MFC Treasure Hunt - 05/12/2009

Hello Hunters!

It was a pleasure to go out into Rochester this morning with what was one of our largest contingent of hunters to date.

We had Aurelie and Hannah out with us, both on their first hunts. Plus we had the added encouragement of some friends from The River Centre in Tonbridge joining with us following on from last weeks Roadshow in Gravesend.

Helena confidently led us and encouraged us as we met together to worship Father God.

We split into 3 groups and all headed off to Rochester (which wasn't planned!) - It was a great encouragement that today was the Dickens Festival so the town was heaving with people, at points so much so that there was barely room to move!

All of the teams identified people corresponding to the clues that God had spoken to them, approached them and most were afforded the privilege of praying Gods blessing and power into peoples lives.

Personally it was a huge encouragement to see both Peter and Naomi (both from River Centre) stepping out to approach their 1st person in a WHEELCHAIR. After this they were hugely encouraged and approached another 6 people in wheelchairs and were able to pray Gods love and healing power over 4 of these people. It's great to think that God chooses to move through us, to reveal his love to others through our obedience to his word - Amazing!

This was our last planned hunt of 2009 and was a huge encouragement as I look back to when we started Treasure Hunting as a church back at the beginning of this year. We have seen so many people come into encounters with the living God. Many have come and stepped out in faith without knowing what to expect. We have seen networking blossom amongst like minded (and hearted) local churches as we have stepped out united into each others communities and asked God to bless those that live amongst us but so often get overlooked.
We have learnt what it is to serve a God that is compassionate, that knows people by name, who has revealed His plan for the lives of the lost and the broken - I could go on for hours....

God is good and we're looking forward to more, more, more in 2010.

1 Peter 4:11
If anyone speaks, he should do it as one speaking the very words of God.
If anyone serves, he should do it with the strength God provides, so that in all things God may be praised through Jesus Christ. To him be the glory and the power for ever and ever.
Amen.

Happy hunting & have a great Christmas!

Gordon Watson
Medway Family Church

Roadshow at Gravesend - 28/11/09

Hello Hunters!

We had the great pleasure of seeing Treasure Hunt teams from across Kent all descend upon Gravesend for a morning of seeing the presence of God move in the local community for NKCC.

We met at Emmanuel Baptist Church (it was great that they loaned us their building!) in the morning and had a time of testimony and worship (led excellently by Dave Webster) before splitting into teams and getting our clues.

There were around 20 people spread across 6 teams and every team went out and most came back encouraged with testimonies of how they had found clues and found treasure.

One team approached a lady who matched several clues and said to her "God wants to do something amazing for you today" - The lady immediately responded, whilst choking back tears. Recently her experience of life had been really difficult with death and illness running through her family and effecting her in many different ways. The team encouraged her and prayed for her and left her with a massive hug and a beaming smile - God is good!

Really looking forward to the next hunt this coming Saturday at MFC - More Lord!

Happy hunting!

Gordon Watson

Medway Family Church

Treasure Hunt Roadshow Flyer

Hello Hunters!

Our next scheduled Treasure Hunt Roadshow is on Saturday, 28th November at Gravesend.

We look forward to seeing many of you there!

Happy Hunting!

Gordon Watson

Medway Family Church

Roadshow at 7oaks

This morning we met at The Town Church in Sevenoaks for our 2nd Kent Treasure Hunt Roadshow.

We had teams from Oxted, NKCC, MFC and also a team from The River Centre in Tonbridge - There was approx 40+ people in attendance representing a varying degree of ages and backgrounds.

We had a great time of worship and wrote down our clues during this time.

We then split up into our teams and headed out into Sevenoaks to find and bless God's treasure.

Watch this space for testimonies....

Happy hunting!

Gordon Watson

Medway Family Church

Another great morning! - MFC

Hello hunters!

Laura, Michelle (1st timer) & Jon (2nd timer) and I went out this morning.

We headed off to Rochester and here are the highlights of Gods leading...

A guy sitting on a bench opposite a PHONE BOX, he had a BEARD, WALKING STICK, GLASSES and a WOOLly hat.

He told us he had CANCER and was open to us praying for him, we shared the Gospel with him and encouraged him that God had led us to him to comfort him and let him know He's there.

It was amazing that afterwards Laura pointed out that there was a shop to his left called the Deaf Cat - I had the clue HEARING PROBLEM and Laura had CAT - God has an amazing sense of humour!!!

Also...

A man near Rochester Castle, with a STICK, 2 of us had his NAME as the clue and we also had his sons NAME. He told us his son is ill and that he is was also LONELY due to recent relationship break up. We had a great time of conversation, encouragement and prayer (the man was already a Christian) before heading off home!

We are coming into a season of increased expectancy and also a much higher hit rate with clues (particularly names), but most importantly God is being revealed to people, which is what it's all about - Glory glory, glory to the Lord God Almighty!

Amen!

Gordon Watson

Medway Family Church

Roadshow Testimony - MFC (2)

Hello Hunters,

Just a quick testimony from the Roadshow at MFC.

Myself and Ian (the older one) from 7oaks approached a man who had a BLUE SHIRT on. We were at Capstone COUNTRY PARK near the POND.

The man was with a young boy and they were fishing. I saw that the BLUE TOP was a Gillingham FC top so asked how the fishing was going and we talked footy for a bit. I then felt compelled to ask if one of them was called JAMES. The man said "That's my sons name!!!"

We then got into a much deeper conversation with them about God, their Christian faith and affirmed the father to the son and encouraged them in Jesus name - It was a pretty amazing time really - God is great!

Happy Hunting,

Gordon Watson

Medway Family Church

Roadshow Testimony - MFC

I quickly typed up our treasure hunt before I'm off to Bedford this afternoon and forget about it. It was a struggle at first, but we were very encouraged by the ending of our hunt!

Dale, Kate, Emma and I went up to Victoria Gardens first to the playground and bandstand. Dale and Kate approached a boy with a yellow t-shirt and red hair. They chatted with him and two girls for a few minutes, but they said they were alright and didn’t need prayer. We then went over to an elderly man who sat on the bench. Although he didn’t match any of the clues we just started talking to him. I noticed the bandages on his legs and he told us he had a skin problem. He let us pray for him but we don’t know whether God healed him or not. When we finished praying we say that two girls and a boy were hanging around at the bandstand. So we went over to them and I asked them whether the names we had written down meant anything to them. But they didn’t recognise any name so we moved on to Chatham high street.

We went along the music shop, I looked quickly inside but didn’t see any obvious clues, so we walked further. In the second music shop we approached a customer who had a check shirt. I explained to him what we were doing, but he said he was an atheist. However, he was willing to run through some of the clues with us, and then he told us that the owner of the first music shop had the same NAME that we had on our list. “That is as far as I can help you” he said; I found it quite encouraging that an atheist was willing to help us to find the clues given to us by God! ;-)

We went further down the high street but didn’t really see anyone that matched our clues. At the McDonalds, a man was sitting outside begging, with a striped shirt and coins in front of him. I often see him there on Saturdays, and buy him a burger and have a chat with him. So we approached him. He said he prayed himself every day, but I could see he was really touched when we prayed for him.

