Then our sons will be like plants nurtured in their youth, our daughters like corner pillars carved to adorn a palace — Psalm 144:12

For anyone who's been part of the furniture here at Grace Church Caversham, you may have noticed that we've been going through something of a rebuild over the past year or so. From the stage to the chapel to the garden, there's been a spring breeze of regrowth as facilities are cleaned or updated, groups have reorganised and evolved, and church family members have come and gone.

And a big part of that picture has been our youth ministry — headed up these past seven years by Mark Brown. And in the last month we saw the Brown family say their final goodbyes as they made their way to more northernly climes, and with them came the end of an era for the much-loved and long-running Sync group.

Everything but the kitchen Sync

Following on from the heady days of Bangers & Mash, the original youth group here at GCC, Sync emerged in 2017 out of a need to confront some of the more challenging realities of youth ministry. Guided by Ben and Jenny Palfreyman, Elizabeth King, and John and Laura Dutton, there was a recognised need to focus on outreach, as churches nationwide saw a dramatic decline in teenage attendance.

With the arrival of dedicated youth worker Mark Brown and new pastor Keith Saynor in 2018, outreach work grew and developed, especially in the area of one-to-one mentorship. However the dark cloud of Covid-19 would in many ways consolidate the challenges facing youth ministry, as they have in the church as a whole.

All-in

And so, a few years on from the fallout of the pandemic, the body of Christ in the West finds itself at a crossroads. Will we, as churches and individuals, put our faith in man-centred philosophies and humanist ideologies, as has been our habit in recent decades, or will we prostrate ourselves before a faithful and living God in faith and humility? Do we trust ourselves — or God — for the increase?

Step forward ONE80 — Grace Church Caversham's dynamic new youth collective.

Embodying the notion of "doing a one-eighty", or committing to a radical change of direction, ONE80 has been set-up both to "build-back" in an era of flux, but more importantly to set the youth of Grace Church Caversham on the right foot to tackle the issues that we are facing. Will we be shrinking violets or roaring lions?

With an expectant and faith-filled outlook, Matt, Anna, Ben and Jenny will captain the good ship ONE80 through these stormy waters to brighter horizons and a new direction. So let us all play our part as we pray for this powerful new ministry on the rise.

That's all folks!