W: Witnesses and Disciple Makers

How do we prepare and position ourselves to grow?

We believe God is inviting Proximity Church to GROW, both in depth and size. Considering this, we are asking ourselves 'how can we best prepare and position ourselves"? 

We landed on:
G: give generously
R: rooted in The God Story
O: one family, many homes
W: witnesses and disciple makers 

We have been covering each of these areas with clear invitations and ways to respond in turn. This is our final week where we conclude by reviewing W:witnesses and disciple makers.

A word of encouragement given to Proximity Church, from Alain Emerson: "I see your house doubling in size. God is growing your family" (Aug 2024).

Our dream for Proximity Church is that each one of us is active in being a witness and making disciples. Here is a challenge... what if the way we grow, both in size and depth, all of us discipled one-person a year to be a follower of Jesus? Sounds easy but radical!

Be my witnesses

In the book of Acts, Jesus instructs his disciples to bear witness to Him in their hometown, surrounding towns/villages and the ends of the earth. This is a reframing of the Genesis command to be fruitful, multiply and subdue the whole earth. Jesus is once again focusing on a people (the church) to carry His blessing, presence and promise to all nations.

Being a witness has two parts. First, on a personal level, it means sharing what you've seen, heard, and experienced about Jesus. It involves living in a way that reflects Him—being different from the culture, speaking truth, and showing the Holy Spirit's power in your life.

Second, as a church, it means showing Jesus to the world by working together as His hands and feet. By our love for each other the world will know we are His followers.

Make Disciples

Christie and I have felt stirred for some time around discipleship and what this looks like for Proximity Church. The bible is very clear, to be a disciple of Jesus means making disciples. And so, the natural but confronting question for each one of us is… who am I discipling?

Throughout his life Jesus demonstrated to us that real discipleship looks like giving yourself wholly to a few. He invested in a small group of people that eventually were to change the whole world. Jesus taught scripture, but he also ate with the disciples, travelled with them, prophesied over them, and most crucially loved them deeply.

Discipleship is not necessarily about inviting people to church, rather it looks like taking people into your heart, studying the bible, sharing life, and committing yourself to another. The reward? That perhaps those individuals will do the same for another, and we see multiplication of discipleship in Stanford, the surrounding towns and ends of the earth.

Invitation

There are two ways we want to challenge you to be "witnesses and disciple makers":

1. Who are you already witnessing to? Could you take this a step further, invite them to meet you to read the bible and pray together? To eat with you, your family etc.

2. If you don't have someone, could you be consistent in praying that God will reveal someone to you?

There are lots of courses, apps, plans, books to help you read scriptures and pray with those new to faith and of no faith. We are compiling a list of resources that we will share in due course. But don't let this delay your reaching out to others, please do get in touch if you would like any help to get you started.

Relevant Teaching

O: One Family, Many Homes

How do we prepare and position ourselves to grow?

We believe God is inviting Proximity Church to GROW, both in depth and size. Considering this, we are asking ourselves 'how can we best prepare and position ourselves"? 

We landed on:
G: give generously
R: rooted in The God Story
O: one family, many homes
W: witnesses and disciple makers 

We are going to cover each of these areas with clear invitations and ways to respond in turn. This week we review O: One Family, many homes.

A word of encouragement given to Proximity Church, by 24-7 Prayer Team: "you are going to grow this year. Growth can be challenging but it is also natural" (Feb 2024).

Growth is a challenge

Multiplication is at the heart of the gospel. The compelling story of Jesus is radically and beautifully embracing of others. Nevertheless, growth is inevitably a challenge. It can be uncomfortable; it is unfamiliar and stretches our ability to love one another. As we grow, it will require an openness to embrace difference. In this season, there may be ways we are reshaped to make space for others to join our family - which might feel like a sacrifice.

Gathered and Scattered

"They followed a daily discipline of worship in the Temple followed by meals at home, every meal a celebration, exuberant and joyful, as they praised God… Every day their number grew" Acts 2: 46-47.

We place high value on the celebration of the dinner table, a primary way we express this is through House Churches. As we increase in number; we feel House Churches will be even more significant. They are precious times of God encounters, where we are small enough to maintain relational depth and to ensure everyone can be seen and heard.

You just don't get the same levels of closeness in the large.

However, like the early church, we also place great significance on times we gather as one big family. Encounter Sunday (amongst other key calendar events e.g. Christmas, baptisms etc) are times where we get to experience the 'exuberant and joyful' celebration of all being together in one place.

As we grow, we feel that our structure of House Church, Encounter and Learning Sundays will enable growth both in size but also (crucially) in depth.

Safeguarding

Important to note as we grow: Safeguarding

As we grow, it is imperative we have culture of safeguarding.

Safeguarding is everyone's responsibility in Proximity Church. If you hear, see, or even feel concerned regarding a child or adult at a Church event it is imperative that you share that information with the right people.

Recording and Reporting

You can do this by: reporting concerns to our Designating Safeguarding Lead (Charlotte Harman) or our Deputy Safeguarding Lead (Joyce Gjoni) and reporting your concern on our safeguarding portal.

(If you want this to be kept confidential, you can opt for this on the portal).

