No man is an island
What happens when you feel the call of God to switch village life as an MIT for island life as a brand new minister? Benn Duncan has spent the past year finding out
Benn Duncan did what any trainee minister might do: near the end of his MIT period, he asked God, “What’s next?” Within months, God had answered, and Benn, his wife Ellie, and their children Arthur and Penelope were leaving their home in the Welsh village of Pengam to begin island life on Guernsey.
“We were very comfortable in Wales, but when you ask God that question, you have to be prepared for him to answer,” says Benn. The whole process of moving took four months, he explains, and throughout it, the church family in Wales at Elevate and lead pastors Pete and Adele Jones were hugely supportive. “I had my first conversation about moving last April; by the end of May, I was confirmed as senior leader at Delancey Elim, and on 10 August, we moved.”
This new adventure meant a huge change to family life. Imagine moving to a close-knit island of 60,000 people with more than 40 churches, where front doors are left open, kids walk safely to school, nothing is more than 15 minutes away, and gorgeous beaches lie around every corner. However, everyone knows everyone, and island life is deeply ingrained.
New direction
It also presented an enticing opportunity for Benn as a new minister, just 28, joining a church that hadn’t had a senior minister for ten months. “The elders were running the church, so they were looking for someone to join and lead their team. But as part of that, they wanted to invest in a young minister and use that as a catalyst for the new direction the church was going in,” he says.
Benn’s first year at Delancey Elim, therefore, was filled with growth and new ideas as the team set about investing in church life and teaching. “When I arrived, one of my main focuses was the young adults ministry, as there wasn’t one, but I’d worked with this age group at a previous church,” he says. “One of the first things we did was start a young adults group, which has now grown to a steady 20 people. That came from drawing on my experience of creating a homely atmosphere where we can explore things and spend time together.”
The team has also invested in new and younger leaders. “We inducted our first female elder and have gone from one lady on our leadership team to four. We’re also about to bring on a worship intern in her early 20s who will look after worship and help with the youth work at Delancey.”
Having just completed his MIT, Benn is keen that other emerging leaders also benefit from the sort of invaluable training he received. To this end, inspired by Elim’s course, he has introduced “Elder in Training” and “Deacon in Training” courses at Delancey. “Going from church membership to leadership is a big jump, and I didn’t really feel there was much training to help people flourish in these roles or at least dip their toes in before committing fully. Having done MIT, I wondered why there is no training model for elders and deacons, so we started EIT and DIT to help people explore these roles. With DIT, they do five or six personal reflections throughout the year, and we meet to discuss how things have worked or haven’t. It’s the same principle with the elders.”
Growing Numbers
They have also looked to the spiritual life of the church as numbers have grown by 75% in 12 months, and from four nationalities to 12. This has involved focusing on Delancey’s core values, which are based around the acronym ALIGNED: authentic, love, invest, God-centred, nourish, evangelism, and discipleship.
“We’re trying to hone in on God-centredness and make sure our vision and values are aligned, which actually fits with Elim’s wider vision for consecration. We’re focusing on good standards in leadership too. How can we expect the church to be God-centred if we’re not following the Lord ourselves?” Within this, Benn is aiming for “less strategy, more God.” “You can come up with new ideas all you want, but in reality, the thing that will build the Lord’s church is the Lord.”
Spiritually, Guernsey is a special place, and people are open to receive, says Benn. “We’ve seen lots of change over the past year, and our church has moved into a new chapter where we’re exploring different things the Lord has called us to. We’re in a new, fresh, and exciting era, and people are definitely picking up on that. Guernsey has been hugely different for us as a family—nothing prepares you for island life!—but moving here has been the best decision we’ve ever made.”
This article first appeared in Direction Magazine. For further details, please click here.