• Facebook
  • Twitter

Dreaming Beneath the Spires

Anita Mathias's Blog on Faith and Art

  • Home
  • My Books
  • Essays
  • Contact
  • About Me

Milestones to the Gallows: A Guest Post by Les Norman, Founder of DCI

By Anita Mathias

I am honoured to host this guest post from Les Norman, the founder of DCI 

les_norman_gallowsThey called us illegal. They called us illegitimate. It was all true. They were right. Men who occupied pulpits on Sunday, called us ‘Mongrel Ministries on Monday because some of the less comfortable people in their churches came our way to see if Jesus could make something of them. Then, when one nationally known ‘name’ asked to visit, “the very next morning,” it seemed to me that the whole nation was in the mood for a hanging.

On the way to the gallows, I passed four milestones.

At 27 years old, entrepreneurial success had put a Rolls-Royce on the drive of a country home yet, in reality, this was a veneer over the ruins from a parentless childhood, a disastrous sort of teenage marriage and the memory-numbing cocktails of Scotch and NHS Valium. By unexpectedly following Jesus, really, because Jesus followed me, I discovered the healing power of the love of God, and everything changed.

I gave the business away in 1980 and together with four young men, I was now the proud part-owner of a modest 3000 seat circus tent in which we would share our faith. By 1982, I was in Spain, newly married and in that curious way where one thing leads to another, we found ourselves living with drug addicts, traffickers, prostitutes and AIDS sufferers straight off the streets of the Basque Country. We watched the limitless love of God heal many damaged young men and women and turn them into remarkable leaders. In time they carried their movement, Remar,  to 60 nations and to this day, care for over 50,000 impoverished people.

A couple of years later, somewhat recklessly, I went to Burkina Faso in West Africa. When I saw the love of God for the very poor of the world, and their love for him, my life snapped into sharp focus. The countless opportunities to do something good for next to nothing was a challenge but all it took to convince me was to fly home into the excesses of our Christmas.

Twelve months further along, we were having some difficulty in turning our hopes into reality. We arranged to meet together with three friends for a week of prayer at some unearthly early hour. In the end, after fourteen months, the story from Acts 19 and 20 caught our attention. Some young believers received the Holy Spirit, and in no time at all they all became significant leaders. So, we put together a simple gathering and saw very comparable results. We did it again, and a third time because by now people from far and wide began to arrive impromptu. At this point, our church leaders thought that both we and this mixed multitude might be happier somewhere else.

Then the phone call came, followed by the man himself. Philip Vogel of Pioneer Churches looked around, heard the stories, met the students and considering God to be deeply present, he also decided to stay.

By 1992, five years later, people had returned home carrying with them the long-forgotten concept of low-cost, training in small groups. Similar free of charge Schools of Mission popped up all over the world. We put the training materials online, thinking that if 5000 people in the year 2000 happened to see our materials, then it would be a job done. In fact, it took one week to pass that figure and since that digital milestone, thousands of unlikely and impoverished men and women have earned their diplomas, learning everywhere from cathedrals to being cross-legged under palm trees.

We like to make known what God is doing by making leaders who make life better for the poor. These days, I work quietly with words, many towards God in prayer, and others for people, pointing them towards following Jesus to the lost, the last and the least of the world. The DCI Fund helps to launch projects for people in mission particularly for widows, orphans and the poor. We like providing interest-free micro-loans to create funds locally through simple business.

In all these years, we have never got around to having leaders, asking for offerings or making appeals. We have no buildings, offices or pensions and our way is to keep things as simple as can be. We work from our homes, trust God as best we can, meet the Lord and each other in small groups and never stop looking for opportunities to serve.

You are very welcome to be with us. Age is never a problem, and our friends go to every kind of church. There is nothing to sign or pay. You can pray with us, talk to people, answer e-mails, translate into languages, write, do IT stuff, give, go, send, and generally, struggle with us to be and to do all that God has put into your heart.

les_norman

Dr. Les Norman is 63, very happily married to Pilar, who is Spanish, a teacher and a popular poetess in her language. Our children are James, 41, who lives by Loch Ness in Scotland; David, 39, who is married and a successful businessman in Nottingham; and Lizzie, 24, who is our miracle daughter, married to Zack and living in Nottingham, not too far from us. We have a small Jack Russell terrier called María Carlota, a Cabanon tent and after all these years, a very lovely circle of friends around the world.

