THE new senior pastor at Evenwood’s Cornerstone Christian Centre is no stranger to the congregation, having been a member since childhood.
Pr Andrew Kay took over the reins last month following the retirement of Pr Sandy Gall, who had led the church for almost a decade.
Unlike his predecessor who found God and the ministry later in life after the death of his mother, Pr Kay has held his faith since childhood.
He said: “There wasn’t a dramatic road to Damascus, fall off your horse, bright light moment for me. I have grown up in the church and I have been here ever since I can remember.”
In his childhood Pr Kay attended Evenwood Primary School before going on to Staindrop Comprehensive and finishing his A-Levels at Queen Elizabeth College.
He went on to study for a teaching degree at Durham University and is currently deputy headteacher at St John’s Primary School, in Shildon.
Throughout he has remained with Cornerstone and learned to play the organ and piano, and was part of the congregation when the church moved to its current location, just before his marriage to his wife, Amanda.
The 45-year-old said: “When we moved in, we [the church] had nothing. We were relying on God to provide, first for the windows and then for the carpets. The carpets were literally fitted just days before we were married.”
The church finds itself in a similar situation now as the ceiling of the adjoining main hall has collapsed and needs to be repaired before it can be used for community purposes again. Despite the Covid crisis the church has enough funds to call in the builders.
Pr Kay said: “People are faithfully generous – they do sow into what God is doing here. We are blessed.”
He also sees the recent pandemic as an opportunity for the church, which surprisingly has seen a growth in people attending services.
The pastor attributes this to the Cornerstone Online services that he and Pr Gall took turns to either lead or record during lockdown.
He said: “In the beginning it was difficult because it had to close and we needed to think of new ways to reach people. I think people were touched by what was said [during the online services] and they enjoyed the music which was quite modern and contemporary, along with the hymns.
“Before Covid the congregation was quite static, but once it was open people were so glad to be back. Everyone who comes here says there is a warmth, a belonging – and a non-judgemental belonging – it is just about loving and accepting people.
“We believed for years there would be something new and it is now time to reset – it is almost a blank canvas for the church.”
He added that the church is equally about the community as it is about spirituality and once the ceiling in the main hall is repaired the aim is to restart activities such as
the toddler and children’s groups.
The pastor hopes repairs to the hall will be completed early next year so that these activities can be relaunched.
