A Christian couple have shared how the coronavirus pandemic has not deterred them from their plans to plant a church in the city of Belfast.
Northern Ireland born Kenny and Nicola McCoosh have spent the last 12 years in Brighton, but say they have always felt a clear call from God to return home and share the gospel.
The pair currently attend Emmanuel church, Brighton which has a history of training up leaders to go and plant churches and has established congregations in Germany, the Netherlands, Poland and Canada.
Together with their two daughters, the McCoosh's plan to relocate to Belfast at the end of May to start a new church.
They told Premier that although they have faced some challenges with selling their house and finding new work and accommodation, they felt it was right for them to go ahead as planned and booked their travel by ferry in faith that God was with them.
Kenny explained that he has found comfort in the Bible: "It's been a real wobble, I gotta be honest, but I've taken great strength reading through Hebrews, that we do not belong to those who shrink back and are destroyed but to those who have faith."
"When we hear about the lost in Northern Ireland our hearts melt. People need to hear about Jesus. There's nothing more infectious than the love of Jesus, and we want to go over there and spread that news.
"We're going to step out in faith and still go for it. The call doesn't change. Jesus' great commission doesn't shrink back in this time. When you read through the Bible, and you see crisis after crisis, God is faithful. God breaks through and we're excited to see him break through there."
The McCoosh's had run into some trouble with their timeframe after the sale of their house was put on hold due to the coronavirus lockdown. On Wednesday, as the government eased measures across England to allow estate agents along with some other businesses to reopen their doors, the McCoosh's received confirmation that their exchange would now be going ahead.
"It's been a real answer to prayer, it has honestly just been miraculous. We've heard of so many people who were, understandably, pulling out of buying houses with all the uncertainty - so we just felt this was God's hand of provision in that," Nicola said.
"We booked the dates for when we're going to go, and we didn't know if it was going to sell or not. And on Wednesday we were told it's sold! So we're really excited and just grateful for God's provision and faithfulness," Kenny added.
The pair have yet to find a place to buy in Northern Ireland and have encouraged Christians to pray for them for financial provision, a strong team of leaders and for revival across Ireland.
You can find out more about the McCoosh's church plant here.
Listen to the full interview with Premier's Heather Preston:
