The church is not a building. And it’s not a set of programmes and events. It’s a group of people. Ordinary people who trust in Jesus to save them and want to live together with Him as their Lord and King: a body in which every part has a vital role to play. One of the amazing things about the gospel is that it brings together all kinds of different people into one big family. We want everything we do at Trinity to be done in the context of loving relationships; people helping people know and love God more.
We’re really clear at Trinity that it’s the whole church who are the ministers of Trinity. But a few of us oversee the day-to-day organisation of our church life. Trinity is served and supported by an eldership team who oversee the spiritual heath of the congregation. There are currently three elders, two are local to the congregation.
Martin Soole (Elder & Senior Minister) received his formal theological training at Wales Evangelical School of Theology (WEST), and informal training whilst first attending and on then being on the staff of St Helen’s Bishopsgate. He taught for five years on the North West Training Course and as a reluctant dog owner can sometimes be found exercising the family Labrador around and about Lancaster. He co-ordinates the Sunday programme.
Andy Werner (Elder) lives and works locally. Born and brought up in the area he spent a while in Manchester and Wray before settling in Lancaster, he has been involved in childrens and youth work as well as small group discipleship ministry for many years and leads a mid-week group. He co-ordinates the children and famillies work. The man standing by the recently fallen tree with chainsaw in hand is probably Andy ensuring nothing is going to waste.
Justin Mote (External Elder) has been Director of Training of the North West Partnership Training Course for the last fifteen years. Before that he was in pastoral ministry in a variety of churches for over twenty years, most recently on the Wirral.
Chris Young (Assistant Minister in Training). Moving from University in the North East to full-time Christian ministry in the North West he has has recently joined us full time at Trinity as an Assistant Minister having previously been on the staff of St Andrew’s Leyland. He oversees our student work and music ministry and is currently studying for an MTh at Union.
Karen Soole (Women’s Ministry) has been involved in leading, and training leaders for, all kinds of small group ministry for many years (distilling her expereince into a recent book) and helps lead the midweek groups. She is trustee of Northern Christian Conventions and chairs the Northern Womans Convention and Equipped!, a network of women committed to biblical women's word ministry. She has been involved in training women on the North West Ministry Training Course since its early days and has a varied itinerant speaking ministry. She loves ninteenth centuary literature and has several more books on the go. She blogs at www.karensdesk.co.uk.
Rosie Werner (Children’s Ministry) works locally and can be seen ensuring that Henry and Ivy are a bit older before they get their hands on a Andy's chainsaw. She has worked with Andy in several areas of ministry and currently leads the children’s work with him. She is only slightly less sure than Andy that they will never get a dog.