0:00:02 > 0:00:04Hello and welcome to Songs Of Praise.
0:00:04 > 0:00:07Today, I've come to a place where people come to escape
0:00:07 > 0:00:09and where dreams can come true.
0:00:14 > 0:00:17Get the picture? I'm in Brighton.
0:00:19 > 0:00:20I don't look like that.
0:00:21 > 0:00:25Coming up, the artist's studio that guarantees you a brush with faith.
0:00:25 > 0:00:29And the high-flyer who changed course following a chance encounter.
0:00:29 > 0:00:32Plus music from Brighton-based artists Stuart Townend,
0:00:32 > 0:00:35Lou Fellingham and Phatfish.
0:00:45 > 0:00:50In the late 1700s, the Prince of Wales, later King George IV,
0:00:50 > 0:00:52made Brighton his second home, and what a home!
0:00:54 > 0:00:58He transformed a simple farmhouse into a magnificent royal palace,
0:00:58 > 0:01:01housing works of art and fine furniture.
0:01:03 > 0:01:06And so, in the 1800s,
0:01:06 > 0:01:09Brighton came to be known as a fashionable and stylish holiday resort.
0:01:09 > 0:01:12And it's just as popular today.
0:01:16 > 0:01:18It's known for its historic seafront, its pier
0:01:18 > 0:01:20and this lovely beach,
0:01:20 > 0:01:23which offers a little bit of heaven on a summer's day.
0:01:23 > 0:01:24Now, if you don't mind...
0:01:26 > 0:01:29For the more energetic and adventurous,
0:01:29 > 0:01:33there are plenty of ways to let off steam and get a bird's-eye view.
0:01:36 > 0:01:38HE SCREAMS
0:01:46 > 0:01:48Our music comes from Church of Christ The King,
0:01:48 > 0:01:52the home church of modern hymn-writer and worship leader Stuart Townend.
0:01:52 > 0:01:54And we begin with one of his new songs,
0:01:54 > 0:01:56written with Keith and Kristyn Getty.
0:01:56 > 0:01:59It's Come, People Of The Risen King.
0:06:05 > 0:06:09Brighton's seafront inspires many artists to pick up a paintbrush.
0:06:11 > 0:06:13Among them, Daniel Laurence,
0:06:13 > 0:06:16who works from his studio on the prom.
0:06:16 > 0:06:18It's a great location to work.
0:06:18 > 0:06:22We've got the beach here, the sky, the clouds.
0:06:22 > 0:06:27At one point, I moved away. I moved further inland.
0:06:27 > 0:06:28And I really missed the sea.
0:06:29 > 0:06:31I went to university in Sheffield
0:06:31 > 0:06:34and, within two weeks, transferred back to Brighton,
0:06:34 > 0:06:36because I'd missed the sea so much.
0:06:40 > 0:06:43My paintings - they're mainly ocean-orientated.
0:06:43 > 0:06:45So underwater scenes, lots of shoaling fish.
0:06:47 > 0:06:49All my work is about creation.
0:06:53 > 0:06:56My faith completely inspires my work.
0:07:01 > 0:07:03Is this whole thing a vocation?
0:07:03 > 0:07:06It is a vocation, it's my hobby.
0:07:06 > 0:07:09It's, sort of, many things rolled into one.
0:07:09 > 0:07:12It is my job, so a lot of the time I take it for granted.
0:07:12 > 0:07:16I have to sort of remind myself that, you know, I'm doing something I love.
0:07:19 > 0:07:25Also, to me, an opportunity where I can spread the good news.
0:07:25 > 0:07:29That's why I like to sort of try and dot the Scriptures around.
0:07:29 > 0:07:32I have Scriptures on the back of my business cards,
0:07:32 > 0:07:33I have them on the fish tank.
0:07:33 > 0:07:36So it always makes reference to God's goodness,
0:07:36 > 0:07:38the way he's guided me throughout my life,
0:07:38 > 0:07:42and I try to sort of pass that on through my work.
0:07:42 > 0:07:45It's almost like a mini church on the beachfront.
0:07:45 > 0:07:48I do pray that this would be, you know,
0:07:48 > 0:07:51this is the Lord's house, you know, that he blessed me with this.
0:07:51 > 0:07:54So people always wander in here,
0:07:54 > 0:07:57and I really feel that this is God's place
0:07:57 > 0:07:58and I want to share it with everyone.
0:07:58 > 0:08:02You have parents reading the verse from Genesis,
0:08:02 > 0:08:05"God said, 'Let the waters teem with living creatures.' "
0:08:05 > 0:08:08You have parents reading that out to their children.
