AUG U S T
2 0 1 2
ISSUE NUMBER 4
THE NETWORK Go into all the World What an amazing year of 'firsts' for Kingfisher! The first time that all three Kingfisher churches in Gloucester had baptism services within the same calendar year; the first time we have had an olympic team come to visit and take part in various church activities; the first book published by Kingfisher Resources; the first time we have held an International Network Conference! 'Go Into All The World', held at the Guild Hall, Gloucester, on July 14th, brought together people from Africa, India and the UK to celebrate all that God is doing in and through this Network of churches, and hear an inspiring challenge to be part of the spreading of the worldwide Gospel. The Gospel is the most contagious phenomenon in Church history...something so 'catching' that just 11 scared, ill-equipped individuals, empowered by the Holy Spirit have today become a worldwide movement numbering over
2 billion. The Gospel is spreading rapidly around the world in areas that have been violently opposed to the Christian message. • In Iran, more people have become Christian since 1979 than at any other time in the country's history! Estimates are around 1000 new converts each month. • Africa is now majority Christian. 52% of the entire continent (including North Africa, traditionally strongly Muslim) is now Christian • Operation World (2010) reports that the church in Nepal flourishes as a "remarkable indigenous movement" within a strongly Hindu culture. From the first Christian church formed in 1952, Nepal's believers grew to 200,000 by 1990, during times of persecution, and to some 850,000 Christfollowers by 2010.
In a year of so many 'firsts', the International Conference signalled a return of focus to a very familiar theme: sharing the most contagious, most lifetransforming, hope-filled message this planet has ever encountered. With renewed intensity and passion, we are zeroing in once more as a Network on Jesus command to 'Go and make disciples'...to seek and seize opportunities to share the Good News of the Kingdom, demonstrate how he has changed our lives, and offer the opportunity to those around us to make that discovery for themselves. Jesus Christ changes lives. He has changed yours, he has changed mine. Together we are going to offer that life-changing relationship to those who have yet to experience that. During the remainder of this year we are going to be offering an increasing number of opportunities to be part of Jesus' command: 'GO and make disciples!'.
NETWORK The Network Conference Go into all the world and make disciples... At our Network conference this year, we focussed on Jesus' command to GO into all the world and make disciples...the Gospel being the most contagious message known to humankind. We focussed mainly on the 'GO' part of that command...but what does it mean to 'make disciples'? On the face of it, it seems obvious...share the Gospel with non Christians, see them become Christians, welcome them into the church and help them grow into fully devoted followers of Jesus Christ, in a community where they can find their unique, God-given shape and fulfil their God-given purpose in life. And this is what we have committed ourselves to do at Kingfisher and we have been privileged to see hundreds of people embark on that process over the years. However, we need to take a closer look at the phrase 'make disciples'. Is it really the role of the church to make disciples? How can one person make another person be or do anything, without violating their free will? Is growing as a disciple a passive process...something that someone else makes me into? What is my responsibility in this? This is a real issue that we need to tackle and become clear about, because one of the biggest misconceptions about
church is that it exists to make someone into a different, better person. Therefore, if I do not feel like I am growing as a Christian, I need to find another church that will provide me with better teaching, better worship, better friends... But is that truly what the command to 'make disciples' really means? I think that it means far more than something that is just a passive, 'receiving' thing. It means far more for the church than trying to change lives. Making disciples is actually about a three-way partnership. The first party in this partnership is the church. The role of the church is to become the healthy environment where growth can occur. That environment includes: Biblical teaching, small groups,
opportunities to discover and grow in the gifts that each individual has been given, prayer support, and encouragement to grow and take the next steps, a commitment to challenge and eradicate 'unhealth'. The second party in this partnership is the individual disciple. The motivation for growth needs to come from within each individual...the responsibility of each one of us is to take the opportunities and openings that the church is offering and apply them to our own lives. If I want to be a healthy, growing disciple of Christ, it is my responsibility to make sure that I take the growth opportunities offered by the church. Do I want to to be well fed? Then I need to make sure I am listening to and responding to the talks I am hearing each
Sunday. Do I want to grow in community? Then I need to make sure I am a regular, contributing member of a small group. Do I want to discover the plans and purposes that God has for my life? Then I need to be doing Discovery and seeking to find opportunities for expressing my God-given shape that this course reveals. The church provides the environment, I provide the willingness and commitment...
the transforming power of the Holy Spirit that really makes the crucial difference.