You can find us on The DCI Pages, The DCI Stories and The DCI Minute.

Our email is [email protected]

 


Read my new memoir: Rosaries, Reading, Secrets: A Catholic Childhood in India (US) or UK.
Connect on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/anitamathiaswriter/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/anita.mathias/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/AnitaMathias1
My book of essays: Wandering Between Two Worlds (US) or UK

View our Privacy Policy.

More from my site

  • Relax, The Lord is in his Temple. Psalm 11, Day 26, Jan 26Relax, The Lord is in his Temple. Psalm 11, Day 26, Jan 26
  • The Dances of Intimacy and AngerThe Dances of Intimacy and Anger
  • In which God forgives us, we forgive ourselves, and we are freed from paralysisIn which God forgives us, we forgive ourselves, and we are freed from paralysis
  • Readiness: Wise and Foolish Virgins, Blog Through the Bible ProjectReadiness: Wise and Foolish Virgins, Blog Through the Bible Project
  • The Meek Shall Inherit the Earth: A Guest Post by Julian ClarkeThe Meek Shall Inherit the Earth: A Guest Post by Julian Clarke
Share this...
Share on facebook
Facebook
Share on twitter
Twitter

Filed Under: In which I proudly introduce my guest posters

« Previous Post
Next Post »

Comments

  1. LA says

    May 11, 2013 at 1:36 pm

    How awesome is your work and life…hard to condense the breadth into one blog post. Thank you, Anita for introducing me to another fantastic Christian!

Sign Up and Get a Free eBook!

Sign up to be emailed my blog posts (one a week) and get the ebook of "Holy Ground," my account of working with Mother Teresa.

Join 636 Other Readers

Follow me on Twitter

Follow @anitamathias1

Anita Mathias: About Me

Anita Mathias

Read my blog on Facebook

My Books

Rosaries, Reading, Secrets: A Catholic Childhood in India

Wandering Between Two Worlds - Amazon.com
Amazon.com

Amazon.co.uk

Wandering Between Two Worlds: Essays on Faith and Art

Wandering Between Two Worlds - Amazon.com
Amazon.com

Amazon.co.uk

Francesco, Artist of Florence: The Man Who Gave Too Much

Francesco, Artist of Florence - Amazom.com
Amazon.com

Amazon.co.uk

The Story of Dirk Willems

The Story of Dirk Willems - Amazon.com
Amazon.com

Amazon.co.uk
Premier Digital Awards 2015 - Finalist - Blogger of the year
Runner Up Christian Media Awards 2014 - Tweeter of the year

Recent Posts

  • “Rosaries at the Grotto” A Chapter from my newly-published memoir, “Rosaries, Reading, Secrets: A Catholic Childhood in India.”
  • An Infallible Secret of Joy
  • Thoughts on Writing my Just-published Memoir, & the Prologue to “Rosaries, Reading, Secrets”
  • Rosaries, Reading, Secrets: A Catholic Childhood in India. My new memoir
  •  On Not Wasting a Desert Experience
  • A Mind of Life and Peace in the Middle of a Global Pandemic
  • On Yoga and Following Jesus
  • Silver and Gold Linings in the Storm Clouds of Coronavirus
  • Trust: A Message of Christmas
  • Life- Changing Journaling: A Gratitude Journal, and Habit-Tracker, with Food and Exercise Logs, Time Sheets, a Bullet Journal, Goal Sheets and a Planner

