New Ministry Strategy

The Vision:

Vision is often created when a need intersects with a calling. For most of my life I have been aware of my calling, in a general sense, to be a pastoral shepherd. My wife, Cheryl, has come to see that she, too, has some very specific pastoral gifts.
But, growing over the course of our nearly 20 years in ministry we have come to recognize a need that is not being met with any solid success. There are too many people who wander through life wounded and weary, feeling unloved and unwanted, unaware of the love of the Father, unable to access a full life and unable to fully grasp the gift that they are in the Kingdom of God.
Now, even when these wounded and weary ones come to our churches, which should be where they will find healing, refreshment, acceptance, love and encouragement, they usually find that most churches are unable to provide this type of truly nurturing environment. Because of the constraints that traditional western church structure creates, most churches aren’t able to assist these persons fully grow into Christ-like wholeness and freedom. Consequently, they often wander from church to church, never finding their place of love and service in the Kingdom of God.
Our vision, then, is to create a community of Christian believers (a “church”… and yet not like most churches) that will serve as a place of refuge… a place of wholeness and renewal for all those who are a part.

Purpose Statement:

…to create a nurturing community whose purpose is to enable people to find wholeness in Jesus Christ and to fully express their giftedness, blessing others both within the community and beyond.

Some Defining Values:

Mentoring and ministry to the “wounded and weary”… focusing our care on those who do not seem to fit into a typical/traditional church environment.
More person focused… mentoring and nurturing individuals so that they may know the Life of Christ for themselves and give themselves away for others.
Endeavouring to keep in step with what the Lord is doing in the Church at large, particularly as He is making known God’s great Love… the Father’s Heart… for all people.
Ideally, connected to a larger community…
Openness to the creativity of the Holy Spirit… “New Wine” requires a new wineskin and a different type of church like this will require creativity in determining how we can effectively care for others.



Objectives:

Draw together this community dedicated to finding wholeness in Christ and discovering each one’s giftedness. This community will focus on close relational ministry (“house churches”) and not on a larger weekly worship service. It will have as little infrastructures as possible. It will focus on honoring and worshipping the Lord and enabling others to live for him and one another. It will not focus on its own success or even its own survival.
Because the best environment for focused personal ministry would be one that would allow for day-to-day interaction and mentoring, an intentional community will be developed where some will participate as residents. This residential community will grow out of the “house churches” previously established.
Eventually, in order to make this community available for any who wish to take part, we may begin having some type of larger worship service. (But, only if it can keep from becoming the central event each week.)