- As we grow we want to be in a position to start new congregations, plant churches and strengthen churches across the UK and around the world in Regions Beyond.

- We also want to have many people who carry weight in our congregations, following Jesus for themselves, and embody the kind of church we want to be.

- This autumn we are starting our first launch academy which will run until the end of 2025.

- A group of 30-50 people from across our sites who we want to invest in their growth and leadership.

- We will have central training together, as well as small group mentoring and discipleship.

- This is the main vehicle for us investing in current and potential leaders across our church in this season.

- We are asking for a time and financial commitment from those in the launch academy, but we also want to invest in it as a church - both for central training, as well as sending every person on a regions beyond event or mission trip, both in the UK and around the world.

- We recognise that to do all God has called us to, and to be a training and resourcing base for our movement, we increasingly need a well resourced central team.

- Alex and Lucy and the family have moved from Worthing to join us at the beginning of the year which a is a big step in that direction. Alex has a wider call on his life, and Alex and Lucy will have a significant role amongst us, but he is right now helping us overseeing all our operations as a church. Whoever fulfils this role in the future, it’s a role we need.

- We also need to invest in our media and communications, facilities management, and children and youth work.

- The call on Hope Church is big, but to grow into that, and see it fulfilled, we need to ensure we build well here, and establish a church vibrant and robust enough that can be a blessing to many others.

- Our two main priorities this year were prayer and mission - we want both to be central to everything we are and do.

- We have been going through a series called Hope Secured, Hope Proclaimed to emphasise and underpin this.

- We have a mission and prayer week coming up between 17-20th July.

- We will be gathering in several parts of the borough and sharing the gospel, and praying and sharing stories in the evenings.

- We would also love to run various other events during the rest of this year, opportunities for new people to hear the gospel

- We want to resource these events and also send various people on some training to help equip us in how to share the gospel easily and effectively.

- We have various sites across Hope church that allow us to be together and serve our communities.

- We have a vision of being a church in high streets and central locations across the borough.

- We have significant improvements and repairs to carry out at St Luke’s

- We have investments we want to make in our orpington facilities, both for our central team and the congregation there - but we still don’t know what the Lord has for us long term in orpington.

- We currently praying into where God is leading us in Downham. LCM want to sell the site and we have made an offer to purchase it. We don’t know whether we will be there long term or this is the moment God is closing that door and opening a new one somewhere else for that congregation. Either way we need significant resources as we look to the future of that congregation.