Friends of the Rose

The name 'Friend of the Rose' is a covenant statement. In the Bible the title 'friend' is only given to very, very close acquaintances, those who you would probably be prepared to die for. You would never call a person a friend on first meeting them like can happen in this culture. To be a friend means so much more. When you read this page it will give you some idea as to how we have a joint participation in spreading the Word of God and re-evangelising this nation. In order to do that we should be 'friends', laying our lives down for one another. Supporting each other.

It is not possible to evangelise as an individual. The work of evangelisation belongs to the community of the Body of Christ, so we are all in this together. Derek works at something of a 'cliff face' of evangelisation, not just with his ministry to the church by teaching Catholics the Word of God, but also with the long term vision for this ministry which is to reach to unbelievers, those who have never, or rarely heard the Word of God.

Consequently we need your support. Those people who become 'friends' support us in several ways:-

   1. Prayer. There is a steadily growing network of intercessors that we call upon prior to speaking at the events we run or are invited to. The usual method of communication is to text all those who are intercessors so that they can remember the ministry in their daily routine. It is a commitment to pray and can make a huge difference to the souls we are reaching out to. Some of the intercessors are either housebound, suffer ill health, or simply have a calling on their lives to pray. It can be through praying the Rosary, praying in tongues, meditating on the scriptures, contemplation, whatever the intercessor is comfortable with. It may even be that you will be doing household or work-related chores. Sacrifices are vitally important and with our penances we can save souls. That is part of the message of Fatima. They key is that what we consider meaningless becomes priceless in the Kingdom of God and can move a soul from the kingdom of darkness to the kingdom of light.

   2. Finance - yes, that 'dirty' word. There is much that could be written on this topic, but probably the less written the better. It is impossible to minister to the people of this nation, and others, without financial support. That is a foregone conclusion. There is simply no way of doing it. We all have our vocation. Some of us are called into the harvest field of evangelisation to teach others the Word of God, bringing healing and renewal. Others are called to industry to keep the wheels turning around. Others are called to house and home. None of us are isolated and thus we should support one another both prayerfully and financially. A working husband has the opportunity to support his wife and children (that is traditionally speaking) through his career and vocation. Some of that income belongs to God and should be invested into the Kingdom of God through either the church or church-related ministries. Financial support is vital. Without all of the church ministries would simply cease to function, or would be greatly hindered because those performing the task of evangelisation would also have to labour in the field of secular industry. Yes, St Paul managed to do this, but not all the time. He spent a fair amount of time in prison as well, bearing witness in his chains. Either way, financial support is vital and if you believe God is calling you to support this ministry through your hard-earned income please do get in touch. For teaching on financial giving please visit the monthly teaching page and either order or download the session on tithing.

   3. Promotion. If people do not know there is a bible teaching ministry that proclaims the Word of God in the power of God's Spirit, with a fresh dynamism and enthusiasm, then they will never hear the Word of God being taught with such excitement. It is important that parishioners tell their parish Priest, their PPC, others in their parish. Anybody who wants to know more about the bible and take their faith more seriously, grow deeper in their relationship with Jesus Christ. Without being negative about non Catholic Churches, this is especially necessary for Catholics most of whom have a very limited understanding of the bible and will not read it regularly, that is the general experience. Thus how important is it that we have a ministry that goes out to the churches, travels across the nations and teaches God's Word. So it is also necessary that people out there who have experienced this work also are involved in spreading this work.

There we have the three-pronged fork - prayer - finance - promotion - please consider supporting this work and becoming a Friend of the Rose.