The third party in this partnership is Jesus Christ. A disciple is one who seeks to become like the one they are following, in thought, word and deed. So Jesus is our role model, our inspiration and the one who empowers it all, through the Spirit who dwells within us. Without the empowering of the Holy Spirit in our lives, all we are doing is trying our hardest. It is
How do you view church? As the place you go to receive, the place where 'they' have a responsibility to make sure that you grow as a Christian and that God continues to bless you...or the environment where you are encouraged to take responsibility,
Announcing the forthcoming launch of a new book by James Burn: HIGH IMPACT CHRISTIANS IN A LOW EXPECTATION WORLD. We live in a world that has low expectations of Christianity, Christians and the church. From being at the centre of society a hundred years ago, the church is now consigned to the fringes, often seen as irrelevant...wellmeaning but not taken seriously. And yet, this is not how things were at the start. 2000 years ago, a small group of ordinary, powerless people, with no influence, no political backing, no particular strategy, turned the world upside down. Within a few
'Making disciples' is a three-party process. Us together, the church; each one of us as individuals; Jesus Christ, though his Spirit, empowering it all. "I planted the seed in your hearts, and Apollos watered it, but it was God who made it grow." (1 Corinthians 3:6 NLT)
short years, these High Impact Christians had taken the Gospel to the ends of the known world, seeing thousands come to a personal faith in Jesus Christ, governments influenced, and, eventually, even the mighty Roman Empire embracing the Christian faith. So what is going to turn our 21st century world upside down once more? How are Christians going to once again impact a world that is largely cynical of religion and that has such a low expectation of all things Christian? Not through clever marketing or through lowering the bar in terms of the demands of the Gospel, but through believers once again becoming High Impact Christians. High Impact
seeking God for his empowerment to become the person he created you to be, taking the opportunities for growth that are being presented, and encouraging others to do the same? Making disciples is a far more dynamic, 'community' process, with God-empowered personal responsibility at its core than is often realised. So, what is going to be your next step forward in this 'making disciples' process?
Christians have seven unique character traits, all of which are described in Paul's letter to the Philippian church. It was these character traits that caused a seismic shift in the direction of this world. Just a handful of a High Impact followers of Jesus Christ, filled with the power of the Holy Spirit, and the course of world history was changed. Our low expectation world once again needs to experience a seismic shift...it once again needs to be impacted with the authentic Gospel as practised by High Impact Christians.You can become a High Impact Christian, and this book reveals how. To be published beginning of November 2012.
BROCKWORTH Olympic Funday On Sunday 8 July, Kingfisher Church in Brockworth hosted an Olympic funday for the local community. We saw three teams of local youth battle it out in a 5-a-side football tournament on the community centre’s court. The winners were presented with a team trophy and individual medals by our visiting Olympic swimmers from Malawi. There were plenty of other activities on offer too: The under-fives had their own
competition of ‘vegetable olympics’ – the carrot javelin and swede shot putt were a particular hit; Space hopper races and a ‘pitch & putt’ course, Splat the Rat and Peg the Line all proved popular with lots of prizes up for grabs. The older ‘boys’ couldn’t resist showing off their skills with a rugby ball and a cement mixer and George Albinson wowed us with her artistic talents as she created some amazing painted faces!
To keep energy levels up during all this activity, Steve, Dave, Richard & JP provided a free BBQ, thanks to a
generous gift from a member of our church and our Refreshments team provided a huge selection of delicious cakes and biscuits. Our very own Tanya Judd – proprietor of Creation Cakes – provided a bespoke Olympic-themed cake for us to raffle and this raised money for the Children’s Centre, which helps disadvantaged families in Brockworth. The ‘café’ area was very welcoming and many
great conversations were had with our visitors. So despite the dismal weather, the Grand Prix and the Men’s Tennis Final, a fun day out was had by all and we send a huge thank you to everyone who helped us to serve our local community in this way.
Baptism service We are extremely pleased to report that on 24 June 2012, Kingfisher Brockworth celebrated its very first Baptism Service. We were happy to see that the church was full to brimming with church family and visitors as three of our ladies, Becky Goff, Shirley Merry and Anita
“Anyone who believes and is baptized shall be saved; but anyone who does not believe shall be punished.” Mark 16:16
Walker gave touching and heartfelt testimonies which brought tears to a few eyes. If you would like to make a commitment to Jesus and have your life filled with miracles, grace and unconditional love, please talk to your Pastor or Church Elder.
“Peter said to them, change your hearts and live and be baptised, each one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.” Acts 2:38
KINGSWAY Little Fishes Summer Trip Kingfisher Kingsway’s Little Fishes group set off on our very first coach trip this July. We went to Dick Whittington Farm Park in Longhope and enjoyed a day of soft play, ball pits, slides, trampolines and animals. We set off from Kingsway with over 50 children and adults from Little Fishes (and arrived back with everyone
accounted for). The children looked so cute running round the soft play barn in their new Little Fishes t-shirts which we had printed as part of our fundraising scheme to help pay for the coach.