We went back, looking for our clues. We approached a women with a pink shirt, but she didn’t want to know anything about God or religion. Immediately after, a mother and her daughter came towards us with pink skirts as well. We stopped them, again explained what we were doing. They recognised some of the names as friends, but couldn’t think of anything we could pray for. I asked the mother if she believed in God. She said she believed in something, and perhaps one could call that something God, but she didn’t go to church or anything. We moved on as we had to go back (and now I realise I should have told her about the Alpha course - stupid me). A guy walked passed us, with his elbow in bandage and a sling. So we quickly stopped him, his name matched with one of the names we had, but he didn’t want prayer. He said his arm was nearly healed and the bandage would come off next week.

We had our last stop at the first music shop. There were no customers, but one guy was standing in the doorway smoking, with spiky hair.

That’s NAME I thought, and so he was. I started explaining to him what we were doing and he was very interested. Then he told us he was a Christian and that he and his mate were looking for a church.

Just this week his mate had said that he had heard that there was a good church on Jasper Avenue, and maybe they should to there one day! Hey, that is us!

We chatted with him for a bit longer about the church and gave him the details. He was really amazed and knew this was a sign of God.

He said he would tell his friend about our encounter, and hopefully his friend will come to church. Isn’t God good!?!

By the way, the other encouraging thing was that, as we shared afterwards, I realised that quite a few of the clues we had but couldn’t find, matched with clues of other groups who did find their treasures based on those clues!

Another amazing treasure hunt – I’m looking forward to the next one!

Helena

Medway Family Church

Roadshow at MFC

Hello hunters!

We had our 1st Treasure Hunt Roadshow this morning and it was great.

We had 20+ people attend, with the majority being experienced hunters and 4 newbies who were experiencing it for the 1st time.

We hosted the 1st of 5 planned events, this one being at Medway Family Church.

Teams from NKCC, Oxted, Sevenoaks and Dartford descended upon Medway under the guidance of the Holy Spirit and every team came into contact with God's treasure, which was found and blessed in Jesus name.

As testimonies are fed back I will post them on here, but I really just wanted to come on here and thank everyone that came out in faith and blessed the people in our local community, thank you all!

God is doing something amazing amongst us and as we meet together and press into what he has for us as a region of churches in unity I'm trusting that the Kingdom that we are all a part of will invade our towns and bring freedom - Yay Jesus!

I can't wait for the next one now at The Town Church, Sevenoaks on Saturday 24th October at 10am.

Happy hunting!

Gordon Watson

Medway Family Church

The Treasure Hunt Roadshow

We are pleased to announce that the Newfrontiers Kent network of churches is hosting a Treasure Hunt Roadshow from September 2009 through to at least February 2010.

Treasure Hunt teams from Medway, Sevenoaks, NKCC, Oxted & Dartford will take turns in hosting each Treasure Hunt in their towns.

Every morning will start at 10am with tea & coffee, followed by a short period of worship. We will then head out to find and bless the 'treasure' that God leads us to before returning back to base for a short time of feedback and encouragement before ending at approx 12:30pm.

The roadshow kicks off at Medway Family Church in Rochester this Saturday, 26th September at 10am.

All are encouraged and welcome to attend regardless of previous Treasure Hunting experience.

This is the perfect opportunity to step out in faith and give it a try for the first time or even just come along as an observer and see what a Treasure Hunt actually looks like!

Happy hunting!!!

Gordon Watson

Medway Family Church

Gods Sense of Humor - MFC

Hello Hunters!

Here is an excerpt from an email that Helena sent to me after a recent Treasure Hunt:

Just a quick update on the treasure hunt yesterday. Obviously you were there when we found our treasure John who matched many clues. although he clearly wasn't in the mood of talking or praying, I hope that our meeting encouraged him.

Damien and I went to St Margarets church afterwards. it turned out that the church was open because of the Heritage weekend (?). anyhow, we chatted to two people outside (who were involved in this 'open day' event - Peter and another lady, I forgot her name) explaining what we were doing. Although they were interested, we didn't get anywhere, except on the rooftop of the church. because of the open day we were invited to go up the roof and Peter went with us. while enjoying the lovely views, we chatted with Peter and he was telling us he goes to the Salvation Army and they meet on sunday evenings in Emmaus church. He invited us to come along that evening because they were going to 'send out' two cadets.

long story short, I went to Emmaus church (old church) in the evening, and really enjoyed the service. Nice people, good preach on God giving us Christians a purpose and a mission (very much NF style message). Anyhow, I was sitting next to Peter's wife Sue and she was wearing a green skirt. i thought 'that's funny'. Then, it turned out that the two cadets they were sending out was a couple in their 50s/60s with the woman with brown hair. The Salvation Army band was playing, and their choir was singing, so there was a lot of live music in the place. And then I spotted the tattoos on the left arm of the biker sitting in front of me. Believe it or not, he had planets and a small spaceship tattooed on his arm! I nearly fell of my chair! God has a great sense of humour. I didn't feel prompted to talk to or pray for anyone regarding the clues. Obviously, they're all christians and know God, but also the focus of the evening was on this couple that was sent out and people were crowding around this couple afterwards to have a last chance to say goodbye, so I left after having a few friendly chats with people. Sometimes God reveals His clues more to have fun with us (in a positive sense). I felt very blessed during the evening, as the service (with the band and the choir) reminded me of the church in my home village where I grew up, it was a privilege to hear the couple's testimony of how God had broken in when they went through a rough time, and my fear for (or rather, my prejudice of) bikers has now gone! You know these scary bikers with shaved heads, large beards, earrings and tattoos...? Two of them were sitting in front of me, and when the band was playing their last song, these two men were joyfully joining in, singing along with the band and praising God. It was hilariously funny (no disrespect here), it really made me laugh. whenever I see another sturdy biker again, i have to think of these two men and can't help myself but have to smile.

Helena

I was so encouraged to have received this email and also by the fact that on that day we had our largest team out on the streets doing a treasure hunt! We had it straight after our Sunday morning service (which was a first) and noticed an increased sense of expectancy amongst the team - More Lord!

Gordon Watson

Medway Family Church

Treasure Hunt - Oxted

TREASURE HUNT – Oxted Saturday 12^th September 09

Pictures During Worship

Picture of many angels flying up and down the high street. Then I saw them flying over the park and various other places in Oxted. I had a sense that God was saying that he had sent the angels out before us.

