Our mission is the mission of Jesus: we are to bring Good News to those in our community, leading them to the truth of Jesus.
Our action is to obediently do as Jesus did and instructed us, as in the great commission. We must begin this Mission Action Plan by acknowledging the effects of COVID-19 over the last few years. This will mean that as a church we re-consider who we are and what we do! 2022 is an opportunity to continue to build and develop a new way of being church, which will include increasing our outreach into the community and starting to reassess where we want to be in the next few years.
We must rely totally on the Holy Spirit for our direction, agenda, and priorities. Our relationship with God, with each other and with the community of New Barnet should always be our focus. We must listen to Jesus at every step, and we must ask our community what their questions and needs are rather than assuming we know.
Then the eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain where Jesus had told them to go. When they saw him, they worshiped him; but some doubted. Then Jesus came to them and said, ”All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptising them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”
Matthew 28: 16-20
Our plan includes many areas of ministry. If we are to make a difference, everything we do should be intentional and missional, because the way that we serve will show Jesus to those around us.
We are always aiming to move forward, with the guidance of the Holy Spirit, as we continue to develop into the family of God that Jesus wants us to be, and as we work to be the hub of the community. To do this, we will make sure that all our work contains a balance of four elements:
- We will proclaim the Gospel message so that people can meet Jesus
- We will teach the foundations of our faith so that all in our church and community understand that Gospel
- We will show those in our community God’s big picture in the scriptures, so that all can see how God’s word fits together and is relevant for our lives today
We will encourage discipleship and discipline among all those that turn to Jesus
And as we think about welcoming new people to our church, we will think about the three steps of belonging, believing, behaving:
- We give people a chance to belong to the community at St James
- We tell them the good news of Jesus so that they too may believe in him who gives eternal life
- Through our actions we will show them what it means to behave and live a life following Jesus, guided by the Holy Spirit
‘A new command I give to you: love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.’
John 13: 34-35
To see full MAP click MAP-2022/23