Pass through, pass through the gates!
Prepare the way for the people.
Build up, build up the highway!
Remove the stones.
Raise a banner for the nations.
Isaiah 62:10
God is weaving the churches of Christchurch together and wants the churches to work together in new and greater ways to advance His Kingdom. He wants an army of ambassadors equipped to share the good news. ’Stones’ need to be ‘cleared away’ and the ‘highway built up’ so not-yet-Christians can hear about Jesus and have the opportunity to commit their lives to Him. (Mark 3:24, 1 Peter 3:15, Isaiah 62:10) A long term time frame is in view (10 years).
Goal
Every Christchurch resident will have the opportunity to engage with the good news of Jesus Christ in a relational context each year.
Strategy
Prayer:encourage and strengthen prayer for the advancement of God’s Kingdom in Christchurch, including liaising with the Prayer Network which meets the 3rd Wed of every month (see http://www.influence.org.nz for venue).
Help pastors better position their churches and equip their congregations to be ambassadors for Jesus Christ. (Eph 4:11). Quarterly discussions each year are facilitated during the day.
Equip and encourage Christians with a passion for reaching those who do not yet know Jesus. Evening Network meetings are held quarterly providing networking, workshops, info on national initiatives, and a sharing time.
Passion Groups meet to network, strategize, share ideas and encourage each other. (children, youth, young adults, elderly, equipping Christians, equipping churches, ethnic groups, families, healing on the streets, intellectual discussions, justice and mercy/social justice, women, men, music, neighbourhood, open air events, addictions, prison ministry, slogan boards, sport, street evangelism, tourism, workplace.)
City wide coverage (16 areas)
Ensure coverage of geographical areas and people groups.
Take advantage of national initiatives Sharing Info: Evangelical events will be shared through the database for prayer and so Christians know of opportunities they can invite people to.
Desire
We would like all missionally minded Christchurch churches and organisations to have representatives join the evangelism network so we can strategize and work together to meet the goal.