HELP GROW A YOUNG CHURCH in the heart of Ireland s capital city

Transcription

1 HELP GROW A YOUNG CHURCH in the heart of Ireland s capital city

2 Ireland is known as the land of saints and scholars and yet evangelicals make up less than one percent of the population. Our desire is to establish a church-planting church in the heart of Dublin City in order to reach people with the gospel, build up the believer and send workers into the harvest field. THE VISION: to establish a growing church plant in North City Dublin. City Church launched in September 2013 with a dozen people from Immanuel Church Dublin, and in the last year has grown to around thirty, comprising students and young professionals living and working in the city. Our current location only allows for a main gathering on a Sunday evening, limiting our gospel reach; our desire is to become accessible to people from all stages of life, and to see all growing together in community. To this end, we are actively seeking a new venue to enable a transition to a morning gathering. This proposal has been met with an enthusiastic response by our core group. Kieron and Mark began City Church under the direction and approval of Irish Church Missions (an Anglican Evangelical mission agency). Kieron was part of the staff team at ICM s daughter church (Immanuel Church Dublin) and they currently provide 90% of his funding. Mark is almost entirely self-funded. Many of City Church s core group give generously as far as their means allow them but we need financial support. We are currently seeking to secure funding for the next 5 years to allow both Kieron and Mark to continue to work with City Church. We are asking you to invest in the spiritual growth of this church by supporting its financial needs until it becomes self-sustaining. Our desire is to see this achieved by 2020, by which time we hope that City Church will: Ú Have an increasingly stable financial core. Ú Be growing, both in terms of its Sunday gathering as well as community/home groups. Ú Reflect the diversity of the city of Dublin with many different ages, nationalities and social backgrounds joining together. Ú Be actively seeking to plant a new church. This is the work we are asking you to consider supporting.

3 THE PASTORS: Kieron Lynch is from Ratoath, Co. Meath, married to Esther, and they have three young children. Mark Smith is from Carrickfergus, Co. Antrim and is newly married to Philippa. His desire has always been to work in ministry in the Republic of Ireland. He moved to Dublin in 2008 to work with IFES Ireland. He has a degree in Psychology from Queen s University Belfast, graduated from the Cornhill training course in London and has a Master s in Theology from the Irish Bible Institute. Kieron grew up as a Catholic and has experience in a breadth of church settings in both Northern Ireland and the Republic. He and Mark first worked together in St Elizabeth s Church of Ireland in Dundonald, Co Down. He moved to Dublin in 2012 to explore the possibility of planting a church in the city and helped launch City Church one year later. He has a degree in Theology from Oak Hill Theological College in London and before that worked on staff at St. Elizabeth s. During his time in London, Mark experienced life in two church plants at varying stages of development, one in Camden town, the other in Mayfair. These afforded him opportunities for service, as well as a chance to observe different church planting models. Kieron and Mark both left St. Elizabeth s with a desire to work together again and explore church planting in the Republic of Ireland. In the Lord s generous providence He has brought them to this point. They share the bulk of the pastoral work at City Church, conducting regular one-to-one Bible studies with individuals, leading small groups and supervising apprentices training with them. Additionally, they allocate the preaching over 4-6 week cycles to allow continuity and momentum to build throughout preaching series. Why look to support two pastors in one church while so many others have none? Simply put, we are persuaded that more can be done together than apart. A healthy staff team allows for a resource-rich church that could, God willing, become a training and resourcing hub, serving to produce more pastors for those pastorless churches.

