ReSource : What do we do?

_____________________________________________________________________________________ Renewal for mission in the power of the Holy Spirit

Our vision is to help build a church which is diverse, local, renewed in the Spirit and effective in mission.

Our work develops continuously as we respond to particular needs and requests. Among other things we can offer:

At national level

We seek to have a national impact. We are aware that we live in times of great change and challenge for the Church and its ministry, and that this means we need to keep our eyes on the big picture if we are to act as a catalyst for growth at local level. We seek to develop relationships with other key thinkers and agencies, and to work with them in mutually beneficial ways – through personal networking, participation in conferences, and providing speakers and writers for national conferences and publications.

At regional level

Our work develops continuously as we respond to particular needs and requests. We work with groups both within and across church traditions. Among other things we offer:

Deanery or area retreats – midweek breaks for church leaders. These can be shaped in many different ways for encouragement, refreshment, and reflection on the mission and ministry of the church.
Day conferences for leaders or CME programmes on spiritual renewal, confidence in the gospel, mission and evangelism, prayer, the healing ministry, the gifts of the Spirit, preaching and renewal, discipleship and others.
Support for Mission Partnerships and local Ministry Teams – retreats, vision days, training events.
Conference speakers and seminars from key thinkers on topics of pressing interest for mission and ministry
EQUIP, a clergy peer mentoring programme for ordained church leaders – organised regionally and focussed around the key demands placed on a church leader, both practical and ministerial.

At local level

As we have travelled and listened to the church we have shaped various offerings in response to particular needs, and so developed a way of working which enables a local church to create its own strategy for growth. Each church is encouraged to choose one of the following as an entry point:

Individually tailored consultancy and support
A church renewal weekend
A Church Council (PCC) day or evening, focussing on renewal or mission
A spiritual audit, using Growing Healthy Churches
A community audit, using Discerning Church Vocation
A Lent Course, Season of Renewal

All these entry points can be shaped around and lead into a longer or larger strategy. Towards this we have developed an original and user-friendly series of contemporary resource materials and programmes. These can be used either independently or with local training and support from members of our team. They include:

A discipleship programme for small groups, The God who is There. There are three books which may be followed consecutively or independently, according to local need: Beyond Ourselves, A New Community and Shining like Stars.
An evangelism course, Beautiful Lives
A healing course, In His Name
Exploring and applying the gifts of the Spirit, Doing What Jesus Did
A local church or area mission, shaped as required

Other resources

ReSource publishes its own materials. These include books and booklets from a variety of both thinkers and practitioners, and covering a wide range of topics, from confidence in the gospel to the discipline of fasting. We also publish a termly full colour topical magazine on key areas of ministry today. To preview and purchase any of our publications please visit our Publications page. To read a selection of articles and testimonies from ReSource magazine please visit our Online articles page. To view or order back issues please visit our Magazine page.

Global partnerships

We publish and support a discipleship programme for Africa, Rooted in Jesus. First developed in association with the Diocese of Mount Kilimanjaro in Tanzania, this is now in use in 35 dioceses or denominations in 13 African countries, where it has been translated into some 27 local languages. We find that the partnership which comes through sending teams to introduce and support Rooted in Jesus is of great benefit not just to the receiving diocese but also to those who serve on teams and to their home churches, bringing challenge, refreshment and an injection of energy into the home situation. Rooted in Jesus has its own website, www.rootedinjesus.net.

What will these things cost?

We are a self-supporting charity with no central funding; we live by faith. We ask for the refund of our travelling expenses for any preparation visits and for the work itself, and then accommodation and/or subsistence as necessary. In addition we invite a contribution to our time and to the cost of running ReSource - to the extent which you or your church can afford. This can be handled by budgeting in advance, by requiring a modest contribution from each person attending, or by taking up a thank-offering at the event itself. It costs about £500 per day to run ReSource, but we realise not everyone is able to afford that. So by way of guidance we suggest a daily rate for contributions of £200 per ReSource person per day, including preparation time, to be paid to the ReSource office; but we emphasise that the main criterion is what can be afforded. The more that can be given, the more it enables us to work in places where even our expenses can’t be met.

Like to know more?

Do contact us by email. To find out what people say about our work click here. To read more about our vision click here.