1. 30 seconds after leaving the church office going up Amy Road towards the BIKE SHOP we saw a big guy leaning on his car just outside Sainsbury's waiting for the rest of his family to return to the car. He had been a PROP FORWARD and he had a KNEE PROBLEM and was standing on the KERB. This blew us away as the ink was only just dry from our having put these very clues on our list back in the church office. He was so obviously the treasure but said there was no point in praying and would not let us. His family arrived at that moment. Whilst he was taken aback and slightly defensive, he was pleasant. Once we had moved away we prayed for him anyway asking God to keep working on his heart and to keep reminding him that he had been identified as treasure.

2. We found another PROP FORWARD with a KNEE PROBLEM (shortly to be having an operation) this time also with a BLACK TEE SHIRT. He was happy for us to pray for him as he went (but he was carrying a bag of tools and clearly about to start a job).
There were an alarming number big, bald people (!) (including some with black tee shirts) in Oxted on Saturday and we talked to a good few of them - always pleasantly received; never once did people refuse to talk to us.

3. We found a BALD/SHAVEN HEADED guy in the BIKE SHOP with whom we ended up having quite a conversation about Christianity. He muttered that it was interesting that we had "struggling to get free of ADDICTIONS" on his list but was clearly not about to discuss why he thought that was interesting (and as there were quite a few people around it did not seem right to start talking about that there and then). He thought that he was being "more Christian" than a lot of people by going on a bike ride to raise several hundred pounds for a children's charity the next day. We asked for his email so we could sponsor him. We also told him about Alpha and invited him to the Alpha supper which he seemed interested in. We pray he will come. (Alex and Korbus who own the bike shop and are Christians were quite interested to see what was going on. I must explain treasure hunting to them sometime.)

4. Later in the day when sitting with my children on a sleepy train going towards London from Oxted with only two or three other people in the carriage I noticed a BALD guy who looked like a PROP FORWARD wearing a BLACK TEE SHIRT. He looked quite intimidating and I really didn’t want to talk to him - and surely the treasure hunt was over. But I couldn't stop thinking about whether he might be treasure so I did what I thought was a pretty safe deal with God. "OK God we are getting off at Riddlesdown. No one gets off at Riddlesdown on the London bound train. If he is treasure may he get off there too." Imagine my relief - and I confess a twinge of disappointment - when he stayed firmly rooted to his seat when we got up as we drew in to Riddlesdown. We were the only ones to get off. And then there he was. On the platform too! I still had my treasure map with me so told him what we had been up to that morning. He was delighted to talk and had a look at my list. He said he had been a PROP FORWARD at school and happened to have a bit of a BAD LEG. My courage failed me to pray for him there and then (and he was not in any obvious discomfort) and we were both going our separate ways but I did mention that we were having an Alpha event in Oxted and gave him an invitation. We blessed him on his way and again pray that he will come.

5. We saw a lady with a red top walk past Deep Blue fish and chip shop but couldn’t talk to her as we were the other side of the road. After crossing over and standing outside the fish and chip shop for a few moments the same lady came back carrying two bags for the charity shop nearby. She was struggling so I offered to carry the bags which she gratefully accepted. Whilst walking to the charity shop I explained that we were on a Treasure Hunt and she said that she had a bad back. I offered to pray for her back, which she agreed to, and then we walked back to the fish and chip shop where the rest of the team were and we prayed for her back. No immediate improvement but we were able to share some testimony with her and give her an invite to the Alpha supper and course.

6. Our first encounter was with two ladies standing at a bus stop, one was holding a walking stick and had an injured leg. The lady with the bad leg was very happy for us to pray for her when we assured her we weren't Jehovah Witnesses! We didn't have time to ask her if there was any improvement, because the bus arrived shortly afterward. As they were getting on the bus the other lady asked us to pray for her un-saved husband 'Jim'.

7. Dale had bike sale on his list and I had swings on my list so we headed off to the park where there was a bike sale. We had only just got to the park when I looked at the swing and saw a green top with white blobs on it which could be flowers but it was quite far away so I wasn’t sure. Dale said that Emma, Charleigh and I should talk to her. We were all a bit nervous because none of us had ever done the main bit of talking but we started walking to the swings and then I saw a pram in the back ground . This gave us a bit of confidence so we kept walking and just as we got to the gate which leads into the park we saw a party with balloons. When we finally got to the lady Emma said “hi we’re from Kings Church and we’re doing a treasure hunt and we think you are the treasure because you have a green flowery top and your by the swings does anything match with you on our lists?” So she looked at all of our lists and said no so we asked her if there was anything she would like us to pray about. She took a while thinking and then said that her friend has been trying to have a baby but couldn’t so could we pray for that. Then she said that she went to church in Camden and they did something the same at her church. So we said goodbye and walked back to Dale feeling thankful that our first person who we talked to on our own was a Christian and a really nice person.

8. At the beginning, I was worried about starting the treasure hunt because I hadn’t got many clues and everyone else had thirty more than me!! About half way through our time treasure hunting, we walked over to the older part of Oxted. We had the clues post box and bench, so we sat down on the bench by the post office. One of my clues was ‘long blonde hair’, so as we sat there, a lady with long blonde hair was about to walk past, Dale was asking me is that the right person and I didn’t know so I just left it and let her walk past though if she came back I said we should talk to her.

Funnily enough, she walked past again so Dale and I walked over and started talking to her. After introducing ourselves, we showed her our sheets and asked her if any of our clues had anything to do with her. I had ‘Ankle’ on my list and she said that she had broken her ankle and that it had nearly fully recovered but she can’t play football without it hurting. We carried on talking and we asked if there was anything she wanted praying for and she said that she had had lots of family problems earlier, and Dale had ‘uncertainty’ as one of his clues. She then went on to say that her dad had tried to commit suicide and is an alcoholic and that her step dad had had a heart attack which has all cleared up now but she is uncertain all the time in case it comes back. We then prayed for her and gave her an alpha leaflet. As we were about to leave, she mentioned that it was her birthday the next day and that she was thankful that she could enjoy it and not have to worry about her dad.

9. The main clued which attracted us was beard. The chap is called Graham. When I approached and showed him my list of clues he initially said no, nothing matches. Instead of then rushing away I remembered what Dale had once said about building a relationship with your contact, so I then just chatted to him, with Danni joining in. He then admitted that his wife of 48 years had recently died (I had lonely as prayer need on my list of clues, Danni had sadness ). He said that he used to go to church and that his wife sang in the choir at Limpsfield. He told us that he plays the cornet in the local brass band (Danni had musical instrument on her list). He seemed so ready and pleased to stand and chat. We gave him an invite to the Alpha launch and told him that the course would be held in Costa Coffee. He thanked us and as we parted we knew that it had been right to have a conversation with Graham that day.

Dale Barlow

Kings Church, Tandridge

Encouraging Breakthrough - MFC

Hello hunters!

Today we went out on a hunt with a team of 5 people, Andrew, Laura, Helena, Collete (on her 1st hunt) and myself.

We came into the presence of God and got our clues - Even as we were sharing our Locations, Names, Appearance, Needs & Unusuals it was apparent that something great was going to happen as we had so many similarities!

