Welcome : Everyone
From the moment Life Vineyard began in 2006, we have been on a journey of faith doing all we can to respond to the Lord’s leading as He has continued to bring more people to join us, and more opportunities to bring life to our region.
Looking back for a moment, as we prepare to move forward, our story as a church has been an amazing testimony to God’s grace. He has led us every step of the way and invited us to always make room for more.
We are so excited about all that God is doing and we want to share how we, as a church family, need to invest in the foundations of LVC.
God is growing and multiplying His church, and we are all invited to take hold of His hand as He leads us on.
Love,
David & Nicola
The Journey : So Far
The story of Life Vineyard has always been one of making room for more people. God has taken us on an adventure as we have sought to join with Jesus in extending His kingdom across the North East and beyond.
Sept 2006
January 2007
Tyneside Vineyard, now Life Vineyard Church, was planted with 4 adults and 3 kids.
We had our first public meeting in the Chillingham Arms in Heaton.
2011-2012
2012-2014
2015-2017
2007-2011
Over the next few years we moved to the Grey Street Hotel and The Thistle Hotel, to again make room for more people.
Once again, we grew in number and we needed to move again. So, after a few months in the Centre for Life, we moved to our first church building, 85 City Road.
Yet more people joined the church and before we knew it 3 years had gone by and even this space was getting full.
God spoke once again and this time led us to Gosforth and after a couple of years at the high school we moved again to the Gosforth Civic Theatre.
God reminded us of our call to multiply. He gave us a vision to start 10 new sites or churches, in 10 new locations. In September 2017 Life Vineyard - Marley Hill was launched.
We were now one church in two locations, Gosforth and Marley Hill and so in February 2018 we returned to The Centre of Life, this time for a one church Sunday who joined together to celebrate all that God has done and will do.
After lockdowns and a season of massive change we at last were able to start meeting again. To begin with we had to follow the social distancing rules which limited the number of people who could attend.
In May 2019 we bought our first home, The Allen. LVC Wallsend was started in September after the main worship space was wonderfully modernized.
Thankfully, these were lifted and over the next three years we saw the number of people re-engaging or joining LVC grow.
September 2019 was a busy month as we also commissioned Phil and Lisa Crosby to plant Darlington Vineyard, our first church plant.
Then in September 2024 we sent out our second church plant as commissioned by Mike and Jo Sutton to launch Beacon Vineyard South Tyneside.
It has been incredible to see what God has done over the last 19 years. From 4 adults and three kids, to now around 500 people who are connected to LVC. From no Vineyard Churches in the North East to now two sites and two further church plants. God is growing His church and we are hungry for more of His Kingdom to come.
Little did we know that a few months after launching LVC Wallsend that we would find ourselves in the middle of a global pandemic. In response to the needs of our region The Allen was transformed into an emergency food bank as we led a team of churches that produced and delivered 1000’s of food parcels across the city of Newcastle.
2019 - The Allen and LVC Wallsend
2019 - Planted Darlington Vineyard
2020 - 2021 - The Pandemic
2021 - 2024 - Rebuilding LVC
2024 - Planted Beacon Vineyard South Tyneside
Life Projects
God has not just grown our gathered environments, He has also expanded our impact across this region through our Life Projects.
Over the years we have pioneered compassion ministries that have blessed and supported 1000’s of people. We have supported other churches to develop their own Food Pantries and seen many lives transformed through the Pop-Up Pantry network.
The Byker Pantry continues to bless 100’s of people in the Byker Wall.
Our Noahs Ark Toddler groups are thriving and regularly have over 60 children attending, plus parents and carers
The Lamp Cafe is a wonderful place of community and connection and our Friday free meals has served over 1000 meals so far.
As a church we are passionate about finding ways to lead our community into life, through one off outreach activities and ongoing ministries.
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The Next Steps : Sunday Gathered Environments
After the unprecedented challenge of the pandemic and how it affected our ability to meet on a Sunday for large periods of time, we have seen our Sunday gathered environments grow and flourish. In 2022 our average Sunday attendance was 144 adults and children, this has increased by 37% to 197 in 2024. Every week we are seeing new people visit us to explore if LVC is a church they could call home.
We have seen the number of people calling LVC home grow too and we now have around 270 adults and 210 children who are connected. As we look to the next season we want to develop our Sunday services to make sure they are as welcoming as possible to help people feel at home the moment they walk in our doors.
To do this we need to improve some key elements of our wonderful Sunday spaces and equipment. We would love to improve refreshments, signage, PA and lighting, maybe decorate, improve carpets, to name just a few.
It is really important that we create a wonderful first impression for everyone who comes to LVC for the first time. God is bringing people all of the time, from people exploring faith to others looking for a new home and we want our spaces to reflect our vision for being a church that is radically welcoming to everyone.