0:08:08 > 0:08:11"The Lord is my rock." Psalm 18. You know, people would be looking at the clocks
0:08:11 > 0:08:13and, all of a sudden, spot that Scripture.
0:08:16 > 0:08:19I want my work to appeal but, at the same time,
0:08:19 > 0:08:22most definitely, it's to glorify God
0:08:22 > 0:08:27and to try and capture a bit of his creation in the pictures.
0:12:32 > 0:12:35Laura Westley spends her time guiding people safely to land,
0:12:35 > 0:12:39but she's always had her head in the clouds.
0:12:39 > 0:12:41As long as I can remember, I've wanted to fly.
0:12:41 > 0:12:44It's just always been magical, something different.
0:12:44 > 0:12:46I just remember being totally amazed
0:12:46 > 0:12:48by these things that stayed up on the sky
0:12:48 > 0:12:49and didn't come back down again.
0:12:52 > 0:12:54When it came to choosing a career,
0:12:54 > 0:12:57there was only one direction for Laura - that's up.
0:12:59 > 0:13:01It was just a dream come true -
0:13:01 > 0:13:05it was just a fulfilment of 15 years of real dedication to get it done.
0:13:05 > 0:13:07I think I actually sold my flat
0:13:07 > 0:13:10to pay for my commercial flying lessons.
0:13:10 > 0:13:14And that was just, I really just felt there was a calling there.
0:13:14 > 0:13:15That was it. That was...
0:13:15 > 0:13:17I was just never... I was never going to go.
0:13:17 > 0:13:22Once qualified, Laura didn't become a commercial pilot.
0:13:22 > 0:13:26She began work with the charity Mission Aviation Fellowship.
0:13:26 > 0:13:29Its motto is "flying for life".
0:13:29 > 0:13:33We fly into the most remote, inaccessible parts of the world.
0:13:33 > 0:13:36And we take in whatever needs taking in and take out whatever needs taking out.
0:13:36 > 0:13:40It could be evangelists, could be day-old chicks, it could be Bibles,
0:13:40 > 0:13:42it can be medical personnel.
0:13:42 > 0:13:45And we work in some of the most remote and inhospitable parts of the world.
0:13:45 > 0:13:49It's just an organisation that reaches the unreachable.
0:13:49 > 0:13:51It was founded by Christians
0:13:51 > 0:13:54and we have a very strong Christian ethos behind it -
0:13:54 > 0:13:57we believe that we can share God's love in a practical way.
0:14:04 > 0:14:08We get to express our faith in not evangelical terms, we don't preach.
0:14:08 > 0:14:10We think that we just show God's love
0:14:10 > 0:14:13through the things that we... People that we take.
0:14:13 > 0:14:16And when I fly, I realise every bum on a seat behind me
0:14:16 > 0:14:18is an answer to someone's prayer on the ground.
0:14:20 > 0:14:22I remember one time we went to a refugee camp
0:14:22 > 0:14:27and a lady came over and her child was really, really ill with malaria.
0:14:27 > 0:14:28And I'm not a doctor,
0:14:28 > 0:14:33I don't carry antimalarials or anything to cure malaria with.
0:14:33 > 0:14:36And all we could do for her was pray
0:14:36 > 0:14:40and I have to confess I felt really impotent, in a way.
0:14:40 > 0:14:42We, as Christians, we believe that we can pray to God
0:14:42 > 0:14:44and he'll answer our prayers.
0:14:44 > 0:14:47And... But, in reality, we often take our kids to the doctor
0:14:47 > 0:14:48as soon as they get a temperature.
0:14:48 > 0:14:51Whereas this woman, her faith was all she had
0:14:51 > 0:14:52and that really struck me
0:14:52 > 0:14:56and these people live their faith day in, day out.
0:14:56 > 0:14:59That's really incredible to witness.
0:15:01 > 0:15:04Well, in a moment, we'll discover how Laura's experiences in Africa
0:15:04 > 0:15:08had more of an impact on her life than she ever expected.
