“For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve others and to give his life as a ransom for many” Matthew 20v28 (NLT)

Food-bank – Food Parcel donations

Liberty Foodbank serves the greater Cookstown area and surroundings and is currently the main Foodbank in Cookstown.

We accept referrals from local charities and key-workers in the area. We also encourage anyone in genuine need to get in touch!

Please contact Gillian Brown – 07901638188

Christian Counselling (please apply via separate counselling page)

Jason Shiels – [email protected], 07788871287

Jason works through the Theotherapy counselling modality (CCI), and has a Masters in Theological Studies, as well as decades of experience in pastoral care.

Ali Shiels – Co-ordinator – [email protected], 07760668917

Ali co-ordinates the counselling work at Liberty. She has a 1st class honours degree in Counselling & Psychotherapy and additional qualification in Couples counselling. She is a busy counsellor.

Serve

At Liberty we believe that an eagerness to serve God is the response of a grateful heart for who God is, for all we have ‘in Christ’ and because of his nature at work in us by the Holy Spirit. We encourage being faithful stewards of our time, talents and to see the needs around us as opportunities to serve and be a blessing. We also understand at Liberty that there should be no separation in the believer of faith from deeds, love from obedience or sacred from secular. In the Lord Jesus we have the most perfect embodiment of what it means to serve and lay our lives down in order to lift others up and to honour the Father (Philippians 2v5-11) The work of God through His church flourishes as passionate lovers of God express and demonstrate their love by serving in family, vocation, church and community”

Jason Shiels

Serving opportunities:

We encourage people to look for ways to help and be a blessing in the general aspects of life and church. We believe that as we give ourselves to a serving heart that God will guide and open doors in the specific for areas of serving around our gifts and talents.

• Worship ministry
• Foodbank
• King’s Kids
• Leadership roles
• Outreach team
• Sound
• Media & Socials
• Mercy ministry
• Integrate TEFL program
• Parent & Family
• Preaching team
• Life Groups
• Hospitality
• Events
• Ladies/Men’s ministries
• Mission trips to serve in nations.

How do I get involved?

Thats a great question! We encourage all who want to serve God in and through Liberty church to integrate relationally and to attend a DNA (foundations of Liberty) class.This helps new-comers to understand Liberty’s beliefs, vision and values. Once a person identifies an area(s) that they would like to serve in, they can approach the ministry leader or Pastor for information on how they can get involved. Also, by building into the general life of the church (eg. Sunday meetings, prayer and Life group etc.) and investing beyond themselves, there is little doubt that a person’s heart, gifting and direction of service begins to emerge and can be acted upon. In principle, it’s easier to guide a moving ship than a stationary one.

Some steps to involvement and impact:

• By developing intimacy with God, enjoying our sonship, and understanding our authority as a believer, we are better placed to be able to serve our community well.
• Character – Chemistry – Calling – Competency. Each of these are key facets of serving God as part of a team.
• Identify what area you would like to serve in (eg. with kids, with youth, in outreach etc.) and then begin to support what’s going on already.
• The leadership of the church is ultimately responsible for any appointments to positions or roles that represent the church. Normally, this happens quite naturally as a person’s gifting begins to emerge in the context of getting to know them better. The hope and desire is to EMPOWER and EQUIP the saints for works of service (Ephesians 4:11-12)
• Let’s also remember that serving as a believer is also in our VOCATIONS (work-place stewardship). We spend far more time there than anywhere else.
• “When the righteous prosper, the city rejoices: when the wicked perish, there are shouts of joy” Proverbs 11:10. By using our talents and skills to be a blessing for the Kingdom in our city we can bring great joy to those who are oppressed or held captive.