We can't do everything this year but we would like to make a good start on improving our spaces and to make that happen we want to invite us all to give £10,000 to this.
life vineyard church
life vineyard church
The Next Steps : Life Kids And Youth
At Life Vineyard Church we have a vision to see the next generation growing in faith and maturity. We have thriving kids and youth ministries with often around 70 young people gathering across both sites on a Sunday.
In 2023 we launched The Hub youth service. We regularly see 30 to 40 12-18 year olds gathering for worship, an age appropriate talk, prayer and of course lots of fun too.
However, this is not the whole picture, we have 210 young people connected with LVC and we are passionate to see every single one growing in their faith.
We also have a number of young people with additional needs and we want to make sure our spaces and resources are as inclusive as possible.
To do this we need to once again invest in Life Kids and Life Youth. Again we can't do everything this year but we would like to make a good start and to make that happen we are inviting us all to give £5,000 to these ministries
life vineyard church
The Next Steps : Regular Giving
John Wimber famously said “ministry costs money”. In other words the cost of running two buildings, all our ministries and activities, staffing and more… costs money!
This year we have once again seen our Sunday attendance grow and the number of people calling LVC home also increase but unfortunately we have also seen regular giving decrease.
This has left us in an unsustainable situation and we need you all to play your part in supporting the ministry and development of Life Vineyard Church.
To meet the monthly costs and to be able to invest and grow our current ministries and services we need to see regular giving grow by over 10% or £1600 a month.
Tithing : One Off Gifts
We will be giving away 10% of the one-off gifts that we receive from the foundations offering. This money will be used for two things:
• To support families with the costs of Dreaming the Impossible (DTI) youth festival tickets in August 25.
• To purchase equipment for DTI additional needs team that David will be leading. This team will be supporting 100’s of young people to enjoy the festival and receive the support they need.
The invitation
Sunday 23rd March is our 1st Gift Day!
One-off Gifts
We are looking to raise £10,000 to invest in our Sunday gathered environments at Wallsend and Marley Hill. We want to make our services and spaces as welcoming as possible and have the funds to upgrade equipment and more. We are also looking to raise £5000 to invest in Life Kids and Life Youth. We want to invest in the next generation doing all we can to ensure they never know a day where Jesus is not at the centre of their lives.
We will also be setting aside 10% of this and investing in Dreaming The Impossible (DTI) Vineyard’s summer youth festival.
Regular Monthly Giving
We want to invite you to give regularly to LVC. We believe in the principle of tithing the first fruits of our income.
- If you have never regularly given to LVC then we want to invite you to start giving. The best way is to set-up a standing order as it helps the trustees to budget and plan for the months and years ahead.
- It may be that you give already but are not yet tithing. We want to invite you on the adventure of trusting Jesus more fully with your finances. You may not be able to go straight to tithing but you can make the next step on that journey.
- Finally, you might tithe or give a significant proportion of your income as part of your worship. We want to invite you to pray and ask Jesus if he would have you invest more.
We also believe that all we need, to do the work Jesus has set aside for LVC to do, is already in the church family. However, it requires us all to play our part in giving. life vineyard church
Equal Sacrifice : Not Equal Gift
We are again asking Life Vineyard members (and anyone else who would like to) to participate in making this next exciting phase become a reality. For some it will be relatively small amounts; for others, it may be thousands of pounds. Give as the Lord prompts you in accordance with the resources He has blessed you with.
Making an ‘upfront cash gift’
Please fill in the commitment card, that will be available from 16th March. Enclose your cheque or cash and the commitment form in the foundations envelope provided and either post it in good time or bring it to church office or the 23rd March Gift Day. If you are enclosing cash we recommend you bring it to church in the envelope provided and place in the offering basket. Please make cheques payable to ‘Life Vineyard Church’.
Online
Giving
If you would prefer to make your donation on-line, the church’s bank details are listed on the commitment form. Please identify your gift with the code: [mysurname]Foundations25 and email finance@lifevineyard.church with the details of your gift.
Making an ongoing pledge
Decide on the monthly amount you wish to give towards vision for LVC. We are inviting everyone who calls LVC home to tithe, or move towards tithing to the local church. You may already tithe and feel prompted to give additional money for a fixed period of time. Please again fill this in on the commitment/pledge cards.
Complete the commitment form once you’ve decided how much you would like to give and tick the box to let us know if you plan to set up the payment yourself or would prefer us to contact your bank on your behalf. If you set up the payment directly on-line please do so with the code [mysurname]Foundations25 and email as above.
life vineyard church
Gift Aid
For those of you who are tax payers and are not already giving regularly to the church, filling in the gift aid section on the commitment form will enable us to reclaim from the HMRC the basic rate tax you have paid on the amount you give.
Prayerful - decision making
As you begin to think about what you might give, both upfront and over the coming years, it is important to make that decision prayerfully. For most of us looking simply at what we think we could afford after all our outgoings are deducted will not release very much. In 1 Chronicles 21, King David said “I will not ... sacrifice an ... offering that costs me nothing”. For us as a church family to embrace the the call of Jesus for Life Vineyard Church will require each of us to give obediently and sacrifically.
