KJ Pugh and his wife, Lynn, have been drawn to England for years, but it wasn’t until the couple visited the United Kingdom (UK) in 2011 to celebrate their seventh wedding anniversary that they began feeling called to serve there. While on their vacation, Lynn told KJ she felt God’s call for their lives right there in England.
“I told her, ‘Maybe that will happen in our golden years,’ but she said that wouldn’t be soon enough,” KJ recalled. “Over the course of the next two years, one thing led to another and the door opened for us to go to North Yorkshire.”
KJ currently serves as associate pastor of education and missions for Open Door Baptist Church, Tuscaloosa (where his father, Keith Pugh, is pastor), but he has felt called to overseas missions for much of his life.
Now the Pugh family — KJ, Lynn, their daughter (Ella, age 8) and son (James, age 4) — is preparing to move “across the pond” to serve at Grace Church in the community of Boroughbridge. The church was planted in 2012 and is the only evangelical church within 150 square miles and currently has 25 members (10 adults and 15 children).
The current pastor of Grace Church, Del de la Hoyde, has felt a calling to move to France to minister to people there. The hope is that KJ will come to the church and work alongside de la Hoyde for a year and then KJ will transition into the pastor role.
De la Hoyde said, “In December of last year, we began to look and pray for someone who would be able not only to replace me as leader but also to take the work further and see churches planted all across the beautiful, needy county of North Yorkshire.
“On the very day that I was sending out emails to all the UK pastors I knew asking for their help and prayer in this, an email came in to our office from a certain KJ Pugh inquiring as to whether there were any openings for church-planting within The Crowded House network at the time, and particularly in North Yorkshire. Encouraged by God’s providence and by the tone and content of KJ’s (resumé), we got in touch, and it’s been a joy to see the Lord at work in this ever since.”
KJ said he and his family cannot wait to make the move and officially begin work with Grace Church. He knows there will be cultural roadblocks to overcome but said he already feels such a connection with the tight-knit congregation.
“I already feel like we’re lifelong friends with Del and his family, and we feel loved by the other church members too,” KJ said. “Grace Church has a big emphasis on close community and life-on-life missions (relational missions). It’s entirely the culture of the church that made us feel so close right away.”
Financial decisions
Before the Pughs can officially move to England, they have to sell their home, sell most of their belongings and complete the visa process. KJ hopes they will have all those tasks completed by September or October.
“It’s going to be huge to sell everything and start over, and it’s not the best financial decision, but Jesus is worth [it],” he said. “It’s going to be a big deal to start again once we get there.”
To learn more about the Pughs’ upcoming missions journey and how you can be a part of their experience, visit www.yorkshirebound.com.
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