Josh McCance has been a community outreach worker in Donabate Presbyterian Church, County Dublin since 2016. 

Josh works in the towns of Donabate and Balbriggan. In Donabate his role is focused on outreach to the community and equipping Christians to reach out to their friends and neighbours. He also leads the youth ministry in Donabate and is training leaders to make this self-sustainable in the near future.

In Balbriggan he is trying to create a missional community, discipling local Christians and helping them to reach out to the area. He is seeking to provide ways for the church to meet needs in the community and share the good news of Jesus.

“It has been really exciting to serve in Donabate and Balbriggan over the last few years,” says Josh. “My role is all about building relationships with people and encouraging them in their faith or challenging them to consider the gospel. It has been amazing to see God bring together a group of Christians in Balbriggan as well as bring people to faith for the first time. We are praying that this community will continue to develop as we move toward launching a service in this town in the coming months.”

Josh lives in Balbriggan with his wife Kathryn. He grew up in Hamilton Road Presbyterian Church in Bangor and became a Christian through the youth ministry there. Before he started this role, he studied theology for three years in Union Theological College and worked in a coffee shop in Belfast.

Prayer Points

• Pray for Christians in Donabate as they seek to become better equipped and more involved in reaching others for Christ. 
• Give thanks for the developments in Balbriggan and the small and growing Christian community there.
• Pray for the congregation of Donabate, one of the newest PCI congregations. 
• Pray for wisdom and guidance for Josh as he serves in Donabate and Balbriggan.

Latest Report – April 2024 

A diverse church family

The Lord has taught us many things recently. We've read through the story of Joseph in Genesis, then turned our attention to Jesus' Sermon on the Mount in Matthew and now we're learning about the story of Ruth. In all the places we've been in the Bible this year, we have been struck by the way God has shaped history for his glory. We are thousands of kilometres and years away from Egypt, Moab or Galilee here in Balbriggan, but these stories have reminded us about God's plans and the ultimate King, redeemer and rescuer: the Lord Jesus.

Like everywhere, Balbriggan needs Jesus. A town where many people are new to the country, a town with the youngest population in Ireland and a lot of needs.

Our church family is hugely diverse. More than 25 nationalities are represented. It's a cliche to say, but we never cease to wonder at the way we have become a family despite being from different sides of the planet. It's through the gospel of Jesus that this is possible. 

Our week is quite simple: we meet for worship on Sunday afternoons and a relaxed Bible study on weekend evenings. We try to make a habit of catching up with our church family throughout the week in coffee shops, play parks or homes. Thankfully we're all quite local to town so we're always bumping into our church family in Lidl or on the Main Street. 

We enjoyed hosting a kids' club in the summer, a picnic in October (yes really!), a Christmas carol service, international potluck and some family Easter events in March.

We thank God that he has grown and sustained us in Balbriggan for four years of weekly services. During this time, we have been particularly blessed by Christians moving to Balbriggan from different countries. Although they may be coming as nurses, English students, childcare workers and refugees, we see them as missionaries of Jesus to Ireland.

The flip side of this is that we feel their absence when they have to move on. Recently we just said goodbye to our Ukrainian families who have been relocated to another town.

We give thanks for the support and prayers of the wider Church, without which it wouldn't be possible for us to do what we do.    

Please pray:

• For our church family to grow in love for each other and that God would give us courage to constantly reach out to our neighbours and friends to share the good news of Jesus.
• For many of the lone parents and those who are the only believer in their family, that God would sustain and encourage them. Pray for breakthroughs of the Spirit in the lives of their families.
• For godly leaders to develop among us and that we would remain rooted in the gospel.

To download a printable PDF version of this report visit the Mission Reports listing at the top.