“God isn’t finished with the Church in the villages”

Lucy Barbour has now been an ordained Pioneer Minister for two years, serving in Bishop’s Cleeve, Southam, Woolstone, Gotherington and Oxenton.

“As a pioneer minister, you still do many of the same things as any other minister. Switching between the pioneering mindset and the more traditional expectations of ordained ministry has been one of the biggest challenges, but is also one of the most important skills to develop,” Lucy said.

One constant part of Lucy’s ministry is Church on the Hill, which began during the pandemic.

She said: “It’s been going for four years now with a team of people. We keep the same model but try new ideas – contemplative photography, youth sessions, and different locations; we like to visit different parts of our benefice, engaging with different people.

“On Sunday we are going to a community orchard. We will be talking about Acts 4, discussing what it looks like to be a community, and sharing possessions. We’re literally going to a place that represents that and we’re going to make kites in teams, young and old working together and sharing their talents.”

Lucy has lived in Gotherington for many years.

One scripture verse that has particular meaning for Lucy is Revelation 3:2:

‘Wake up! Strengthen what remains and is about to die, for I have found your deeds unfinished in the sight of my God.’

“God isn’t finished with the church in the villages,” she said. “The idea that the Church is dying is simply not true. Every day, I see the church actively involved in the community, walking alongside the great work already being done and contributing positively to it.”

She has seen and continues to see the positive impacts of sustained ministry.

“I’ve been able to commit to seven or so years of developing things slowly. We started with Living Advent Windows and Café Church. We used to gather Christians in the village, even those who don’t attend our churches, and called it Gatherington. We now have two home groups in the village.

“We relaunched a playgroup with our vicar, Ben Williams, who joined a year ago. The previous playgroup disbanded right as Ben started his job. His wife is really skilled in that area and so she took it on. I couldn’t have done it alone at the time. It’s just kind of trusting in God’s timing for everything.”

Lucy has also launched an ‘Extravaganza’ series of events around the church calendar, including Christmas, Easter, summer and harvest.

She said: “The Christmas one had about 40 or 50 people, and the Easter one grew to around 130 people. Now we’re planning a summer and harvest one too.

“We were out on the streets for Halloween, which isn’t on the church calendar, but we just engaged lightly, focused on the theme of challenging our fears. We gave out tea and coffee, we were a positive presence as people walked by.

“It all connects to trying to develop the community here in Gotherington. It’s being part of the really lively community here.”

She stays connected with other pioneer ministers across the diocese which helps her stay focused in her role.

She said: “I find that pioneer ministers in our diocese are really good at meeting and supporting each other. It really helps me in my role. A lot of the way we think is out loud, we like to explore and try things, and they might go wrong. But we learn from each other. We often gather at each other’s churches and contexts, explore ideas and pray together. We’ve got a WhatsApp group, which I find invaluable. It keeps me thinking about being a pioneer.”

After two years of ordained ministry, she is still learning to hand over control.

She said: “I do diverse things in my work. I have two children and a husband who works really hard. The thing I’ve learned most is that I’m not in control.

“When you stop trying to do it all by yourself, God often makes it really clear what we should be doing.”

If you think that you might be called to something new, visit the vocations page of our website or speak to your local church team,