23/09/2026
Protecting our young: walking through Richmond Park today I am struck by the care and attention given to protecting young trees from deer. Trees are planted and surrounded by up to 32 vertical stakes. But the most striking thing is that this protection continues well into the tree’s maturity.
The early green shoots are like the new convert on the Alpha course. The saplings like many a young church worker/ordinand. The blooming trees like many newly appointed ministers.
I am grateful for all those intercessors and mentors who formed a ring of protection around me in my first decades of ministry. I am grateful that it continues to this day.
But how many young ministers have been left, isolated, and without such support far too young? One of the joys of bringing emerging leaders on to SOMA teams is the chance to build those relationships in the field - modelling the need for prayer cover, teamwork and year on year maturing. Who do you know who might benefit from getting into community this way? https://somauk.org/missions