The amount upfront and the amount we give each month will of course depend on our financial circumstances. The more God has given us, the more He may ask of us. Often the first figure that comes to mind may be a comfortable amount. But seek God over a period of time until you’re convinced the amount you’ve decided on is also the amount He’s asking of you. It may be more than you can imagine affording, which requires trust that God will provide for your needs in out-of-the-ordinary ways. Experience shows that He will.
Equal sacrifice not equal gifts
We want to be a people who give sacrificially but also freely. What giving sacrificially means to each person is a relative thing and we are approaching this on the basis of “equal sacrifice not equal gifts”. Give to the Lord in proportion to what He has given you. The important thing is that we each give what He has asked of us, no more, no less – He knows our hearts, our circumstances and the cost of our sacrifice.
life vineyard church
Prayer Points : Please join us in prayer
Please spend time over the next two weeks especially praying for LVC and especially the seven points below.
1. Pray that Jesus will inspire us all to release the funds we need to do all that He is asking us to do.
2. Pray that Jesus would draw people to Life Vineyard Church and that they would find a church to call home.
3. Pray that Jesus would draw people who are exploring faith and that we would have the joy of introducing them to Jesus.
4. Pray that our Life Kids and Life Youth would continue to grow and that many young people would give their lives to Jesus and would grow in maturity.
5. Pray for the leadership of LVC as they listen to Jesus and lead the church in the months and years to come.
6. Pray for the trustees as they ensure the church is well governed through seeting budgets and ensuring we meet all national standards and compliance.
7. Pray that God would continue to give this church family all we need to grow and multiply across this region and to lead 100's and 1000's of people to Jesus.
Frequently Asked Questions
We’re already a healthy church. Why do we want to change things?
This vision for making room for more through investing in our Gathered Environaments and Life Kids and Youth ministries is not driven by the desire to become larger. It is our response to what we believe the Lord is clearly initiating and opening doors to. God is continuing to bring more people to join the church. We can either choose to settle or to make room for more. Our desire is to choose the latter.
When will this money be invested?
We will aim to invest the one-off gifts over the next few months. Regular giving will help us to cover monthly costs and invest further in ministries.
Can I give assets as well as cash?
Yes, however, we would prefer where possible that you sell them yourself. You may have things you wish to give such as jewellery or property, which need to be sold in order to release their value. If it is not practical for you to sell them and you would like us to assist you with this please make a note on the Commitment Form along with an estimate of the value, and we’ll contact you to make arrangements. You can also donate shares and other types of investments. Depending on your circumstances you may be eligible for tax relief if you make a gift in this way. In any event we recommend you take appropriate financial advice.
What if we don’t get enough money?
This is a crucial moment in our journey as LVC. Without this additional giving, both one-off and regular, we will have to make difficult budgeting decisions and will be unable to maintain what we currently do as a church.
What if more than £15,000 and £1600 a month is given or pledged?
That would of course be wonderful!, We would be able to proceed with everything we have planned, and anything beyond this would be allocated towards new or growing ministry initiatives .
life vineyard church
Will any of the Pastoral Staff know what I’m giving?
It is our intention for none of the Pastoral Staff to know what you give. David and Nicola would want to acknowledge any gift but would not know the amount. We feel it protects the pastoral relationship by keeping what you give confidential. This is between you and the Lord, and we want no one to feel pressurised to perform for anyone. Lucy our finance administrator, and one of the trustees (not David) will be responsible for counting and processing gifts and keeping records.
Can we really achieve this goal?
Yes we can. We can do this because we believe the Lord is in it. We can do this if we are willing to take the risk and pay the cost. We can do this if we are willing to make room for more.
What will I be expected to give?
As page 15 unpacked, each of us should give what we believe the Lord is asking us to give. It will involve sacrifice, but we want everyone to give freely and cheerfully. All contributions are valuable however large or small.
Can I change my pledge?
Yes. If for any reason you wish to alter your pledge (if your financial situation changes, for example) you can either increase or decrease your commitment. We just ask that you please inform the church finance team by emailing finance@lifevineyard.church or in writing.
What if I’m reading this brochure after the Gift Day, can I still give?
The 23rd March 2025 is simply the day on which we hope to give enough to enable investment in the vision for LVC. However, we want everyone who would like to participate to feel part of our on-going journey by contributing to all that the Lord has called us to as a church. So at any time we would invite you to make a one-off gift or make a start tithing to LVC to faciliate making room for more.
There will also be gift days each year to facilitate the launching and development of new ministries and hopeully new sites at which we would love you join us and give generously.
God is building His church and we are all invited to sacrificially give towards all that He is leading us into.
“Clear lots of ground for your tents! Make your tents large. Spread out! Think big! Use plenty of rope, drive the tent pegs deep. You’re going to need lots of elbow room for your growing family.
Isaiah 54:2 The Message