On the last Saturday in January, teams from churches who are part of the Myriad learning community, and are hosting and developing New Worshipping Communities, met together for the next session. This looked at how to move attendees of their New Worshipping Communities onto a discipleship pathway.
This group first met this time last year and have been journeying together ever since, learning from Myriad representatives, who have experience in church planting. The ‘learning community’ also provides an opportunity for members to discuss their ideas and challenges in a mutually supportive environment, and receive feedback, inspiration and encouragement from other members of the group.
Our diocesan priority aims to create 100 New Worshipping Communities by 2030, offering a range of accessible ways for people to join a church community and come to know the love of God and the hope of Christ. 
In this session, Myriad trainers Glynn and Alice asked attendees what they would do next if someone attending their New Worshipping Communities wanted to know more. They suggested designing a pathway with steppingstones, which each step designed to help individuals go deeper and start to understand more about the teachings and example of Jesus.
They emphasised the importance of small steps and how each stage should lead effortlessly onto the next. Alice cautioned that sometimes people can get stuck at a stage or go back a few steps before moving forward again once more and it’s a good idea to identify where the essential elements of church such as prayer, fellowship and baptism fit on the journey.
Myriad also highlighted the point that steps don’t just have to happen when the group meets. Digital communications are important too and what’s written on a webpage could also be considered a steppingstone. One attendee also shared the prayers and encouragements she sends her group on a daily basis.
There was also time included in the morning for attendees to worship together, consider and share their own faith journeys as well as discussing the current progress and challenges of developing their New Worshipping Communities to date.