We headed off to the TESCO in Chatham. On the way there we saw a man carrying a BIG POLE and as soon as we pulled into the car park we noticed there was a GREEN FROG in the car in front. I approached the man and his partner (she had PURPLE HAIR and we spoke with them). It transpired that his RABBIT had died 2 days ago! - They were very open but didn't want prayer so we blessed them and moved on.

We split into 2 teams - Helena & myself in one and Andrew, Laura & Collete in another.

Here is what happened with our team:

• Approached a man WITH GLASSES who was sitting on a BENCH that was near a big ornamental CIRCLE and was also UNDER A TREE. His partner is in need of a new job (FINANCES) as they are looking into buying their 1st place together. We said we would pray for them!
• As we walked down BUSY HIGH STREET in Chatham we saw a man sitting on a BENCH his daughter had BRIGHT YELLOW gloves on and he had STUBBLE AND A TATTOO ON NECK. It was amazing to see so many clues come together but he insisted that he was fine and had no need for prayer at the moment. I thanked him for his time and moved on.

Here is what happened with Andrew, Laura & Collete:

• They approached 2 ladies in a bus stop after noticing that one had marks on her arm that looked like she had been SELF HARMING. They spoke with the 2 ladies for about an hour, discovering stories of terrible abuse, broken families, addictions and many other problems. They had 4 Names that were all on the treasure map, they also had many other clues that indicated that God was pointing this lady out. That He knows her and her situation. Andrew was praying for Laura and Collete as they brought this lady into the Kingdom - She gave her life to Jesus!!! - AMAZING!!! It was so humbling to meet with them in the bus stop as we returned to our car and see and hear what had been happening during their time together. God truly is sovereign and moving in amazing ways. We have given the lady our details and just hope and pray that she will keep in touch with us and walk into a full relationship with Christ leaving behind her troubles and demons from the past.

Today for me personally was the most encouraging time I have had out on the streets. Our team is steadily growing and we seem to be becoming more proficient and accurate in receiving and handling the clues that God gives us through His Holy Spirit. To see someone come into an understanding and acceptance of Christ in their life is a beautiful thing - Praise God.

Happy Hunting!

Gordon Watson - Medway Family Church :-)

God is amazing! - MFC

Hello Hunters!

Embarked on another hunt this morning with Helena & Andrew.

Here's a quick overview of what happened...

• We went to ROCHESTER and parked near the bridge so we could be by the RIVERSIDE - Walked along towards the apartments that look like a TOWER by a WOODEN FENCE.
• Led to an ASIAN MAN in the park, Helena & Andrew spoke with him, he was a new Christian and had a very lengthy conversation about his life and new found faith - Hugely encouraging (in fact this man has since visited our church!).
• I approached 2 ladies who were from out of town visiting the Cathedral for the morning - One lady asked gladly for prayer as she recently lost her job and was looking for her soul mate!
• Met a man in Chatham, again by the RIVERSIDE - He was wearing a CHECKERED SHIRT & SHORTS - He had recently lost a family member to illness and was despondent about a prolonged series of problems in his family with finances and health - He has no faith in God - Was surprised he was open to us praying for him there and then - Was great to be able to speak truth and hope into his circumstances. One of the words I had from God was JOY, and I felt it was for this man and his family - God is good.
• Met a man for the 2nd time (God had led us to him on a previous treasure hunt!) - Had a pleasant chat about his ongoing circumstances and his need for work - Offered to keep upholding him in prayer - Very encouraging!
• Met another ASIAN MAN - Again this man was also a local Christian, attending a local church and was a brief encouragement to him that God was moving!

All in all we had a great time, we were led to and spoke with several people, shared the love of God and felt like we were being faithful with the opportunities that were presented.

God has started a good work in Medway and will see it through to completion, of that I'm sure!

I can't wait for next week now - Bring it on!

Happy Hunting! :-)

Gordon Watson - Medway Family Church

Ploughing The Ground - MFC

Hello Hunters!

We met up at MFC this morning for another Treasure Hunt. There was Adam, Helena, Monica (a visitor from Kings Arms in Bedford) and myself.

We had a great time of worship, got our clues and headed off to Rochester.

We found it an extremely hard day today. We found many clues, and a few people but conversations closed down as soon as we explained the concept of the treasure hunt.

I really felt as if today was one of those times where we have to persevere and keep on pressing in, as it says in Romans...

Romans 5:3-5 (New International Version)
Not only so, but we also rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope. And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom he has given us.

It was hard to come away from the morning with any positives, but then I remember that Helena and Adam both managed to have a couple of conversations sharing their faith. This in itself is a big positive and wouldn't have happened had we all been in bed - So praise God!

I'm yearning to see Gods power released out on our streets, but first I know I need to align myself with God and truly understand that it''s all his, none of it is mine - Everything is his! Once this penny finally drops I'm sure that breakthrough will come in increasing measure!

I'd really encourage people to listen to Simon Holley's seminar at the Together on a Mission conference - Click here for the link - It's very inspiring!

I'm all excited now - Onwards to the next hunt!

Gordon Watson
Medway Family Church

MFC Treasure Hunt

We met up this morning at MFC for what was my 3rd treasure hunt this week! - There was Natalie (my wife), Helena, Damian, Andrew, and myself.

After an amazing time of coming into Gods presence we decided to split into 2 teams. I went with Natalie (it was her first ever treasure hunt!) and the other 3 guys made up a team.

Natalie and myself headed off to the Esplanade in Rochester - Below are 3 highlights of our time on the streets.

The 1st person we met was on crutches. He was next to a LAMPPOST next to the RIVER. I asked him if his ailment was from a BIKE INJURY but he said it wasn't. He had a HIP PROBLEM!!! He had a hip replacement at Medway Hospital but his body had rejected the implant and that's why he was on crutches. Natalie and I prayed for peace and joy to come upon him, for healing and for the pain and discomfort to go in Jesus name - There was no immediate sign of improvement but we left him knowing that it had been a Divine appointment.

The second person was a man sitting on a bench reading in the grounds of Rochester CASTLE. He was wearing a BLUE SHIRT and also BROWN SHOES. I approached and explained our treasure hunt. Natalie noticed the book he was reading was 'Conversations With God'. He responded really well to our offer for prayer and asked if we would uphold his friend who is suffering with M.S. and it is getting worse. He asked if we would pray as we went and encouraged us to enjoy our time!

The last main encouragement was as we were bringing our time to a close. We walked down to the steep park by the old church where there are TALL TREES and also a RED BOX (a post box - I also had POST OFFICE) - A lady walked past us and as we turned around after a few minutes there she was again stopped at the post box posting a letter. We both felt she was the one God was leading us to. As we approached her I really felt led to initiate our conversation with the opening line "Do you believe in God?" So I did, and she replied "Of course!" She stood wide eyed as I explained what we were doing and that we felt she was our treasure. She asked us to pray for her elderly friend who has just been diagnosed with kidney cancer - Natalie was really moved by this encounter - It was a real blessing to see how God had us working together towards finding this lady!

