Welcome to the monthly HOPE update for February.
Imagine all over the country in communities large and small, churches working together, bringing Jesus’ story alive through word and action. Imagine lives turned upside down and despair turned inside out.
HOPE Survey
Thanks to all who participated in the HOPE survey. Your feedback was really helpful. From this we have identified what we can do to support you and what resources interest you most. The top 3 things that respondents are looking for are: support in drawing churches together, training on ‘word’ evangelism (how to tell the story), and training on engaging with the media.
See fuller results from the survey
Training
The event in Harpenden, which took place on 12th Feb, was a great success. Laurence Singlehurst led the day which provided inspiration and advice on mission and evangelism, including a creative workshop. Roy Crowne led informal ‘word and action mission’ training sessions with keen local activists and leaders in Barking and Lancaster. If you would like to host a HOPE training session for your area, do contact us.
Review of the Lancaster Training day from a participant
Local Story – Food and support drop-in, Halifax
The Halifax food and support drop-in centre, now in its third year, is now offering prayer as part of the free service for people who attend. Now clients have been ticking a box as they arrive, selecting to receive prayer while they are there.All this has come about because churches across Calderdale decided to join together and address the needs in their area.
Food and support drop-in sees clients ask for prayer
Halifax Food and Support Drop-in website
The sales of the HOPE for Easter book have been doing well and we know many are getting inspired and busy planning how they can use Easter as an opportunity to be outward looking and share hope with their community. Some have bigger mission ideas brewing for next year. If you are planning a project, event or activity that ties in with HOPE or are using the book in your church or small group, we would love to hear about it!
Adding word to action – Easter message material
More videos and resources for Easter
HOPE Youth
Many of you do the challenging but amazing job of leading a youth group or working with young people. We are currently looking to appoint a Youth Director – a dedicated leader who will work with denominations and Youth Agencies to develop the HOPE youth strategy and move it forward.
Job description and details
An exciting new youth mission event is in the pipeline in Cambridge as a joint venture by HOPE Cambridge and several youth agencies. Young people will spend 6 days sleeping, eating, worshipping and serving together in Cambridge, for a unique mission training experience in October. This may just be the start of these kind of youth events in local areas across the UK. Young people led the way in HOPE 08 and it would be amazing if this could happen again on a wider scale. If your youth group is doing outreach, please let us know so we could consider profiling your story.
Spring Harvest – offering HOPE this April
Tying in with the 400th anniversary of the King James Bible, Spring Harvest is delving deeper into the treasure chest of truth and promises of Scripture. God’s plan for his people, revealed through Scripture is the ultimate good news. There is still space at this all-age event which gathers thousands for teaching, worship and seminars, plus dedicated programmes for children and young people. HOPE will be hosting a mission seminar and a reception each week, so look out for that, if you are attending Spring Harvest, and come and say hello.
Local churches are getting inspired
Many visits to local areas are taking place and the church leaders get together to pray, plan and hear the vision of HOPE. Several leaders have said that HOPE has enabled them to get the churches in their area working together in a way they had not managed before, now with a focussed goal – mission.
HOPE gatherings and events, just in the last month, have taken place in Lancaster, Barking, Nottingham, Bournemouth, Newcastle and Peterborough. March will see meetings in Cambridge, Preston and Exeter. In the Autumn, a small selection of dates will see the 3 original visionaries behind HOPE; Andy Hawthorne, Roy Crowne and Mike Pilavachi, joining gatherings in larger targeted areas.
HOPE Sundays
The 20th and 27th March 2011 are our first HOPE Sundays. These days are opportunities for churches to raise awareness about HOPE and the possibilities of working together for mission in their community. Service ideas that you could use in your church service if you have a 3 min slot. Maybe at your church you could just raise awareness of HOPE by showing the DVD, or just have a conversation with someone afterwards about the opportunities for unity that HOPE could provide? Service ideas and prayer ideas for HOPE Sundays
Prayer
Please consider becoming a committed prayer supporter of HOPE and sign up for a quarterly prayer email with specific HOPE prayer points.
Love your streets and Street Angels
Love your Streets was launched on valentine’s weekend as part of a HOPE Nottingham event. It focuses on encouraging people to contribute good old fashioned community spirit and the event urged Christians to get involved in their area. A new Street Angels team in Beeston, Nottingham was also launched. On the 11th March, Roy will be going out with the new Street Angels team, on their first night, for the Angel experience.
God bless you, from the HOPE team.
HOPE exists to equip and support local churches to speak and live its mission, effectively using word and action outreach to share the gospel. The desire is to see long lasting spiritual change in the lives of individuals and whole communities transformed. You have been sent this email because you have provided HOPE or HOPE 08 with your email address and signed up to be part of HOPE. If for any reason you wish to discontinue receiving HOPE email updates please reply to the email with ‘unsubscribe to general updates’ in the subject field along with your name and address.
