At HTC we are called to be a mission shaped church because we have a mission shaped God. Being mission shaped means being outward looking and inviting. Being ready and prepared for what God might want to do with us and through us. It means being accessible and relevant to people who don’t know anything about God or the church.

Secondly, it means that we need to remove those barriers, whatever they are, that the de-churched and the non-churched have when it comes to church. They need to be surprised by the life, love and joy they find when they come. They need to know they are welcome and that there’s some-thing here for them. We need to be ready to "reshape" the family to make space for new members.

Thirdly, we need to ensure that our motives are clear in what we are doing. We are here to share the life, love and joy of Jesus with everyone. What we spend our limited time and resources on has to be geared towards being mission ready and willing.

The match-funding we have just received to refurbish HTC and setup the Logos Café is based on our proposal to do these things. The money comes from a Mission fund. We’re not setting up a business (although we want to run it as well as we can) so we don’t need to make any profit. We’re not competing with other business (but we want to be distinctive and attractive) and we’re hopeful that an attractive space will catalyse creative uses and enhance what already happens.

Extracts from the proposal the Diocese received are included on the Proposal page. You’ll see that the mission shaped elements are there, increasing the number of people we meet, being able to invite the increased number to events that they would enjoy in settings that are comfortable and attractive. And God-willing, seeing those barriers coming down so that good conversations can take place. You can also see that we don’t need huge numbers of people for this to be an effective strategy for Mission. Although, huge numbers would always be nice

It’s really important that we all pray into this idea; allow our imaginations to be directed by the Holy Spirit; see what He is up to; understand how we can join in. And share the insights, the ideas. Essentially, allow Him to make us more Mission-shaped.

Rev. Jules Wilson

Feb2019