A love which will not die

There are many, many people who have influenced my faith journey over the years. Some, in passing, some for a time, some for most of my life. Of one person, I used to say it was their 'fault' I was training for ministry.

They were part of the church I grew up in, leading Bible Class (though we would not 'allow' ourselves to be called that - we were the kitchen crowd because that's where we met and drank a lot of tea!), youth club and generally being around.

A couple of times a year - usually in the lead up to Easter and Christmas - the kitchen crowd would prepare and lead worship in local care homes and homes of housebound members of the congregation. It was there I began to be nurtured and taught (and shown a God-given gift) the practise of preparing and leading worship. I also saw how important these acts of worship were for those the group visited. Not only due to the fact the church was going to the people, but that young people cared enough to go to them, to listen to them, to be with them. And I loved it. I loved being with those people, as they wanted to share their stories with us, they wanted to hear ours too. Most importantly, I loved it because I saw (even then) how much it brightened their day, knowing the church had not forgotten them. Actually, that the church cared enough to send some of its youngest members to some of it's oldest.

It was after one of those services, in a care home, a lady asked me if I was going to be a minister. The answer was no, then, but that was the seed being sown. The seed which took 20 years to begin to germinate and, almost 6 years since I began enquiry, grow and begin to blossom. A seed which may not have been sown had the kitchen crown headed off to take services in care homes and the homes of the housebound.

The person I started this post about died last week. He had been ill for a long time, but it was still a shock to discover. The time he died would have been when he would have been about to leave to go to church. And today, many will gather to mourn his passing and celebrate his life. A life which was dedicated to a love of God and a love of others. A love which helped me in my journey of faith and calling. A love which will live on in those who knew and loved him also.