Thursday, October 01, 2009

October 1st

Twenty five years ago it was a Monday. I sat in a study and wondered what a minister did all day? I pretty soon found out and did quite a lot of it. It was weird that first job. A curacy. A title. A training parish. I had some responsibilities but also the freedom to work out what I wanted to develop over my four years.

I note that I did 16 weddings, 50 funerals and spoke/talked/preached on 281 other occasions. That was where I learned the dark arts of public manipulation oops I mean preaching. I accepted every invitation even if I had no time to prepare. Deliberately.

I was involved in three services plus the youth group every Sunday unless on holiday, sometimes with a parish lunch or afternoon baptism too.

I led a house group, started a youth group, set up a youth club night, entertained regularly, had two small kids and remember with wonder the mini-break every Friday of 45 minutes between finishing the shopping and doing the playgroup run. I would listen to one album and drink a coffee with a Twix. Magic.

We did a youth weekend away every year and two eight day summer CYFA Houseparties consecutively.

If you are recently ordained and your diary isn't quite full yet, don't worry. It will be. And since it will be impossible to learn everything, pick something you are going to become really good at by the end of your four years. And nail it.

4 comments:

fill said...

I cannot believe the slow declined of what was known as "CYFA" Are ventures run solely by CPAS? Working with you and the opportunity you gave me certainly helped me in later life...thank you for that.

Steve Tilley said...

The holding conmpany is still called CYFA Pathfinmder Ventures but CPAS ofer no support to CYFA or Pathfinmder groups any more and if you go to their web-site and search for CYFA nothing except Ventures comes up. That said, there are lots of CYFA groups around the country doing good, fellowship-model youth ministry who have to find their resources and training elsewhere.

Unknown said...

That's good advice. See you Sunday for some public manipulation.

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