Vision statement
"At St. John’s we are followers of Jesus Christ, called to love and worship God, to share His liberating love with those near and far, and to grow in fellowship, faith and understanding"

And as we seek to do this, we try to be:

Generous-hearted, prayerful, outward-looking, biblical, encouraging, flexible

In the spring of 2006 over 200 adults and children meet each Sunday across all our services; another 100 meet during the week.
By December 2009 we pray that the overall number, throughout the whole week, will be over 400. We believe we are called to growth, spiritual and numerical. For this to happen we need to improve our
 
Welcome Learning Buildings

Welcome:

Welcome expresses God’s welcome in his invitation to the whole world to respond to the saving gospel of Jesus Christ. Thus it includes support for overseas missionaries as well as coffee in the church hall!

We will seek to develop

  1. Church plant(s)
  2. A culture so that everyone who comes to a service is spoken to by someone.
  3. A rota of people in the hall, ensuring that people are welcomed during coffee
  4. A regular update on our overseas mission activities, encouragement to those serving abroad and the aim of supporting two people a year to go overseas in Christian service
  5. A pattern of on-going contact for those who approach the church for baptisms, weddings and funerals.
  6. Regular ‘come and see’ events
  7. The continued growth of our clear and varied pattern of social events
  8. A clear pattern of "enquirers" courses

Learning:

Learning We are called to be, and to make, disciples. Disciples mean ‘learners’ and thus we need to ensure everyone, of all ages, has opportunities to learn what it is to follow and obey Jesus Christ. This is not only for our own sake, but so we are empowered to serve our community and world.

We will plan:

  1. A clear pattern of nurture courses
  2. Our House Groups to continue to be centres of learning, fellowship, prayer and witness.
  3. "Digging deeper" sessions, for those wishing further to study Bible themes and passages.
  4. A teaching weekend every year
  5. A parish weekend away every three years, the first one to be in 2007

Buildings:

Buildings The condition and accessibility of our buildings affect the quality of our welcome and our learning.

We will seek to provide:

  1. More effective use of the space in the main building.

One aspect of this will be exploring how to provide a flexible and comfortable seating area in part of the building, and more inclusion for those in wheel chairs.

Another aspect of this will be to face the issue of the organ. It would be very expensive to renew it and, even if we did, we do not have an organist to hand. If it were removed then the space could be used as a possible meeting room/small service area/children’s area. This decision will affect what we do with the Chancel

Both of these, and other suggestions as time goes by, will need discussion with the Diocese

  1. An updated electric circuit
  2. Improved lighting (which is needed under disability legislation)
  3. A continually improving sound system
  4. A digital projector and screen to develop the visual side of our worship and learning
  5. An office, to be a focus of welcome and to make our administration more efficient
  6. Grace Taylor Hall to continue to be enhanced and improved, with a sign of Christian welcome on the wall

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We commit ourselves to affirm our ongoing ministries. We seek to be a prayerful people so that we will know God’s leading. We continue to be glad to work closely with other churches. We value our work among children, young people and the elderly. We are grateful for the faithfulness and skills of our musicians and singers. We recognise the vital contribution of those who underpin the church in administration, cleaning and practical tasks. We seek to be a thankful people where nothing and no one is taken for granted. We encourage people to enjoy discovering and using their gifts.

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To God be the glory Easter 2006