Categories

What I’m Reading

Country Girl
Edna O'Brien

Country Girl  - Amazon.com
Amazon.com

Amazon.co.uk

Confessions
Jean-Jacques Rousseau

Rousseau --  Amazon.com
Amazon.com

Amazon.co.uk

Mere Christianity
C S Lewis

Mere Christianity --  Amazon.com
Amazon.com

Amazon.co.uk

Archive by month

INSTAGRAM

anita.mathias

If you'll forgive me for adding to the noise of th If you'll forgive me for adding to the noise of the world on Black Friday, my memoir ,Rosaries, Reading, Secrets: A Catholic Childhood in India, is on sale on Kindle all over the world for a few days. 
Carolyn Weber (who has written "Surprised by Oxford," an amazing memoir about coming to faith in Oxford https://amzn.to/3XyIftO )  has written a lovely endorsement of my memoir:
"Joining intelligent winsomeness with an engaging style, Anita Mathias writes with keen observation, lively insight and hard earned wisdom about navigating the life of thoughtful faith in a world of cultural complexities. Her story bears witness to how God wastes nothing and redeems all. Her words sing of a spirit strong in courage, compassion and a pervasive dedication to the adventure of life. As a reader, I have been challenged and changed by her beautifully told and powerful story - so will you."
The memoir is available on sale on Amazon.co.uk at https://amzn.to/3u0Ib8o and on Amazon.com at https://amzn.to/3u0IBvu and is reduced on the other Amazon sites too.
Thank you, and please let me know if you read and enjoy it!! #memoir #indianchildhood #india
Second birthday party. Determinedly escaping! So i Second birthday party. Determinedly escaping!
So it’s a beautiful November here in Oxford, and the trees are blazing. We will soon be celebrating our 33rd wedding anniversary…and are hoping for at least 33 more!! 
And here’s a chapter from my memoir of growing up Catholic in India… rosaries at the grotto, potlucks, the Catholic Family Movement, American missionary Jesuits, Mangaloreans, Goans, and food, food food…
https://anitamathias.com/2022/11/07/rosaries-at-the-grotto-a-chapter-from-my-newly-published-memoir-rosaries-reading-steel-a-catholic-childhood-in-india/
Available on Amazon.co.uk https://amzn.to/3Apjt5r and on Amazon.com https://amzn.to/3gcVboa and wherever Amazon sells books, as well as at most online retailers.
#birthdayparty #memoir #jamshedpur #India #rosariesreadingsecrets
Friends, it’s been a while since I blogged, but Friends, it’s been a while since I blogged, but it’s time to resume, and so I have. Here’s a blog on an absolutely infallible secret of joy, https://anitamathias.com/2022/10/28/an-infallible-secret-of-joy/
Jenny Lewis, whose Gilgamesh Retold https://amzn.to/3zsYfCX is an amazing new translation of the epic, has kindly endorsed my memoir. She writes, “With Rosaries, Reading and Secrets, Anita Mathias invites us into a totally absorbing world of past and present marvels. She is a natural and gifted storyteller who weaves history and biography together in a magical mix. Erudite and literary, generously laced with poetic and literary references and Dickensian levels of observation and detail, Rosaries is alive with glowing, vivid details, bringing to life an era and culture that is unforgettable. A beautifully written, important and addictive book.”
I would, of course, be delighted if you read it. Amazon.co.uk https://amzn.to/3gThsr4 and Amazon.com https://amzn.to/3WdCBwk #joy #amwriting #amblogging #icecreamjoy
Wandering around Oxford with my camera, photograph Wandering around Oxford with my camera, photographing ancient colleges! Enjoy.
And just a note that Amazon is offering a temporary discount on my memoir, Rosaries, Reading, Steel https://amzn.to/3UQN28z . It’s £7.41.
Here’s an endorsement from my friend, Francesca Kay, author of the beautiful novel, “An Equal Stillness.” This is a beautifully written account of a childhood, so evocative, so vivid. The textures, colours and, above all, the tastes of a particular world are lyrically but also precisely evoked and there was much in it that brought back very clear memories of my own. Northern India in the 60s, as well as Bandra of course – dust and mercurochrome, Marie biscuits, the chatter of adult voices, the prayers, the fruit trees, dogs…. But, although you rightly celebrate the richness of that world, you weave through this magical remembrance of things past a skein of sadness that makes it haunting too. It’s lovely!” #oxford #beauty
