SCHOOLED AT TRINITY NOW LIVING IT

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1 FRIENDS OF TRINITY CHRISTIAN SCHOOL JANUARY 2015 SCHOOLED AT TRINITY NOW LIVING IT OUT FULL-TIME! In the Friends of Trinity newsletter, we pride ourselves on being concise. But there are some subjects that just can t be shortened. This is one of them! When Trinity was set up in the late 1970s, the pioneers hoped to see young people grow up to serve God wholeheartedly. This issue, we have the privilege of publishing interviews with two such people: one, Tim Tucker, serving God in tough neighbourhoods in South Africa; the other, Andy Fisher, serving God back at Trinity Christian School. We found their stories so inspiring that we wanted to publish these interviews in full, so that you know that your prayerful support of Trinity is bearing fruit. TIM TUCKER: THE MESSAGE, SOUTH AFRICA Tim, how did you get to know Jesus in the first place? My parents are Christians and I gave my life to Jesus at an early age. I began to feel a calling to missions while I was still young - feeling a call to the mission field when I was about 9 years old. I count it an incredible privilege to have been raised in a Christian home and have a strong faith foundation which has remained throughout my life. What impact did Trinity Christian School have on your faith and vocation? I would say that the biggest impact were some of the teachers. Three of them had a particular impact on me...firstly David Pott. He was the Headmaster when I joined Trinity when I was 11 years old. His style of leadership impacted me greatly... I saw a man who made decisions based upon God s direction rather than the circumstances around him. In those days Trinity was very small and had major financial challenges. But David Pott stirred up our faith even as young children to believe for God s provision. And I still remember some of the miracles that took place. Secondly was Jim Fidler. He taught me Art and RE... and it was in RE that he mostly inspired me. I loved his passion for the Scriptures as well as his teaching on how to apply it to daily life. Thirdly... Christine Fidler. English literature was my favourite subject (which she may not realise) and I love books. This has belatedly turned into me writing more myself including developing a blog site ( and having my first book published The Pace Setter (see right). Left: Tim Tucker, South Africa Director of The Message Below: Tim s new book, The Pace Setter

2 How did God work in your life to develop your heart for the poor and for young people? Prior to moving to South Africa in 1998, I began to develop a heart for marginalised young people greatly influenced by The Message Trust and the early Eden Teams that were being planted in tough housing estates. On moving to Africa, this passion grew as I saw tremendous potential in many young Africans who simply did not have the opportunity or environment to fulfil their potential. Addressing this challenge has become my number one motivation. I am so privileged to have come from a background and environment that encourages and enables me to follow Christ in my areas of calling and passion. It breaks my heart that many young Africans who have tremendous leadership potential are limited because of their circumstances. With the Message Trust we are now committed to developing an environment where young people, from very difficult backgrounds, can flourish in faith and in all areas of life. How can people best pray for and support you and your family in the amazing work you are doing? People can sign up to receive our newsletter on Please pray for the strengthening of each area of our ministry... in prisons, through Eden, developing enterprises, and through creative mission. Also please pray for Laura as she homeschools the children and in our involvement at Jubilee Community Church. We will and may God strengthen you through the prayers of Trinity s supporters, who will be delighted to hear how faithfully you are serving God! Above: Tim and Laura Tucker and their family. Tim s Linked In profile tells more of what God has done in his life I live in Cape Town, South Africa, and am married with three children. I have a Masters degree in Practical Theology from the South African Theological Seminary. Before moving to South Africa, I lived and worked in England as a church-based youth worker. In 1998, I took a position with Kenilworth Presbyterian Church in South Africa where I served until Following this I took up a position with Ambassadors in Sport (AIS), a global Christian Non-Profit Organisation. As the work grew across Africa, I was appointed the Africa Director of Ambassadors in Sport and oversaw the work of AIS in five African countries. I left AIS in 2013 and joined The Message Trust, founding the first international hub of The Message in Cape Town, South Africa. We officially launched The Message South Africa in February 2014 and we focus on reaching tough urban youth through prisons ministry, community transformation (Eden) and enterprise development. I am passionate about Africa and, in particular, investing in African leaders. I have developed an online platform called The Leaders' Table in order to collaborate with leaders seeking to support and resource emerging African Leaders. I am also in the early stages of a PhD in Practical Theology and my first book, The Pace Setter, was published by Message Books in Above: An extract from the website of The Message, South Africa, giving details about the work that Tim is helping to pioneer.

