Four components of the Growth Programme

Growing in Commitment is about loving God more and loving each other more.  The way to commitment is to take discipleship – our undertaking to follow Jesus – seriously and this will inevitably involve getting out of our comfort zones as individuals and communities.

What might this involve? 

If we are to love God more, we must grow closer to Him.  Prayer and spiritual disciplines need to be put at the heart of the Church because they are the lifeblood of our relationship with Him.  Our worship should aim to allow people to express their love and commitment to God. 

If we are to become followers or students of Jesus, delivering high quality learning in services and through training will be crucial.

Small groups are a valuable context for helping people to learn and also a wonderful way to help deepen relationships, attend to pastoral care and release people’s gifts.   Pastoral care which looks to the whole health of people – spiritual, emotional, mental and physical – allows people to flourish and grow.  Helping every believer discover the gifts they have been given for the sake of the God’s kingdom and encouraging them to exercise those gifts will help them to flourish.

Finally, generosity is a mark of commitment to God and others.  Teaching and encouraging people to give sacrificially to God’s purposes will deepen commitment.

See an example of Growing in Commitment >> 

Growing in Partnership is about looking for opportunities to work with others, both within the Church and beyond it.

What will this look like?

Within the Church, this will involve strategic partnerships with other churches both locally – whether it’s in a partnership with churches within the Deanery or from other denominations – or globally – with our link with the Province of Uganda or other churches. 

These partnerships might include sharing resources and people, doing things together that we are unable to do on our own and learning from each other.

Beyond the Church, there are many organisations and people who share our aspirations that we can partner with.  Although some of these partners may be Christian, most will not; but on issues such as education, health, poverty, world development, the environment, social justice, we can work together to realise God’s Kingdom on earth. 

Our Boards and Councils, particularly the Diocesan Board of Education and ISR (Churches Council for Industry and Social Responsibility), are key players in this.  Many of these partnerships will help us further our attempts to grow in influence.

See an example of Growing in Partnership >> 

Growing in Influence is about engaging with people where they are, living with integrity and speaking prophetically into the world around us.

How might this be done?

To grow in influence, we need to live – as individuals and as churches – in a way that those around us respect.  To create a better world, the Church needs to live with integrity.

We must listen to what is going on in our neighbours’ lives, our communities and the culture in which we live.  Many of the concerns of those around us will reflect God’s concerns.  As Christians, we can be at the forefront of issues such as the environment, poverty and social justice, in public debate and in action.  To do this will also involve growing in our partnerships.

In other areas, we will find that we have to stand up and speak out the values of God’s kingdom against the tide of culture.  We will need to speak prophetically and counter-culturally on issues such as consumerism and family life.

For this prophetic voice to be heard, we will need to practise what we preach, develop coherent strategies for communication and take advantage of new technology.

See an example of Growing in Influence >> 

Growing in Numbers is about bringing others into relationship with Christ and His people by encouraging people to believe in Him and belong in His Church.  To do this, we’ll need to re-connect with those who used to belong to the Church and connect with those who have never been a part of it.

How might we approach this?

If we are to re-connect with those who used to belong, we need to encourage experiences of being welcomed and belonging in the lives of our churches.  This is all about relationships and community, hospitality and service.

If we are to connect with those who have never been a part, we might need to rethink our programmes to be more user-friendly for those who live in our communities.  This will involve thinking about our worship and activities in terms of accessibility, or might involve starting a fresh expression of church may be appropriate or church planting.  Focusing on children and young people is crucial to the Church of today and tomorrow.

If people are to believe, process evangelism courses like Alpha and Emmaus can play a huge part.  Essential to our aspiration to grow in numbers is for us to understand that, wherever we are, we are sent to be witnesses to Christ.

See an example of Growing in Numbers >>