Affirmations of Our Life & Mission Statement

After prayer, conversation and working together, the church meeting of Maldon United Reformed Church affirms and believes that God is calling us to continue our life and witness in this location. We are committed to serving the community in this place and we affirm our commitment to our place in this community.

we pray…
to open ourselves to serve God where we are and to be truly committed to our community.

As a community of faithful followers of Jesus Christ, we embrace a wide theology and seek to show the love of God through hospitality, a commitment to social justice and an unconditional welcome. All are welcomed, loved and treasured as part of the body of Christ, wherever they are on their faith journey, and we acknowledge the particular need to offer a loving welcome to those for whom church may have previously been a hostile environment or an irrelevance. Therefore, we will actively work to ensure that we are a church that is truly welcoming and accessible to all.

we pray…
that we will be willing to face the challenges of being a welcoming church, offering a loving welcome to all.

We affirm that our life is not solely about Sunday worship and we commit to being a community-focused church and will use our energy, resources and skills to share God’s love in many ways beyond our worshipping life. We will do this collectively by sharing the love of God in tangible ways through continuing to develop and support community activities. This sits alongside our calling to make and nurture disciples of Jesus Christ. As individuals who are members and friends of this church, we also commit ourselves to being tangible signs of God’s love for the world in our day-to-day lives.

we pray…
giving thanks for how God has already called us to be church beyond Sunday and praying we will be open to how this develops.

We affirm our willingness to create partnerships in the wider community and as a part of this, we commit to the challenge of working ecumenically as much as we possibly can. Therefore, we will actively seek to work with other churches.

we pray…
to keep open to the relationships we already have in this community and be ready to face the questions this affirmation could bring.

We know that to disconnect our faith life from the climate crisis is fundamentally dangerous and as people who worship our Creator God, we have a responsibility to live well with the planet. Therefore, we commit ourselves to ensuring that our life in these buildings works towards being as carbon-neutral as possible and we commit ourselves to adapting our buildings appropriately to help this happen.

we pray…
because this affirmation brings particular challenges and costs. It calls us to face the truth of our planet and our place in creation. We pray that God will help us to be honest about these challenges and truths, and respond with wisdom.

We seek to ensure that when we worship together these affirmations are expressed through our language, style and teaching.

we pray…
asking God to keep us open to weaving our commitments through our worship.

All that we do is grounded in care for each other, our community and all of creation: “fellowship is life”.

we pray…
that we will continue to learn to love and care, and that we will grow in our faith as we do.

and finally…
Consider and pray about the part you can play to ensure that these affirmations become more than just good words.