This Sunday will be the first of two Gift Sundays for Church Gate, our new building. Church Gate is an amazing resource we’ve been entrusted with by God, and now we need to step up and fulfil our responsibility: we need to get it ready to serve our children, our youth and the many people who are in need across our town.
We talked all about this last Sunday, so if you missed what was said (or want to hear it again 🙂) please click below to listen:
I won’t talk in this blog about numbers and how much we’re looking to raise this time, instead I simply want to encourage participation by us all. Let’s each take some time to pray and ask God what he wants us to do, and then let’s step out in FAITH, HOPE and LOVE.
A Hand Up
By the way, if you don’t yet understand why the Foodbank in Woking is so busy and why what we are doing with Church Gate is so necessary for people in our town, check out this BBC news article. This is Woking. This is part of our town, and it’s not the only area with problems.
Let’s get the grocery and cafe done and let’s crack on with all the social action we’ll be building around them. God’s heart is for the poor, and I believe Jesus has lots of people he wants to reach through us as we give them “a hand up, not a hand out”.
Of course Church Gate is also going to be key for our children and our young people too. Let’s go for this together. When we look back in years to come it will be so good to be able to say, “I played my part in making that happen”. What a great investment in God’s kingdom!
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On Thursday July 4th the UK General Election is being held. We are a polling station for our local area, which means no one is allowed to enter the chapel that day except to vote. (We will be running week 2 of our scheduled “Belong, Believe, Become” course that evening as normal, and will talk to attendees about arrangements)
Help Needed!
The polling station is open from 7am ’til 10pm, and lots of people will come through our doors that day, many for the first time. These people are also our closest neighbours. We would love to live up to our name, Welcome Church, so we’d like to serve free tea, coffee and cakes in the front hall for anyone who turns up to vote.
This means we’re looking for some friendly, chatty, welcoming people, who have time available that day, to help us serve people and chat to them – what a great chance to connect with our neighbours! If you have a free hour or two and are happy to help, you can sign up for one hour time slots using this link here – and do feel free to sign up for more than one slot if that works for you. It would be great if we could cover the whole day between us 🙂
(One small point of clarity: we are not political as a church, and this is not a chance to lobby people on how they vote. This is about making friends and showing a true Welcome Church welcome)
Three Useful Election Resources
I mentioned the engaGE24 website a few weeks ago, a Christian website which has information about policies, video interviews with Christian MPs and more. They even have an ‘election quiz’, where you can find out which party’s policies you most align with by answering a series of questions.
If you’re still unsure who to vote for, here are links to two more great Christian resources. Like us, none of these resources will tell you which way to vote, but they are designed to help you think.
Firstly: in May, Jubilee Plus launched “Voting Like Jesus”. Jubilee Plus approach this from the point of view of caring for the poor, and base what they say around the call of Micah 6v8 to, “Act justly, love mercy and walk humbly” before God. The link above will take you to their website, where you can read it all through online or download a copy. We have a few hard copies available, but only a few, so do start with the website.
Secondly: the Christian Institute have launched Election Briefing 2024. This is an interactive website where you can view information by party or by issue, and see where the parties stand on whatever matters most to you. The Christian Institute’s focus is almost entirely on ethical and moral issues, viewed from a Biblical perspective. We have a few copies of their booklet available too, but you can download a PDF copy here.
Enjoy!
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The tours of our new building, Church Gate, have been very popular this last week, and it’s been great hearing all the feedback. Here’s a tiny selection of just a few of the comments made so far (we’ve been giving out feedback forms):
“The building is so much bigger than I expected – it just keeps on going!”
“I feel a real sense of peace looking round Church Gate, despite the work that now needs to be done. Having more room for age appropriate activities is something my kids will really enjoy.”
“It really is right next to our current church building! I feel like it’s an extension of our church. Parents can feel safe to drop the kids next door. All the plans are good but my favourite part is the Grocery and Welcome Cafe for the poor. We have God’s blessings and we know what to do. Church Gate will be a hope for many people!”
