Fresh Expresssion in Holston

“A Fresh Expression is a form of church for our changing culture, established primarily for the benefit of those who are not yet part of any church.

Fresh Expressions is an international movement of missionary disciples cultivating new kinds of church alongside existing congregations to more effectively engage our growing post-Christian society.

As part of my role as the Director of Clergy Services, I meet annually with my counter parts from around the denomination. It is an opportunity to share ideas of what is working and not working in our respective annual conferences. One of the things that I continue to hear about, especially from the Florida Annual Conference is the idea called Fresh Expressions. To be honest I am still trying to wrap my head around the concept. I recently discovered that I am not the only one trying to figure out how to make this concept a reality.

Beginning in 2004 as an initiative of the Church of England and the British Methodist Church, the movement has resulted in the birth of thousands of new communities in the UK alone and brought renewal to scores of established churches. The movement has spread to Australia, Canada, New Zealand, South Africa and Germany. In 2010, the movement began taking shape in the US through the vision and generosity of the Baptist General Association of Virginia and a growing number of partners committed to a new era of missional ecumenism, a unity around the mission of God the Father through the resurrected Son in the power ofthe Holy Spirit.”

As found at: https://freshexpressionsus.org/about/ #what

I had a conversation with Ann Robins, the District Superintendent of Tennessee Valley District. She said that she and Jason Gattis, the District Superintendent of Smoky Moutain District, had been talking about finding ways to help their pastors understand this Fresh Expressions idea. As she explained it to me, she described a church making a difference in its community by reaching out in new and perhaps unexpected ways to share the love of Jesus Christ with the community.

As I thought about this, I liked that concept. Too often, churches simply get stuck within the four walls of the building...but the church is not a building...the church is the body of Christ-people like you and me—that are called to reach out and make a difference.

In future editions of this magazine, I hope to devote a couple of pages to some of the Fresh Expressions happening around our annual conference. For more information, I encourage you to watch to video and to click on the link to your left.

—-Rev. Terry Goodman