Paul told the Romans that they should understand the present time:“the hour has already come for you to wake up from your slumber, because our salvation is nearer now than when we first believed.” (Rom 13:11)

As we pray during the month of January, we need to understand the present time. There is great discouragement all around our area. Unemployment is high; the economic conditions are not good; there is a general feeling of insecurity and even despair in many areas. We should not be discouraged by what we see in the visible realm, however, and need to keep our eyes fixed on God, who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine (Eph 3:20).

As we walked the streets of Goldthorpe today, there were two scenes which set people praying.

The first was this desolate, overgrown area on the new estate:

Isaiah 43:18-19 is a Scripture which has been coming back to various people at church over recent months. This says, “‘Forget the former things; do not dwell on the past. See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the wilderness and streams in the wasteland.” What seems overgrown and untended to us can still be made into something beautiful by God.

Isaiah 58:12 says “Your people will rebuild the ancient ruins and will raise up the age-old foundations; you will be called Repairer of Broken Walls, Restorer of Streets with Dwellings.” We have a God who is able to repair and restore that which looks desolate and barren.

The second was the water tower:

Water is often seen as a symbol of the Holy Spirit. In John 7, we read “On the last and greatest day of the festival, Jesus stood and said in a loud voice, ‘Let anyone who is thirsty come to me and drink. Whoever believes in me, as Scripture has said, rivers of living water will flow from within them.’ By this he meant the Spirit, whom those who believed in him were later to receive. Up to that time the Spirit had not been given, since Jesus had not yet been glorified.” (John 7:37-39) Our prayer is for those rivers of living water to flow from within many more people in Goldthorpe as they come to know the Lord in 2013.

Each Saturday in January after the coffee morning, the church is holding a series of prayer walks through the streets of Goldthorpe. We pray God’s blessing on the people and the community in which we serve and look to God to move in every household and every street.

Goldthorpe was originally a small mediaeval farming village in Yorkshire, mentioned in the Domesday Book. In the early 18th century Barnsley Attorney William Henry Marsden Esquire of nearby Burntwood Hall bought the Lord of the Manor of Bolton on Dearne with Goldthorpe for £10,000 together with over 1,000 acres (4.0 km2) of land. Goldthorpe is recorded in the 1761-1767 Inclosure Awards. The Marsden family continued to hold the manor until 1815.

Work has recently been done on the main road and pavements in Goldthorpe and some of the history of the place has been captured in flagstones:

The flagstone captures the original spelling of the village name (Godetorp, also known as Guldetorp, presumably after the first man who settled in the ‘thorpe’ or outlying farmstead.)

The rise of the mining industry in Yorkshire accounted for the growth of the village in recent years, but since the closure of the mines in the late 1980s, it has become a deprived economic area. This is evident from the number of rundown buildings and closed shops in the area.

Child poverty in the Barnsley area as a whole (and in Goldthorpe as one of the worst areas in the borough) is much higher than the national average. The percentage of children classed as living in poverty (defined as where at least one parent is claiming Income Support, Incapacity Benefit, Jobseekers’ Allowance or Pension Credits) in Goldthorpe is 45%.
Goldthorpe Statistics

Barnsley Metropolitan Borough Council announced regeneration plans for the village in 2008, and some improvements have been seen (the new paving on the main road was part of this plan, for example), but the majority of these plans are at the moment still on hold, largely because of the current difficult economic climate. One of the things we are praying for is the general regeneration of the village.

New housing has been built on the outskirts of the village:

How does praying on the streets of Goldthorpe effect change in the village? Well, the short answer to that is we don’t know ‘how’! We only know that God wants us to pray for people and for our area and we are content to leave the ‘how’ to Him! There is no value in ignorance, however, and we want to support the local authority and any organisations who seek to improve the area as a whole. The ‘Goldthorpe Master Plan’ proposed by BMBC looked at 5 key areas:

1.Regenerating the Village Core
2.A new, larger primary school facility
3.Better housing (which includes the development of Beever Street, where the church used to be located)
4. Improving green spaces in the village
5. Celebrating Goldthorpe (Celebrate Goldthorpe’s historical and cultural heritage and create a stronger identity through new landmarks and focal points of interest)
Goldthorpe Master Plan

As you join with us in praying during January, bring these 5 areas to God and see if we can part of the physical regeneration of our village, as well as praying for spiritual regeneration.

The first coffee morning of 2013 took place today and as usual, we served the market stallholders across the road:

Coffee mornings are held on Saturdays from 10 a.m. until 12 noon and are a great way to meet people, have a chat and a drink. We sell a range of books and home-made cards, but the whole point of the coffee morning is not to make money, but to build bridges and to meet local people. You’re all very welcome!

I have to admit that Romans 8 is one of my favourite chapters in the Bible. John Piper, speaking at Passion 2013 last night, called it ‘the greatest chapter in the Bible.’ I don’t know if I would dare go that far, but I certainly can never fail to be inspired, blessed and challenged when I read it.

In concluding the sermon, which is worth listening to (Session seven is available for the rest of today), John Piper said of this chapter that it is “Paul’s effort to help us endure and embrace suffering because of the security of our future joy. It ends with the truth-laden effort of Paul to us to embrace suffering for the sake of love because of an indestructible hope which is God’s relation to us in Jesus.”

There’s enough in that one quote to keep me chewing for today, I suspect!

Last night’s prayer meeting focussed primarily on thankfulness for all that God had done in 2012 which acts, in many ways, as the fuel to our faith for what He will do in 2013. “Rejoice always, pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.” (1 Thess 5:16-18)

Last year, we particularly saw God working in our relationships with people from other churches. That largely started with the Women’s World Day of Prayer back in March, which we hosted for the first time. Suspictions were overcome and there was great fellowship and unity as we worked with a range of local churches to highlight themes that were the focus of prayer throughout the whole world. (This year’s service will be at the Salvation Army on Friday 1st March, praying for France, a country very dear to my own heart, even as Malaysia was very dear to Antony’s heart as he preached last year.)

From the offerings given at that event back in March came the vision to help the Salvation Army regularly with their food parcels, which became one of the key features of the year. The amount given by church members and others has been staggering. Every month, boxes have been filled to overflowing with tinned food and clothing. It’s been truly amazing to behold. We continue with that giving in 2013, this time extending our giving to baby food and baby milk to help needy families feed their children.

Other churches joined with us in that and we rejoice in the growth the Salvation Army has seen since then, particularly in those who have come to know the Lord as a result of this social action. We want to see growth in all the local churches.

The culmination of the cooperation between the local churches resulted in the community carol service in December. It was good to see local ministers working together and to be part of that corporate witness just a few weeks ago.

So as we enter 2013, we rejoice and pray and give thanks. As we seek God for what HE wants to do in this new year, we know that if we do those things, we are right in the middle of His will!

Every year in Atlanta, a Christian student conference is held at this time of year called Passion. Thanks to the generosity of supporters, this event (attended by approximately 65,000 students aged 18-25 from all around the world) can be watched online as well. The link below takes you to the sessions, which are available to watch for a day or so after they take place.

If you want to see what God is doing in the lives of many young people, want to learn new worship songs, want to hear the word of God being preached by renowned Bible teachers, then this is a great way to participate in something that has touched thousands of lives over many years. It’s always interesting to me to see how God can speak through so many different people on the same themes! As we seek God’s direction and guidance and wisdom in 2013, maybe we can hear His voice speaking to us, even as He speaks to all those students.

Passion 2013 livestream