Welcome to our website  - I hope that you find something here that is helpful to you. Why this particular website?    Perhaps, you were simply ‘surfing’ and came across this site. Maybe, you are looking for a Church – for social or spiritual reasons, or both. Perhaps, you are merely ‘looking’…………or would ‘searching’ be a better word to describe what you are doing?

The sense that life is a ‘journey’ may not often come into your mind. I suspect that it could be an age-related matter, in that younger people are too busy ‘doing their own thing’ and don’t have the time nor the inclination to give much thought to the ‘journey’ that they are on. And if they do, it is likely to be in terms of ‘immediate things’ – my education or my employment prospects. Certainly, it seems difficult to take seriously the need for a pension provision or to save up for retirement, for that seems far away.

Yet it is my experience that younger people are interested in the future. Take the matter of ‘global warming’ for example – something that affects all our future, indeed the future of the planet and humankind. Part of the international response to the matter is to radically reduce carbon emissions and so reduce the risk of catastrophic global warming.  Apparently the current average global temperature is around 0.7°……………and current predications in the event of higher increases range between 1.5°C (when 30% of species face extinction), 2°C (when many areas of human popular become uninhabitable) – and so forth. So the future –the environment being but one aspect of that present/future link – is about all of us, of every age.

Equally, many of the fund-raising activities in our church are driven by our young people - raising money or goods to help other people in other countries and in our own city.

Recently, the local Community Committee held a meeting in our church sanctuary………..a meeting during which a wide range of community needs were discussed – from transport, to policing, to environmental and recycling matters. What for me is significant is that all these matters were brought within the orbit of the church and discussed within sight of the Cross.

And then I remember that “our aim is to continue to be an effective Christian presence, witness and service in our local community.”

So, at our heart is God whom we worship in Jesus Christ and we try to allow the power of the Spirit to renew us and our world. We believe that God is a Creator God; thus hurting the environment is to hurt God; and we are called as part of our mission to work with all people of goodwill to seek the renewal of our very delicate and beautiful world.

We keep trying to develop our VISION as we try to live out the Gospel, which is Good News for the 21st century.  I repeat what I believe we hold dear:  that we are a people called to follow Jesus, we are community - we are part of a wider community in which we work, live and play. We are not ‘shut off’ from our community and we reaffirm that we are wanting to work with all people of goodwill, people of any faith or none to the good of all people in our community.

We are on a ‘journey’ together - whether we acknowledge it or not.   Birthdays, New Year parties, anniversaries……….these and many other things mark the movement of the years and the procession that is our lives. It is a journey we share with friends and family. And for some people ‘faith’ plays an important part in their journey. The ‘faith’ may or may not be ‘religious’; it may or may not be Christian faith.

So whether it is global warming, environmental concerns, education, personal living, health, parties or anniversaries – I am sure that these, and all matters of daily living, are important to ‘faith’ and certainly important to Christians.

We want to ‘share’ our faith story; we want to ‘share’ your story. As Christians we don’t claim to get it right, but in Jesus, and by his grace, we hope to make some sort of difference in our community.  And to that end, we invite ‘you’ to journey with us; or rather, let us journey together!

I am fairly certain that when we take time to look back or take stock of our personal situations, we find that there are things about which we have regrets – things we might change if we could. But of course there is no way back. And I therefore think that it is important to find some way of putting some things behind us – or rather leaving them alone, unless of course we still need to find some way to face them in order to release us from them and free us to face the future.

To release the regrets of the past into the hands of Jesus Christ – and to place everything that lies before us into his sure hands – is part of the Christian way, the journey, the pilgrimage, the faith. And then go forward determined to live life caring for neighbour, stranger, creation/environment – the journey.

Come and see us some time!  We are just like you – still searching, sharing, journeying – making mistakes, and hopefully learning from them.  Perhaps, you could help us on our journey!

Share our warm welcome! And remember, there is often tea or coffee in the pot.   And there is always room for you in our fellowship.

Thanks for calling and taking the time to read this

May God bless you on your journey.

George McCleave