Mission Statement

Our mission is to be a transforming community.

With God’s help, we will seek to fulfil this mission by:

• Leading people to Christ (Salvation)
• Encouraging one another to grow in Christ toward maturity and wholeness (Sanctification)
• Acting with Christ to bless the communities we touch (Service)

Description

We are an evangelical church, affiliated to the Baptist Union of Great Britain and members of the Evangelical Alliance. We accept the authority of the Bible in determining what we believe and how it should be expressed. We expect the involvement of all members of the church in its ministry and in caring for its well-being

We are a youngish church: single adults, couples with babies, older families, but very few retired people. We follow a teaching programme in both morning and evening services. We also ask God to speak to us in other ways.

We take the Bible seriously as God’s word to us. We like to sing & have some great music. At both services there is opportunity for individuals to receive prayer for special needs.

We moved into our new building at the beginning of November 2006.

Sunday morning worship lasts from 10:30 a.m. to about 11:45 a.m. The style is relaxed and informal but structured. On most Sundays all ages share in the first part of the service, after which the younger worshipers leave for their separate activities. We have tea & coffee to round off our morning together.

Evening service starts at 7.00 p.m. and lasts for about an hour and a half, there is usually an extended time of praise and worship.

Housegroups

Housegroups are an important way of fostering friendship, encouragement and spiritual growth in the fellowship. Everyone who worships with us regularly is encouraged to join one - even if they are not normally able to attend. Housegroups include Bible study, prayer, worship and discussion in a home context. These groups strengthen our church life because they add a dimension which is not found in Sunday worship or in private devotions.

Mission

Christ's command to take the gospel throughout the world is still vitally important and we encourage and support people who have been called by God to serve Him elsewhere or are training in preparation for this. We are also committed to evangelism in the local community, where possible working with other churches in our area. Further, we endeavour to take action on matters of social justice and to make an appropriate stand on moral issues which affect the life of our nation.

Church Government

In common with other Baptist churches we recognize the importance of making decisions together under the guidance of the Holy Spirit. Church members are encouraged to attend our bimonthly Church Meetings. Although we vote on important issues, we are not looking for a simple majority, but rather seeking God's will for His Church. We see membership of Christ's Church as both a privilege and responsibility. Members are encouraged to take their membership seriously and to exercise the gifts God has given to them for the good of the whole church. We have a Leadership Team made up of the minister and elders. This team is responsible to the Church Meeting for spiritual and pastoral matters. We also have deacons who are responsible to the Church Meeting for practical matters like the church's administration, finances and maintenance.

Baptism and membership

We are a Baptist church but have members from many different traditions worshipping with us. For those who are members of a church elsewhere, we do' not operate a ‘transfer' arrangement , but discuss faith and the desire for membership with each person individually. We ask all those thinking of membership to consider very carefully not only if this church meets their needs in terms of style and activity, but also if they agree with our beliefs and practices. One of the elders will be happy to discuss any questions about what we believe, who we are and what we do. We gladly welcome new members from other Christian traditions on their profession of faith in Christ, but we also ask that they seriously consider being baptized as a believer. Whilst we respect the views of others, we believe that the New Testament pattern is for baptism to follow personal faith in, and commitment to, Jesus Christ, as a sign of that step of faith.