“As part of Welcome Youth the fact there will be loads of space for us is so great”
“I’m excited by the opportunity to really grow the social action aspect of what we do as a church – to go to the next level of caring for our community”
“As a parent I’m excited at the potential of a custom space for our children’s work”
“It excites me that there is such a clear, big vision for Church Gate.”
“The outdoor space will be a blessing for our youth“
“This is a key enabler for our growth as a church“
“I feel deeply emotional because I know that I will not be alive to see all that comes from this; future generations will be blessed and I get to sow into them today as others in the past have done for us. It does my heart and soul good.”
“The vision for this is great; a lot of lives will be blessed”
Wow! And that’s just a tiny selection of the comments made so far. If you haven’t booked a tour yet please be aware that this Saturday (15th) is your last chance because work will start as soon as possible. You can book onto a tour by clicking here.
By the way, we now have power inside Church Gate and the lights are on!
A Very Special Guest
I’m delighted that our friend Vinu Paul is over from India this coming week. Vinu leads the team that oversees the Commission Churches in India, and he also gives input to our team here at Welcome Church. He won’t be speaking for us on a Sunday during this trip because he’s mainly here for meetings with the Commission UK Team and will be needed elsewhere.
Whilst he’s here though, he will be meeting with our eldership team and will also be joining us for the 12pm Church Gate tour on Saturday. I reckon he’ll have travelled further than anyone else to see the new building … 🙂
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No, I haven’t written a book myself (as if I have the time!) but my friend Jenny Sanders is a Christian author and her latest book, Polished Arrows, has just been published.
I had the privilege of writing the forward for this book (check out the pic below 😃) and, on Wednesday evening from 7pm to 8pm, I’ll be hosting an online book launch where we’ll hear from the author and find out a whole lot more about it.
Polished Arrows is about how God works in us to shape our lives to fulfil His calling, shaping us from rough and ready material into His ‘Polished Arrows’, ready to be fired wherever He sends us. Ultimately this is a book about God’s discipleship of us, a process that is often surprising and sometimes painful.
Each chapter of the book is rooted in the experience of a character from the Bible, and this is then set alongside the reality or our lives today. At the end of each chapter there are questions that could work really well in a Life Group or other small group setting. So, if you long to have greater Kingdom impact and you’re up for God’s shaping process, then this could be a great book for you, but be warned – it touches on some pretty big issues!
If you fancy joining the online book launch, let me know and I’ll make the Zoom link available for you, and if you want to check out the book for yourself you can do that on this link here or you can buy it using this link. (It’s also on Amazon)
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I’m looking forward to our first Church Gate open day this Saturday (8th June). This will be a great opportunity for Welcome Church people to look around our new building and see the size of the challenge that we’ve taken on – before it becomes a building site!
If you haven’t booked a slot yet, you can do so on this link here. There are further opportunities on the evening of Monday 10th June (click here) and the morning of Saturday 15th June (click here).
Why should I bother to come to an open day?
Although it might be tempting to sit back and wait for the work to be done (as someone said, “I’ll see it when it’s finished” …) I would love as many of us as possible to make the effort to see the new building as it is right now.
Despite all of us having busy diaries, there are several reasons for this:
1. Ownership: we need to own this project together as a church, and to do that we do need to actually come and see what’s going on – it’s OUR building.
2.Prayer: we all need to be praying for this project and for those leading it, and a visit will help to inform our prayers.
3.Insight: we would love to hear from you after you’ve visited. What is important to you about this project? What is God saying to you prophetically? Do you have any wisdom to impart to the team? (“Plans fail for lack of counsel, but with many advisers they succeed” – Proverbs 15v22)
4. Inspiration: we would love people to get inspired for what we’re doing together. Let’s get inspired about our social action, inspired about our kids work and inspired about our youth work. Perhaps God may even have a role for you to play that you don’t yet know about!
Gift Days
Lastly, let me please remind you that we have our next two Gift Days for Church Gate scheduled for Sunday 30th June and Sunday 7th July.
