LIVING OUR CALLING
A VISION FOR OUR FUTURE
What kind of church are we called to be – and how can each of us play our part?
Living Our Calling: Exploring a Vision for the Future
We are launching a new five-week series this October exploring the future direction of church life across the Parish of Wargrave with Knowl Hill.
Entitled Living Our Calling: A Vision for Our Future, the series follows a period of prayer, listening and discussion by the Parochial Church Council (PCC) about how the Parish can continue to grow its life, service and involvement within the wider community.
Beginning on Sunday 11th October, each week will focus on one of five areas:
Pastoral
Welcome & Belonging
Mission Support
Children, Youth & Families
Worship & Services
Rather than treating these as separate projects, the series will explore how they form part of one connected vision – caring for people and helping them feel that they belong; supporting children, young people and families; looking beyond the church through mission and community involvement; and developing worship and services for people at different ages and stages of faith.
The five-week journey follows the themes Shepherded, Welcomed, Formed, Sent and Entrusted, beginning with Jesus' image of the Good Shepherd and concluding by considering the gifts entrusted to the church and how they can be used faithfully in the future.
The series is also an invitation to the whole congregation to become involved. Rather than presenting a finished plan, each week will encourage people to consider how they can pray, participate and contribute to the Parish's shared calling.
Living Our Calling: A Vision for Our Future runs from Sunday 11th October to Sunday 15th November.
Listen to our Callings
Week 1 – Pastoral
Sunday 11th October | Known and held by the Good Shepherd
Our new series, Living Our Calling, begins by looking at what it means to be a church where people are truly known, supported and connected.
Jesus describes himself as the Good Shepherd – the one who knows his sheep, cares for them and gathers them together. Before thinking about how we care for others, we begin by remembering the care we ourselves receive from Christ.
This Sunday we’ll explore our vision for pastoral life across the Parish and how caring for one another isn't simply the responsibility of clergy or a pastoral team – it is something in which every one of us can play a part.
How might we become a church where no one feels unnoticed or alone?
Week 2 – Welcome & Belonging
Sunday 18th October | From welcome to belonging
There is a difference between being welcomed somewhere and truly feeling that you belong.
This week in Living Our Calling, we explore our vision for a Parish where people can move from their first encounter with us to becoming genuinely known, included and part of our church community.
The Bible speaks of strangers being brought near and becoming members of one household. That challenges us to think beyond simply offering a friendly greeting and to consider how hospitality, inclusion and belonging can become part of the culture of everything we do.
What could each of us do to help someone move from being a visitor to feeling that they truly belong?
Week 3 – Children, Youth & Families
Sunday 25th October | Faith for every generation
Children and young people aren't simply the church of tomorrow – they are part of the church today.
This week in our All Age service, Living Our Calling turns to Children, Youth & Families and our vision for nurturing faith through everyday life, relationships and experiences – at home, at church and across the generations.
Jesus welcomed children and gave them a special place within the Kingdom of God. We’ll consider how we can help children, young people and families participate fully in the life of our Parish, and how the whole church community can share responsibility for encouraging faith in the generations that follow us.
How can we become a church in which every generation learns from, supports and encourages one another?
Week 4 – Mission Support
Sunday 1st November | Sent to make a difference
Church isn't only about what happens when we gather together. We are also called to look outwards.
In Week 4 of Living Our Calling, we explore Mission Support and what it means to be active partners in God's work – within our own communities and further afield.
That involves more than financial giving. Our vision is about developing relationships, learning from those we support, hearing their stories, praying for them and discovering practical ways in which we can participate in God's mission.
Where might God be sending us – individually and together – to make a difference?
Week 5 – Worship & Service Development
Sunday 15th November | Entrusted with God's gifts
Our Living Our Calling journey concludes by looking at the heart of our life together: worship.
God has entrusted each of us with gifts to use faithfully and courageously. This week we’ll explore how our worship and services can continue to develop so that more people, at different ages and stages of faith, can encounter Christ, participate and grow as disciples.
This isn't about change for change's sake. It is about prayerfully discerning what God may be calling us towards, honouring what we treasure while being willing to test new ideas, learn together and see what bears fruit.
What gifts has God entrusted to us – and how might we use them for the future?