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If a church is blest with continued growth from the Lord, then it will need more than the Vicar or Pastor, and a few, to minister in the many ways such growth will require.

For this reason a Training Course is valuable in order to facilitate more church members to be engaged in ministry within the congregation and parish or locality.

1. To outline the various needs in ministry which blessing from God in a fellowship requires, and will continue to require, as blessing continues.

2. To outline what is involved in each of them, and what sort of gifts and qualifications each one requires.

3. To give some training in each of these ministries.

4. To encourage people to prayerfully consider whether God is calling them to one or more of these ministries, and to discern whether they have gifts for them.

5. To encourage prayer for these ministries, and give information for such prayer.

A Training Course is therefore open to all who wish to attend, even if they do not see themselves able to be engaged actively in any of these ministries. But it is hoped that some may offer themselves, either for a specific ministry, or to be used in one or more as the need arises.

The course will give, in one session for each ministry, help and instruction to equip for the task, but such ministries are learnt mainly in the doing. For this reason it is good that a Training Course may be an annual event. Then those who, after the first course become engaged in one or more of these ministries, if they attend again another year, or attend the session concerned with their ministry; not only will practical experience clarify what they had heard before, but their experience would give them the ability to contribute to the course in some way helpful to others, and to the improvement of the course.

This Training Course will be new and so the first time it may be used will be a time when the course itself will be being proved. Comments and input during each session will be useful in order to make the course more suitable for those who are using it. This course may only be a catalyst, with ideas, for a church to provide its own course.

Prayer is specially needed as a Training Course is planned and carried out, even from those who do not attend it themselves. We desperately need God's direction and blessing if a Training Course is to be fruitful.