetics and much more, we help inspire, equip and enable God’s frontline in and around Cornwall.