4 THE VALUES: Our love for God and people motivates us to preach God s Word, so that, by His Spirit, the believer will be built up and the city will be reached. From its inception, City Church has had three core priorities: the priority of preaching, deep discipleship and purposeful community. THE CENTRALITY OF PREACHING: We believe that when the Scriptures are read and explained faithfully, by the power of the Holy Spirit, God s voice is heard. Thus, expository Bible preaching is right at the heart of all we do together. By preaching through books as diverse as Song of Songs and 2 Thessalonians, it is our prayerful hope that people s hearts would burn within them (Lk. 24:32) with love for God and others, and that they would be equipped for the building up of the body of Christ (Eph. 4:12). At City we often say that God is infinitely interesting, and our preaching seeks to foster that devotional curiosity! DEEP DISCIPLESHIP: Paul exhorted Timothy to watch his life and doctrine closely (1 Tim 4:16). We re excited by biblically driven, vibrant knowledge of the living God, where doctrine is held dear and the gospel permeates our whole lives. This shapes our corporate meetings, small groups, one-to-one work and our regular informal times around a meal. Our core group often uses the word family to express their experience of discipleship in City. I joined City when I moved to Dublin for college last September. I was wary at first of new people and strange surroundings but the atmosphere was relaxed and I soon felt part of the community. I was surprised how easily I was able to talk to them about my faith. That was something I was not used to doing at all. Now my first year with City has passed, my faith has strengthened and I feel better able to explore what it means to be a Christian. (Dan) The pastors are not afraid to explore every aspect of the Bible. During our time at City we discovered that it is more than a book of moral lessons but a rich and relevant story. Kieron and Mark never dumb things down but challenge us to think differently and explore new ideas... even uncomfortable truths. City Church Dublin has made a significant impact on our marriage, how we think about God and how we relate to other people. (Zach and Erica)

5 PURPOSEFUL COMMUNITY: Jesus said a city on a hill cannot be hidden (Matt 5:14). Our community is purposeful, not simply being a sanctuary to which Christians can retreat but a gathering of outward-looking believers, welcoming non-christian friends and family and looking to the wider good and cultural transformation of Dublin city. We want others to see our good works and give glory to our Father in heaven. Lying behind these priorities is a set of deeply held theological convictions. Doctrinally we stand in the reformed, evangelical heritage. Both pastors subscribe to the 39 Articles of Religion, and a fuller doctrinal statement can be found on our website THE PROPOSAL: Partner with us to realise the vision of City Church by helping us raise 65,000 per year for the next five years. Right now our projected annual income for our first year is around 6,000. This covers our building rent and other sundry expenses. Kieron is 90% funded by City s mother church (Immanuel) and Mark is almost entirely self-funded. Many of City s core people give generously as far as their means allow them, but we need financial support. Your support would give City Church the time and financial breathing space to grow, develop new ministries and begin to take responsibility for its own costs. Moving to morning services will allow us to attract a broader demographic, expressing the full diversity of a church family and build relational and financial stability. In the USA it is axiomatic that a church will become self-sustaining in 3 years, in Europe it is 5-7 years. Europe no longer has the Evangelical framework it once did and the increased hostility towards biblical Christianity makes evangelism and church growth a harder, longer process. For this reason we are asking supporters to consider a 5 year commitment. The cost of living in Dublin is only slightly lower than London and New York. Our budget is designed to reflect this reality. The average rental cost of a family home in North City Dublin is approximately 1500 per calendar month. At the moment Mark and Philippa live as caretakers of a house owned by Irish Church Missions but this may change in the future and will therefore affect the required level of support.

6 Budget ( 85,000 approx) Income Projected City Church giving 2014/15 10,000 Current level of support from individuals 10,000 (approx.) Total income 20,000 Expenses Kieron Lynch: Senior Pastor 43,000 Mark Smith: Associate Pastor 30,000 Rent and building costs 4,000 Apprenticeship contribution 6,000 Sundry expenses 2,000 Total Expenses 85,000 This budget would put our anticipated shortfall at 65,000 per year. Below are some examples of how that looks annually over five years with different numbers of supporters. This is simply by means of illustration; smaller or larger pledges are of course welcome. Total Required per year Euro Pounds Sterling Dollars 65,000 52,000 $84, Supporters 3,250 2,600 $4,250 What Next? 1) Talk to us. We are happy to answer any questions you may have, explain or expand on anything you have read. You can contact us through the addresses below. 2) Listen to us. You can listen to both Kieron and Mark preach online at 3) Invite us. As far as we are able we would love to meet you and examine the vision in person. 4) Pray for us. Whatever happens, please pray for the work of City Church, that the Lord would continue to grow his church and be glorified in Dublin. 5) Support us. If you would like to commit then get in touch with us. Write to us or at: City Church Dublin C/o Irish Church Missions 28 Bachelors Walk Dublin 1 Republic of Ireland Or you can us: kieron@citychurchdublin.ie mark@citychurchdublin.ie 10 Supporters 6,500 5,200 $8,400 Please note: For the preferred option of both pastors continuing with City Church, we need to have the full budget pledged by January We are asking supporters to pledge in writing for donations beginning in September Thank you for your kind consideration, Kieron and Mark