Andrew Morsley has helped to lead Hope Church Harrow View with a team of lay leaders for five years. Meeting in homes and gathering in their local community, the team focuses on living out their discipleship journey in their everyday lives.
Key to Hope Church’s vision is connection, inviting others into spaces where authentic relationships can develop and where they can bless and share God’s love with their neighbours. ‘A church plant only exists to take the Good News of Jesus out into the community,’ says Andrew.
Connection, invitation and relationships are all viewed as discipleship by the team. 
‘We’ve found understanding and deepening relationships develop through inviting local people to the sort of gatherings we would like to go to – walks, picnics, Easter egg hunts,’ Andrew explains. ‘And we’ve also embraced opportunities like a cafe event for parents from a local dance class, offering coffee, a muffin and a chance to chat and relax while they wait for their children.
‘Likewise, we have warm connections with our local football club. They are committed – as we are – to the community, and keen to host with us the sort of events that I believe Jesus would have enjoyed; parties, quizzes, BBQs, karaoke nights, alongside some more overtly Christian things like Christmas carols.
‘One of the things we did early on was Mission Shaped Living, a course by John McGinley, which we found demystified things for us.
‘We were encouraged to ask: How can we tell our story? How can we bring the essence of the gospel to life in our community, to those we live alongside where there is already a relationship – work colleagues, friends, neighbours, those we play sport with. You don’t have to be an extrovert or know the Bible in great depth or have theological training to be able to do mission. We tell each other, “You’ve got a story of your own, of your experience of Jesus. If you can describe that really simply, that’s amazing, there’s power in that!” For us as a team, there’s been a lot of learning in this.
‘Having created platforms of connection we’re pressing into hearing from the Holy Spirit and being open to prophetic insights – especially when people share deep needs for healing and emotional situations and struggles. How can we take that moment of sharing and do what Jesus did when people shared their lives with him, being equipped and confident to meet with them, pray with them and take them deeper?’
Alongside the community gatherings are meetings in homes twice a month. ‘It’s not a service,’ Andrew says, ‘rather, we come round a table where we eat and drink, sometimes make pizza, and include things like craft and games, making sure there is something for everyone and that all feel welcome. It’s slightly messy, but we’re creating a space for people to talk about some of the questions they have. This too is our discipleship, encouraging one another, opening up the Bible, praying and sharing together.’
As they seek to journey with local people, Andrew says continuity of relationships is really important. Taking part in a Myriad Pathway helped them identify their activities with a clear structure of sowing – reaching out to new people; reaping – offering events to help people discover the call of the gospel; and keeping – investing in a core community and deepening discipleship.
Reaping, he says, has been the hardest part – keeping a regular pattern is challenging. Soon they will embark on a new regular initiative, a ‘discovery gathering’ that will see them take over a fish and chip shop where people will be invited to enjoy a meal and be introduced to the Christian faith with a chance for questions. ‘We recognised that there was a bit of a gap,’ says Andrew. ‘We want to invite people we’ve already met and are praying that this will be one way of taking them on the next step in their journey of faith in Jesus.’
Find out more about planting a lay-led community with the support of Myriad.
