Josh and Cathy Hooker

Mission Personnel

Mission Partner

Josh and Cathy Hooker

February 2024

Josh and Cathy have recently moved to Northern Ireland after serving as mission partners in southern Africa for 16 years.

Josh and Cathy are working with the Diocese of Down and Dromore, leading training ministries and local mission. In particular, Josh is running courses on biblical literacy, running preaching workshops, developing bible study resources and organising outreach activities. This work follows on from what he was involved with in Namibia, firstly lecturing at a theological college and then running training initiatives for a church. This ministry combines two things that Josh and Cathy are passionate about: teaching the Bible in the local church and equipping preachers to preach.

Josh and Cathy have three children: Benjamin, Erin and Matthew.

UK

Population:

62,129,900

Evangelical Christians:

9%

Main religion:

Christianity

Main Languages:

English

Recent Prayer Letters

February 2024

We thought we’d do something different this time. Here’s how our February to May is looking. Would you pray with us and for us over these next few months? Here are just a few key dates with some prayer points:

October 2023

‘Welcome back!’ Josh could barely believe the words he’d just heard. Standing at passport control at the airport in Windhoek hasn’t always been a positive experience. There have been times when members of our family have been quietly praying because there was a potential problem with one of our visas, and we weren’t sure if we’d be allowed back into the country. But not this time! Because of our permanent residence status we joined the queue for returning Namibians, were quickly processed and were even welcomed by the immigration officer.

June 2023

On 31 July, we hope to be on a plane back to Namibia. To be honest, we can’t wait! Our plan is to be there for about four weeks. We need to be back in the country to keep our residence visas valid, but it’s going to be so good to catch up with those we miss, especially our church, Eastside. Josh is scheduled to preach there morning and evening on 6August. He’ll also be preaching at Antioch Fellowship, Otjiwarongo (the church plant founded by UJ) on 20 August. Please pray that all these meetings (formal and informal) would go well and that we would be an encouragement to those we meet.

February 2023

In November, we moved into a new house (see right). Our previous house (although ideal in many ways) was cold and there were ongoing issues with damp. At the end of our contract, we moved to a new location. The house is still in East Belfast and still within walking distance of our church, but is definitely warmer and dryer. Rented accommodation with 4 bedrooms is difficult to find in this part of Belfast, and we were warned that we might be looking for a while. However, we started looking at the end of one week and (in God’s goodness) we found this property at the beginning of the next. Erin’s school is just a short walk away and Benjamin and Matthew also only have a short walk to catch a bus for school. It’s open-plan downstairs so better for entertaining. One of the first things we did when we moved in was invite our Wednesday Bible study group around for tea and cake!

October 2022

Thank you for taking the time to read this update and pray for us. You may not feel that your efforts make a big difference, but we want to testify that your prayers have been wonderfully answered in a number of ways. Here are just two.

June 2022

During our first seven months in Northern Ireland, Josh has spent a lot of time attending meetings, visiting churches and getting to know people. Both he and Cathy have met up one-to-one with each of the nine ordinands in the Diocese (those training for ministry) to offer help and encouragement.

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Josh and Cathy Hooker

Josh and Cathy have recently moved to Northern Ireland after serving as mission partners in southern Africa for 16 years.

UK

Population:

62,129,900

Evangelical Christians:

9%

Main religion:

Christianity

Main Languages:

English

Recent Prayer Letters

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