Soul Survivor Cornwall

The second of the Soul Survivor Cornwall events was held recently at Holy Trinity Church, St Austell. Kernowyouth's Phil Hadley was there to find out what went on...

The youth group from Holy Trinity Church has been to Soul Survivor with their Youth Leader Grace Rowe for several years. They have been much blessed by their time there, and wanted to create something of that vibe back in Cornwall. So they contacted Soul Survivor to see what could be done. The right to use the Soul Survivor name for an event in Cornwall was secured and Mike Pilavachi himself came and spoke at the first event.

The second event was held in May in the old historic parish church in the centre of St Austell. The guest speaker was the Youth Pastor of St Andrews Church in Chorley Wood, Pete Wynter. The theme was "The Hope of Glory".

The Rev David White welcomed the crowd of young people. There were about 100 young people ranging in age from 12 to twenty-something. There were youth groups from Plymouth, Perranporth, Launceston, Penzance, Newquay as well as Holy Trinity's own youth group.

There was a time of worship led by the HT worship band. "Holy, holy is the Lord" sang the young people. There were a number of Soul Survivor favourites as well as other well known worship songs like "I will worship". It was a set of which Matt Redman or Tim Hughes would have been proud.

HT Youth Leader Grace Rowe then introduced Pete Wynter and prayed for him before he spoke. Pete started by telling a story of a visit to Madame Taussauds in London, the home of the famous waxworks collection. "Christians," he said, "need to be alive, need to be the real thing." He explained the only way that could happen is for us to have Christ in us - the hope of glory.

"It's Christ that makes the difference, makes the impact," he said. He challenged the young people to think about the weather system around them. "Do we brighten a room when we walk in? Do we make a difference to our classroom, to our workplace?" He went on to explain that the hope of glory is not only an assurance of eternity, but it's God's kingdom here and now. He reminded the audience of the Lord's Prayer "Your kingdom come... on earth as it is in heaven."

He then invited people who needed healing to make their needs known and encouraged the young people to pray for each other.

Pete concluded his message by saying that God had worked in Cornwall in the past: Rev Haslam saved in his own sermon; Billy Bray, the dancing preacher, building chapels; John Wesley travelling miles on horseback. "But today," he challenged the young people of Cornwall, "it's in your hands. Be inspired by the heroes of the past, but be all God wants you to be." He showed how Paul said the hope of glory would be demonstrated through labour - hard work - but it is done in Christ's energy. So the final invite was to receive from Christ. The young people were called to the front for prayer, where Pete, the Rev White and the ministry team from Holy Trinity prayed for people to receive from Christ all that he has in store for them.

The evening was enjoyed and appreciated by the young people that were there. It was an event worthy of a greater crowd, but clashes depleted the numbers. The Methodist Church at the other end of the main street were staging a musical that same evening featuring a large number of young people. Joined up youthwork in rural communities is they key, but that's a topic for another Kernowyouth page.

Well done Grace Rowe. Well done Holy Trinity. Thank you Pete Wynter. May the Lord be praised. We look forward to the next Soul Survivor Cornwall event.

Home Search Youth Groups Games Features Questions? MyPlace

Kernow Youth is powered by Chocolate Now!
Create your own chocolate selection from a range of over 40 luxury Belgian Chocolates.
Free gift-wrap, and a fast chocolate delivery service to UK and Europe.