HOPE - for the future!

We had one of our monthly Mission Shrewsbury meetings today.

I generally enjoy these times with other church leaders from the town, and today was no exception.

There is a genuine relationship which has developed more as we have spent time together and  got to know each other better.

There are some really interesting people, doing some amazing things in their own churches, and above all their is a genuine desire to live up to the name of our group Mission Shrewsbury and do mission together.

We are planning some exciting initiatives in 2011 and beyond.

In denominational terms we are fairly diverse but there is a common passion to share Jesus in our words and actions.

What excited me as much as anything though was the place we met.
The label on the building said

The Grange

though that will shortly change to

Hope Church

Hope Church is the name for a new church formed from The Grange and North Shrewsbury Community Church.. I suppose I take a particular interest in churches formed by mergers because that was how Shrewsbury Baptist Church came into being.
Mergers are time consuming ,they can be controversial(it was for us), but if done with the right motives and for the right reasons ,they are tremendously rewarding and I expect will become more common in future.

Like Shrewsbury Baptist, Hope Church has come together ,not to huddle together against the storm of secularism and materialism but to proclaim Jesus to our generation!

Already they have turned the former Grange building into very smart new offices ,storage and meeting rooms and I am told the local community around the church is intrigued,sensing something new and interesting  going on..

Looking round their building today it was impossible not to feel a strong sense of anticipation about what God is doing

I am sure the new church has a wonderful future and I certainly intend to be there on 23rd January when Hope church is officially launched

It will be well worth celebrating!