The Guide contains how-to-do-it advice on starting, developing and sustaining fresh expressions of church based on shared experiences.
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The Guide contains how-to-do-it advice on starting, developing and sustaining fresh expressions of church based on shared experiences.
More about The Guide
I've always been a bit apprehensive about the 'belong, believe, behave' model of discipleship, as people's perceptions of 'behave' vary so much, and I wonder if this is an issue in fresh expressions? Reflecting on my own experience, I would say that a fresh expression begins with loving service. To love and to serve is the calling of all Christians and the church catholic (universal), but so often we have loved and served with the agenda of drawing people in to us and assimilating them into our model.
I was struck by the roles played across the whole Threshold history by doctors. Since Paul White's books in the Jungle Doctor series, we have been used to the pivotal role of the overseas medical missionary. Up till now, I have also imagined that St Paul made tents because he needed to eat. I now wonder if I have misunderstood all this. Could it be that Paul made tents because it put him in the market place? He met people in a neutral space but also produced something of value to them.
One cannot deny that most of our congregations are largely made up of older people - that is, people over the age of 55. It is also true that large amounts of resources are invested in maintaining the status quo - time, money and dedicated pastoral care by professional ministers and lay people. The fact that our congregations are mostly made up of older people is often perceived by church leaders and mission strategists as a problem rather than a challenge.
Here are some reflections on my time based at Yorkshire ArtSpace in Sheffield. This was a half-time post supported by Sheffield diocese, which ran from January 2006 to March 2009. The aim of the post was to be a Christian presence and witness for the gospel as a fellow artist amongst the 67 creative people in this purpose-built studio collective. Here are just three of the headings from my reflections, with principles learned. I share them as they may be helpful to you.
