Global Vision | Crosslinks 2025 | Kubwa, Nigeria

Rev. Andrew Irwin

A Journey in Fellowship and Faith

In early October, I had the privilege of travelling to Nigeria for the second part of our three-year training cycle with Crosslinks Ireland, alongside the wonderful Rev Richard Balmer and Rev David Gibbs. We were there to lead a week of teaching for clergy and lay leaders from the Dioceses of Kubwa and Zaria, as the second stage of a three-year cycle. Around forty men and women gathered each day in the heat and the dust at St Andrews. They travelled from towns and villages across the region to study the Scriptures together; Some had journeyed for hours, even days, to be there to feed from the word of God. And as we opened the book of Philippians and the letter to Titus, we discovered again the beauty and the power of God’s Word to shape His people, to renew His church, and to strengthen those who labour for the sake of the gospel. It was a joy and privilege to be able to spend time with so many wonderful servants of God, thinking through Philippians and Titus, learning about the Grand Narrative of Scripture, and continuing to think about the art of preaching.

Faith That Endures

Yet what left the deepest impression on me was not the content we got to teach, but the people we had the privilege of teaching: Their faith. Their endurance. Their joy. These are men and women who serve in contexts marked by hardship, poverty, and persecution - yet, there joy is complete because their joy is in Christ. Some live and minister in communities where churches have been burned and pastors have been kidnapped. Others serve in places where terrorist attacks have driven families from their homes, and where the sound of worship competes with the threat of violence. Yet, each morning they arrived with smiles on their faces, with songs of praise on their lips, and with thanksgiving in their hearts. They spoke of God’s goodness with sincerity and they prayed with a confidence that could only come from knowing that their hope rests on something that cannot be shaken.

Growing Churches, Living Hope

The Anglican Church in Nigeria is experiencing extraordinary growth. In the next few months, fifteen new dioceses will be created to meet the growing number of believers and congregations across the country. It is remarkable to witness. The Spirit of God is clearly at work. Furthermore, this growth is not merely numerical, but gospel and practical, as the church seeks to embody the mercy and compassion of Christ in tangible ways. We saw new schools being built for children who would otherwise have no access to education, and we visited a diocesan water bottling factory designed to create employment for mothers who have lost everything. These are ministries of mercy, born out of love, and rooted in the conviction that the gospel is lived out, so that people can come to know the fullness of life in Christ.

Warmth, Welcome, and Witness

Throughout our visit, we were overwhelmed by the warmth and generosity of the Nigerian church. Everywhere we went, we were welcomed as brothers. Their hospitality was both humbling and heartening. They reminded us again and again that there is a deep affection for the Church of Ireland and for the long history of connection between our two lands. Many spoke of the early work of CMS. Now they see themselves as partners in that same mission, eager to send workers, teachers, and evangelists to reach others across the world. There is a beautiful sense of continuity, that the gospel which once travelled south and east is now flowing outward again in new and surprising directions.

Suffering and Strength

And yet, we cannot overlook the ongoing reality on the ground. The security situation in large parts of the North, particularly in Kaduna and Zaria, remains deeply unstable. Many of the clergy who attended our training live with daily uncertainty, ministering among communities scarred by violence, and yet, they continue. They preach. They comfort. They build. They believe that Jesus is worth it. Their courage rebukes our comfort. Their faith challenges our fear. Their joy exposes how small our hopes can sometimes be.

Lessons for Belfast and Beyond

I came home with a renewed conviction that we in Belfast have much to learn from our brothers and sisters in Nigeria. Their example reminds us that mission is not a project that we start or stop according to our convenience. It is a posture of the heart, a way of life lived in obedience to the One who sends us into the world. Furthermore, it reminds us that the Anglican Communion is not simply an institution or a piece of history to be preserved. It is a living fellowship of believers bound together in Christ, across cultures, languages, and continents, each called to bear witness to the same gospel and to share in one another’s joys and sorrows.

One Church, One Lord

We belong to a global church. The same Lord who is building His church in Nigeria is building His church here in Belfast. The same Spirit who gives courage to believers in Kubwa and Zaria is the Spirit who gives us hope and strength in our own mission field. And while our challenges may look different, our calling is the same: to hold out the word of life, to shine like lights in a dark world, and to trust that the Lord who began a good work will carry it on to completion.

A Global Story of Grace

So let us not turn our eyes away from our brothers and sisters across the globe. Let us pray for them, learn from them, and walk beside them in the fellowship of the gospel. For in their faith we glimpse our own calling more clearly. In their courage we rediscover our own hope. And in their story, we see again the faithfulness of the God who builds His church, and against whom even the gates of hell shall not prevail.

Thanks be to God