Paul's June Update from the UK

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, greetings from the United Kingdom. We’ve reached the end of yet another semester here at the Bible College in York. I was blessed with the privilege of teaching through the books of Acts and Leviticus this time around. Leviticus is sometimes mistakenly thought of as a dry book but in reality it is anything but that, providing great inside into our New Covenant blessings and the finished work of our Savior on the cross. This semester we’ve had students representing the UK, USA, Mexico, Romania, Netherlands, Germany and Israel. Please pray in particular for our Israeli students as all of them have been in the IDF and some are heading back to reserve or active duty obligations.

CCBCY Spring 2024 Semester

Speaker’s Week

About a year ago I mentioned in a blog post a conversation I had with a shepherd named John.  A few weeks ago we were back in the Yorkshire Dales for Speaker’s Week and I met the same shepherd again; he had just finished assisting with the delivery of a newborn lamb- the lamb was about 10 minutes old when I walked up.  It had been breech so John gently pulled it out by the hind legs.  We were talking about sheep and one of the things John said is that shortly after a lamb is born, the ewe (mother) will emit a bleat and the lamb will then respond, effectively exchanging acoustic signatures that both will recognize for the rest of the time they are together.  John said that there can be a thousand sheep in a pasture and the lamb will recognize its mother’s bleat out of all of them.  God designed it to be that way, as a natural bond between creatures but our attention is surely drawn to the embedded spiritual parallel given in the words of our Lord:  “My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me” (John 10:27).  From the beginning of my conversion experience some 34 years ago I knew His voice; I was born of God (1 John 5:1).  There is nothing like the voice of God; there can be a thousand other voices in our “pasture” but when He speaks, we know that it is Him.  We recognize His acoustic signature.

Shepherd John and I

Austria

Over the past few years I’ve been regularly bringing groups of students to the Castle (Schloss Heroldeck) in Millstatt, Austria during outreach week.  This summer I will be spending about 7 weeks there helping out with the ministry and also serving at the nearby Calvary Chapel in the town of Spittal.

Ewe and Lamb in Yorkshire

CC York

Calvary Chapel York is a thriving international church with people attending from many nations.  One of the greatest blessing of my life has been the privilege of serving this portion of the body of Christ here in teaching, leading worship, and many other practical ways.

York city walls

Prayer Requests:

Please pray for our students that they would continue to hear the voice of the Good Shepherd after their season at CCBCY is over; also that the Lord would send the students He desires to be here for the fall semester. Please also pray that the Lord would give me doors of utterance to share the Gospel this summer.  Thank you for your prayers and may the Lord richly bless you!

About Me:

 Prior to launching out into the mission field, I served at several Calvary Chapels in New Jersey for many years.  I have been serving at Calvary Chapel York, England since 2016.  I teach at the Bible College and serve at the church in a variety of ways including teaching, prison ministry and leading worship.  If you wish to support this ministry, contributions can be addressed to "Shepherd's Staff" with account #1454 in the memo section of check and sent to Shepherd's Staff, PO Box 24174, Knoxville, TN 37933. Automatic EFT can be set up through Shepherd's Staff website: www.ssmfi.org. Prayers are also greatly appreciated.  The Lord bless you!

 

Greetings from the UK

Dear friends, I pray that this update from the United Kingdom finds you well.  The rhythm of life in York continues by God’s grace as I wrap up my 8^th year serving the body of Christ here (and 9^th year on the mission field).  The autumn semester is well under way; I am teaching II Corinthians and the Gospel of John.  As usual, we’ve been to the lovely Yorkshire Dales for Speaker’s Week (with 2 students baptized in the chilly River Ure) and the students have just returned from Outreach Week.  We sent teams to Romania, Belgium and Austria and there was also a team that remained in York to help with the normal weekly ministries happening around here.  I led the Austria team as I have been doing for the last several semesters.