Safeguarding Training

We are running safeguarding training via Zoom on: Tuesday 22nd October 2024 and Sunday 27th October 2024 for all adults in the church.

We would ask you make every effort to attend one of these training sessions; to ensure we have the most up-to-date knowledge and skills to ensure safeguarding within Proximity Church.

Invitation

There are two further ways we want to challenge one another to be "one family, many homes":

1. If Proximity Church is to grow, how might God want you to be a part of that? Do you have a dream, vision or desire to do something? Do please let the Leaders know.

2. If Proximity Church is to grow, would you be willing to embrace this challenge? Consider what that might require of you, your family. Are there people in your sphere of influence that could reach out to, share Jesus with? Let your heart grow for?

Relevant Teaching

R: Rooted in The God Story

How do we prepare and position ourselves to grow?

Recap: We believe God is inviting Proximity Church to GROW, both in depth and size. Considering this, we are asking ourselves 'how can we best prepare and position ourselves"? 

We landed on:

• G: give generously

• R: rooted in The God Story

• O: one family, many homes

• W: witnesses and disciple makers 

We are going to cover each of these areas with clear invitations and ways to respond in turn. This week we review R: Rooted in The God Story

The God Story: is a compelling and creative retelling of the biblical story to help you move from the familiar to the fascinated.

Why this teaching?

"Each one of our lives is a unique and unrepeatable creation. Each one of our stories is precious and worthy of being told, shared and experienced. Yet none of our stories make sense in isolation, disconnected from a wider plot. Our personal stories only truly find meaning when they are linked to the very source of our lives and the unfolding drama into which we were born."

Authors of “The God Story”: Alain Emerson and Adam Cox

The God Story is a core teaching for Proximity Church. Taking time to journey through the overarching narrative of God throughout the Bible has been hugely significant. It has fundamentally formed our identity and sharpened our calling both as individuals and as a church family. As we deepen our roots in the biblical narrative, we discover that the story is still being written, through the Church, 'on earth as it is in Heaven'.

How will this work?

We will be following a book 'The God Story' by Adam Cox & Alain Emerson as we gather for 'Learning Sundays'. Adam and Alain are our dear friends and key leaders in the 24-7 Prayer movement.

Important Calendar Changes

Moving forward we will rearrange the calendar so that both Family Learning and Learning Sundays take place simultaneously. There are many benefits we see to this coming together.

Due to the logistics of venue and calendars this means two important shifts:

1. Learning Sundays will take place on the 3rd Sunday of the month;
   Starting from 20th October 2024

2. Learning will begin at 2pm for coffee, teaching at 2.30pm and finishing at 3.45pm.

INVITATION

There are two further ways we want to challenge one another to be "rooted in The God Story":

1. We are encouraging everyone to devote themselves daily to reading the Bible.
   Join in together as we trace the narrative of scripture, plan will be sent out shortly.

2. We are developing 'Story Dwellers'. Groups with space for further study.
   If you would like to be a part of this, please follow this link.

More info

• Everything you need to know about The God Story, including where to Buy the Book: The God Story

• Follow 'The God Story' podcast hosted by Adam Cox & Alain Emerson: https://tr.ee/2oHmeYg_D6

"...I'm about to do something brand-new. It's bursting out! Don't you see it?" Isaiah 43:19

Relevant Teaching

G: Give Generously

How do we prepare and position ourselves to grow?

At Encounter Sunday we gathered for Family Business. It was a fantastic afternoon of worship, celebrating all God has done, hearing stories and dreaming for our future.

Taking on your feedback, listening to the Leadership Team, gathering prophetic words and input from the 24-7 Prayer Network; we set a new vision for Proximity Church.

We believe God is inviting Proximity Church to GROW, both in depth and size as a Church family.

In light of this, we asked ourselves 'how can we prepare and position ourselves" for growth? 

We landed on:

• G: give generously

• R: rooted in The God Story

• O: one family, many homes

• W: witnesses and disciple makers 

We are going to cover each of these with clear invitations and ways to respond in turn. Starting with G: Give Generously

"to feed, to clothe, to host, to care, to serve" [Matthew 25:25]

Building/Prayer Room

We currently hire a meeting space at Hassenbrook Academy, this has been a blessing but there are limitations of access (during school times), facilities (no kitchen) and room (we currently just about fit on Encounter Sundays). We also hire Dry Street Prayer Room, however, there are also limitations of access (day-light, need a car), temperature (no heating) etc. As a result, the Prayer Room lease will be paused until Spring time.

Our vision would be to have a space and base for Proximity Church, that we could have regular access to, that had a prayer room, that we could use for larger meetings, mid-week groups, and to reach the community from.

Church Economy

However, to grow, we need to develop our church economy. As it stands, our income does not match our outgoings, we are facing a projected £268 monthly deficit. We currently have reserves that cover this shortfall. But to step into these bigger visions and dreams, we will need to see our income increase too.

THE INVITATION:

1. If you don't give to Proximity Church, could you consider giving?

2. If you already give, could you consider increasing your giving?

How to give?

• A regular monthly standing order is the most helpful. It enables the Leadership Team and Trustees to budget for the future

• The easiest way to give is Via Stewardship. And you are able claim Gift-Aid.

• You can give via cash or direct debit, please ask for these details

Relevant Teaching