Bolton Network Church

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WELCOME

• Bolton Network Church
• PRESENTATION
• EVENING

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mission-shaped church

• Church planting andfresh expressions of church
  in a changing context

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in a nutshell

• Our society is changing rapidly
• God calls us to meet people where they are with
  the love of Christ
• So we may need to change the way we do church

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why bother with the church?

• Jesus commissions the church, as Christians
  together, to bring good news to all
• The church exists for those who are not its
  members Archbishop Temple

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mission-shaped church

• Its not the CHURCH of GOD that has a MISSION

• but the GOD of MISSION who has a CHURCH!

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a changing context

• Housing is expensive and people spend time on
  maintenance and DIY
• More people are working, especially more women
• Weekends a time to work till you shop
• People move around more and drive further
• More children visit family members and absent
  parents

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a changing context
These and other factors affect what people do at
weekends and squeeze out time for Sunday church
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a changing context

• We live in an increasingly fragmented society
• People meet through work, school, clubs
  (networks), not just in their neighbourhoods
• People increasingly spend their free time
  shopping, or in leisure centres, or watching
  television at home

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a changing context
All this changes the waypeople feel they
belongand do things together,and it
challenges traditional church attendance
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a context that excludes

• Those who are poor can feel excluded from all
  this choice
• For many, the neighbourhood may be all they have
• Lack of mobility means people can feel isolated
• Traditional community resources, including the
  churches, are no longer helping as they used to

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Simple?
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who are we there for?

• Regular attenders whose commitment needs to be
  recognised
• Fringe attenders who may be being pulled away
• De-churched why did they leave?
• what happened and why?
• Non-churched who need to experience the Gospel
  in a way that makes sense to them

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mission-shaped church
Mission is finding out what God is doing, and
joining in
(The Archbishop of Canterbury in the General
Synod, Feb 2004)
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mission-shaped church
We have to ask whether we are capable of moving
towards a mixed economy church
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mission-shaped church
recognising church where it appears and having
the willingness and the skill to work with it
(The Archbishop of Canterbury in the General
Synod, July 2003)
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the mixed economy
recognising church where it appears

• A simple picture, then?

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well
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values mission-shaped church is
mission-shaped church, pp.81-2

• focused on God the Trinity
• incarnational (totally involved where we are,
  as Jesus was)
• transformational (helping people to change, by
  Gods grace)
• making disciples
• relational (working through us and the people
  we know)

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approach shapes of life

• Relating to networks of people
• Not usually meeting on Sunday mornings
• Often emphasising face-to-face relationships in
  small groups
• Growing from fragile,gentle and small beginnings

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Where do we go from here..

• A mission shaped church for Bolton?
• Where are the gaps?
• Who has God called to fill the gaps?
• What will it mean for us?

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A new way of being church
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A new way of being church

• A NETWORK of churches across Bolton to
• establish and promote new ways of being church in
  and through the networks of cultures and
  communities that make up our town/city.
• Resource these emerging churches and provide
  support and accountability

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Values of the Network Church

• UP Worship, Word, Prayer
• IN Community, Ministry, Discipleship
• OUT Unity, Service, Mission

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www.boltonchurch.net
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Youth Congregations
Alternative Worship
Post-modern search for spirituality
Café Church
Post-institutional communities
Seeker services
Building Missionary congregations
Cross boundary Plants
New Missionary Orders
Network Churches
Catechumenate
Base Communities
Cross cultural Plants- ethnic - age - social
Cyber Church
Community development churches
Cell Church / G12 / Household
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DISCUSSION GROUPS

• What GAPS can you identify?
• What are your NETWORKS?
• Do you have a heart for reaching out to a
  particular network or area or culture?

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ACTION AGENDA

• CHURCH AGENDA Membership of Network
• Fully Committed
• Associate
• PERSONAL AGENDA
• Do you have a vision for a Missionary Cell etc.?
• Would you like to join a Missionary Cell?
• Could your existing Cell/Housegroup become more
  mission oriented?

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