Austria Team

We have Thanksgiving to look forward to in a few weeks at the Bible College where we prepare an American-style meal and serve the staff and students in our main sanctuary.  It’s always a fun time.  Next week we are doing our London trip to the British Museum and library.

Israel

I am sure that many of you are already praying for the situation in Israel in light of recent events there.  The conflict is especially close to us in that we have had many Israeli students pass through the Bible College over the years who have now been activated and are directly involved in the conflict.  One of our current students is an ambulance driver in the IDF and he returned to Israel a few days after the initial attack on October 7.  Another of our former students is a bomb defuser.  Please pray for their protection; also, as they are believers in Christ, pray that the Lord would use them as witnesses before the many soldiers in the IDF who do not know the Lord. 

Scotland

This past summer I drove up to Scotland to visit a friend and former Bible College student and he lent me a tent so I wound up doing a spontaneous driving/camping trip in the Scottish Highlands.  I spent a day on the Isle of Skye simply marveling at the beauty of God’s creation.  I also climbed the highest peak in the UK, Ben Nevis (the other Big Ben).  It was quite a workout at 4413 feet, but like the Christian life, slow and steady wins the day.

View from Ben Nevis

 

Summit of Ben Nevis

On the way back I stopped for the night at Lockerbie; many of you will remember Pan Am flight 103 that was blown up in 1988 over this Scottish town with a number of US servicemen and women aboard.  I was able to visit the memorial garden.

Lockerbie Memorial Garden

CC York

All is well at Calvary Chapel York; it’s an oasis in the midst of our unique and ancient city.  It’s quite an international church with many nations represented.  I’m blessed with the privilege of teaching in the church from time to time and leading worship and serving the body of Christ in general.

 

River Ouse in York

USA Visit

I had a very blessed time back in the USA this past May and June.  It was great to see some of you and to those I missed maybe we can connect next time around as the Lord wills.

Prayer Requests:

Please pray for our students that they would finish well as the semester is wrapping up quickly; also that the Lord would send those that He would have to be here for next semester.  Please also pray for divine appointments as I share Christ with the people of York.  Thank you for your prayers and may the Lord richly bless you!

About Me:

 I have been serving at Calvary Chapel York, England since 2016.  I teach at the Bible College and serve at the church in a variety of ways including teaching, prison ministry and leading worship.  If you wish to support this ministry, contributions can be addressed to "Shepherd's Staff" with account #1454 in the memo section of check and sent to Shepherd's Staff, 6739 Academy Road, Suite 320, Albuquerque, NM 87109. Automatic EFT can be set up through Shepherd's Staff website: www.ssmfi.org. Prayers are also greatly appreciated.  The Lord bless you!

 

 

Calvary Chapel Bible College York

Dear friends, greetings once again from across the sea.  Spring is shaping up nicely and things are greening up.  It’s been yet another great semester at the Bible college.  I count myself exceptionally blessed to be able to do what I do here.  We’ve basically got one week left; graduation is on May 19.  This semester I have been teaching the books of Acts and Joshua.  We have students representing England, Finland, Switzerland, Israel, Mexico, and the United States.

      In March we took a group of students to the British Museum and also the library in London.  London is about a 2-hour train ride from York and there is so much history that is readily accessible.  The British Library has a number of important Biblical manuscripts on display including an original Gutenberg Bible, a Wycliffe Bible, Codex Sinaiticus, and many other items.  The British Museum also contains a wealth of items that support the Biblical narrative.  It’s a great resource that adds to the Bible college experience.

Cyrus Cylinder

The Bible college is quite routine in some ways but always different at the same time.  Every semester we take the students to the Yorkshire Dales where we stay in cabins and spend a lot of time out in nature on walks and listening for God’s voice.  I was walking one morning and met a shepherd named John who was feeding hay to the sheep because the ground was frosted with a bit of snow.  We had a nice chat and I shared the Lord with him.  He said there used to be a real sense of community and spoke of the influence that the Methodist churches used to have but much of that has died out and many of the young people have moved away in search of other opportunities.  Pray that the Lord would send His Spirit and revive these places!

