This is just telling you about the links between my walk with Jesus and the community, and was a speech I gave to the church in May 2001.

Many people in the church know my personal story as it was only last year (2000) that I told my testimony, and the word that kept cropping up was 'community'.  Like most stories there is a beginning, a middle, and an end but I can only tell you the first two.  I'll start at the beginning:

It seems strange for me that just three years ago I was plodding along with life waiting for the next paycheck and looking forward to a summer holiday. ;I had an extra day of holiday and Ann asked me if I wanted to help out on the last day of VPBC's summer Holiday Club so, as I was bored with sitting around, I agreed to help out on that Friday and really enjoyed it.  Then when I came back from holiday I started popping along to the Tuesday Club.  I had the same feeling that it was very enjoyable.  My commitment to Tuesday Club grew and by the next summer I took full part in the Holiday Club.

At the end of the year a big change came for me with first losing my job then my dad's ill health.  Because I had been employed for fifteen years at my old job I was entitled to counselling which I took up.  When the session had finished the counsellor told me the results and they were that the community was very important to me.  It was just after then that Jesus spoke very clearly to me.  If any of you have a spare hour I will be more than willing to tell you all the details.  That was the beginning now for the middle.

I took a complete career change with help from John and other people.  I now work in the local community at the William Brinson Day Centre working with adults with learning disabilities.  Also with guidance from John I got confidence to branch out on my own in the community.  I'm now involved with the Friends of Mile End Park as well as Thrive - a gardening project from Hackney - which teaches gardening in the community to the under privileged.   I am also a member of the local Mencap group which is based at the Kirtland Centre in Coburn Street.  My latest project which I am just starting is a drama group at the Brinson Day Centre which will go to other day centres in the local community.

Well that's the middle and just like my walk with Jesus this story does not have an end!

If you would like to contact Jim to find out more about his experiences you can contact him via his .