January 2021..

Press Forward, Now!

Just before Christmas we finally heard the news we’d been waiting for...

We were confident it was coming. God had been doing unexpected things in the last 12 months:

1. First, totally out of the blue, a group granted us £20,000 specifically to upgrade our live broadcast studio, which hasn’t been done since the 1980’s!


2. Then, also unexpectedly, Ofcom contacted us to ask if we wanted to improve our FM radio coverage. Absolutely! We applied, and several months later we received amazing news:
   
   
   1. We could DOUBLE the power of our existing transmitter!
      
   
   
   2. We could set up a SECOND transmitter to improve our coverage to the south of the city AND to the neighbouring town of Newcastle-under-Lyme, increasing our potential reach and impact to 300,000 people!
      
   
   
   3. And, Ofcom had already cleared a SECOND FM frequency for us to use on that transmitter, 96.6FM.

God says He knows the plans He has to give us a ‘hope and a future’. It seems like God was actually pushing through some of those plans that we hadn’t a clue about, but He sees them and wants to position us for that future! However, we also knew we couldn’t go ahead presumptuously and commit money to implementing these projects until we’d heard that one final piece of news…

That news should have come through by September 31st, three months before the end of the year.

In late October we chased Ofcom. They replied...“sincere apologies for the amount of time it’s taken”. Mid November, still no news. We chased again…“apologies for the continued delay”. Again, early December… “very sorry for the impact our delayed confirmation is having”.

Finally, December 11th, just 20 days before our current FM radio licence was due to expire, we received the news we’d been waiting for: “Following your application for the extension of licence CR003 for the service Cross Rhythms City Radio, I can confirm we have...extended the licence for a further 5 years.”

Wow! Did you know Cross Rhythms City is the longest running Community Radio station in the country, and this latest renewal will enable us to hold a continuous voice, and Christian witness, on FM radio for more than 23 years!

All glory to God! But even more important than this is knowing that God is leading us today, and something else happened that Friday 11th that really confirmed God was ordering our steps...

Back in September the government had announced the launch of Kickstart: a scheme paying all costs for businesses to employ young people, aged 16-24, for 6 months. It’s a great opportunity to expand the effectiveness of all we do and invest into many young lives. So our plan is to offer jobs for up to 16 young people (8 in FM Radio and 8 in xRhythms), in video production, radio presenting and production, blogging, vlogging, music journalism and social media! Do you know anyone who may be interested? Do let them know!

Anyway, we were quick to register our interest and believed this process would get started in October. But by the end of October, still no news. Further delay! End of November, still no news.

Then that same morning, Friday December 11th, within one hour of the Ofcom confirmation, the DWP emailed: “I am pleased to say that your business is one of those that has been approved.”

What a day of confirmation! And a day of real release into our next season! God says He sets the times and boundaries for our lives. He decided when we would be released to press forward in establishing these huge projects. And that time is NOW!

We may be under lockdown; the CR team may be working from home; there’s Coronavirus, vaccines, furloughed jobs, closed shops and schools; and these dominate most people’s lives. BUT, at this time, God says to us “Now I am releasing you to press forward into a new season. Now I am empowering you to double your power, double your transmitters and double your frequencies. To increase your reach, expand your work, invest into more young people and increase your voice for Me”.

And why? For people! People who are worried, in need or don’t know where to turn. People who are searching and more open to God than they have been for a long time.

People like Emma, a recent intern at Cross Rhythms, and yet to find God, who wrote in her leaving testimonial: “When I was in school I was into listening to the radio but all the mainstream music just wasn’t doing it for me. I really didn’t like music that talks about clubbing, falling in love, sleeping with someone etc. But my radio had tuned to 101.8fm and I heard bands that sung about mental health, being kind and discovering themselves. I found some of my favourite bands that I still listen to, to this day, through Cross Rhythms, and knowing I could work for them, even for a short while, was almost like a thank you for giving me something I needed years ago.”

And so, I’m writing to you now just days into a new year, days into lockdown, days into a wonderful new 5 year licence, a few days from flicking the switch to DOUBLE the power of this precious Christian voice across our city, and on the cusp of offering jobs to 16 young people . We’re going forward NOW! And we invite you to go with us through your support today!

If you would like to invest a one off gift or become a regular donor, at this time when we are being called to expand, then please do so here or call us on +44 (0)1782 251000. Thank you!