Shepherd John

Austria Team

Every semester our students spend a week on outreach where they come along side another ministry to assist and encourage.  This semester students went to Spain, Italy and Austria.  I led the Austria team.  We led worship at CC Spittal on Sunday and I was able to teach for the mid-week service.  We also did some painting and a spring cleaning at the Castle (Schloss Heroldeck) in preparation for their summer conference season.

CC Bible College York

Prison Ministry

As some of you are aware, I recently went through the application process for a chaplaincy position at a prison that we have been doing ministry in for a number of years.  I did not get the position but before going through the process I had a strong sense from the Lord that He wanted me to apply so I did in obedience.  Part of the interview process included giving a 10-minute sermon before a panel that included the Muslim Imam and some other prison officials so it was a great opportunity to clearly present the gospel to them.

CC York

Our church is doing well; it is a blessing to fellowship with brothers and sisters from a number of different nations.  Heaven is going to be amazing.  Pastor Dave just returned from leading a tour to Israel; people from our church went as well as from a church in the USA.  CC York will host a UK Pastor’s conference in just a few weeks.

Prayer Requests:

Please pray for the UK and King Charles III as he has just been coronated this past week.  Much Scripture was used in the ceremony; pray that he would truly honor the words that were spoken.   Please pray for our Bible college students as the semester ends and they seek the Lord for the right way to go.  Thank you for your prayers and may the Lord richly bless you!

USA Visit

I will be in the USA (New Jersey) from May 20-June 8.  Please pray for traveling mercies and the Lord’s hand upon the time.  I will be speaking at my home church (CC Gateway) on Sunday May 21 for the 9:30am service.  It would be great to connect as the Lord wills!

Autumn 2022 Update

 

Dear friends,

I hope you are well- my apologies for the delayed update.  Time flies.  It has been nearly 7 years since I moved to England, and it is my 14^th semester teaching at the Bible college.  This semester I am teaching 1 Corinthians and the Gospel of John.  What can I say but that I am blessed to be able to do what I do.  God has been at work in every generation (Ps 90:1) and He hasn’t quit with this generation; it’s exciting to see a group of young people who love the Lord and are studying His word and seeking His will for their lives.  We are down to our last 3 weeks of the semester.  The students just came back from outreach week; teams went to Finland, Belgium and Ireland for a week of service and outreach as a part of the Bible college program.  There was also a team that remained in York to serve in various ministries at the church and also did outreach at a local mall and a nearby town. 

     Earlier in the fall we took the students to the picturesque Yorkshire Dales as usual for Speaker’s Week.  Pastor Dave’s brother-in-law Tim shared a series of messages with the students and they were also able to get out and hike and spend time listening for the Lord’s voice in a beautiful pastoral setting.  We also took a group of students from the Church History class to Fountains Abbey which fell into disrepair after the dissolution of the monasteries under Henry VIII.

Fountains Abbey

In the Secret Place

I’ve been reflecting for a while on the idea of the secret place and how God sees us in secret (Matt. 6:6). Serving the Lord can be difficult and just being a Christian contains its own struggles in the sense that we have seen the “consummation of all perfection” (Ps 119:96) but at the same time live imperfect lives in the land of imperfection.  Yet God sees us in secret as we seek to live honest and sincere lives before Him as best as we are able and with the great help of His Spirit.  And there is nothing in all the world like feeling His smile and His pleasure as He looks upon us in the secret place where we are “hidden with Christ in God” (Col. 3:3).  Amen to that.

