In just over a week, we’ll be welcoming another cohort of clergy into the Diocese of Guildford. Ordinations typically take place once a year, during Petertide, in the Diocese of Guildford, so we’re especially excited to be celebrating a second group of deacons this Michaelmas season.
What makes the ordination service on Sunday 28 September, particularly special is that we will be celebrating nine individuals who have completed our inaugural year-long Caleb Stream - an ordination training pathway designed for those over the age of 60 seeking to be ordained by the time they are 70. Each of the candidates bring a wealth of life experience and have served faithfully in lay leadership within their local churches.
Guildford Cathedral will play host to hundreds of friends and family cheering on and supporting as those taking on the title of Reverend in the Church of England. The Rt Revd Andrew Watson, the Bishop of Guildford, will ordain the candidates, marking the beginning of their formal ministry.
To celebrate the individual journeys taken to get to this point, we will be sharing a series of stories of the soon-to-be Reverends over the next few days. Today, we start with Tony Andrews.
How was Tony called?
In my youth, I was not involved with the Church, I was not a Christian and had no real faith to speak of; all these qualities came to me as an adult when I was married and a father of two children.
My wife and I were perfectly content, but increasingly felt there was something missing in our lives. We couldn’t put our finger on this missing piece. This became clearer after studying on an Emmaus course and attending our local church, which led to me being Baptised and Confirmed in 1998 at the age of 34.
The welcome we received the first time we set foot in our local church with two small children was wonderful and made us feel as if we belonged. It was revealed to us that the missing element all along was Jesus and His love for us and all mankind. We realise now that He has been there all the time, waiting patiently for us to join Him.
I became increasingly involved in the Church: small steps to start off with, for example, working the overhead projector during the services; then as time went by, I co-led and then led the first house group in the parish. I then went on to deliver the Bible readings, sing in the music group, prepare and deliver intercessory prayers, then finally preach and lead services.
All this happened gradually, over several years. I developed, and still have, a heart for the youth, and ran with others a successful youth club. This led to attending Soul Survivor events, including taking largely unchurched youth to the Summer conferences and running Youth Alpha courses.
Each time I take on a role within the Church, God equips and encourages me, drawing me closer to Him.
On reflection, I can see that God has blessed my life time and time again. Two major examples were, firstly, when I faced a decision to take redundancy or to relocate to a town hundreds of miles away from my family and friends. Financial logic said relocate, but God said no, take the redundancy, and of course, it proved to be the correct decision. The second occasion was whether to enrol on the Caleb course. Again, God sent a clear message: “Obediently trust Him and step out in faith”. This I did, and it has led to my being accepted for ordination.
I am truly excited about the future God has for me as I serve Him in my Parish. This is where I have seen many people grow and develop in their faith, including myself, and to reach out to those within the Community who, as yet, don’t know God is an honour and a privilege.
The Scripture from Jonah 1:1-3a is important to me because, during a “Hearing from God” course, bearing in mind the number of years serving within the church, I distinctly heard God say, ‘Why are you running from me? I want you to run to me.’ Within the next week, news came of the “new” Caleb course to be run in the Diocese of Guildford, and the rest is history.