Our man in Brussels looks forward to new missional opportunities

The coming year will be an especially important one for David Lloyd.

Not only will it see his ordination as an Ordained Local Minister (OLM) of the Church of Scotland, but he will be called on to use his new qualification to help support members of the congregation and ensure services continue without interruption at his own church, Brussels St Andrew's, when its current minister Rev Eric Foggitt retires next May.

"My role, with our Reader Sia Van den Bremt, will be to ensure the congregation has continuity through what may be a long vacancy period," David explained, in an interview for the Church of Scotland's monthly Talking Ministry feature.

Currently also convener of the education, training and safeguarding committee of the Church of Scotland Presbytery of International Charges, Mr Lloyd could be said to embody that international element as an Englishman serving the Church of Scotland in Brussels.

A caring environment

Originally from South Shields in Tyneside, David moved to Brussels more than 30 years ago to pursue his telecommunications career.

He first attended St Andrew's Church as it was an English-speaking church with a style of worship similar to the low church Anglican congregation he had belonged to as a boy, but it may have been another factor which kept him coming back.

"I liked the sermon, but after the service one of the elders asked if I was new," he recalled.

"That made a difference, that they had made a point of talking to me. It struck me that this seemed to be a quite caring environment, so I went back.

"At one point, when I hadn't been there for a while, someone from the church contacted me and asked if I was OK because they hadn't seen me. That made me glad that I had gone to that church."

He went on to become more closely involved with St Andrew's, first by exploring his Christian faith through the church's Alpha Course, and then eventually becoming an elder.

That led to his role with the education, training and safeguarding committee, which in turn somewhat unexpectedly set him on the path towards training as an OLM.

As part of his duties with the committee, he contacted Angie McNab, the Church of Scotland's recruitment co-ordinator at the Kirk's headquarters in Edinburgh, to get more details about Readership and OLM roles.

David commented that he wished he had known about the OLM role before as it was something he felt drawn to, but assumed that at his age it was too late to apply.

"Angie said that it wasn't and suggested that I apply, which I did, and was accepted onto the programme," he said.

Beyond the comfort zone

Ordained Local Ministers play an important role in the Church. Although unpaid volunteers, they are qualified ministers who can perform the sacraments, enabling them to support full-time ministers as part of a ministry team or fill in where there are vacancies or absences in a charge.

It is the sacramental element which particularly appeals for David.

He said: "Communion reinforces the church family and the community of the church and that connection with Jesus, while with baptism, I was baptised as a child and it had a big impact on me. If that feeling of belonging to a church is given to a child, that is a really good thing.

"If it is a baptism involving someone who is outside the church family, you also have a missional opportunity to encourage them to become part of the church. Whether you are doing a baptism or a blessing, that dialogue takes place and you are bringing someone closer to the church."

Juggling training for ministry with a full-time job has not always been easy and David admits he has to be careful to manage his time, but Mr Lloyd describes studying to be an OLM the most challenging, but rewarding thing he has done.

He believes there are many Christians who have the talent to thrive as OLMs and would encourage them to explore this way of service.

"The challenge is worthwhile and stretches you beyond your comfort zones. If anyone thinks it is not for them, I would encourage them to explore it. Talk to the people who have done it and you get a different picture," he said.

Read the full interview on our Talking Ministry page.