A new command I give you: love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.
John 13.34-35
Watch the story of The Dock.
How well do you know your context? How could you listen and understand it better?
While they were there, the time came for the baby to be born, and she gave birth to her firstborn, a son. She wrapped him in cloths and placed him in a manger, because there was no guest room available for them.
Luke 2.6-7
Watch the story of Life Church.
Prepare to be do-ers as well as hearers of the Word and help those with no previous understanding of what it means to be church.
But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law. Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit.
Galatians 5.22-25
Watch the story of Cook @ Chapel.
Prayer is vital to a fresh expression. Pray for your community now.
For to us a child is born, to us a son is given and the government will be on his shoulders. And he will be called Wonderful Counsellor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.
Isaiah 9.6
Watch the story of Springfield Church.
If you see a door open to a new opportunity in your area, is there a temptation to replicate what you've done before?
The people walking in darkness have seen a great light; on those living in the land of deep darkness, a light has dawned.
Isaiah 9.2
Watch the story of Kahaila.
Where do people gather in your community? How can you best serve them there?
Judith Mbaabu explores whether names are important and what they say about us.
As a fresh expression of church, Hay Mills CC comes together to share fun, fellowship and worship in the name of Jesus. That all sounds great but what exactly am I talking about? To a non-church person, and especially to our members with learning disabilities, I guess it makes no sense at all!
In an attempt to become more 'accessible' to the people they serve, many Christian fellowships are choosing to adopt a different name – such as 'Community Church' – and replacing more traditional church terminology with language that everyone can understand.
I think the question we need to ask ourselves is, 'Does the name really matter?'
Once I would have said that only my first name mattered and my surname was of no significance. My Christian name was chosen especially for me. It wasn't inherited from my dad's family, and it wouldn't change if I married. It belonged to me – even though many thousands of others had the same first name.
Now, I would say that my surname does matter, because it identifies me in a way that is important to me. I am a white woman with a Kenyan surname. As a result, people make assumptions… Some have not been able to 'identify' me in a crowded room because they presumed that I would be a black woman with a name such as Mbaabu. The fact is that I chose to change my name after I married because it says so much about me. Keeping my English surname would have been easier here in the UK, but that is to deny something of who I have become.
So do clever names and the catchy labels we choose really make any difference as we seek to grow the Kingdom. Or are we confusing people and leaving them looking for, and expecting, the wrong thing? Are we denying something of who we really are in an attempt to be more acceptable to our local communities?
Let's look more closely at the name Hay Mills CC. Hay Mills is a closed church that the Congregational Federation has re-opened, and we needed to retain some of its previous identity but – at the same time – let the community know that something different was now happening.
So what to call our new church? Community Church, Congregational Community Church, Community Hub, Church Hub, Hay Mills fresh expression, Hay Mills Messy? Finally we agreed on Hay Mills CC, and people can decide for themselves what they think it stands for! Assuming of course, that it actually matters to them what we are called. It matters to us as we want to be clear and not mislead people into thinking we are something that we are not. But does it matter to those around us? At a recent gathering we asked everyone what they thought we should call ourselves. One lady immediately said, 'The church where we make friends'. It's not slick, doesn't roll off the tongue and wouldn't fit well on a letter head, but it says exactly what she felt at that moment.
Many of our friends at Hay Mills CC do not have a great grasp of language but they know when they are welcomed and loved. They also know when they feel at home and a part of something special. An individual who does not remember names well pointed to our Church Development Worker when they met on the street and shouted, 'Church! Church!'
We are Church. We are Congregational. We are Community. We are a fresh expression. Our name is the first thing many people hear about us and their assumptions matter. So let's be careful about names, but let's be honest. Just changing a name does not help us to reach out to more people if we fail to look closely at what we are offering when we actually meet with them.
Jesus said, 'I am the way, the truth, and the life' and that was enough. No clever labels, no pretending to be something he wasn't, no 'clever' name that didn't reflect the reality. He said clearly who he was, in words that people understood, and that was enough. Can that be said about us?
As it looks to the future, Fresh Expressions will focus increasingly on building a strong coalition of partners who will 'connect, equip and release' the work in their own settings and beyond. This is an evolution from a centralised core staff promoting fresh expressions of church, and reflects the huge progress made in this respect in recent years.
The vision is for a partnership of denominations, streams and agencies to continue to embed the values of Fresh Expressions in their own organisations and collaborate together in developing the work of supporting, encouraging and developing new forms of church.
Since Fresh Expressions began, in 2005, it has been served by a national core staff team. Through the work of Fresh Expressions, many denominations and mission agencies have increasingly adopted the principles and practices of fresh expressions of church and shared in the overall task. Consequently, the size of the core-funded team is now being scaled down while seconded posts will continue to increase. Following a consultation process, the following posts have been made redundant: Director of Communication and Resources (with effect from 30th November 2015), Senior Writer and Media Officer (with effect from 31st December 2015) and Resources Manager (with effect from 31st December 2015).
A new post of Director of Communications will be created providing a strategic lead to connect, equip and release the communication of Fresh Expressions.
Another new post of IT Services Officer will also be created to maintain the Fresh Expressions web presence and provide administrative computer systems services.
Archbishops' Missioner and team leader of Fresh Expressions, Phil Potter, said,
The Fresh Expressions story is transitioning from initiative to movement and we continue to explore how we can best serve the Church in that. I am very grateful to those who have been part of the core team, past and present, for the invaluable contribution they have made, enabling us to reach this point of transition. God has multiplied the available resources beyond a single team, and our 'associate' and partner friends are increasingly taking up the baton in every sense as the movement continues to grow.
The work goes on. We increasingly look to catalyse, encourage and network the many, many people – both ordained and lay – who are working to champion fresh expressions of church in wide-ranging contexts across the UK and around the world. God has been generous and faithful and we continue to rely on God's guidance as we take on this new shape for Fresh Expressions in 2016.
Fresh Expressions will continue – with and through its many partners – to champion and resource new forms of church for those who are not already members of any church. It also seeks to consolidate all that has been achieved in terms of major projects and policy changes at national level, through:
The work now revolves around five areas of focus:
Break out is a gathering of pioneers and those involved in pioneer ministry with the aim of us all learning from one another and finding support from those who share the same call. It is an opportunity to be together, learn from each other and also interact with a number of guest speakers.
Visit the Break out website for the latest information.
Bunyan Meeting plans to develop a Christian community arts outreach programme. This project will focus on art as expressed through 'The Book' and book arts, crafts and skills.
Candidates should be creative individuals, passionate about the Arts (book arts) with a desire to take the Christian story into Bedford's Cultural Quarter and the community in which the Church is situated.
The post is for an initial 18 month period, for 17.5 hours per week. Annual salary is £28,000 pro rata.