Our goal is two raise at least £2m over 2 years. We’re well on the way towards that target (£1.3m pledged/given so far) but let’s all be praying about what God is calling us to give this time round. We don’t want anyone to give more than God is calling them to, but we don’t want anyone to give less than He’s asking them to either.
Let’s all get involved in this Church Gate adventure that God is leading us into as a church.
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With the General Election coming up, you might like a chance to hear directly from the people who would like us to vote for them. With this in mind an Election Hustings for Woking has been organised for all the churches in town. In case anyone is unsure, a ‘hustings’ is defined as ‘a meeting at which candidates in an election can address potential voters’, and it’s usually done as a question and answer session.
The hustings will take place at Woking United Reform Church, at 7.30pm on Friday 14th June, and we’ve been told that candidates for all of the main parties will be there.
If you would like to ask the candidates a question, it should be emailed in advance, and the details to do this are in the image below – make sure it’s a good one! Our special thanks go to Lucy and the team at the URC for organising this for us all.
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We knew it was coming in the near future but, like most people, I was surprised this week when the Prime Minister revealed the date of the next UK General Election as Thursday 4th July. Here are a few thoughts and pointers for us as a church:
1. Welcome Church Will Be A Polling Station
I’m delighted that Welcome Church will be used as a polling station for this election; it means that lots of local people who have not yet been into our building will see it for the first time. (It also means there will be no entry at all to the chapel that day, except for those designated to vote there!) Let’s pray that, as well as voting in our building, some will feel inspired to come back and join us on a Sunday.
2. Unity Is Key
Unity is key for any church; disunity, gossip and division do profound damage. If we disagree with someone’s political viewpoint we are still allowed to love them. We don’t have to win every argument and we don’t always have to tell people when we disagree with them.
Ephesians 4v2-3 says,
“Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love.Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace.”
With this in mind:
3. We Are Politically Neutral As A Church
Although there are issues we may speak about or take action on, both through what we say and through our social action ministries, we are not allied to any one political party, either nationally or locally, nor will we tell people how they should vote, though we encourage everyone who is allowed to vote to do so. I’ll be voting myself, but I won’t be telling you who for.
People from our church have stood for election to local government, at both town and county level, for all three of the main political parties, and also as independent candidates. Others have been engaged with various political parties or campaigned on other social issues. To me that’s a good sign that we can have a range of views amongst us, and still walk in unity together.
Let’s make sure that we all act in love towards one another over these coming weeks, including on social media. That’s not to say no one should ever express an opinion but, as it says in 1 Thess 4v11, “make it your ambition to lead a quiet life” –I think that’s a great verse for Christians to apply to their social media accounts!
And be warned: if anything political appears in any of our Welcome Church Facebook groups, or in the comments on our other social media posts, it will be deleted and the poster may get blocked.
4. A Helpful Resource
Today CARE UK have launched an excellent website for Christians, to help us consider all the issues in the run up to the general election – it’s called engaGE24.
It has information about policies, video interviews with Christian MPs, a blog, a podcast and a 40-day prayer resource. One fun feature is their election quiz, where you can find out which party’s policies you most align with by answering a list of questions – I tried it out this morning 😃.
CARE, who are strictly politically neutral say:
“Our aim is to equip the UK Church to engage effectively with this election. Research tells us that Christians will vote. The question before all of us is who will we vote for? I pray our resources will help you as you come to your decision. I think this election is a golden opportunity for the Church to engage and make our voice heard.“
“I urge, then, first of all, that petitions, prayers, intercession and thanksgiving be made for all people— for kings and all those in authority, that we may live peaceful and quiet lives in all godliness and holiness. This is good, and pleases God our Saviour …”
The outcome of this election will shape our lives and our country in all sorts of ways for years to come. Let’s pray for God’s will to be done and for our country to increasingly be a place where Christian truth can be proclaimed, and we can worship freely and share the gospel without fear of repercussions.
