Revd. Martin Dale

Retired and living in the Diocese of Lincoln
South Witham, Grantham , Lincolnshire NG33 5SL
+44 - 1572-767843

• Education: 1968-1972 Charterhouse 1973-1976 University of London, Chelsea College 1999-2001 Wycliffe Hall, University of Oxford
• Experience: 1976 BSc. in Chemistry 1981 European Patent Attorney 1982 Chartered Patent Agent 1980-1994,Patent Attorney in Sandoz Patent Department in Basel, Switzerland 1994-1999 Head of the Group Patent Department of Reckitt and Colman 2001-2003 Curate in the Stiffkey-Bale Benefice and Briningham Association; 2004-2007 Priest in Charge in the Benefice of New Romney and Dymchurch (8 parishes) 2007-2010 Priest in Charge of the South West Framland Benefice (15 parishes!!) 2010-2022 Vicar of the East Marshland Benefice
• Comment to those looking at my sermons: Please pray before reading any of them to see if the Lord is speaking to you from what I have written. If so, give Him the glory - and do it!! If you have any comments that could constructively add to what I have said, please e-mail me at mndale@aol.com. It is a great encouragement when I hear from people.
• Sermon or series that made a difference: Series on Abraham Prayer (based on Richard Foster’s book on Prayer)
• One of my favorite illustrations: One day Bill Morris went out hunting in the woods just outside Prince George in British Columbia, Canada. It had been a slow day and he hadn’t found any game to shoot. Suddenly, he heard a noise behind him. He whirled around and saw two ferocious looking bears coming towards him. He quickly raised his rifle to his shoulder, took aim and pulled the trigger. Click. Nothing - the rifle misfired. He reloaded and fired again Click… click… click. Again, nothing - the gun just wasn’t working. By this time, the bears were almost on top of him. In desperation, he threw down his rifle and ran. But the faster he ran, the closer the bears got. Finally Bill came to the edge of a cliff. As there was nowhere to go, he dropped to his knees and began to pray. “O Lord, I pray that you make these bears Christian bears.” As Bill looked up, he was surprised to see the bears kneeling just a few feet away from him. And as he listened, he heard one bear pray; “For what we are about to receive, may the Good Lord make us truly thankful. Amen”
• Family: Wife Maddy Children Jonny, Chris and Jeremy
• What my parents think of my sermons: Sadly they (Arthur and Ludmilla Dale) have both died and never heard my sermons
• What my spouse (really) thinks of my sermons: This is an apocryphal story When we were moving house from Tilney St Lawrence after 12 years, we were taking the bedroom apart. Under the bed I found two baskets. One with three eggs in and the other with £100. I asked Maddy what were the tree eggs for. She smiled and said For every bad sermon I put an egg in the basket. I felt quite good. Three bad sermons in twelve years,. I started to feel happy. Then I asked. And what are the £100 for? She gave me a smile as only Vicar's wives can give she said. "Every time I got a dozen eggs I sold them!"
• Best advice given to me about preaching: 1. Ask the Lord what you feel he wants you to say in your sermon. 2. Write it down in a single sentence. 3. Once you have written the sermon ask yourself if each new idea or story in your sermon illuminates the point - or if it leads down a rabbit warren. If the latter - delete ruthlessly. Perhaps the mistranslation of 1 Cor. 13:1 (KJV) might not be so wide of the mark as one might think: "Though I speak with the tongues of men and of angels but have not CLARITY, I am become as sounding
• Books that have had an impact: Christian Leaders of the 18th Century - JC Ryle Happiest People on Earth - Demos Shakharian The Heavenly Man - Brother Yun
• Hobbies: A Bernese Mountain dog! We have had three Bari, Teddy and now Hudson who is Teddy's nephew
• If I could Preach one more time, I would say...: We are here for the Great Commission (Mt 28:16-20)
• Something funny that happened while preaching: When preaching in St. Michael’s Catwick, a bird threatened to dive-bomb me!
• What I want on my tombstone: That his ambition in life was to be a faithful minister of the Lord Jesus Christ