Preaching Calendar 


Here's what's coming up at GPC this year:
Prayer

Overarching theme:

People always get excited about church planting - about starting something new.  But at GPC this year we feel called to be excited about planting our roots deeper in the community.  We see a need for people in the community to understand why they need Jesus in their lives and why Church is important.  The way in which we do this is through relationships.  Through being great neighbours and friends and intentionally living out our faith in those relationships we seek to help people understand the faithfulness and love of God.  So as leaders Kris and Becky want to help equip us to do just that by grounding our lives in prayer and self-reflection, by being intentional in our relationships, by understanding and being a caring presence for people living with mental health issues, and by deepening our faith through understanding God's love for us more and showing this in the way we interact with others.  By doing so we hope to bring love, understanding and add undeniable value to our community. 
 
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Term One 
The 40 Days of Lent

In term one we begin our year by looking at the ancient christian practice of Lent.  The number 40 is seen throughout scripture as a period of preparation: the story of the great flood, the wilderness wanderings of the nation of Israel, Moses preparation to receive the law, Elijah's fasting and these experiences are fulfilled in Jesus' 40 days of temptation in the desert.  This has traditionally been a time of self examination, self denial, and prayerful reliance on God. We encourage you to engage with this ancient practice to prepare yourselves for appreciating Christ's salvation afresh this Easter.   
 

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During our Lenten study we will also be running our church wide small group study on prayer. Please contact the office if you are not already in a small group so that everyone can participate.


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Term Two  
Living Intentionally - Wisdom for life from Romans 12

We don't want to just go with the flow, get stuck in the daily grind or waste opportunities in life.  We believe that God wants us to follow Jesus' example and live purposeful lives, making the most of the blessing and gifts he has given us and maximising our potential.  He wants us to live well: to worship him, to accept and learn from suffering, to generously serve others, and to be filled with joy.  Lets take lessons about how we can be living sacrifices for God and bring life and love to those around us. 



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Equipped to Care - bringing God's love to those with mental health issues
As a church we  want to deepen our roots in the community.  We do this through being intentional with our relationships - committing to turning up and being present with people in the good and the hard times.  In a community where physical needs are less prevalent, mental health issues are a main concern.  We want to be equipped to understand mental health issues in ourselves, in others in our church and in our community and to be Jesus to people who are going through mental health struggles.  We are not health professionals, and we are not going to learn to be. But we are neighbours and friends placed here by God to be present, empathetic and loving in this area and to bring transformative change to people as we incarnate our loving saviour.  The Sanctuary Course (on which we draw our material) will be encouraged to be undertaken by small groups alongside this series and can be found here: https://sanctuarymentalhealth.org/sanctuary-course/  



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Term Four
Prepared to Love

In our final series for the year we want to continue the theme of deepening our roots in the community through being intentional in our relationships.  We will look at 1 John, a book predominantly about love, light and goodness, which we hope will deepen our faith and empower us to be more available and present to those around us.

 

Planning your Visit

A Warm Hello 

The following information is specifically for those planning a visit, so that you know, beforehand, what to expect on a Sunday morning.

Where and When

We meet at the Church Building (details here) for our Sunday Service starting at 9.30am. For your first visit, we recommend arriving 10-15 minutes early to ensure you get a parking space and find somewhere to sit before the service begins. When you arrive, you should be greeted by someone on our Welcome Team who will be wearing a Welcome lanyard.

We serve tea, coffee and biscuits after our service. It is a great way to meet people, or simply take time to find your bearings. All refreshments are free.

Accessibility: There is wheelchair access, and a sound loop for anyone who needs it. Please let one of the Welcome Team know on your arrival and they will help you to get set up. There are disabled toilets in the main foyer.

Our Service

The main service begins at 9.30am with a warm welcome from one of our team members. Then follows a time of sung worship, led by our band. We typically have 2 or 3 songs lasting approximately 20 minutes. Sometimes a person might pray out loud or read a small passage from the bible. One of our leaders will give a sermon that is bible based and that we can apply to our everyday life. We then finish with a final worship song. There is an opportunity to receive prayer at the end of the service.

images: Services

What about my kids?

We have a great programme lined up for kids of all ages:

GPC Kids for children from birth to age 11 (school year 6)
GPC Youth for young people aged 11+

Children stay with their parent or grown-up at the start of the service for the welcome, songs and notices. We really value worshipping God all together as a family. At the end of the notices someone will announce that it’s time for the younger members to go into our church lounge for GPC Kids/ GPC Youth.  You will need to go with your children to their groups and register them as part of our child safety policy. Whilst you are dropping your kids off at their groups, we pause to take time to chat to someone sitting near or next to us, giving folk a chance to come back before the sermon begins.


The kids group activities vary depending on the age but usually there is a friendly welcome, bible stories, testimonies, praying, music, craft, drama, fun games and free play. Please pick your children up as soon as the service finishes.

Children

Getting Connected


Small Groups

While Sundays are a great way to meet new people, it is often in smaller gatherings that you can really get to know someone. Being part of one of our small groups allows you to make new friends, share together and support each other. We have a variety of groups that meet throughout the week, some afternoons and some evenings. Check out Small Groups and see if there’s one that you could join, or we can put you in touch with a small group leader who will be more than happy to invite you along to their group.

Serving and Volunteering

If you want to get involved in the life of the church and help us make Sundays run smoothly, you can sign up to serve on a team. 

Other Ministries

We also run the following ministries:

  • Men's Ministries
  • Women's Ministries
  • Music Team Ministry
We hope that whoever you are, you will feel at home at our church.