Been thinking I should take some time to reflect on how probation is going. And do you know? I think it is going just fine.
In the run up to Christmas, although I was enjoying myself, I felt I wasn't busy enough and was a little concerned that I wasn't doing enough to keep the powers at B happy. But how things change!
I am putting it all down to having settled in. I feel I am part of what is going on and that I have gained the trust of everyone in the church. I am quite excited about about things we are developing and about to start.
Bit of background - 4 services a week (2 Sunday am, Wed eve and Thursday lunch), 2 Churches. There are 3 full time and 1 part time (auxiliary) in the ministry team. I feel very much part of the team. It sounds like we are lucky to have so many of us and I acknowledge we are. But the potential is huge - there is so much to do and that could be done.
My supervisor and I have been working together on a regular once a month all age service. It's going well and I have a really good feeling that something is happening that is special.
I have another rather exciting project that the Kirk Session have agreed I can try. One of the concerns the church has at the moment is the litter and graffiti caused by people hanging around on the steps of the church. They are planning to erect railings as a way of protecting the building. My concern is the message this will send to the, predominately, young group of people that use the church steps. So I am working towards doing some outreach with this group. The plan being to start a discussion with them and, as away of breaking the ice, we are going to come out from the church with hot chocolate to serve to those on the steps. We will do this over a fixed number of weeks at the same time each week. My hope is that we can let the young people know that the church does not dislike them but that we have to do something to protect the fabric of the building. The church is in the middle of a pedestrian precinct and will always attract people to the steps. I have a dream of where this outreach could take us....but for now I am looking for volunteers to help me. I have one already - just need another 2. (one kind lady has volunteered to donate biscuits! lol)
As well as this project, I have been asked to be part of the core group for a stewardship campaign. This is an exciting opportunity to show the people of the town what the church is about and to celebrate what we do.
So you can see that I should not have had any fears of not having enough to do....lol...why was I worried? I just needed to give it time and settle in.
