Our Vision
Seeking God
Part of God’s great story
Following after Jesus together
Worshipping and seeking God’s presence
Trusting in the power of prayer
Seeing new people come to know Jesus
Unlocking the potential of all God’s people
In Every Generation
Fan into flame the faith of the next generation
Passionate about seeing young people come to faith
Meeting young people and families where they are
Welcoming and valuing young people for who they are
Welcoming and caring for families
Resourcing other churches and raising up leaders
Loving Mansfield
Dreaming of a transformed Mansfield
Living as agents scattered through the town (and the world)
24/7 church, responding with love where there is need
Highly visible and easy to get into
Working in partnerships
Creating and being community
Our Vision Story in Full
Behind our short list above is a deeper story of vision that you can find below. It is a story told through three images, a cross, a flame and a heart.We are a church that seeks God
We are part of God’s great story of salvation, unable to help sharing all that God has done for us and is doing in our lives. We are a community focused on the Bible and responsive to the Holy Spirit. We commit to growing deeper in our understanding and love of God, more passionate in our worship, and more dedicated in service. As learners, following after Jesus, we will grow together by teaching and sharing and doing life together. As a furnace heats and refines, so we will encourage and inspire one another. Our gatherings will be characterised by inspirational and energetic worship, full of people gathered to seek God, to be in his presence, and to give him glory. We will sing with one voice and a thousand tongues of the greatness of our God. And he will be with us. And we will be a praying church. A church that knows that we can do nothing by ourselves but must rely fully on God, that God provides the growth. We are expectant that God will move in our time, believing that our God is able to save and heal, restore and redeem.
We believe we will see our church family grow as people come to know Jesus. We will grow new and innovative ways of being church. We will plant new expressions of worship in new places to reach more people in relevant and beautiful ways. We believe we will hear new stories of what God has been doing in people’s lives and be amazed at what we hear. We will be a generous church, quick to share with others what God blesses us with. We aim to unlock the potential of all God’s people, seeking to release them to serve God in the ways that he is calling them to. We will see an army of volunteers and staff rising up to serve God and to use the gifts that he has entrusted to them.
We are a church that invests in the next generation
We believe that it is the responsibility of every generation to fan into flame the faith of the next generation, to pass on the torch, and to share the story of God. We dream of being a church that creates the best possible provision for children and young people, resulting in hundreds of young people finding faith and personal relationships with God. While we acknowledge the current crisis of a lack of children and young people following Jesus, we will do whatever it takes to change that story. So we want to develop honest new expressions of faith and worship that are relevant for the current generation. Young people will be valued and listened to. We will have a ministry that doesn’t wait for them to come in but goes out to meet them where they are. And there will be space for them to be who they are and to set the agenda. We will create safe, attractive and welcoming places for young people to come and feel at home. We will hold out the light of Jesus to those who walk in darkness and will nurture God’s light in the children and families we meet. We believe we will see many young people bring their friends and family to faith. Our welcome and care will extend to the whole family, and families of children and young people will find that the church is incredibly supportive. We want to be a church that can bless, encourage, and resource other churches in the local area and beyond, as well as raising up and equipping many new leaders in this area of church life.
We are a church that loves Mansfield.
We love Mansfield because God loves Mansfield. We believe that he sees this as a place of potential, of value, of gold not coal. We dream of a Mansfield transformed, as the potential of its people is unleashed, as the power of the good news of Jesus transforms lives and brings hope and light to people. We are praying for nothing short of revival. We will see God openly talked about in coffee shops and fast food restaurants as people boldy share their faith and the good news of Jesus. We long to see God’s kingdom coming here and now, like the dawn breaking through the darkness of night.
We are a church, scattered like salt across the town, working as God’s agents in our schools, neighbourhoods, workplaces and social groups. We are part of communities across the town, living and growing together, supporting and being supported by those around us. We seek to nurture and encourage the sense of being community, the sense of belonging and joy. We are building relationships with people around us and praying that they may find a relationship with Jesus. We seek justice, love mercy and walk humbly through the streets and estates of our town. Those in our church family will be involved in a variety of projects, responding with the love of God everywhere there is need. We are a 24/7 church, not an hour a week. We will be a church that is a witness to the town in the way it works with other organisations, faith based and secular. We will join with churches around our local area to have an impact far greater than we could on our own. And we look beyond our own locality, supporting mission and outreach overseas, as we seek to show God’s love to the whole world.
We will be a church that is visible in the town, not because of the height of our spire but because of the depths of the love of God which we are committed to showing by word and by action. We will be talked about because we are intriguing, interesting, positive and passionate, because of our warm welcome and our love for one another. We will not be hidden away or hard to find. We will be a light on a stand, a city on a hill, impossible to miss as we shine God’s hope and love to a broken world. We will not be hard to get into. We will be open and accessible for people of all ages and backgrounds, somewhere people turn to for help. Our buildings will be welcoming and inspiring, not a burden for the church or a barrier to the community. We will be visible online, bringing light and life through social media and creating new ways for people to access church. We will be present on the estates around us, actively involved in the places where people are struggling with life, one church with many sites to reach out to the people of this town.