A great day was had by all and we are now looking forward to planning another trip next summer!
Baptism Service Sunday 8th July saw 4 people getting baptised at our first baptism service at Kingfisher Kingsway. Ros and Kyle Nichols and Charmaine and Rakisha Sly took the brave step of standing up in front of the church and telling everyone why they wanted to get baptised. We then all went
outside to the pool where we watched the 4 of them get baptised. It was a lovely service and we already have more people wanting to get baptised in our next baptism service in the autumn.
Let’s stick together Figures show that 40 per cent of all children will experience the divorce or separation of their parents by the time they finish school. Much of this breakdown happens during the first few years of parenthood. More than 50 per cent of parents separate do so within 3 years of having a baby. These statistics are quite alarming which is why Care for the Family, along with Bristol Community Family
Trust have launched “Let’s Stick Together”, a national initiative aimed at reducing divorce and separation rates among parents. Let’s Stick Together has been run successfully in the Bristol area for over 5 years and is now expanding into other regions, the South West being one of them. Gloucestershire is coming under our remit and I am looking for volunteers who will be trained to deliver
Let’s Stick Together sessions in their community. If you feel this is something God wants you to do then please contact me to find out more. This is a really exciting opportunity to do something positive for families in your community and contribute to lowering those statistics I mentioned at the beginning. In His Service Elaine Campion
TREDWORTH Welcome to the Malawian Olympic Team The Olympic Games has come to the UK! And Kingfisher church has been partnering with Gloucester University to welcome the Malawi Olympic team, as they have been staying at the Oxstalls campus for a month prior to moving to the Olympic Village in London. We were made aware of a financial shortfall in the Malawi Olympic team budget and so became part of the ‘Sponsor an athlete’ initiative set up by the university to help ensure all the athletes could afford to come to this country to compete. We were able to contribute £2012 to the initiative from our tithe giving. We were also privileged
to be able to host the official ‘community welcome’ event at Kingfisher Tredworth on June 27th... a wonderful time of entertainment, being able to meet and get to know the athletes and share a meal together. Each Kingfisher church has had the opportunity to put on events that the athletes have come along to... for Brockworth, there was an afternoon of ‘Olympic Fun and Games’... a community outreach event that the athletes participated in and that many visitors came along to. Kingsway invited the athletes along to the school for a morning, and they received a wonderful
welcome from every class they visited. Finally,Yona, the swimming coach came along to the Network Conference on Saturday, July 14th and was interviewed by Stuart Gray about his life in Malawi, how it feels to be a Christian growing up in that country and what role faith plays in his life as a coach and an athlete. What a privilege to be able to get to know this wonderful group of people, and to have our links with Malawi strengthened and ‘brought alive’ in this way. Let’s pray they do really well at the Games!
A new partner with Kingfisher church - Treasure Seekers Social Enterprise Announcing an exciting new initiative! Although not a ministry of Kingfsher church, we are including this in the Kingfisher Network Newsletter, because it will impact many who call Kingfisher their spiritual home, and falls squarely in line with our desire to see God’s Kingdom in action in the wider community. A new Social Enterprise, called “Treasure Seekers” is being launched that will be run by Craig Tucker. He explains it like this: ‘In the last two years of working in care, I have come to realise that there are many people who could give so much in a workplace environment, but they simply lack opportunities.There are many reasons for this - for example, losing their benefits if they worked in a job that paid them less than the original benefits they received. For many, having a job would provide a sense of independence and bring some much-needed routine and discipline into their
lives, if only those opportunities were there. Along with this growing realisation has come the desire to help do something about this...which has led to the formation of the Social Enterprise,Treasure Seekers. What if we were able to provide workplace experience for adults with learning difficulties, for parents who are on benefits and find it hard to get jobs, for youth that have not particularly connected with the education system? Working in a voluntary capacity, people could gain valuable work experience and be able to build up a CV that they could then take to other employers, making them much more of an employment prospect. I am hoping to be able to network with other stores in Gloucester town centre, and to work with them to provide paid jobs for those who have spent time with us as volunteers. Alongside providing these workplace experiences, the vision is to offer craft workshops where people could come to
learn craft skills, meet other people and experience the joy of being creative. I am praying for the opportunity to open a retail unit in Gloucester to enable this - a shop that will sell craft goods sourced by (and, partly, made by) Jan Burn and others.This shop will also have a coffee shop within it and be a place where Kingfisher can advertise all that it has to offer... a literal shop window into the church! So what is a Social Enterprise? It is a non-profit company. Any money made goes back into the running of the company and will increase the number of opportunities available...such as, in the longer term, providing NVQs in retail.The directors of the Social Enterprise are myself, Katie Tucker and Jan Burn.’ We shall, as a Network of churches, be praying for the success of this new venture, and that it will be of great benefit to many currently unemployed and disadvantaged people!