Natalie was encouraged and I think will be more confident next time to instigate conversations herself. She had many clues along the way that lead us to specific places which was a huge encouragement to her and to me!

I'm really excited by the new ground we are breaking into. I'm also frustrated at not seeing any immediate healing but God is so good and so faithful. I trust Him with each and every one of the people we have met - We may not be reaping the harvest visibly at the moment but we are certainly sowing seeds and watering existing plants!

Happy Hunting!

Gordon Watson

Medway Family Church

Leaders Treasure Hunt @ MFC

Went out with Dave Webster, Ian Lellington & Adam Voke this morning!

We all met at MFC's base, The Jasper Centre in Rochester, talked, worshipped and encountered God before we got our clues.

We headed off for the local CO-OP SHOP where there were RAILINGS, a BMW CAR, a DOG MESS bin - We were in a hot-spot of clues!

2 policemen walked out of the CO-OP SHOP, Dave approached them and we ended up praying for their upcoming final police exams. Their names were Matt & Luke (We asked if they knew a John & Mark!) - They were very open and let us pray for them there and then outside of the shop.

A man with a BLUE TOP walked past us all. He had a HIP PROBLEM and spoke with Dave briefly. His name was Brian and he agreed for us to pray for him, but not there and then. So we trust God with him!

We then drove up to the Delce and walked slowly along the parade of shops. Adam found a couple of his unusual clues in the shop windows - GIRAFFE and FROG! There were also IRON GATES next to the shop.

Dave had the clues CORAL BETTING SHOP and POST OFFICE, so he headed off with Adam in that direction.

Ian & myself had noticed a mobility scooter outside of the chemists shop. We waited around for its owner but after 5 mins decided to head down to the PEDESTRIAN CROSSING. When we turned around there came the mobility scooter with a lady on it, right behind us. I approached her and asked what her ailment was. It turned out to be her right ANKLE! - Her name was Betty, she was full of doubt but she let Ian & me pray for her there by the side of the road. She smiled as she drove off. I was very encouraged by this one, but saw no immediate visible healing!

Adam & Dave had an encounter with an elderly lady. She cried emotionally as they prayed for her about the illness of her grandson, loss of her own child and also other problems. She too had a HIP PROBLEM. She had been REACHING OUT TO GOD about these things and was left hugely encouraged and impacted by this Divine encounter!

Dave also went into the hairdresser to approach a girl with a GREY SLEEVELESS TOP. She was chatty but didn't respond, even after a second attempt when Dave asked if she also had a IPOD WITH EARPHONES. She did, in her bag!!! - You can't force people but you wonder why it is some people choose to miss out on receiving what God has for them, even when he leads people to them!

We then drove to The Strand in Gillingham as we had WATERFRONT, SWIMMING POOL, WALL (it's walled off area), ENCLOSED AREA and RIVER.

As we parked we noticed the car next to us was another BMW! We walked around with one eye on the watch as our time drew to a close. Adam encountered an old friend called Arthur who was in a mobility scooter (problems with his legs and knees). We prayed for healing. Arthur then prayed for Adam. Dave, Ian and myself left them for 5 mins to chat. As we circled back around Adam then had an Indian man hugging him and asking him for prayer. This man is someone Adam also prayed for about a week ago, he doesn't know him personally but he keeps coming across his path - God is amazing!

All in all the last 2 days have been so encouraging. I really feel like we are starting to see breakthrough in areas that before seemed very dry and hard work - God is good!

The next hunt is on Saturday 27th June, there is one at MFC and also one at NKCC - Contact respective leaders for more details.

Happy Hunting!!!

Gordon Watson
Medway Family Church

Flowery Dresses & Yellow Cars!

Went out with the NKCC Supernatural School of Ministry this morning.

Dave Webster, Karen, Sisou and myself made up a team and headed off to find our clues.

We went to the CAR PARK to look for a YELLOW CAR, there weren't any there so we went and waited in the BUS STOP and immediately a lady wearing a FLOWERY DRESS walked by. Dave spoke to her briefly but she soon moved on and then a YELLOW CAR came straight into the CAR PARK!!! - I ran up to the car and approached the driver, she said she was in a rush but agreed to speak to me as I followed her. I offered to prayer for her and she asked me to pray for her asthma. Her name is George and she has been near death in intensive care 14 times because of her condition. I prayed for her quickly right there outside of the DOCTORS. She had to rush for her appointment so I asked her to keep Dave @ NKCC informed of any improvement in her condition, but I was amazed at what God had just opened up - He is amazing!

We then headed round to the other CAR PARK and saw a lady with a BEETROOT coloured top over a FLOWERY DRESS. She had a walking stick and was walking her lovely little dog (who I couldn't leave alone!) Her name was Joan (I had the name JO? - can I count that!) and she suffers from scoliosis (curvature of spine) - The team prayed for her, that the pain would go and her back would be healed. There was no immediate change but we blessed her and moved on.

There was another YELLOW CAR (the only one) in this CAR PARK - We loitered around it for a while and then a man walked past with a FRENCH bag over his shoulder (it had French writing and flag on it) - Dave an Sisou spoke to him but he closed up once they mentioned prayer/church and said "Don't go there!" - Obviously there must be some underlying bad experiences - Many people have these preconceptions we must overcome somehow.

The a lady walked past us with another FLOWERY DRESS - Dave spoke to her, her name was Maria. She said she was in a rush but then once he offered prayer she softened up and asked for prayer for her daughter (Debbie) who has had a mastectomy - The lady was visibly touched that we would pray for her!

Then immediately a Dutch lady approached us and said "Are you on a treasure hunt? I've done loads of these, but you're cheating because your asking them for clues!" - This was amazing, and very bizarre! - We explained how our treasure hunts are slightly different to conventional ones. She was another Maria, and it turned out she was the owner of the second YELLOW CAR in the CAR PARK. She didn't want prayer for anything but when she left she looked directly at Karen and said "HAVE FUN" - HAVE FUN was one of Karen's clues!!!

We then moved around to the POST BOX and then to the charity shop that was opposite a GREEN bench, the sign was GREEN and there were FLOWERS in the window as well as another FLOWERY DRESS!! - As we walked n we saw a Bring your BOOKS sign (BOOKS!) - One of the ladies working in there was called BARBARA and we got to pray for her bad back. She noticed an improvement in the levels of pain. Then her friend Pam asked if we could pray for her bad back!!! - She felt a heat on her back as we prayed (as did Dave) - This was a very encouraging encounter. Dave is going to keep contact as they are only a couple of minutes from the NKCC office.

