A few years back, I discovered to my disappointment that the label I wanted to apply to our experience of church life had already been taken. If you hear the term “Messy Church” you are likely to associate it with an all age event, aimed at children but including their parents with craft, Bible stories,… Continue reading Messy Church
Tag: urban planting
A Task unfinished: The city and the Gospel in the UK
This article for The Gospel Coalition reminds us that if we are serious about sharing the Gospel then we need to pay attention to the ongoing growth of cities around the World. We need to pay attention to those large urban areas because that’s where the people are. The article is I think primarily aimed… Continue reading A Task unfinished: The city and the Gospel in the UK
Why we need to break out of our theological colleges
I’ve been arguing for some time that we need to make some step changes in terms of how we train and equip people for church leadership and paid Gospel ministry. I’ve argued that our methods of identifying potential leaders, pastors and planters exclude far too many and that particularly the traditional seminary route puts up… Continue reading Why we need to break out of our theological colleges
Introducing Church in a box
One of the things you’ve probably heard/seen me keep talking a lot about is the need to do better at planting churches in communities where there isn’t a meaningful Christian witness. At our church’s recent weekend away, Jonathan Bell talked about us planting “swifter, smaller, simpler.” How are we going to do that? Well, actually… Continue reading Introducing Church in a box
Invisible Divides (Book Review)
One of my personal concerns and a significant reason for why Faithroots exist is the desire to see the church and the Gospel reaching into communities and to people where we simply haven’t been very good at reaching. Here in the West Midlands we’ve seen a lot of church planting and some wonderful stories of… Continue reading Invisible Divides (Book Review)
Multiplying and planting – how do you decide what to do?
One question that comes up when thinking about planting is whether or not we should have a particular model/approach in mind. What will a new plant look like? This includes questions about the style and structure of a plant but also the exact nature of the beast. Is it actually a new church you are… Continue reading Multiplying and planting – how do you decide what to do?
Swifter, smaller, simpler
Our church family have just been on a weekend away. We are part of a family of churches that originated out of the same plant and are seeking to reach Birmingham with the Gospel. The church holiday brought the three congregations together. During the weekend, one of the speakers talked about our vision as a… Continue reading Swifter, smaller, simpler
A vision for urban West Midlands Church planting
My current focus is on encouraging church planting into the Urban West Midlands. My desire is not to see one church growing big but to see a city that is full of churches bringing Gospel light to needy neighbourhoods. My specific concern is for those areas that are often less reached with the Gospel. This… Continue reading A vision for urban West Midlands Church planting
What does your church value?
I’ve been writing a few articles on things like mission and vision statements. There is the risk that such things can feel corporate, slick and fluffy. However, if a mission statement is really simply “Matthew 28:19-20 with a date stamp and a postcode” then what we are doing is helping the church apply God’s word… Continue reading What does your church value?
A vision for your church?
The other day, I wrote about mission statements and value statements. I also mentioned that it can be helpful to draft out a slightly longer statement describing what you might call the vision for the church. This is not about arrogantly making grand claims about what you are going to achieve. Everything will be in… Continue reading A vision for your church?
Faithroots 