‘Life has no remote. Get up and change it yourself.’

Today we are bombarded with lots of catchy little phrases and sayings.  I recently came across this one above and it got me thinking, because I often find myself talking about change.

As I travel around the West of England visiting our Webnet churches I’m discovering that lots of people are appreciating the writing of John Mark Comer, and particularly his most recent book, Practicing the Way.  In this he asks a pertinent question, relating to change: ’What kind of person would you like to be in 5 years time?’  He follows this up with an even more probing question, ‘And what are you doing to make that happen?.’ 

If you were to stop reading this now and go away and prayerfully consider those questions,  I think that by the grace of God, in that alone we both may have achieved something of value and importance.  However, being a little ‘greedy’ (so my wife tells me), I’m going to plough ahead and ask a further question or two – questions that Nigel Coles and I recently asked of our churches that are currently engaging in Re-Imagine, our missional learning community for church leadership teams.  We took John Mark Comer’s questions and asked them collectively of those church leadership teams:  ’What kind of church would you like to have in 5 years time?’, and ‘what are you doing to make that happen?’ 

If we are honest, I imagine many of us recognise that deep down we want our churches to change in some significant respects.  I’m not thinking of the comfiness of our church chairs, the excellence of the music that accompanies our sung worship, or the state-of-the-artness of our PA system - but rather about bigger, more important things.  Things such as becoming communities of people being helped to explore and discover life in all its fullness as followers of Jesus who are gradually being shaped by his character and values.  Becoming communities of men, women and young people who are learning to live in the joy of being reconciled with God – and living lives free from guilt and shame.  And yes, discovering what it looks like to be Jesus-followers that God uses to help friends, family, colleagues and neighbours to explore what really matters in life.

Does that sound good?   Do you want some of that?

I think this is what the apostle Paul was writing about in 2 Corinthians 5, when he wrote:

(Christ) died for all, that those who live should no longer live for themselves but for him who died for them and was raised again…   Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: the old has gone, the new is here!   All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation…    And he has committed to us the message of reconciliation.  We are therefore Christ’s ambassadors, as though God were making his appeal through us (selected verses).

If you as a church member or leader have an appetite for your church to change and explore what I’ve described above, please get in touch with your minister and talk about your church doing Re-Imagine.  If you are the minister, please get in touch with Nigel (before the end of July), Lindsay or myself and let’s explore how Re-Imagine might help your church to transition into a community of disciples who are living as new creations, ambassadors of Christ and ministers of God’s reconciling love.

May you know the grace of God and the inspiration of his Holy Spirit to pursue the change God wants for you and your church.

Alisdair Longwill

Webnet Regional Minister

Launch Weekend & Hub 1 (Culture)

14th November 2025 - Pastoral Leaders Morning.

15th November 2025 - 16th November 2025 - All team residential weekend.

Hub 2 (Leadership)

17th April 2026 - Pastoral Leaders Morning.

18th April 2026 - All Team Day​.

Hub 3 (Discipleship)

16th October 2026 - Pastoral Leaders Morning.

17th October 2026 - All Team Day​

Hub 4 (Mission)

16th April 2027 - Pastoral Leaders Morning.

17th April 2027 - All Team Day​.

Hub 2 - Hub 4 our provisional dates and could change.