Some ways of growing the Missional Health of your Worshipping Community
Main Courses
Some substantial courses that will help you grow the missional health of your worshipping community. These require some thought and pray before embarking on, but are all great ways to help you reflect on your current life together and what God may be calling you to going forward. For more details about any of them, or to talk through which might be best for your context, please contact John Hellewell john.hellewell@chester.anglican.org or 01928 643432).
Leading Evangelism Learning Hub
A 4-term learning community run with CPAS aimed at intentionally developing the evangelism culture within your church. It works by the Church Leader and a small team (2 – 5 others) exploring together how you might develop the ministry of evangelism appropriately in your context. This is done alongside other churches on the same journey, and facilitated by Jo McKee from the Church Pastoral Aid Society (CPAS), in collaboration with the Diocese.
It is held over 4 terms, which gives time for the culture shifts required to be started within your own church setting. Exactly what that will look like in your situation is up to you. We provide the framework, and the support and challenge – you make it live locally.
FAQs
Q. How much does it cost?
A. The cost is already subsidised by the diocese, but churches will be expected to contribute. £250 is the base figure, but we don’t want churches to be put off by this, so please talk to us if this would be a problem. This also includes lunch on the days we gather together. The only other thing you pay for is the transport costs to get there, and your time commitment.
Q. When does it start?
A. 14th September 2024. Full details are in the Leaflet.
Q. Where is it happening?
A. Four of the sessions are online, and four are held in person, most at Foxhill House, Tarvin Road, Frodsham, WA6 6XB with one at Church House, 5500 Daresbury Park, Daresbury, Warrington WA4 4GE. A fantastic lunch will also be provided on these days.
Q. What does the course cover?
A. There are 4 themes: Connect (with God, the vocation of the church and with people), Model (as leaders modelling and leading evangelism), Order (Shaping church culture around Jesus and his priorities) and Mobilise (Equipping the whole church community to share their faith).
Q. Is it for every tradition?
A. Yes! The material is deliberately designed and trialled with different church traditions in mind.
Q. Is it for every context?
A. Yes! Again, the material has been deliberately designed and trialled with different contexts.
Q. Is it easy?
A. No! But it is possible! The course takes seriously the difficulties of evangelism, but provides manageable ‘One Degree Shifts’ that slowly but surely make a difference to your church.
Q. How does the course work?
A. It works on several levels. Firstly, it works because you work out what you are being called to you in your context. Secondly, because you are travelling alongside other churches, which builds support and encouragement into the process. Thirdly, you are given time to actually do things, and to reflect on them, and tweak them as necessary. And fourthly, you are doing the work as a team, not an individual.
Q. What about Children & Young People?
A. Whilst there is no specific session on children and young people, there is an explicit assumption that the work of evangelism is for all ages and congregation members. It is likely, therefore, that at least some of what you decide to do will include children and young people.
Q. Given the uncertainty of the times, is this a good moment to be doing something like this?
A. Yes! The very uncertainty of where we are as Church and as a society actually means we have a great opportunity to reimagine ourselves as church, and to speak into a society that is looking for answers. It is an ideal time.
Q. How can I find out more?
A. Contact John (john.hellewell@chester.anglican.org 07704 338 846) or Peter (peter.frogatt@chester.anglican.org 07590 396782) at the Outreach Team.
Leading your Church into Growth
A 3-day conference run by a national team. Provides a resource ‘toolkit’ to develop your missional priorities as a church. Diocesan help towards the cost is available (funding of 1 or 2 places). Clergy and Readers can use their CME grant towards the cost. Otherwise, places cost around £250 per person.
For almost 25 years they have been serving the local church across the country with a vision to encourage and equip churches to grow both numerically and spiritually. They run residential courses, provide training days and resources as well as supporting dioceses in developing their own growth programmes. They help all kinds of churches, Catholic or Charismatic,
Evangelical or Liberal, Rural or Urban, Big or Small.
The main course is residential, and is aimed at clergy and lay leaders from across different traditions and denominations who are looking for help and encouragement in leading and growing their churches.
This is a course where the local church...
- Learns key biblical teachings on growth
- Discusses asks questions and applies these teachings to their own situation
- Becomes inspired and motivated
- Makes decisions, implements plans and new ways of working
- Sticks with these plans, reviewing and adapting them as they go along
There are a range of workshops during the conference through which members of the team bring their personal experience and expertise.
