Advancing together in a decade of fresh mission

At the start of the 2020s, Elim as a movement of ministers, leaders, volunteers, missionaries, staff and church attenders, is as committed as ever to advance together in mission.

Elim's national leadership is calling its leaders and churches to advance together into fresh mission, extending their influence, impact and outreach, reaching and serving the local community and beyond.

“We are committed to beginning this next decade with a call to a fresh wave of outreach and mission into every community and culture throughout the United Kingdom and beyond,” says Chris Cartwright, Elim's General Superintendent.

“Over the last few years, Elim has established four strategic priorities and our focus is to see these commitments flourish. As one movement, our mission is to see Elim growing and planting healthy churches, developing existing and additional leaders, making discipleship a priority and reaching nations.”

This new season of mission will be launched under the banner of ADVANCE, springboarding Elim churches and congregations into focused mission. ADVANCE will challenge Elim leaders and ministers to consider what are the next steps that are required to advance mission through their local church. Also, they will be encouraged to plan how they can help other churches and leaders advance in their journey into accelerated and radical mission.

The call to ADVANCE in mission

A series of special launch events will take place in the first half of 2020, gathering Elim ministers and their leaders together at regional and national events. It's a season where the Elim Movement will seek to develop a culture that encourages Elim leaders to be visionaries, moving into a decade of advanced and radical mission, bringing the whole gospel to the whole world.

The ADVANCE message and priorities will cover the decade of the 20s, not just the year 2020, with the expectation that this will develop momentum over the coming years as more and more Elim churches establish their local strategy.

To assist our leaders, Elim will gather and shape a wide range of practical resources. Also, we will develop opportunities to help Elim leaders and churches share and celebrate their stories with others, providing examples of what is already working and bearing fruit, as well as further developing and strengthening existing projects.

At its core, ADVANCE will take on board national, regional and local perspectives. Vision and practice will be connected throughout the entire Elim Movement as we advance together with the good news of Jesus at the centre.

Commenting on the ADVANCE strategy, Chris Cartwright said, “Throughout our history there’s been a sense of times and seasons needing a fresh push. I believe and we believe as a National Leadership Team that we are at one of those points again.”

“We want to push into this decade right at the beginning to ADVANCE every local Elim church and local group of believers in faith and in fruitfulness in their own communities and contexts. We want to have an emphasis on a decade of building and renewing faith for our nation and communities.”

Cultural change

Across our churches, we can see great things happening and you can read some of these Elim stories at elim.org.uk/stories. By developing a culture of sharing our great stories, celebrating the goodness of God and all that he is doing throughout Elim, we will build on the existing momentum of what is already happening. Then advance with the confidence that God is going to further use the Elim Church in this fresh adventure.

“We have to recognise that society is changing rapidly around us and people have lost considerable confidence in the established Church and yet they are spiritually hungry,” Chris Cartwright continued.

“It’s not a time to back off. We have got incredible things happening at a local level in our churches. People are engaging in food banks and multiple community contexts. There are mums and toddlers groups, homeless outreaches and loads of other expressions where our churches are connecting with those outside of the Church. We are seeing people coming to faith but that seems to me a foretaste of first fruits.”

National Leaders share their thoughts

Duncan Clark, senior pastor at Coventry Elim, shared, “Without doubt, Elim is now benefiting from a renewed focus on the mission and ministry of Jesus. As one Movement we join together with passion to change the world by calling people into a life of devoted discipleship. Elim is refusing to retreat, to step back or step down, but to step forward into the new decade with a fresh impetus; building healthy churches, investing in courageous leaders, calling radical disciples and reaching diverse nations.”

“We are gathering the data of the UK’s single and multi-ethnic communities to facilitate a strategy for growth,” explained Midlands and North East regional leader Paul Hudson. “We will build a leadership and Bible training digital platform that will serve Elim globally. We will see the numbers of our UK churches engaged in mission grow year on year. This is our strategy, our commitment and our prayer as we advance into reaching the nations.”

Steve Ball, South West Midlands & Southern and Wales regional leader, commented, “I believe ADVANCE is a God-given invitation to partner with God to see his kingdom extended in our nation and the nations! Elim truly is a national and international movement, and as we move forward together I am convinced that God will do amazing things through us for his glory.”

Glasgow Elim's senior minister, James Glass, said, “John Stott once said, ‘We must be global Christians with a global vision because our God is a global God.’ Elim’s fresh emphasis on mission is an invitation to dream a global dream, see global possibilities and pursue global projects. An invitation to open our hearts to a global God!”

Launching ADVANCE at national leaders days

To help launch the ADVANCE initiative, the Elim National Leadership Team are bringing together Elim's ministers and leaders to one of eight regional vision events, as we move together into a decade of advanced and radical mission. They take place during February and March at the following locations.

North East and Midlands
Friday 7 Feb 10.30am - Saturday 8 Feb 3pm
Bridge Community Church, Rider Street, LEEDS LS9 7BQ

Metropolitan East
Tuesday 11 February 10am-4pm
Life Church Chelmsford, Hall Street, CHELMSFORD CM2 0HG

Metropolitan West
Wednesday 12 February 10am-4pm
Ealing Christian Centre, 266-268 Northfield Avenue, EALING W5 4UB

South West Midlands and Southern
Tuesday 25 February 10am-4pm
Rediscover Church, Northernhay Street, EXETER EX4 3ER

Wales
Wednesday 26 February 10am-4pm
City Church, 39-47 Cowbridge Road East, CARDIFF CF11 9AD

Scotland
Wednesday 4 March 10am-4pm
Glasgow Elim Church, 42 Inglefield Street, GLASGOW G42 7AT

North West England and North Midlands
Wednesday 18 March 10am-4pm
Living Waters Church, 33-45 Bolton Street, CHORLEY PR7 3AB

Ireland
Saturday 21 March 10am-4pm
Elim Pentecostal Church, 85 Moira Road, HILLSBOROUGH BT26 6DX

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