Thatched Cottage in Yorkshire

Austria

Back in the spring we had taken a group of students to the Castle in Austria as a service project to get the facility ready for summer conferences.  While we were there, I was invited to come back to help out for the busy summer season, so I went for 6 weeks over July and August.  It was a great blessing to serve there and also at the nearby church (CC Spittal) where I led worship over the summer.  We had a baptism at the end of the summer and 10 students were baptized in the lake.  It was a beautiful day recorded in heaven.  Praise our Lord.

CC York

It’s a great blessing to serve the Lord in an international church in the heart of a city with over 2,000 years of history.  It was in York that Constantine was proclaimed Roman Emperor in AD 306.  We are blessed to have university students and congregants from many nations fellowshipping with us. I’m blessed with the privilege of teaching and leading worship in the church from time to time.

 Prayer Requests:

Please pray for the UK as it is in the midst of transition.  As you are probably aware, Queen Elizabeth II passed away in September after a 70 year reign and was succeeded by her son King Charles III.  We have also had several prime ministers in recent days and there is much economic and political uncertainty ahead.  Pray that many would turn their hearts to the living God and be saved.

 Please pray for our Bible college students as the semester ends and they seek the Lord for the right way to go; also that the Lord would put together the student body for the upcoming spring semester. 

 For myself, please pray that the Lord would fill me afresh with His Spirit and that my life would diffuse the “fragrance of Christ” (2 Cor. 2:15) in the places I go.  Thank you for your prayers and may the Lord richly bless you!

 

Paul's Spring Update from England

 

Dear friends, I hope and pray that this update finds you well.  It was a blessing to be able to connect and share with some of you during my January visit to the USA.  For those I missed, maybe next time around.  It’s been a lovely spring in England.  It must be difficult being an atheist looking at all the spring flowers popping from the ground and having to imagine they came from nothing.

We know better and our hearts are filled with joy as they point us to the Creator of all things.

 CC York

The church is going well with all of its varied ministries.  I’ve been blessed with the privilege of teaching in the church every now and then.  The church is quite a mix of British and internationals with a number of university students attending.  We will be hosting our annual UK Pastor’s Conference the first week of June.  Please pray for the Lord’s hand to be upon that and that He would bring those in need of refreshment.

 Bible College

It’s been another blessed semester.  This semester I am teaching Acts and 1&2 Thessalonians.  We have students representing England, Ireland, Israel, America, Switzerland, Finland, and Canada.  Every semester we receive Israeli students through a scholarship program from the Joshua Fund.  Most of these students are former IDF soldiers or current reservists and bring a mature dynamic to the student body.

Speaker’s Week

For the past few semesters we’ve been able to return to the Jonas Centre in the lovely Yorkshire Dales for Speaker’s Week.  It’s a week-long break from the normal classroom setting where students are able to hike in an idyllic setting and hear the voice of the Lord.  Psalm 23 comes alive in the midst of the bleating of newborn spring lambs.

Outreach Week

In the post-Covid world we have resumed sending teams out for outreach week.  We sent a team to Sligo, Ireland where they assisted a local Calvary Chapel with evangelism and other community service projects.  I was able to go with a team to Millstatt, Austria (the Castle) where we spent a week cleaning and preparing the facility for the upcoming summer conference season.  We had morning devotions in 1 John each work day.  We were able to spend a day in Salzburg and met some Austrian street preachers and prayed with them (Michael and Stefan).  One of them had a banjo and played "Leaning On The Everlasting Arms” for us.  It actually sounded pretty good; no offense to banjo enthusiasts.

Coffee Shop in Salzburg

Austria Team

Schloss Heroldeck at Dusk

 

 

Lake Millstatt

York Baptist Church

I was blessed with an invitation to speak at York Baptist Church recently for their Sunday evening service.  The message was on “Why the Resurrection Matters”.  York Baptist Church was pastored by F.B. Meyer in the 1870’s and it was from there that D.L. Moody began a fruitful evangelistic campaign.  England has an incredibly rich spiritual heritage but is in great need of a fresh work of grace.  Please join me in praying for this!

