The holiday of a lifetime!

Jo Cox of the Aspire team introduces Sarah Court, a member of the Lighthouse Manchester with an amazing testimony of God’s grace.

As a child, more than 40 years ago I had a calling from God, a purpose and a destiny for my life, to provide a safe space for children where they can experience the love of Jesus. Now, as a former primary teacher, children and families worker, I have spent my life fulfilling this calling.

However, as I got older I knew there was more God wanted me to do. Specifically, this has developed into sharing Jesus on affordable, structured, family holidays.

With approximately 2.2 million families with dependent children in this country unable to afford an annual holiday and only six per cent of our nation professing to be practising Christians, the need and opportunity to develop this calling is massive.

In October 2019 God called me out of my paid work to dream again with him, and further my calling to pioneer Jubilee Holidays. To train and prepare I was delighted to be accepted on ‘The Lions’ Christian course for pioneers and entrepreneurs which taught foundational skills and inspired me to completely trust Jesus with the future.

However, having faith to step into the calling of God on our lives is not easy when we feel ill-equipped to overcome the many challenges we might face along the way.

On 11 August 2022, a year before the pilot holiday, my journal entry was: “Jesus, it’s hard. This place of wrestling in my mind with – nothing. I’m in the desert. Right at this minute it’s dry and everywhere I look it’s hot, dry, hard, and cracked. All the situations I find myself in, there doesn’t seem a way. I get worn out thinking it all through and then I come face-to-face with the stark, harsh reality that it’s impossible.”

With faith and faith alone, I kept pressing forward in prayer spurred on by Isaiah 43:16-21: “This is what the Lord says… I am doing a new thing. Now it springs up, do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the wilderness and streams in the wasteland to give drink to my people that they might proclaim my praise.” I was drenched, ironically, in the desert of the unknown. I surrendered everything to Jesus and he miraculously began to open doors that nobody else could. On 14 August 2023 Jubilee Holidays was birthed at the Jonas Centre in North Yorkshire.

Today, Jubilee Holidays is a registered charity with an amazing team of trustees. And excitingly we have two holidays fully booked for 20 families supported by a small army of volunteers with a whole range of gifts. Through the overwhelming generosity of Lighthouse Church Manchester, Peoples Church Partington and individuals who sacrificed their own income, Jesus has provided in abundance to make Jubilee Holidays happen.

As a charity we are believing in faith for many more Jubilee Holidays across the UK and for revival in every family as they have a great time and encounter the love of Jesus to make great memories that will last forever.

This article first appeared in Direction Magazine. For further details, please click here.

For more information visit jubileeholidays.co.uk.