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The following are a few updates about life at Welcome Church:
Church Gate
I’m please to announce that this afternoon – Friday May 17th – we have completed on our purchase of Church Gate (for details about Church Gate please click here!) We are now the owners of this building. The real work now begins to make it useable!
Please do book a slot to visit Church Gate during one of our upcoming Open Days – (to do that please click here). Places are going fast so don’t delay. Visits will be by guided tour only at this stage and you will need to book to attend – don’t miss out.
We’ll give out more information on Church Gate on Sunday mornings in the weeks ahead, so do be there to find out more.
Compassion
We had a great Sunday with Tim Robertson from Compassion UK last week and it was good to find out about the impact that our sponsorship of children in Togo has been having. (I know that some also sponsor children in other countries – that’s great too). Tim preached brilliantly so do listen to the download if you missed it.
I’ve also attached some of the slides we showed on Sunday, including one with pictures of all the children we sponsor – see if you can spot yours. Please don’t forget about the importance of writing letters too.
Dr Amy Orr-Ewing – speaking this Sunday
We have a great guest speaker this Sunday: Dr Amy Orr-Ewing.
Amy is passionate about Christian apologetics – presenting and defending the Christian faith in a way that engages with culture. Over the last twenty years, Amy has given talks and answered hundreds of questions on university campuses around the world. She has also addressed Parliamentarians in the Speakers Rooms and Chapel at the UK Parliament, and staffers on Capitol Hill and at the West Wing of the White House. You find out more about Amy by clicking here.
This Sunday she will be speaking about “Where is God in all the suffering?” This is a great chance to invite friends to join you at church. Let’s be on the front foot to invite people.
Faith At Work – a new learn group
Both Freedom In Christ and The Bible Course are up and running now, and I know people are enjoying them. We have one more ‘Learn Group’ starting this term: the Faith At Work course. This is a new course and it’s for anyone who’s working. It doesn’t matter what your job is, if you are at work then this is for you.
Faith at Work you will be filled with hope and faith for God’s purposes in your workplace. It’ll include really practical teaching and reflection in small groups, on subjects such as: Our work is God’s work, How can I make a difference? How can I share my faith at work? and Work/Life balance.
It’s taking place over 3 consecutive Monday evenings – the 10th, 17th and 24th June – from 7:30-9:30pm – and there will be a follow up meal on 15th July to celebrate what God has been doing at our places of work!
It took a little longer than we’d hoped, and there were some tricky twists and turns along the way, but on Monday this week we exchanged contracts with the sellers of Church Gate. Praise God!
Of course, owning the building is just the start to our Church Gate adventure – we now have lots of work to do to make the building useable, and turn our plans into reality.
What happens now?
There are several steps ahead for us once we get the keys:
First: we will be holding various ‘stakeholder’ meetings inside Church Gate, with each of the different user groups, to talk about our plans for inside and outside the building. It’s currently something of a blank canvas but, to quote Proverbs 11v14, “victory is won through many advisers.”
Second: in June this year we will hold open days for people from Welcome Church to come and look around Church Gate and see what we’ve taken on, and also to give opportunity for more people to comment on the plans. For reasons of safety you will need to book a time slot to attend an open day, and they will be for adults (16 years+) only. Details for booking a slot will be available soon. I hope you’re as excited to look around as I was.
Third: we will consult with professional advisors to help us plan how to turn our ideas into reality. Ideally we hope to use some of the same people who worked with us on the last building project and did such a great job.
Fourth: we will hold Gift Days at the end of June and the start of July to help us towards our financial goal of raising at least £2 million for the project over two years. So far £1.3m has been given or pledged so we are well on the way but we still have some more ground to cover together.
More information
During May we will be giving out a new booklet about Church Gate with all the details people need to know, so do be on the look out for this (it’s currently with the printers). When you get your copy please read it carefully and prayerfully and, if you have any questions, please just ask.
Philippians 1v4-6 says,
“I always pray with joy because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now, being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.”
