magdalen road church, oxford, uk

“Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the
nations, I will be exalted in the earth.” The Lord Almighty is
with us; the God of Jacob is our fortress. (Psalm 46:10-11)

Change is in the air at the moment at Magdalen Road. In May we elected our first three deacons, since the introduction of elders. Andrew Sadler is Deacon for Finance, Ruth Sadler for World Mission, and Paul Fairchild had to resign as an elder due to pressure of work, but agreed to continue in a diaconal role of Pastoral Advisor.

Our trainees, John Fenning and Emily Bowerman, are both coming to the end of their year. They both intend to stay in Oxford, for the time being, but are both considering overseas ministry. In July Dave Trenchard also finished as Church Administrator and Assistant Pastor. He too will be continuing to live in Oxford, doing secular work for a period while he considers his future. Our Assistant Pastor, Richard Brewster, has just completed a short sabbatical in which he has been studying theology and New Testament Greek. I, for one, am relieved to have at least one longer term staff member.

So what does it feel like to be in the middle of such a flurry of activity? Some days it feels exciting. Under Ruth Sadler’s guidance it looks like we will be much more actively engaged with our mission partners. In addition we presently have several people actively considering overseas ministry. Emily Bowerman has developed a vital evangelistic ministry which she will continue to lead. We are running a baptismal class, and are planning a baptismal service after the summer. The Comfort Trust - our sister charity which serves some practical needs of local people – continues to expand. It now has links with about 400 families, and will see up to seventy families in a week at its various activities.

But there are plenty of days when it feels daunting. The demographic of the church continues to be young and relatively impecunious. This means we are having to watch the finances very closely. We are presently working on employing an administrator for the next year but there are also financial demands from the building which urgently needs some work.

So it was with more than academic interest that I read Psalm 46 recently. It doesn’t feel quite as if the “earth gives way” (v2) or “the waters roar and foam” (v3) but uncertainty is in the air. What a comfort to see the supremacy of the word of God: he lifts his voice, the earth melts (v6). Please pray for us that we would continue to give appropriate priority to learning from and living out God’s word. And what an encouragement to hear the call to “be still and know that I am God” (v10), and to be reminded of God’s absolute determination to “be exalted among the nations” (v10).
Our little corner of God’s world is absolutely bursting with opportunities to see God exalted and we are often running to keep up with the openings he gives us. Please pray for us, that we would be, at heart, people who are still and content in the knowledge that God is with us as our fortress.
Thank you for your prayers. Your prayerful partnership with us is absolutely invaluable.

Yours warmly in Christ,

Peter Comont.

	July 2008