Then as we left a man wearing GREEN SHORTS walked towards us. I stopped him and we noticed he also had SUNGLASSES and a GREY BEARD - He was very friendly but didn't want prayer for anything and was very content, so we blessed him and moved on.

We then walked around the corner and saw another YELLOW CAR with 4 people inside with RED TOPS (we had 2 clues of RED JACKET, so I'm stretching this one!) - They were local painter and decorators, one of them was visibly wearing a cross but they were fine and didn't want prayer, so again they got blessed.

We then finished off by going to the local JET GARAGE and we spoke with the lady behind the counter but she closed up again with the mention of prayer/church.

Today was one of the most effortless and pleasurable hunts I've been on - It was great to see everyone moving in confidence with what they had been given and it was so encouraging, but it still leaves me with a sense of "More Lord, More!!!" - Freedom is a great thing and we're seeing it come more and more as we are faithful with what He gives us, we are dependant on Him alone and His Power being demonstrated!

Happy Hunting!

Gordon Watson
Medway Family Church

Rochester High Street - MFC Hunt

Hello friends!

Just a quick report of today's treasure hunt at MFC.

We had 6 people this morning - Andrew, Laura & Esther in one team and Damien, Helena & myself in another.

We hit Rochester High Street and here are a few of our highlights from my team.

Damien had a clue about a right arm problem - As soon as we were driving to our location there was a man in light clothing that had an amputated right arm (i had broken arm, it was kinda broken in a way) so we turned the car round and Damien jumped out and spoke with him - But he insisted he was OK and didn't want any prayer, so without pushing it too far we blessed him and headed back to our location.

There was an elderly man with a straw hat dressed up in 18th century clothes (it was the Dickens Festival today!) - He was in a rush but we got to talk to him but it didn't really develop from there unfortunately.

We approached a man on a mobility scooter, on the street corner, by the large clock - He wasn't interested at all, but I was sure that God wanted to do something, but cynicism and unbelief are a real barrier!

As we were standing in a space that was in between the street corner and the cathedral garden area, near the large clock I saw a group of teenager, one of whom had a baseball cap on back to front. I approached them and started to talk to them. They were all French students and spoke basic English, but luckily Damien & Helena can both speak fluent French!!! - It was most surreal as I spoke through my 2 interpreters, explaining that we were ion a treasure hunt and that I believed that they were our treasure. The lad with the back to front baseball cap said he was a Muslim, and did that matter - We told him it didn't but struggled to develop the conversation as more of their friends came and some of them left. But we blessed them and really felt buoyed up in our spirits that a seed had been planted - Praise God!

We then approached a man sitting on the wall directly opposite the garden area of the cathedral -He also had on a straw hat! - When we explained what we were doing he was very open and when we asked if he wanted any prayer or help he responded "Actually you can help me with something!" - It turned out that he had just bought a new jacket and felt it was too large, and wanted our opinion - Amazed I showed him my clue large coat that we hadn't even noticed on him and the conversation opened up some more - He explained he was a Christian from London and visits regularly, we didn't pray for him but he was encouraged by our divine appointment.

The other team experienced similar encounters that will be posted up soon...

So all in all a would say we hit approx 1/3 of our clues but didn't have any concrete things to report back - But I felt hugely encouraged that our team here is growing, that there is an increased expectancy among us and that we are learning how to host the presence of God and be moved by Him - All in all very encouraging and for me, personally very positive!

Happy Hunting!

Gordon Watson
Medway Family Church, Chatham

New Life Church - Outside Natwest!

Hi,

Here are the testimonies that are a result of a few of us venturing out this morning.

We just had one team go out in Tonbridge town centre today (Friday). We’d had a couple of conversations but couldn’t find anyone who matched any of our clues. We were at our last location, OUTSIDE NATWEST having a look around when we spotted someone who matched a description of WEARING A DARK JACKET WITH COLOURED STRIPES DOWN THE ARMS. He was actually a biker wearing a leather jacket but it totally fit the description. His name didn’t fit any we had but two of our needs where BROKEN FINGER and DAMAGED LEG. He had previously hurt his leg and broken his finger in a motorcycling accident, and still gets pins and needles in his arm from when he broke his finger. Our random/miscellaneous clue was A SPADE and we found out his occupation was a landscape gardener! We chatted for a long time and were able to pray for his arm and he said he’d test it when he got back on his bike. We gave him details of our church and he seemed genuinely interested in coming along. I’ll let you know if we see him again or if he contacts us with any improvement in his arm.

After he had left and while we were still OUTSIDE NATWEST we got chatting to someone else. He matched the clue of another need which was HEARTBURN. Again, we were able to pray for him and he said he would contact us to let us know if there is any change.

I wanted to post these testimonies to encourage you! - When we first started treasure hunting in Tonbridge last year it was really hard work. Now we seem to be learning how to hear from God better, and how to be courageous and step out in faith. Week-by-week we are making only small progress but it feels significant.

Craig Spickernell
New Life Church, Tonbridge & Tunbridge Wells

New Life Church Testimony

Hi,

We’ve been doing some treasure hunting in Tonbridge and I have a testimony to add.

This is fairly low key but there were only two of us on Friday and we only had a really short amount of time. But we were encouraged because we definitely found our treasure…

Some of our clues were OUTSIDE POUNDSTRETCHERS and a name; SHEILA. So we went to Pounstretchers, hung around for a bit but couldn’t see anyone who matched any of our descriptions. Then, right in front of us two women greeted each other, with one saying to the other, “Hi Sheila” (nice one God!) When they finished their conversation we approached Sheila and explained what we were doing, that God had told us to come to that location and we overheard her name. I showed her treasure map and two other clues matched as well; PNUMONIA and JOINT PROBLEMS. She was totally fascinated that we knew her name, knew where she would be and knew her ailments. We talked and she explained that as a teenager she was desperate for a revelation from/of God. She hadn’t received it so eventually fell away from the church. At that point she had to rush off because her bus arrived but we prayed that she would finally receive a revelation.

So no healings or anything but we were really encouraged and she was amazed that God had lead us to her.

Craig Spickernell
New Life Church, Tonbridge & Tunbridge Wells

Oxted Church Treasure Hunt

Dear All,

Below is a selection from the many testimonies from our recent church treasure hunt.
I have included everything... good, bad and ugly!

There were 14 of us that went out from Oxted and we think that we spoke to around 70 people in total. Only 3 of these people were negative and huffed and puffed a bit. About another 20 were quite happy but didn't want to talk/prayer.
The other 50 were happy to talk and many opened up about God and/or struggles in their lives and we managed to pray for a good number of these fifty.

We were out and about for 1 hour 15 minutes.

1 - Two ladies standing under flag outside Chanterelle - had a problem with her left knee and also with her right hand and fingers. Received prayer. Knee healed partially - no longer clicking or painful - prayed again - completely healed! Could not move thumb over onto palm of hand and nerve damage meaning if wrist touched three fingers involuntarily bent.
Received prayer. Afterwards, thumb could move quite freely - her friend said "Christ!" and we said "Precisely!" (She then said "sorry!").