MALAWI Miracles in Malawi Chikondi stood at the door to his little home and dug his fingers into the mud bricks in the wall. His eyes were closed but he could still hear his mother’s cries of pain. People from the village sat helplessly around her bed. Chikondi’s three little brothers stood amongst them…confused, frightened, not understanding what was going on. “Chikondi”, his mother gasped. He opened his eyes and the tears that welled there ran freely down his little cheeks. She reached out to him as she lay on her bed. “I have to die. Aids is taking my life, now. But I am so thankful for the time I have had with you. God has
taught me so much in my time with you, my precious son.”
like his Mother. He wants to be a Doctor.
Chikondi wept as his little brothers gathered around him. Back then – as his mother died on her bed, Chikondi was left utterly alone to care for his 3 little brothers. Today, the memory of his mother is still strong yet the pain is less than before. They all share a home. They are safe. Chikondi loves being part of Kingfisher Church; his singing voice is developing and he loves memorizing parts of the Bible. It makes him strong. When he grows up – Chikondi wants to care for and heal sick people. People
Above: Chikondi.
Below: The orphans at Mulanje.
Selina skipped towards her home in Matewele Village. It still felt strange living with these lovely people. Thank goodness they had found her; brought her into their family and helped her find lots of new friends at Kingfisher Church Matewele. Arriving home, she entered the hut and flopped down onto the mat where she would sleep tonight. If she closed her eyes…she could still sort of remember her Daddy’s face. He had become so very ill, back then. Everyone told her he would not live long. They were right. And if she kept her eyes closed a while longer…she could still see the angry faces and hear the angry shouts of her Uncle who demanded both she and her sick Mummy leave their home and never come back.
Selina decided that since she died, she missed her Mummy just as much as her Daddy. Back then – Selina was left parentless and alone. Today, Selina is loved and assured at least one good meal every day. At school she is learning about something she is gifted at. Writing. She loves stories and enjoys writing them for other people to read. She has such a wealth of experience to draw from in her short little life.
Kingfisher Church Network is seeing miracles happen in the lives of children in Africa; children like Selina and Chikondi. God has given us the privilege of entering into their tragedy and watching as God’s touch brings healing to their precious little lives. We give a little bit of money; there is a massive life changing impact on them. Miracles are breaking out in these little children’s lives. Tell me – what could be better than partnering with God to make this happen?
Left: Selina.
Below: Some of the orphans at Mulanje that are being helped by people from Kingfisher churches in the UK.
Kingfisher Resources Kingfisher Resources has had a busy time the past few months. We have several exciting launches, some of which are available now!
Kingfisher Mobile App! Kingfisher Network Mobile Phone App is available in both the Android and Apple format and will give you one click access to the newsletters, podcasts, twitter feed, facebook group, will give you the ability to send us photos and you can see where all the Kingfisher Churches here and abroad are! You can also contact us via the app. Get it free now from either the
Apple App store, or the Google Play Store!
Kingfisher International Conference DVDs If you would like a copy of the Conference DVDs they are available now from the resources site resources.kingfisher.org.uk
What’s next? The big project that Kingfisher Resources is working on at the moment is reformatting our leadership development training, making it easier for people to complete at home
and in their own pace. The introductory level ‘Called to Leadership’ will be available for pre-order soon, and those about to embark upon leadership training through Kingfisher will get a copy as part of that training and resourcing. ‘Called to Leadership’ is our first title published with ISBNs attached to us as a publishing house, planned to be followed swiftly by Level One. Towards the end of the year we will see the publishing of Senior Pastor James Burn’s new book ‘High Impact Christians in a Low Expectation world’ - Watch this space for more details in the next newsletter!
If you would like to be notified when the next newsletter comes out, please go to www.resources.kingfisher.org.uk and enter your email address so we can keep you up to date with news. In order for this newsletter to grow and develop, we need your help! If you go to any Kingfisher event and have taken a great photo, then please email it to: newsletter@resources.kingfisher.org.uk Or if you would like to get involved in the production of the next newsletter then email us with your particular area of interest. Hope you enjoy hearing all that is happening across the Kingfisher Network!
Kingfisher Network Kingfisher Church Moor Street Tredwoth Gloucester GL1 4NJ www.kingfisher.org.uk info@kingfisher.org.uk +441452 304339 Š Kingfisher Church, 2012