0:15:13 > 0:15:16# Life's not always as it seems
0:15:16 > 0:15:19# A different route from A to B
0:15:19 > 0:15:24# As the plant, it may come tumbling down
0:15:26 > 0:15:29# When you're questioning the why
0:15:29 > 0:15:32# And it's hard to see the light
0:15:32 > 0:15:38# And you're praying for the wind to change
0:15:40 > 0:15:42# And though the pain is strong
0:15:42 > 0:15:46# And it's hard to carry on
0:15:46 > 0:15:48# I know that this is true
0:15:48 > 0:15:52# My God cares for you
0:15:52 > 0:15:55# All hope has disappeared
0:15:55 > 0:15:58# And you're running out of tears
0:15:58 > 0:16:01# I can tell you he is here
0:16:01 > 0:16:04# My God cares for you
0:16:04 > 0:16:07# Oh, yes, he cares for you
0:16:16 > 0:16:20# Oh, oh
0:16:23 > 0:16:26# When no answers can be found
0:16:26 > 0:16:30# As the waves come crashing round
0:16:30 > 0:16:36# And you find you're driven to your knees
0:16:36 > 0:16:39# When you're overwhelmed with fear
0:16:39 > 0:16:43# And it feels like it's been years
0:16:43 > 0:16:48# You've been asking God, "Please rescue me"
0:16:50 > 0:16:52# And though the pain is strong
0:16:52 > 0:16:56# And it's hard to carry on
0:16:56 > 0:16:58# I know that this is true
0:16:58 > 0:17:01# My God cares for you
0:17:02 > 0:17:05# All hope has disappeared
0:17:05 > 0:17:08# And you're running out of tears
0:17:08 > 0:17:11# I can tell you he is here
0:17:11 > 0:17:14# My God cares for you
0:17:14 > 0:17:18# Oh, yes, he cares for you
0:17:21 > 0:17:23# But don't you know
0:17:23 > 0:17:27# That his arms are strong enough to carry you
0:17:27 > 0:17:29# Lift you up
0:17:29 > 0:17:34# In the safety of his love
0:17:34 > 0:17:35# Just hold on
0:17:35 > 0:17:37# He will come
0:17:37 > 0:17:40# The Lord, our God, will comfort you
0:17:40 > 0:17:48# Give you strength enough to see you through the storm
0:17:50 > 0:17:53# And though the pain is strong
0:17:53 > 0:17:56# And it's hard to carry on
0:17:56 > 0:17:59# I know that this is true
0:17:59 > 0:18:02# My God cares for you
0:18:02 > 0:18:06# All hope has disappeared
0:18:06 > 0:18:09# And you're running out of tears
0:18:09 > 0:18:12# I can tell you he is here
0:18:12 > 0:18:15# My God cares for you
0:18:15 > 0:18:19# Oh, yes, he cares for you
0:18:28 > 0:18:30# Oh, oh-oh-oh. #
0:18:45 > 0:18:50Laura isn't the only pilot in the family. Her husband Mike also flies.
0:18:50 > 0:18:52We joined MAF as a couple
0:18:52 > 0:18:56and we were known as the BOGOF couple - the buy one, get one free.
0:18:56 > 0:18:58We spent the first 12 months in Uganda, both flying.
0:18:58 > 0:19:00It was pretty awesome.
0:19:03 > 0:19:06If there's one thing that stands out for me about working with MAF
0:19:06 > 0:19:11it's the two wonderful kids that Mike and I have been blessed with.
0:19:11 > 0:19:15We'd never thought about adopting before.
0:19:15 > 0:19:17We'd made the decision that I wasn't going to have...
0:19:17 > 0:19:19We weren't going to have any children
0:19:19 > 0:19:20cos of the work that we were doing.
0:19:23 > 0:19:25It was just...God's hand, I guess.
0:19:27 > 0:19:31Mike was flying in Tanzania and I was at a church in Kampala.
0:19:31 > 0:19:34And the pastor asked me if I would take the youth group
0:19:34 > 0:19:36down to the Sanyu Babies Home.
0:19:37 > 0:19:39There were around 40 children
0:19:39 > 0:19:41and the lady spoke to me and said,
0:19:41 > 0:19:44"Would you consider adopting?" and I said, "No."
0:19:44 > 0:19:47And she said, "You go and pray about it."
0:19:47 > 0:19:49I spoke with Mike when he came back from Tanzania
0:19:49 > 0:19:52and we just knew it was right,
0:19:52 > 0:19:56we just knew it was what God had for us.
0:19:56 > 0:19:58And we went back to Sanyu
0:19:58 > 0:20:02and...we didn't feel we could choose a child.
0:20:02 > 0:20:06We just asked the lady in charge, a devout Christian lady called Mama Joyce,
0:20:06 > 0:20:08and said, "You know the kids, you've loved them,
0:20:08 > 0:20:10"you've cared for them since they came,
0:20:10 > 0:20:13"and you know what they need,
0:20:13 > 0:20:14"so we'll just pray with you
0:20:14 > 0:20:18"and just trust God to find, you know, the right match."
