Our mission - why we exist
Changed Lives → Changing Lives
At the heart of all we do is a vision of transformation for ourselves and our communities: no one can encounter God and remain unchanged.
We want to increasingly become a Christian community transformed through encounter with Christ, growing and overflowing to transform and bless the families, homes and communities we serve: Changed Lives, Changing Lives.
Our vision - what the future will look like
By God’s grace we want to be a people who are...
- confident & creative disciples of Jesus Christ,
- rooted in scripture & drenched in prayer,
- living gratefully, giving generously, caring for creation & sharing the gospel,
- growing in number & expectations – of God & ourselves,
- motivated by justice & love, open to the Spirit & ready for adventure!
Three Bold Outcomes
Our diocese has been on a journey of listening and discerning to arrive at our vision and strategy, which is distilled into 3 bold outcomes for 2030:
- Double the number of children and young disciples
- 200 new Christian communities
- Every parish, benefice and deanery showing signs of revitalisation.
Our strategy – how will we get there?
Our strategy is ‘To enable the local church to share in God’s Mission’
We use the phrase “Therefore, we will...” as a recognition that words without actions are empty. It is a commitment to taking real steps now to make our vision a reality soon. The actions will change and develop overtime and as we consider our vision and explore together what actions we commit to take at diocese, deanery and parish level.
Tools and resources
Some projects require majorinvestment and are coordinated at diocesan level. This includes the diocesan-wide recruitment of youth ministers, helping to identify and equip ourresourcing churches, piloting Flourish partnerships between schools and churches, enabling Ignite phase 2, and the research into and launch of focal ministers.
We also support local mission through Leading your Church into Growth courses, encouraging both parish mission action planning and deanery planning, training for ministers in youth ministry, growing young leaders, resourcing youth ministry and the ongoing development of a rural strategy.