 Prayer Requests:

Please pray for our Bible college students as the semester ends and they seek the Lord for the right way to go

That the Lord would put together the student body for the upcoming fall semester

For the upcoming UK Pastors Conference

For the Calvary Chapel youth retreat that we will be hosting in mid June.

For a fruitful summer

 

About Me:

 

Paul Goodwin

I have been serving at Calvary Chapel York, England since 2016.  I teach at the Bible College and serve at the church in a variety of ways including teaching, prison ministry and leading worship.   If you'd like to follow my journey more closely, I have a blog (www.pfgoodwin.blogspot.com).  I can be contacted at pfgoodwin@hotmail.com.

 

If you wish to support this ministry, contributions can be addressed to "Shepherd's Staff" with account #1454 in the memo section of check and sent to Shepherd's Staff, 6739 Academy Road, Suite 320, Albuquerque, NM 87109. Automatic EFT can be set up through Shepherd's Staff website: www.ssmfi.org. Prayers are also greatly appreciated.  The Lord bless you!

 

 

CC Bible College York

Dear friends, I hope this update finds you well.  We’ve just wrapped up yet another great Bible college semester with a wonderful group of students.  The Lord did a good work in all of our hearts this semester.  Covid protocols were eased for the most part up until the end and we were able to do many of the things we normally do including Speaker’s Week in the beautiful Yorkshire Dales.  Four students were baptized in the River Ure during our week there.

Baptism in the River Ure

 We put on a full Thanksgiving dinner for the students and Bible college family followed by a (secret turkey) gift exchange.  This semester we also had a time of weekly worship and waiting on the Lord on Wednesday evenings in our coffee shop (Gatehouse Coffee) which is in a 15^th century building situated on the city wall of York.

 Please pray that the Lord will put together the student body for the upcoming spring semester as He sees fit and that we as a staff would be sensitive to His Spirit.

Bible College flats

CC York

Calvary Chapel York is doing well with a number of new faces in our congregation as we have emerged from lockdown.  Men’s and women’s meetings have resumed as well as our university student ministry.  York has 25,000 university students, many of whom are international, and we provide a monthly lunch for those who come to the church.  We have a unique facility between the Bible college and church where we’re able to host missionaries who are passing through.  It’s a gracious place that represents a gracious and great God.  It’s a blessing to serve the Lord wherever we have been called, and I am blessed to be a part of this ministry.  I’m in the worship leading rotation and have had some recent teaching opportunities in the church.

 Prison Ministry

Praise God we have been able to resume our prison ministry and have conducted monthly services at HMP Humber in October, November and December.  In December we took a group of 15 students and church members in and sang Christmas carols in all 16 wings of the prison.  It was an all-day affair and a great blessing for us (and hopefully them also!).  “Now thanks be to God who always leads us in triumph in Christ, and through us diffuses the fragrance of His knowledge in every place.  For we are to God the fragrance of Christ among those who are being saved and among those who are perishing. To the one we are the aroma of death leading to death, and to the other the aroma of life leading to life. And who is sufficient for these things?” (2 Cor. 2:14-16). 

 Our Friend Rene

An unexpected sadness has come upon us at the Bible college as one of our fellow teachers and a good friend, Rene Etzold, has gone home to be with the Lord.  He was visiting family in Germany and had been ill for about a week and passed suddenly on Christmas Day.  We mourn the loss of him but rejoice in the truth that although he is absent from the body, he is present with the Lord ((2 Cor. 5:8).  Please pray for his mother and brother.  We will miss him around here.

USA Visit

Lord willing I will be in the South Jersey area from around January 7-25.  If you would like to meet up for coffee or have me share about what God is doing in England please contact me.

 

Wood-fired BBQ for students

 

About Me: 

I have been serving at Calvary Chapel York, England since 2016.  I teach at the Bible College and serve at the church in a variety of ways including teaching, prison ministry and leading worship.   If you'd like to follow my journey more closely, I have a blog (www.pfgoodwin.blogspot.com).  I can be contacted at pfgoodwin@hotmail.com.