0:20:21 > 0:20:23It's been a journey.
0:20:23 > 0:20:25It's been an adventure.
0:20:26 > 0:20:27They're amazing.
0:20:27 > 0:20:30It's just opened my eyes to parenthood
0:20:30 > 0:20:33in a totally different perspective.
0:20:33 > 0:20:36I suppose being a parent does that, I guess.
0:20:38 > 0:20:42Sometimes, you trip up on something that looks like a rock
0:20:42 > 0:20:44and open up the rock and there's this crystal inside,
0:20:44 > 0:20:47and there were these two little crystals that were just there.
0:20:47 > 0:20:50I don't know - it was this feeling of overwhelming love for them.
0:20:50 > 0:20:54It was just an incredible feeling to know
0:20:54 > 0:20:57that God was going to give us these two beautiful kids.
0:24:12 > 0:24:16Bob Hutchins has been tuning pianos for the past 40 years.
0:24:16 > 0:24:18He's partially sighted.
0:24:22 > 0:24:28When I left school, I didn't really know what to do with my life.
0:24:28 > 0:24:33And a piano tuner had recently been to the school and I said,
0:24:33 > 0:24:35"What's this job like?"
0:24:35 > 0:24:38I think he was having a bad day, he said, "Oh, it's all right."
0:24:38 > 0:24:42I didn't know what else to do, so I got offered a college place
0:24:42 > 0:24:46to learn to tune pianos and it's been the best thing I ever did.
0:24:47 > 0:24:52I try to get the best I can out of each instrument,
0:24:52 > 0:24:54but I'm there for the customer
0:24:54 > 0:24:59and I always look to be of comfort and help to them as individuals,
0:24:59 > 0:25:02as well as just doing the work.
0:25:06 > 0:25:10Being partially sighted doesn't seem to have stopped you that much.
0:25:10 > 0:25:12The only thing that I can't do is drive.
0:25:12 > 0:25:15I've even flown a plane.
0:25:15 > 0:25:17- It was a 50th birthday present from my wife.- A-ha.
0:25:17 > 0:25:20- There was a pilot in the plane as well.- Right.
0:25:20 > 0:25:23But I actually held the controls for a little while,
0:25:23 > 0:25:26so I've done pretty well everything that I would have wanted to in life.
0:25:30 > 0:25:33Do you pray that God may heal you one day?
0:25:33 > 0:25:35We've prayed that many times.
0:25:35 > 0:25:40It would be lovely to see really well.
0:25:40 > 0:25:44My wife and I are regularly praying
0:25:44 > 0:25:46on the streets of Brighton & Hove
0:25:46 > 0:25:49for people that are sick and expecting God to heal them,
0:25:49 > 0:25:53because Jesus asked us to go out, preach the Gospel,
0:25:53 > 0:25:56lay hands on the sick and pray for them.
0:25:56 > 0:25:59The fact that I haven't been healed as of yet
0:25:59 > 0:26:03doesn't stop me going out and sharing God's love.
0:26:03 > 0:26:08There's absolutely no hardness in my heart towards God.
0:26:08 > 0:26:12I'm really glad I've had the life that I've had.
0:26:12 > 0:26:14I wouldn't have changed it for anything.
0:29:29 > 0:29:31Well, in a moment, Stuart Townend and his band
0:29:31 > 0:29:34will lead the congregation in our final piece of music.
0:29:34 > 0:29:37It's a new take on a much-loved hymn.
0:29:37 > 0:29:39And now, thanks to Laura, Daniel and Bob
0:29:39 > 0:29:41for sharing their stories about the decisions
0:29:41 > 0:29:45that have shaped their lives and made them who they are today.
0:29:49 > 0:29:53Loving God, we thank you for giving us talents and skills
0:29:53 > 0:29:57and the fulfilment that working can bring.
0:29:58 > 0:30:01For the ability to bring help to others,
0:30:01 > 0:30:03whether they live close by or far away,
0:30:03 > 0:30:06whether they are neighbours or strangers.
0:30:06 > 0:30:10Thank you for inspiring us with the immense beauty of your creation.
0:30:10 > 0:30:13May we use our gifts in your service.
0:30:13 > 0:30:14Amen.
0:33:25 > 0:33:29Next week, Russell Watson will be in his native city of Salford.
0:33:29 > 0:33:34He'll be meeting people along its 30 miles of waterways.
0:33:34 > 0:33:37And there'll be hymns from St Peter's Church, in Swinton.
0:33:53 > 0:33:57Subtitles for the deaf and hard-of-hearing by Red Bee Media Ltd