Published on: 09/11/2026
In a previous blog titled “Who can lead in mission?”, I mentioned a first meeting for lay people leading in mission. I thought you might like to know the outcome.
We had four churches represented and we heard some amazing stories of God moving and were all very encouraged. If you would like to know more read on…
St John’s Owlerton, with the cooperation and blessing of Christchurch Hillsborough Wadsley Bridge, are to start a New Congregation on the Winn Gardens estate at Middlewood. St John’s have worked hard for a long time on the estate to build relationships and to serve the community with a food bank and clothes bank among other things. In the very near future they will begin a Sunday morning service in the new council-built community centre. This New Congregation, along with the other work, has all been established and led by lay people.
The recent graft from St Thomas Philadelphia to St James and St Christopher Shiregreen has involved a large lay team and produced a seed change in youth and children’s work. This work has been entirely lay led, and like the work on Winn Gardens, has been gently going on in the background as Philadelphia have worked on the Shiregreen estate for a number of years to see the fruit now being borne.
The focal ministry team at St Hugh’s Cantley have been working hard to engage with children and families in the local area for some time now running, among other things a Messy Church. They are also about to launch Bubble Church, again all this work is lay led, and the initiative has come from the Focal Ministers themselves in response to God’s call.
Finally, but not least, lay leaders at Heeley Parish church have begun a ministry to recycle school uniforms to help families with the cost. This ministry now serves the families of nine schools in the local area and beyond and is set to expand further. Not only is this ministry helping families with financial cost, it is also missional. People using the uniform recycling service are grateful to the church and see its love and compassion, and their children are starting to attend other events the church is offering.
Hopefully you can see that the mission of all of us can be undertaken by all of us, whether slow and steady or taking off in a dramatic fashion. The link between all these things is that lay people have initiated and led them, in cooperation with Oversight Ministers, and that lay mission is a powerful and widespread means of God’s grace and the growth of the church. It encourages the lay Missioners own discipleship and allow them to exercise their God given gifts. If you would like to know more about these particular ministries or join us next time we meet, in the new year, please drop me an email john.marsh@sheffield.anglican.org
This week’s Blog post was written by John Marsh, Mission Development Adviser