vision statement

A Vision Statement is just what its name suggests – putting into words a dream of what we will work together to make a reality. It should inspire us, and focus our energies into what we see we want to achieve together under God.  It is OK for it have an air of impossibility about it – if we have a God-sized dream, then it can only be him who will bring it to a reality.  It does not mean that all of these things remain a dream—some of them are already a reality.  But the whole picture remains what we are striving for under God.

 

We dream...

We dream of being known as a church where God speaks clearly through the Scriptures by the power of the Holy Spirit impacting on us to grow in the knowledge and love of our King, the Lord Jesus Christ. We dream of a community growing in our confidence is in God’s word, which we trust as our final authority on all matters of faith, even above tradition, reason and experience. (Mark 1:38, 2 Tim 3:16-17, Mark 7:9-13, Mark 13:31)

We dream of continuing as a church where every member is a minister – each using our gifts and talents to serve others and to serve Christ. (1 Cor 12:14-19)

We dream of continually reaching out to a world that desperately needs salvation through Christ.  We dream of being known as a welcoming community, committed to the pains of growth. (Acts 2:47, 1 Cor 9:20-23)

We dream of a growing network of small groups where God’s word is taught, where people are loved and where lives are changed. (Acts 2:46-47)

We dream that we will be a community of 200 gathering together each week. We dream of a serving community, with targeted ministries to children, youth, young mothers, men, women, and the elderly.  We dream of financially supporting two full time ministers (with a view to training a team).  Our paid ministers will support our front line ministers in their homes, places of learning and workplaces as they seek to make Christ known. (Acts 2:17)

We dream of being known as a church where new members are cared for and discipled in their new life in Christ. (Phil 3:17)

We dream of being a growing community of people whose commitment to Christ, each other and our church’s mission is like that of elite athletes to their sport: our commitment has our priority in time, energy, resources, perseverance and joy. (1 Cor 7:29-31)

 

A note on our Vision Statement from our Minister

When we wrote this in 2005-6, we set goals for ourselves for congregational growth. It hasn’t happened as quickly as we dreamed, and our timetable might have been naive.  However, we believe firmly that God’s kingdom is growing and so should we be.  We want to ensure that we always have a missional focus and are intentional about welcoming more into our family. 

Tim