Throughout the history of this church since its birth in 1953 there have been many occasions of thankfulness to what God had done. However, although there is still much more work to be done and we pray continually for more of God, today the church has never been as healthy regarding its purpose and vision nor has it ever been as large numerically. The prayers of the members of the church and the longings of the Pastors over the many years are being answered in this time frame that we find ourselves in.
I am delighted that:
- The church has been journeying these last two years regarding whole-life discipleship. This is becoming embodied into the departments of the church. Whole-life discipleship is not only our vision but it is becoming the culture of this community.
- We have secured the building we have been renting and will very soon sign the contracts.
- The depth of relationships within leadership at all levels is proving to be a great example to others.
This church is poised for a whole new chapter of its life. We will carry from the last chapter God-moments and initiatives into a new season. There will be challenges ahead and a need for determined hard work and prayerful spirit. But you have heard me say many times over these last few years and it is true - we will become all that we can become. The key word and prayer focus will be our availability.
OUR
CHURCH VALUES
We understand core-values to be those elements of church life that we treasure, which hold us on course guiding our decisions and practice.
ENCOUNTER: That everyone has an on-going life-changing encounter with Jesus Christ, through the manifest presence of God dwelling amongst us, attracting continued growth.
EQUIPPING: That every member is released into faithful, joyful, fulfilling works of service so that the church continues to grow, being built in love.
Go to the ENDS OF THE WORLD: That the church releases what we have been given to those who don't have.
The purpose of these values is so that we
... a phrase we have adopted as our church motto since May 2005.
Mission/Purpose
To encounter God and equip people to serve others
Vision - where are we going?
To be an outward looking, community, missional church
Strategy - how will we get there?
Preaching/Teaching:
We will continue in the main to teach from Bible books as we have been doing through Acts. But we will also continue to teach doctrinally, on relevant issues, and in particular the Big 5: Conversion, Discipleship, Disciple-making, Community, and our Identity as Pentecostals and what this means for today.
House groups
These have become even more vital in the development of relationships and a family community. The purpose is not for a meeting where the leader leads and the member listens. Rather it is for disciples to gather for the strengthening of their discipleship. This at times will call for the studying of the Bible and also the vulnerable sharing of our lives in a prayerful atmosphere.
Pastoral
We believe that how we live our lives as a disciple outside of the church building is more important than inside. Who we are in work, in our marriages and families and in the neighbourhood is important for the credibility of the whole of the community. We will continue to lead by grace example but will seek to hold accountable members pastorally in the above areas.
Departments:
Each of the departments are directing all that they do to whole life discipleship of its members.
Members:
We are creating a book of stories that are told within house groups/services during the forthcoming 3 years of how whole-life discipleship has played a part in their lives. This will always be done with the prior consent of the individual concerned.
