Happy Christmas

Mammoth Event

We've noticed that The Gathering's weekly Soup Kitchen has been getting a bit busier week on week in the last few months, and last night's Soup Kitchen was quite a mammoth event.

For the last year, numbers had been dropping, though there remained a significant core of regulars and we were still regularly feeding well over 100 people, but the quantity of soup we were making each week had dropped down from 200 litres to somewhere between 70 to 100 litres a week, with the occasional Soup Kitchen dragging on for a while until the last of the soup had gone.

Soup Kitchen 10th Birthday

Last night we celebrated the 10th birthday of The Gathering's weekly Soup Kitchen which began on 14 May 2015.

What is truly remarkable over the ten years is how the Soup Kitchen has grown and how in all that time we have only missed seven or eight, and only three of which were during Covid lockdowns.

Happy Mother's Day

Happy Mother's Day to all you lovely mums out there.

What a joy it was to enter our Gathering building this morning and see this Mother's Day greeting put up by out Homework Club kids on Friday.

72 Boxes Of Blessings

What a joy and a blessing it was to get a call from my dear friend Shaddie asking if we would like a pallet load of peanut pastes.

It's been a long time since The Gathering was able to bless our Soup Kitchen regulars and others with these amazing & delicious packets of goodness, so Soup Kitchen this coming week will be excellent! And I'm sure that it will be busier than normal as word spreads that we have these pastes.

Happy Place

It's Thursday, so I'm in my happy place as I make the soup for The Gathering's weekly Soup Kitchen this evening.

I also got to test out the new barber's chair we bought so that Remi no longer needs to bend down to do his haircutting. The poor lad is serving his heart out giving amazing haircuts to our Soup Kitchen regulars, but all the while doing his back in because we didn't have a proper chair.

The Gathering International

Today is a day of good news!

The Gathering International is now registered as a Non Profit Organisation (NPO) with the Department of Social Development (DSD), as a Community Development project.

Greatest Joy

A few years ago I had the joy of chatting about our ministry with a dear friend, who asked me the best question anyone has ever asked of my/our ministry.  He simply asked "What is your greatest joy in ministry?"

My reply was almost instantaneous, and remains the same today.

Quite simply, my greatest joy in ministry is raising others up and releasing them to minister in the Kingdom.

Hub Of Blessing

Quality Leadership

Last night we took time out to enjoy each other's company and to thank our leadership team for serving so faithfully this year.

It is a joy and a privilege to lead The Gathering with this remarkable group of people, and I love how in the Kingdom of God such a diverse bunch can come together in spirit, heart & truth to build something truly amazing for the glory of God's name.

The Man From DSD

Today feels like a day of breakthrough and blessing.

We finally got our meeting with the man from the Dept of Social Development (DSD) and to cut a long story short, he now works for The Gathering in a consultancy capacity. This is a huge blessing.

Thank you LORD!

Accept The Invitation Of The Master

Church is such a good place to be, and all the more so when the Holy spirit is on the move, to the point where the opening, the worship and the word are so intimately interwoven, despite having been prepared by three separate people with no liaison between them.

Thursdays At The Gathering

Thursdays are Soup Kitchen days at The Gathering, and so today, alongside making 100 litres of soup, I've also finally gotten around to creating a dedicated home for our yogurt pot donations, and then sorted them all out into correct stacks with matching lids, which is a tedious and time consuming task!

Too Cramped

The Gathering's Soup Kitchen continues to do some sterling work in terms of serving the neediest and most vulnerable in the community, but also building bridges with folk who need that little bit more in terms of support & care, and it's a real privilege to be able to serve through the church.

Testimony Sunday

Come and see what God has done, his awesome deeds for mankind!  Psalm 66:5

Testimony Sunday at The Gathering is always an amazing time in God's presence hearing about how He's moving in and through us to the glory of His name and the extension of His Kingdom.

Life

We're in the countdown for our trip to Blighty, and life just seems to get busier & busier.

In the midst of preparing for our trip, we're still juggling life and having to make some plans for the future, especially regarding my health.

We're really excited to be coming back to Blighty for a month, it means we'll miss a month of winter here, but most importantly, it means we'll get to spend time with Eli, having not seen him for over 18 months!

FTM Roadshows 2024

After six years and Covid, we're finally returning to conduct some of our Roadshows (see details in the image).

We will send out more detailed information for each Roadshow and church visit nearer the time, but in the meantime please make a date in your diary and we hope to see you very soon.

Haircuts

It's amazing the difference a good haircut can make one feel about one's self.

Testimony Sunday

Why a Testimony Sunday?
Why give a Gathering over to hearing what people have to say?

Scripture is rich in God’s people sharing testimony of what God has done and what God is doing in the lives of His people.

Making Soup

Making the soup for The Gathering's weekly Soup Kitchen is (and has been for a long time) my happy place.

I really enjoy every aspect of it, and love the fact that I can pretty much switch off and just let the process unfold.