Breaking Vows to Silence

Hi everyone!

Since my last newsletter, I have watched newsletter upon newsletter
pass through my inbox and it is always with increasing pangs of guilt
that I read them knowing how long the gap has grown since my last
update. Thank you to everyone who has kept me up to date since, and in
spite of, my vow to silence (if only that, rather than indolence, were
my actual excuse).

Much has changed and much has stayed the same is probably the simplest
way I can sum up the tides on the beach of the life of James since my
last newsletter. Perhaps the best way to begin is to describe my first
year of full time ministry though.

Relentless

That was a word used during my time at college in the unheeded wisdom
of a pastor. As it turns out, he was right. The time that ministry
consumes is not measured or measurable. While perhaps I have had a
regular schedule somehow sleep is lost considering the arrogant grade 9
who refuses to receive advice, informal counsel is given on Saturday
afternoon or Thursday evening and there's still that grade 8 who has
verbal diarrhoea and I can't seem to get through to him.

Over the year, I slowly took over leading a young adults Bible study.
We started the year on the topic of guidance and then discussed the
five points of Calvinism (their idea, not mine). Since I took over
though we've done Titus and we've just picked up the new year in the
middle of Philippians. It's been a lot of fun - leading engaging Bible
studies is still not a strong point of mine though.

Teaching Bible Education at Grace College was doubtlessly the toughest
part of the year. I had 6 classes altogether of 14 - 16 year olds
(grade 8 and 9) and they conspired to demonstrate how magnificently
boring I could make something I find quite exciting. I taught them a
Bible overview (mostly Old Testament to be honest) and we did topical
lessons (e.g. "Is it okay to get a tattoo?").

I preached about 10 times last year but at a lot of different places. I
quite enjoy preaching when I have enough time to prepare sermons. I
also got roped into doing music, a ministry in which I still engage
with trepidation. I do enjoy it though and I've discovered that the
secret is simply to have singers and instrumentalists who can carry
things when your fingers go on strike in the middle of a song.

Living with my uncle (John; my mom's brother) has worked out pretty
well. I have learnt to do more in the kitchen than make toast so I feel
as though I am a better human being. My dear dear cousin Amy whom I
miss with all my heart (yes, she's reading this) left half way through
the year which was quite a relief. It's annoying having someone you get
on with really well always in your face and wanting to do stuff with
you, you know?

2014!

I put 2014 on its own line so that if you skipped the last bit you
would probably wind up here.

Teaching has dropped to 1 day per week - phew! In addition, Adam - the
youth guy at Christ Church Hilton (CCH, formerly Trinity Church Hilton)
- is now teaching 2 of my lessons (of which there are only 5). This is
quite a relief. The grade 8s last year were also a lot nicer than the
grade 9s so I'm pleased the grade 9s all passed and I don't have to
deal with them any more. This year's grade 8 group seem quite nice as
well so I think teaching this year will be a fair bit more manageable.

The Bible study group has taken a bit of a knock with single people
going to college far away from rural Hilton. It's still going
reasonably well in spite of the questionable leader.

This year brings a couple of new developments. First is that I have
just started a training workshop for Zulu lay preachers in a township
nearby. This is quite exciting as it is more along the lines of what I
would like to be doing in the future. It's also awesome to be working
with Zulu guys - I'd love to improve the Zulu I scraped through Matric
on but it's a daunting prospect. The first session went pretty well and
was well received by all the guys who attended so I hope to keep it
that way - apparently we may have a few more next time.

I am also rostered in to preach more often at CCH this year which is
cool but increases my workload quite a bit. Days are full and there is
not really time for the unexpected emergency or anything of that sort
so hopefully nothing like that will happen for the next 12 months.

I could put another line here for 2015 because one of the things that
has been occupying me for the last while is an application to do a
Masters in Biblical Exegesis at Wheaton College (In the USA). It's
apparently a difficult college to get into and I'm applying to a
difficult course to get into so we'll see how that goes and in addition
to all that, if their scholarship programme doesn't offer me any money
the plans basically go out the window because on my current salary I
need to work for the next 2 million years (or thereabout) before I can
afford to go.

So if you want to pray for me (which you should because who would pass
up the opportunity to talk to God), you can pray that somehow in the
chaos I manage somehow to complete an application that gets accepted
and is followed up by them throwing money at me. That in the effort to
apply and make things happen, I wouldn't neglect any of my actual
responsibilities. That I would have time to prepare for the training
course and for sermons in spite of the busy schedule. That ministry
would spiritually invigorate me. I really want to see this Zulu
training go well and I think it's in the best interests of the gospel,
so please would you keep that in your prayers. What I am hoping to gain
from my time here is experience in ministry that will well brew the tea
that college left in my brain, unfortunately it's not really measurable
but you can pray that it happens (if the metaphor is not too confusing
to be comprehensible).

Thanks for the support and encouragement over the last year. I think
it's gone quite well and I've enjoyed it.

Love in Christ,
James Cuénod