3 ANDY FISHER: TRINITY CHRISTIAN SCHOOL, STALYBRIDGE Andy, what role did Trinity play in your development as a Christian? When growing up I always remember Trinity as a place where I was loved, respected and encouraged, which gave me great stability. I will always remember it as the place where I committed myself to the Lord. I never remember a day that I was nervous or apprehensive about going to school, but instead was excited to learn and spend time with my friends. It was a place where I was allowed to be creative and sporty. I learnt a great deal about God through growing up in the school. I also believe that Trinity was a place that enriched me culturally and in my understanding of the world through mixing with children who had been part of long-term mission projects abroad with their parents. I also had a sense that God had a very special future for me and that I would one day serve him in my job. I never imagined what that would be. But growing up in Trinity taught me to rely on God and not to worry as he has a plan for us and is our provider. What other influences helped to shape your faith? A big thing was the fact that my parents have always trusted in God and pointed me towards him. My Church and youth group supported and encouraged me and let me make mistakes, but also giving me lots of opportunities to serve at home and abroad on mission. My amazing wife Jo has really brought me forward in my faith. I have learnt a lot from her and her great family, especially the faith of her Dad. More recently, God has taught me a lot through having a child! Why have you come back to Trinity, of all places, as a teacher? Above: Andy and wife Jo, who also teaches at Trinity, along with son Joel. I had always intended to pursue a career as a freelance photographer, but God had other ideas. After graduating with a photography degree I moved from Falmouth in Cornwall to Exeter, Devon, and began to work as a freelance photographer for 12 months, amongst other jobs. During this period I was pushing doors with my photography, but not a lot were opening and I wasn't getting a great deal of peace about continuing with this career. So I decided to push another door, and applied to train as an Art teacher. The door opened and I got a place at Plymouth University. The man that ran the course happened to be someone that I knew from my university town of Falmouth and I had worked for him previously as a teaching assistant whilst at university. I could see from this that God was in it. Whilst on the course I received a questionnaire through the post from the old Deputy Head from Trinity, Sylvia Baker. She was doing research about what previous pupils were doing with their lives and what their views were on particular issues, and particularly if they still had faith in God. I was very challenged by one particular question in the questionnaire, which asked about my motivation for my chosen career. This got me thinking. Around the same time, I was given a word at Church. It was a picture of a tractor that had made tracks in the mud whilst the mud was still soft. The sun then came and dried the tracks. Then the next day the rains came and softened the tracks again and the tractor was able to come and make fresh tracks on the same road. After graduating we felt that God wanted us to move back to Manchester. When we got back we started to attend Mottram Evangelical Church. After three weeks of going, I was approached by Janet Dentith, then the Art teacher at Trinity, to say that she was retiring as the Art teacher at Trinity and there was a job available. So I went for the interview and got the job! God's timing was perfect. I was going to go along tracks which were both old and fresh just like in the word I was given at Church! What do you think are your main roles as a Christian teacher at Trinity - what does God want you to achieve there? When I first started to teach at Trinity I was employed one day a week as the GCSE Graphic Products teacher. After a term, this expanded to full-time Graphics and Art throughout the whole secondary school. I have now have taken on the role of teaching ICT.

4 Apart from these important teaching roles I believe that I can play a vital role in the school, having been a pupil in the school myself and an understanding of what is like to grow up in the school. More importantly than these two things, I believe that God has put me in Trinity Christian School to share the love that I have for Him and to love and disciple the children. I am passionate about seeing the children grow in their understanding of Him and worshipping Him and going on to serve Him in their lives. Andy, thanks so much for talking to us. I am sure that our readers will want to pray for you and Jo as you teach at Trinity. Many of them will know only too well the challenges that it brings, but also the amazing fruit including lives like yours! Please pray for Trinity! We hope that you have found these stories inspiring. There are many more, hopefully including your own. These are not stories of comfort and ease, but of young people taking difficult decisions in order to follow God habits that they learned, in part, at Trinity Christian School. Our hope and prayer is that many more young people take the same road as Tim and Andy. But we need your support and your prayers. Please pray for the school, so that our next generation can catch the same vision, know the same Lord and live the same kind of lives as these two inspiring people. An image of Tim Tucker from the promotional video for The Message, South Africa, which can be found on their website at Do visit the site it s fantastic!

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