As many of you will be aware, over the last few years we have had the privilege of working towards creating healthy and sustainable teams for the Pais Movement in Northern Ireland. It has been exciting to see that develop through our partnership with Causeway Coast Vineyard (CCV) in Coleraine and then has been really thrilling to see it multiply in other towns and places like Bangor, Dungannon and Belfast. Over the course of the past few years we have learnt so much from all of our partnerships and so many other great leaders in Northern Ireland.
By now I am sure many of you have heard, but to give you a little bit of the back story, towards the end of November Paul, the founder of the Pais Movement, asked me to consider taking on a role as their global training director. Their hope is that all we have learnt and pioneered here in NI can be replicated and multiplied with pais teams around the world building on the firm foundation that our good friend Michael Davies has laid down before us.
The very day Paul asked us to consider the role, Alan Scott, the senior leader of CCV, during our regular CCV staff meeting prophesied that God was about to accelerate my authority and give me a voice to the nations. So as you can imagine when Paul asked us to consider this role later that evening God had our attention. Similarly the question we have always asked at times like this when we have big decisions to make is what can we do that is the most effective thing that we can do for the Kingdom.
This will mean a move for us as a family to Texas to join the global team which in truth we find both exciting and daunting. Honestly a move stateside has never really been on our radar. We love Northern Ireland and will be sad to leave, however we clearly feel that this new role would enable us to have a far wider reach through the teams around the world in, Asia (I know Asia is a continent), Canada, USA, Australia, New Zealand, Germany, Ghana, Kenya, Nigeria, GB, Brazil and future teams in the pipeline as well as NI.
So after considering it for a short while and some other timely prophetic guidance we felt this was certainly a door we should push. In that way we have accepted the position depending on whether we are able to get a visa to move the family to Texas. We have applied for the visa and are currently waiting to hear the outcome of this. We anticipate and hope that it is likely we will get a favourable outcome but we really have no idea how long this may take.
When we were considering the role, one of our main concerns was how we could ensure the continuity and development of the teams serving here in NI. Our current idea is that Pais GB will take our teams under their wing to train a new leader to fulfil a regional role here. Initially this role will be to assist the training, care and resourcing of the teams here on the ground in NI but accountable to the Pais GB directors Pete and Bryony Baker. I have known Pete and Bryony for 17 years and served on both Pais and Church leadership teams with them. They are an outstanding couple with a huge heart for reaching the lost and connecting them with environments where they can grow in relationship with Jesus. As well as their role as National Directors for Pais in GB they are also part of their church’s (Life Church Burnley) leadership team and in all honesty there is no-one else I would have more confidence in.
So in practice we hope this will mean teams here in NI will continue to develop and thrive, as we continue to pursue all God has for both NI and beyond. And we look forward to hearing all of the amazing things our Glorious God continues to do in and through our teams around the world.