After spending 37 years in ministry, John Samuel, Senior Minister of Duke Street Church, Richmond Upon Thames retired this July.
John entered pastoral ministry having first trained and worked as a solicitor in his 20s. After undertaking a theology degree, he served as a pastor in Dublin of Grosvenor Road Baptist Church for 19 years, and in London with Duke Street Church for 11 years.
Reflecting on these years of service, he shared his advice for younger pastors in a piece written for the Fellowship of Independent Evangelical Churches. ‘Biblical teaching requires hard work in the Scriptures,’ he said. ‘Not just the odd hour here and there, but hours and hours of wrestling with the text and crying out to God for insight and understanding.’ He also advised that pastoral ministry is a ‘long-distance race’ not a sprint and warned against falling too easily for the latest fad, whether that’s a course, a book or a management technique.
