It is a great joy to be finally in a room with people from the Guild – trustees, members and new friends – both in person and virtually. Doing what we should be doing – exploring the healing ministry and worshipping God, as we will later. It has been too long friends.
We have achieved so much in the past year as I have detailed in my report:
- a complete rebranding;
- the evolution of a chaotic and costly membership services into three clear membership communities with a range of resources which meet the needs of Christians, healthcare professionals, leaders in a way that stays true to our aims and objectives as a charitable organisation;
- prayerful response to the pandemic;
- an increasing of our networking including new and significant partnerships;
- training and events which have touched the lives of hundreds of people.
This time last year, we hadn’t even launched the new website or the membership communities, and look where we are now. Over 100 people having done our Introduction to the healing ministry course, nearly 1000 listens on our podcast, 12 months of GoHealth community resourcing. And today, I can announce our first HHH – Christ Church Southgate with more in the pipeline!
Its been quite a year and it has certainly been a team effort.
I am so enormously blessed with the staff team here at the Guild. We are tiny – everyone is part time, we all live in different parts of the UK, but we are a fiercely determined little tribe, dedicated to the work we are engaged in. I am so proud to work with both Wendy Lloyd and Graham Fender Allison and grateful for everything they have done this year. Even though we have only been in the same room once since January 2020 – the Guild is very lucky to have their skills, wisdom and passion and I am so grateful to them both. Sadly Chris Garmen, who was our company secretary this year, has decided to take his retirement more seriously! He helped to move us on positively with the financial and governance aspects of the charity and I am very grateful for all of his work.
I want to pay tribute to the trustees who have supported the work of the charity over the last twelve months, with Dr David McDonald at the helm. David you are stepping down as chair today – thank you for everything that you have done in this turbulent year and I look forward to continuing to work with you as part of the board. And I am really looking forward to working with the new chair Steve Coles – we are very lucky to have you join us.
I want to next publicly pay tribute to the two trustees who are stepping down today and have both been an enormous blessing to the Guild.
First, The Revd. Prof Helen Leathard who tirelessly and with enormous generosity and patience helped with the production of Chrism. When I was struggling, how often an email from Helen would appear in my inbox with the much appreciated offer of a paper. I have learnt so much from you – not only from reading your academic work, but about governance and service. Helen, I know, you are continuing to support the journal and publications side of the Guild, but I am going to truly miss you on the board. Thank you for everything.
The Revd. Lucyann Ashdown I am so grateful for your wisdom and perseverance as chair of the trustees. It has been quite a journey hasn’t it – five years plus, major changes, and a few bumps in the road to negotiate. I was always aware that, despite your busy life, you were always willing to make time for me when I needed your support. You have helped me grow into the role of CEO through your mentoring and management. I have learnt so much and I look forward to working with you in a different way.
It’s a funny thing – if I was standing here this time last year and asked to predict what I would be saying today, I wouldn’t have got it right. That’s the thing about working for a faith based organisation – God is involved too, and that means that you never quite know that is happening. I thought that what we were doing last year was developing resources, training and a slick website with a membership management system that would make life easier. But it turns out, that while we were doing this, God was doing so much more – creating real community and helping healers to find healing themselves.
In developing the Healthy Healing Hub project, and the introduction to the healing ministry course, the team and I used The Lean model of startup business launch. This means that you launch quickly with a prototype and then pay close attention to those early adopters to learn quickly what people want and then pivot and develop based on feedback. The good side of this is that it is low cost, and you should come out the other end of it with a product that people actually want without spending loads of money. The down side is that you have to be prepared for people to tell you what they think.
The Introduction to the Healing ministry course covers the history, theology and good practice in the healing ministry. Over four 2 hour workshops we cover this in depth and give space for the participants to discuss and reflect on the material and their own experience. The course ends with a focus on how God is called them personally and their church community to develop healing ministires.
We asked those who did the course what they most enjoyed. I was expecting it of course to be my stunning content and erudition! Whilst the content was appreciated, what they most valued surprised and inspired us because what people most enjoyed was the break out rooms, the chance to have conversations with the other participants – to hear and tell their stories of health and healing and prayer – safe spaces to share their worries and anxieties – one person even commented, that they couldn’t believe they had been in the church their whole life, and yet never had the chance to explore the questions, the fundamental questions of the faith – like what do we mean by healing, how do you understand miracles, what happens if the prayers don’t appear to have worked.
So what is going on? Well, it is important and significant – the teaching about the power of the healing ministry of the Christian church is never simply theoretical. When talking about the biblical or theological background to healing we quickly get into the personal stories of illness, fear and prayer, when wanting to learn to be professional healers, we can’t get away from what this stuff means to us personally – and this is what we offer.
And this has largely happened online.
At the beginning of the pandemic being online was a poor replacement for normal life. But in running the course, we have seen the depth of connection and community that we have been part of. And people are coming back to us because of this connection that we are creating. Because we are now seen by them as not only organisation where they can learn to be healers, but through the connections, even virtually maybe especially virtuallly, we create they can find healing themselves.
What is fascinating I think is that this shiny website, the great courses, the podcast, everything that we are doing is fantastic, but it is more than just a slick new way to be the Guild. It is still helping to connect with people in a way that is deeply personal and meaningful. And this echoes the ministry of Jesus himself.
In no gospel account is Jesus a healing superhero, dispending healing rays out of the palms of his hand as he strides through Galilee. No, in each of the healing miracles Jesus connects and it is personal. Who touched my robe? What is it that You are seeking?
The Guild is the staff team, yes. The Guild is the trustees, yes. But, most truly the guild is its members – its personal – because we exist to equip them to be healers in their lives, which means engaging in how they need to learn to heal, and to be Christ to those in need. Its not just another accredited learning scheme or a membership service to easily access resources – it is personal and it is healing. Through the Chrism journal for academics and professionals (development plans coming), through the resourcing of the GoHealth Community and through the Healthy healing hub project, we are not resourcing buildings, or bumping up CVs, or helping people answer more questions on university challenge. We are giving them the space, the tools, the confidence, the faith to learn to heal, and to be a source of healing for others. And this is what I am most excited about as I look towards the next 12 months.
And we are doing this in the context of a global pandemic – wide spread trauma, community breakdown, loss and bereavement – there has never been a time where spiritual healing and the healing gifts of the church are more needed. And this is our mission – to equip the people of the faith to help, to spread the HHH network – its hard not to speak in terms of hyperbole here – our work is needed more than ever.
It is an honour to lead the Guild, the opportunity right now feels almost without limit. But what helps me sleep at night is this: the Guild is a community and ministry – and the staff team and I are here to resource it, and be a part of it ourselves. Tell others, encourage people to join, donate money to what we are doing. Support us to support you – together we are learning to heal. This is the Guild’s moment, join me in praying for what we do, and give thanks with me for the gift of the healing ministry. May we work to the glory and honour of God alone, and may the holy name of Jesus Christ touch the lives of those who are in need.