2 - Black woman with headdress - we believe she was the treasure but she was resistant to receiving prayer although clearly had a church background as she wanted to know whether we were Pentecostal, Assembly of God or whatever. She said she might try out our church. We pray God will keep working on her heart. She seemed troubled.

3 - Policeman putting air into his tyres at the petrol station. Mildly depressed. Disillusioned with the violence in society - just finished two weeks back from being on a Murder Squad; still finding it hard to get over the grief of having lost his Dad suddenly 4 years ago. Happy to receive prayer. Whilst praying for him – birdsong started - was able to show him on list that we had birdsong and that I believed this was God's confirmation that he was special and that God wanted him to know that.

4 - Lady wearing a blue jacket, was by the station and was pushing a pushchair. She was very nice, although a little wary. Her nana has a heart condition. She let us pray for her in the street.

5 - One of our unusual clues was 'heart-shaped'. At the cricket pitch we met a young lad named Jack wearing a black t-shirt with a red heart on it. He found sore knee on my list and said that his left knee had been sore for a while. He was quite happy for me to pray for his knee. When we'd finished Danni noticed that he was looking for something and he admitted he had lost a black LG phone. Kate and Josie rejoined us and we all started helping him to look for it, all I'm sure praying hard that we would find it for him. He became a little embarrassed after a while, wanting to rejoin his friends and said goodbye and wandered off. Kate and Josie recognised him from Oxted School and said that they would make a point of asking him how his knee was when they next saw him at school. At this point Jack came rushing up and said he'd found his phone. Someone had handed it in as missing! Praise God!

6 - Well, we were walking along near the station and close to the taxi rank (which is similar to a car park) when I saw a girl crossing the road wearing a fluffy jacket. Two of our group of four had already had their first encounter and I was eager to point out this new treasure… However, when it was suggested that I go up to the girl, I quickly mentioned that I actually hadn’t got any of those clues myself….. (coward, I know!) and the fluffy girl headed off in the opposite direction to us… Moment lost… This was the second time I had chickened out of going up to someone already and I was actually really cross with myself and told myself that I might just as well go home if I wasn’t actually going to take part…..
We proceeded as a group of 4 to go to the other side of the station, close to a coffee shop, and were just coming up to the Morrison’s car park when who should be walking just in front of us but the very same girl with the fluffy jacket!!!! Even more incredible to me because she was on the other side of the station now and this was only 5 minutes after we’d seen her heading off in the complete opposite direction. Well, I couldn’t miss this again. Jo and I dashed after her and Jo explained what we were doing and showed the girl her list. Incredibly, she was suffering from a knee problem and her mother’s name was Fiona. Her mother was dying from cancer and so we offered to pray for her. (I had forgotten to show her my list because I was so amazed that she fitted 6 of the clues already!) We asked her what her name was and she said Denise. I couldn’t contain my amazement when I said that that name was on my list and showed her it written down. Even she said it was an unusual name. A few weeks previously, God had told me in a letter that “I should not be frightened to try new things, as He would surprise me”! Boy, was I surprised!! After praying with her, she shared how her mum was a Christian and her mum’s friends were sure that it was faith that had kept her mum from dying – the doctors had told her 3 years ago that she only had 6 months to live. It was incredible to think that this lady had probably been praying for her daughter for years and here was a divine appointment. Only God knows what will happen next for her… Funnily enough, I saw her again later walking a bit ahead of us… It was as if God was showing me that even if I had chickened out again the second time I saw her, He would have brought her across our path again.

7 - There were two encounters with young women in black v necked jumpers and each received truth and prayer and one a tract. Again it was seed time not harvest but we know that God will answer the prayers we prayed in agreement and faith.

8 - We approached a 90 year old lady at the top of a hill who was wearing a blue top and holding a walking stick. She was very puffed out and struggling to climb the hill. She explained that it was the first time she had been out for a walk for over a month.
We got chatting with her and she was open for prayer. After we prayed for her, she appeared to become completely energised and I would even say she had a spring in her step!

9 - I was walking along with my group and I saw a mother and child and Jen and I chatted to them. They were going to be moving house and we prayed for them.

God bless.

Dale Barlow
Kings Church, Tandridge

The 1st Treasure Hunt in Oxted

It was good day in Oxted when our intrepid team of three (Dale, Dave and Gordon) set off with our clues (underlined in the following text) on another Holy Spirit adventure. Our first location was the local library where we found a man with a walking stick. He seemed intrigued by our introduction but did not respond to any needs and did not want prayer.

Our next encounter was outside the flower shop with a man in a grey coat and his wife. He had diabetes and agreed for us to pray for him (at another time) but also requested prayer for his sick daughter. They were both happy to talk and laugh with us and had a degree of openness.

Next we saw a lady with yellow top. She was happy to talk and asked for prayer regarding moving house move, which seemed to be ‘stuck’ at the moment. At the end of the conversation she pointed to the clue, ‘grief’, and said that the yellow top she had on was originally her father’s and when he died it had been passed to her mum. When her mum died it had passed to her because of it’s sentimental value… and today was the first day that she had worn it since her mum died. Praise God for giving us such a good clue which meant so much more to her.

Then we headed to the park where there were trees and saw three teenagers sitting on a bench, two guys and a girl. When they looked at the clues the girl said that she had yellow hair and a blue wristband (which was actually a blue top which was under her coat but poked out at the end which meant it looked like a wristband). Her mum had a pain in her right arm and she was happy for us to lay hands on her hand and pray that when she next saw her mum next she would lay her hands on mum’s arm and ask God to heal it. We told her to come and tell us if her mum’s arm was healed.

We headed off to the local park guided by two more location clues: circus poster and under the tree . There happened to be a small fun fair in the park and they had posters all round the town. We wandered towards the funfair but couldn’t see anyone. As we were walking away we did spot one of the workers and went over to talk to him. He didn’t identify with any clues but then the funfair owner’s wife (Christine) appeared and after some initial conversation said there was a lady called Anne who worked for them but she was 85 and wouldn’t want to speak to us. The owner then arrived and a full blown discussion about life and Christianity got underway. Christine then asked us to pray for her. They had had some hard times over the years and wanted us to pray for peace. So we prayed for them to know the peace of God in their lives and shared a little of the gospel with them. Christine then responded to a word about grief, she had lost two grand children in the last few years and we really sensed the presence of God in our conversation with them.

