This year, the Lent Appeal theme asks us, “Who inspired you when you were younger to become the person you are today?”
There are different examples of youth, children and family workers who play a larger role in a person’s direction. We feel it is important to reflect on how we all started our journey to find our faith and we hope this will resonance with you and your parish across our diocese.
The appeal will be raising funds for the Bishop of London’s Mission Fund (BLMF), which supports many imaginative projects across the Diocese, helping our parishes to flourish and make a real difference within some of the most deprived communities in our City.
The Bishop of Willesden shared the following with his parishes
“This year, the appeal theme looks at ‘Who inspired you when you were younger to become the person you are today?’ My own Christian journey began in a youth group in Ruislip. From a non-church background and as an avowed atheist, I became a Christian because of the prayers and example of great Christian youth leaders.
“One, Peter Hawtin, put huge time and energy into mentoring and discipling us. He was also a racing driver. Tragically, he was killed in a race at Oulton Park in 1971 – but he left a legacy of numerous young Christians whose lives he had influenced.
“There are many examples both statistically and anecdotally of youth, children and family workers playing a major role in a person’s direction. It’s important that we recapture this vision – which is central to our 2015 Lent Appeal.”
The appeal will kick-off on the first day of Lent and you can find more stories and information about how you and your parish can get involved.
Article contributed by Ben Alonso