 If you wish to support this ministry, contributions can be addressed to "Shepherd's Staff" with account #1454 in the memo section of check and sent to Shepherd's Staff, 6739 Academy Road, Suite 320, Albuquerque, NM 87109. Automatic EFT can be set up through Shepherd's Staff website: www.ssmfi.org. Prayers are also greatly appreciated.  The Lord bless you!

 

 

CC York/Bible College

Dear friends, I hope this update finds you well.  All is well in the Lord in York.  The leaves are beginning to turn a hint of yellow which means my favorite season is here.  It was a quick summer; the Bible College semester ended well and then we had our annual UK Pastor’s conference in late May.  It was a wonderful gathering, especially after having missed it in 2020 due to Covid.

Baptism in the North Sea

     Most lockdown restrictions have ended and the rhythm of the church is getting back to normal.  We had a baptism in the North Sea this past weekend with 13 believers getting baptized.  Praise God for that.  I’ve had some opportunities to lead worship and to do some teaching as well as a host of other practical things around the church over the summer.  It’s a blessing to serve the Lord and to be involved with a wonderful community of believers. 

     The Bible College students have arrived for the fall semester.  In-person classes begin this Monday.  The Lord is always faithful to put together a unique group.  This semester we have students representing England, Ireland, Switzerland, Israel, Canada, and the USA.  Please pray that their hearts and minds will be open to receive all the things the Lord has for them and that we as a staff would be sensitive to His Spirit.

Holy Island

I was blessed with the opportunity to spend some time this summer at a retreat house on Holy Island (also known as Lindisfarne).  Holy Island lies just off the coast of northeast England.  It gets cut off by the tide twice a day and is a quiet place.  There are less than two hundred residents and about the same number of sheep.

Sheep grazing on Holy Island

The island has a unique spiritual heritage.  In the 7^th century, King Oswald of Northhumbria became a Christian and desired that his subjects would turn from paganism and embrace Christianity.  To this end, he invited St Aiden of Iona to use Holy Island as a base for evangelizing Northhumbria.  Aiden was successful and much of Northhumbria embraced Christianity under his ministry.  The Lindisfarne Gospels were produced on the island by a monk named Eadfrith around 715AD.  This work is an ornately decorated illuminated manuscript containing the four gospels in Latin with an Old English gloss inserted around the 10^th century.  It is the earliest surviving translation of the gospels into English and is on display at the British Library in London.  We have taken our students to the library and British Museum in the past and plan on doing so in the future depending on the situation in London. 

Aunt Margaret

Aunt Margaret a few years ago

When I moved to England in 2016, I was able to reestablish a relationship with my Aunt Margaret (my mother’s sister) and some other relatives.  She went home to be with the Lord just the other day after having suffered with dementia for about a year and a half.  I was able to visit her in Blackpool with my cousin the week before she passed and read Psalm 23 and put my hand on her head and prayed over her.  I almost didn’t make the trip but am so thankful that I did.  The Holy Spirit has a way of giving us a sense of urgency at the right time.  The funeral will be on September 22.  Please pray for the Gospel to go forth.  Also please pray for my cousins Jim and Charlie.

        

                    About Me:

I have been serving at Calvary Chapel York, England since 2016.  I teach at the Bible College and serve at the church in a variety of ways including prison ministry and leading worship.  I can be contacted at pfgoodwin@hotmail.com.

If you wish to support this ministry, contributions can be addressed to "Shepherd's Staff" with account #1454 in the memo section of check and sent to Shepherd's Staff, 6739 Academy Road, Suite 320, Albuquerque, NM 87109. Automatic EFT can be set up through Shepherd's Staff website: www.ssmfi.org. Prayers are also greatly appreciated.  The Lord bless you!