Finally as we were heading back to the coffee shop for a well earned drink we saw a lady with a black/beige dress. She looked at our clues and seemed very interested in the one that said heart trouble. It appeared that she wanted prayer but seemed awkward for her at that moment so we told her where the Church office was and if she wanted prayer to come and see us. We continued into the coffee shop when suddenly the lady in the brown/beige dress approached us and asked for our contact details. An hour later she came into the Church office asking for prayer. It turns out that she and her husband live in England with a 14 month old baby but have another 10 year old that live with her parents in Zimbabwe. Her husband and her pay for parents mortgage in Zimbabwe as well as the rent on their home in England. She wasn’t able to speak to us when we first saw her because she is a support worker and the other girl with her was her ‘client’. She wanted prayer because her heart had been so troubled and worried that her and her husband would not have enough money to send back to Zimbabwe. She was greatly moved and in tears because God had gone to the effort of sending a stranger to her and offer to pray for her.

Overall we had an excellent time and God gave us numerous divine encounters in only 1 hour and 15 minutes.

Dale Barlow

King's Church, Tandridge

Mission Aborted - MFC

Hi People,

We had a Treasure Hunt arranged today at MFC - Laura, Natalie (my wife) and I were there and ready to go, we got into the presence of God and got our clues.

Just as we were about to combine our maps we decided to abort the mission and had a small team meeting. Discussing personal issues and praying with one another - It was a really beneficial time!

The amazing thing was we hadn't yet got to the point where we actually found out what each others clues were - When we got home Natalie asked for my treasure map and as she scanned it she was amazed that God had given us several clues that were similar if not identical!

We both had the name Thomas, I had watch tower and she had clock tower, I had black scarf and she had head scarf, I had loss of sight and she had blind in one eye!!!

We were both amazed at the similarity of the clues, and although we hadn't actually gone out hunting we were both really buoyed up that we had heard from God quite clearly.

I really feel that I'm going through a period of personal education with God in the ways of treasure hunting. He is showing me lots of things. My main ones though are that my model of success is not necessarily His and that I have to learn to trust that what He has given is enough and how it opens up is largely down to His Spirit moving people, not mine!

I'm raring to go out now on the next one - Yay Jesus!!!

Happy Hunting!

Gordon Watson
Medway Family Church, Chatham

Sevenoaks - Maiden Voyage

Hi Everyone,

Just to let you know we had our first Church treasure hunt a couple of weeks ago, here at Town Church, Sevenoaks, and it was very successful!
We had 13 people turn up so we were able to go out in 3 groups, everyone that came was very open to the ways of treasure hunting. The only down side of the day was that 1 of the groups were without anyone who had been treasure hunting before, but that didn't stop them!

In my group of 5 there was Ann, another Ian and two young guys from our youth group Sam and Matt. We had several clues on our list and after about half an hour we found someone at the bus stop wearing a long dark coat. We got chatting to him but he was a bit of an odd character, he had a few other clues on our list from the prayer needs but wasn’t interested in being prayed for as he thought God was conspiring against him with evil forces! We put him straight on that but he stil wasn’t up for prayer so we blessed him and let him go on his way.

We had a few other unsuccessful encounters and then made our way to the train station we parked the car then started walking up the ramp towards the station when we saw a black guy walking up it. Ann had the picture of the black guy walking up the ramp so this was of great encouragement to her. We stopped and talked to him and he was a Christian who attended a Church in Sevenoaks. We explained what we were doing and asked if he had any of our prayer needs, he had financial issues so we prayed for him and asked God to bless him and his family in this area and we left him a very happy man.

On our way back to the car we saw a lady wearing a big fluffy jumper at the flower stall (we had a few other clues with flowers on a coat and a handbag so that was good enough for us!) so Sam and Matt when and spoke to her. She didn’t have any of the clues on our list but she did say her sister had cancer and could they pray for her so they did.

Another group led by Adam had a very successful time praying for 4 people on the streets and one guy in a pub who had diabetes, they found that everyone was very open to them and one lady who went with them asked if it was always that easy!

The other group had fewer opportunities to open things up but still had a great time and were definitely up for doing more treasure hunts. They just lacked a bit of direction whilst they were out, but learnt a lot anyway.

Word has spread around the Church now about how good this was and more people want to come next time and 3 or 4 people have ordered the 'Ultimate Treasure Hunt' book (author Kevin Dedmon) from our book stall.

Also we’re having another Church treasure hunt on the 23rd of May if you would like to come and join in, I would appreciate some other experienced treasure hunters to lead a group of those who haven’t been.

God bless

Ian Lellington
Town Church, Sevenoaks

On The Streets Training Day @ MFC

Hello Friends,

Today we had our training day for Treasure Hunters & Prayer Tents.

We spent the morning talking about getting on mission and sharing our faith in our local community. There were quite a few attendees and when we split up to go out on the streets we had approx 6 people serving the Prayer Tent and 6 volunteered for a Treasure Hunt.

We split into 2 teams of 3. There was Adam, Julian & Lena in one team and Laura, Andrew & myself in the other.

Adam's team headed for Rochester High St. and uncovered approx 18 clues between them that led to 2 people being prayed for (they were both believers of some sort) and they also spoke with approx 8/9 people who weren't interested in receiving prayer or encountering God there and then.

The most notable part of their hunt was that they had clock as a clue and as they hovered around the hanging clock in the High St. a lady with a red coat and white socks walked past. They approached her and got to pray with her - She was visibly moved by God and hugely encouraged that He had sent people to search her out to lift her up - God is amazing! (see the photo)

Andrew, Laura and myself headed up to Rainham Rd in Chatham/Gillingham and as we were walking up the road we started ticking off clues - There was a big red building and then just over the road from that was an electrician's shop with a blue door that was on the street corner.

My faith levels were through the roof until we went up to the little shop and saw it was packed full of people and then fear took hold, and I bottled it. So we walked up the road with our eyes peeled wide open, then saw a sign saying boot fair in a house window. The boot fair just so happened to be the very same day and was in a church about 5 minutes walk away - Yay Jesus!

We walked up to the High St. but nothing materialised so we headed back, and went into the electricians shop we had passed by earlier. Andrew & myself approached the guy behind the counter but after 10 minutes it was clear we were not getting anywhere so we blessed him and went to the church that was running the boot fair.

We went in there (had to pay 60p!!!) and found loads of old ladies. But even though they were in a church it was a traditional one and they weren't very responsive to our approach. So when our time had finished we headed back - We felt blessed to have highlighted so many clues but felt frustrated that there was no immediate signs of movement, but we move on, and learn with each new step!

Happy hunting!

Gordon Watson - Medway Family Church, Chatham

MFC - Treasure Hunters Training

I'm starting to get really excited about our upcoming On The Streets - Training Day that we are holding here at Medway Family Church on Saturday, 4th April.

We will be teaching and equipping people to become faith sharers, freely giving what God has freely given them!

Giving practical and theological application on sharing your faith whether it be at home, in the workplace, out on the streets, at the school gates or even in church!

We will then go out and hit the High Street in Chatham and give everyone that wants to a chance to step out and apply the teaching in practical situations with our Prayer Tents & Treasure Hunters ministries - There will be competent leaders in each team helping to guide and support those that are less confident.

It promises to be a great morning and it's only 1 week away now - How exciting!!!