This works best when a small ‘leadership’ team attends together, rather than just one clergyperson.
For more information, see their website: www.leadingyourchurchintogrowth.org.uk
Jesus Shaped People
A whole church discipleship adventure, helping churches re-focus their life together around the priorities of Jesus. Free, high quality Sunday & Midweek resources for all ages.
The Jesus Shaped People journey is for churches who want to model their vision and the shape of their mission around Jesus’ ministry. This helps enable God’s people to feel equipped as they worship together as a gathered church, and then step out as confident disciples as a sent church to the frontlines where God has placed each of us.
JSP helps to shift the culture of churches. JSP is one of the national resources being encouraged as part of the Church of England's Every Day Faith initiative.
Main JSP programme
Jesus’ five key Kingdom priorities are recognised by JSP as People, Teaching, Team Building, Prayer and Prophetic Challenge. Each priority is explored over three weeks, making a fifteen-week programme. Support is available during the journey from both the JSP National Team and the Diocesan Mission Team.
Further JSP resources are available, to use after the main journey, or as an introduction to it. This ensures Jesus’ ministry priorities are embedded in the life of the church and so make a greater impact on growth both spiritually and numerically.
JSP can be of benefit to a wide diversity of churches, particularly those set in social housing estate communities and areas of high social disadvantage, but certainly not limited to this as it has borne much fruit in other contexts.
Interested to know more?
The website has a wealth of information, see www.jesusshapedpeople.net
Or contact:
Brendan Bassett, JSP UK Team Leader on email brendan@jesusshapedpeople.net
or Rebecca Holland at rebecca.holland@chester.anglican.org
Side Dishes
Some less intense resources that nevertheless have a huge impact on particular aspects of your missional health.
How to Nurture a Faith-Sharing Culture
A book (£5 - £9 depending on whether it’s a digital or physical copy) and web resources with loads of ideas of simple changes that make a more mission-focussed congregation. Written by James Lawrence and produced by CPAS.
This has a host of fantastic, creative and most of all simple to implement ideas that bit by bit help to change the culture of the local worshipping community. A resource you can keep coming back to time and again.
https://www.cpas.org.uk/browse-everything/how-nurture-faith-sharing-culture
Leading in Evangelism
A free series of video courses to help develop local evangelism. Produced by National Church & CPAS.
You can look at these resources at your own pace, and focus on the bits that are relevant for you at the moment. Covers a wide range of ideas to help you:
• Increase confidence in planning for and enabling evangelism.
• Identify and train a team with whom to share the responsibility.
• Develop a plan that works in your context
You need to register on the site, but it’s all free.
https://leadinginevangelism.org/
Talking Jesus
A short, easily accessible course to help everyone share their faith naturally and relevantly. It will inspire you to share your faith and will give you practical suggestions to help you as you talk about Jesus with the people you meet.
Conversations with Christians are one of the most important influences in bringing people to faith. In this course, there are six encouraging, video-based sessions with short films, inspirational, short testimonies, real-life examples from people who are talking Jesus, and a short, easy-to-follow course book.
There is plenty of chance to discuss with others, and for everyone to feel more confident in sharing their faith. Based on research, this course from Hope Together, the Church of England and the Evangelical Alliance, is accessible and useful for churches of all traditions.
It costs £5 - £20 depending on whether you stream the videos or download them for use anytime.
Faith Pictures
A free 6-week course helping people comfortably share their faith story.
Each session builds on the last to help Christians to see where God has been present in their lives, how they can talk about that confidently, and how God is active in the world around us and wants us to join in with Him.
The sessions are:
• Opening the Conversation
• The Power of the Ordinary
• Traveller’s Tales
• Talking Pictures
• Companions on the Journey
• Hidden Opportunities
Produced by Church Army https://churcharmy.org/resources/faith-pictures/
Mission Shaped Intro
A diocesan-run 6-session course giving people confidence to ‘have a go’ at reaching out to their local community, particularly in new and pioneering ways.
We can run this anywhere in the diocese, but is best done at a roughly deanery level.
By Fresh Expressions.
If you can’t find what you’re looking for on our menu, please ask – we would love to work with you on an individual dish!
Email: john.hellewell@chester.anglican.org