It’s a great thing for us to be in partnership together for the gospel as a church and, like Paul, I’m confident that He who began this good work in us will now carry it on to completion. So, as we come to look around the building, let’s look around it prayerfully, with our spiritual eyes and ears open to what God wants to do in the lives of children and young people through Church Gate, and also what He will do through us to help those in need in our town – not least through our planned Community Grocery.
Our big goal in all of this is to see many lives transformed through Jesus; this is all about the gospel. It’s now time to press forward into this adventure together!
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Last week it was my honour and privilege to visit Togo, with Compassion UK, to see first hand the impact of their Child Sponsorship and Child Survival programmes.
Through Compassion UK, people from Welcome Church currently sponsor around 225 children in Togo, which is often recognised as the least developed country in Africa. We’ve also provided funding as a church for a Child Survival project there. I know people from our church also sponsor children in other countries, which is great too.
Project visits
We visited several church projects during our time in Togo, each being run by a local church to serve their own community.
Amongst the church projects we visited was one where over 140 children are sponsored by people from Welcome Church – and they pulled out all the stops to welcome us! There was singing, worship, a marching band, prayer, presentations and performances from the children, alongside a chance to take a tour and see what happens at the project. I also got to see inside the church building where over 700 people gather each week to worship. The pastor insisted I stand in the pulpit for a photo 🙂
It was great to meet the pastor and the project leader, and to meet lots of the children who people in our church are sponsoring. We had a lot of fun and games with them all – mostly involving chasing, running and footballs – and they were a lot fitter than any of us.
I also saw the Child Survival Project that we’ve funded as a church and met the leader of that, alongside lots of mums and their babies. We heard testimonies from some of the mothers and caregivers (grandma in one case, auntie in another) who’s babies would not have survived without this project. It really is making a huge difference.
Local churches in action
What quickly became clear is that this is the local church in action doing what it does best – serving its own community. During one visit to a church project in a rural area the village chief came to see us and say thank you for all that is being done by the church to serve the children and families of his community. His big hope now is for a bore hole to being drinkable water to their village. During another visit, to a church project in a more challenging area, there were children outside the project picking through a rubbish pile for anything they could use or sell.
The churches we visited were all passionately committed to serving children and seeing them lifted out of poverty and given a future and a hope that impacts the whole community, and it’s all done in the name of Jesus. Our sponsorship is what makes the work these churches do to transform their own communities possible, and we should never doubt its value and importance.
Home visits
Part of the trip included making home visits to some of the sponsored children, and among these were a young lady who Jo and I sponsor and a young man sponsored by our son Zac. The various home visits we made put into perspective the difference that sponsorship makes, as we saw first hand the living conditions of the children and their families; they really are among the poorest of the poor. The prayer request of one mother we visited was for a front door for her house to keep the animals out, especially when they sleep on the floor at night.
These home visits also highlighted the importance of letter writing as the letters are kept, read, re-read and treasured and they help build connection and a sense that they know you. When I showed our sponsored child’s father a photo of Jo on my phone, the response from the whole family was “we know her from your letters”.
I was impacted by the way child sponsorship lifts up not just the one child but the whole family, and this impacts the whole community in turn. Sponsorship is a great funding vehicle for holistic development that impacts a whole area.
One fact we discovered during the visit is that Togo has a population of around 8.4 million people, and Compassion sponsor more than 83,000 children there, and those numbers don’t include the children who have already graduated from the program. This means that roughly 1% of the population is currently a Compassion sponsored child who is being given a future and a hope in the name of Jesus. On top of this is the positive impact on their families and communities. Culture can be changed from the top down, but it can also be changed from the bottom up.
Get involved
On Sunday May 12th we’ll have a chance as a church to sponsor more children from the same project. Let’s be on the front foot to do that; it’s all part of Jesus’ mandate and mission that we bring good news to the poor. If you’re not yet involved, let me encourage you to step up.
I’ve included some photos, but I have been a bit careful about posting pictures of individual children. If you have any questions, please do just ask me.
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