NEWS - Global growth of house churches

I think it might be useful to post news and comment here from time to time. These items won't just be any old news picked at random, they will be reports I've seen that may be encouraging or challenging to those of us meeting in simple ways here in the Beds, Cambs, Northants region of England.

Just a few minutes ago I read an item from Joel News, I encourage you to click through and read it too. It's a report on the house church conference held in New Delhi, India, from November 11th-14th 2009. The meetings explored the growth of organic house church communities and movements worldwide. Two hundred representatives from forty nations took part (including our own Peter Farmer).

It's clear that in many parts of the world, and especially in Asia, home churches are growing at an enormous pace. In our little corner of England we would do well to ask what they are doing that we are not, and also what we are doing that they are not! There are two ways to stop church growth in its tracks, on the one hand we can fail to do the right things, on the other hand we can waste much time doing the wrong things.

Let's ponder the extraordinary growth in certain countries and see if there are ways for us to step up the pace here on our own doorstep. Part of it is a matter of freshness, enthusiasm, and expectation that if Father asks us to go here or there and do this or that he will bless us abundantly when we obey. Perhaps we need to begin in prayer combined with a willingness to act according to the answer we receive.

See also a recent blog post from Tony Dale, 'The Agony and the Ecstasy'.