So, I am not going to become a book-bore, I promis So, I am not going to become a book-bore, I promise, but just to let you know that my memoir "Rosaries, Reading, Secrets: A Catholic Childhood in India," is now available in India in paperback. https://www.amazon.in/s?k=rosaries+reading+secrets&crid=3TLDQASCY0WTH&sprefix=rosaries+r%2Caps%2C72&ref=nb_sb_ss_ts-doa-p_1_10My endorsements say it is evocative, well-written, magical, haunting, and funny, so I'd be thrilled if you bought a copy on any of the Amazon sites. 
Endorsements 
A beautifully written account. Woven through this magical remembrance of things past is a skein of sadness that makes it haunting. Francesca Kay, An Equal Stillness. 
A dazzling vibrant tale of childhood in post-colonial India. Mathias conjures 1960s India and her family in uproarious and heart-breaking detail. Erin Hart, Haunted Ground 
Mathias invites us into a wonderfully absorbing and thrilling world of past and present marvels… generously laced with poetic and literary references and Dickensian levels of observation and detail. A beautifully written, important, and addictive book. Jenny Lewis, Gilgamesh Retold 
Tormented, passionate and often sad, Mathias’s beautiful childhood memoir is immensely readable. Trevor Mostyn, Coming of Age in The Middle East.
A beautifully told and powerful story. Joining intelligent winsomeness with an engaging style, Mathias writes with keen observation, lively insight and hard-earned wisdom. Carolyn Weber, Surprised by Oxford 
A remarkable account. A treasure chest…full of food (always food), books (always books), a family with all its alliances and divisions. A feat of memory and remembrance. Philip Gooden, The Story of English
Anita’s pluck and charm shine through every page of this beautifully crafted, comprehensive and erudite memoir. 
Ray Foulk, Picasso’s Revenge
Mathias’s prose is lively and evocative. An enjoyable and accessible book. Sylvia Vetta, Sculpting the Elephant
Anita Mathias is an is an accomplished writer. Merryn Williams, Six Women Novelists
Writing a memoir awakens fierce memories of the pa Writing a memoir awakens fierce memories of the past. For the past is not dead; it’s not even past, as William Faulkner observed. So what does one do with this undead past? Forgive. Forgive, huh? Forgive. Let it go. Again and again.
Some thoughts on writing a memoir, and the prologue to my memoir
https://anitamathias.com/2022/09/08/thoughts-on-writing-a-memoir-the-prologue-to-rosaries-reading-secrets/ 
#memoir #amwriting #forgiveness https://amzn.to/3B82CDo
Six months ago, Roy and I decided that finishing t Six months ago, Roy and I decided that finishing the memoir was to be like “the treasure in the field,” that Jesus talks about in the Gospels, which you sacrifice everything to buy. (Though of course, he talks about an intimate relationship with God, not finishing a book!!) Anyway, I’ve stayed off social media for months… but I’ve always greatly enjoyed social media (in great moderation) and it’s lovely to be back with the book now done  https://amzn.to/3eoRMRN  So, our family news: Our daughter Zoe is training for ministry as a priest in the Church of England, at Ridley Hall, Cambridge. She is “an ordinand.” In her second year. However, she has recently been one of the 30 ordinands accepted to work on an M.Phil programme (fully funded by the Church of England.) She will be comparing churches which are involved in community organizing with churches which are not, and will trace the impact of community organizing on the faith of congregants.  She’ll be ordained in ’24, God willing.
Irene is in her final year of Medicine at Oxford University; she will be going to Toronto for her elective clinical work experience, and will graduate as a doctor in June ‘23, God willing.
And we had a wonderful family holiday in Ireland in July, though that already feels like a long time ago!
https://anitamathias.com/2022/09/01/rosaries-readi https://anitamathias.com/2022/09/01/rosaries-reading-secrets-a-catholic-childhood-in-india-my-new-memoir/
Friends, some stellar reviews from distinguished writers, and a detailed description here!!
https://amzn.to/3wMiSJ3 Friends, I’ve written a https://amzn.to/3wMiSJ3  Friends, I’ve written a memoir of my turbulent Catholic childhood in India. I would be grateful for your support!
Load More… Follow on Instagram

© 2022 Dreaming Beneath the Spires · All Rights Reserved. · Cookie Policy · Privacy Policy

»
«