Tranforming lives and community in Carnforth
Carnforth Free Methodist Church want to reach their community with the gospel, seeing people supported and lives transformed. We spoke with John about their new CFMC community hub, and how this new building will enable their ministries to continue to grow.
Can you tell us a bit about life at Carnforth Free Methodist church?
We are part of the Free Methodist movement, and were planted in Carnforth in 1995, growing from a small congregation into a church family made up of over 200 people who meet for worship in our local high school.
As a church, everything we do comes from our desire to reach out into our local area, and make Jesus known. This has led to us developing a variety of ongoing ministries, including our ‘teacakes and tots’ group, a divorce care programme, a carers support group, and courses for those wanting to explore Christianity. It’s a joy to see people in our community slowly but surely coming to faith, and this motivates us to keep reaching out.
Can you tell us a bit about life at Carnforth Free Methodist church?
Until recently, all our mid–week activities had taken place in a one–room building which we had clearly outgrown. We even had an instance where our ‘teacakes and tots’ group got so big that we had to put a sign on the door saying we were full, so no one else could come in. This was not the message we wanted to give, so knew we needed to find a new space that could be used for the
community.
As a church, we felt we wanted more than a ‘Sunday morning’ space, so decided to keep meeting in the high school for church services but wanted to find plot of land which could be developed into a hub for the community. Church is about the people, not the building, so we wanted to create a space where we could impact the community, and disciple people in the church well.
The high school we meet in is prominent and well known in the area, and we have built a good relationship with them, so it would have been a shame to move our Sunday services. But when the land next door to the school became available to purchase, we felt it was a brilliant opportunity, and so began the process of creating what is now the ‘CFMC Community Centre.’
What has the building enabled so far?
This building has become a centre for our community and helps to serve the people around us. People are invited to use the centre for groups which support the aims of the church, helping people with both their physical and spiritual needs. This new, modern building has better facilities, so we can run multiple ministries at one time.
We’ve already started a drop-in centre on a Friday, a group for those with caring responsibilities, an art group, and have run two Alpha courses. There are lots of different things in the pipeline and we have been reaching out to lots of new people. We’ve been trying to encourage and support people in using their gifts and hobbies to reach people in the area, and make them part of the church
community, introducing them to Jesus. We want to walk through life with people, and this hub in the heart of our community means we can reach people in new ways, meeting them where they are.
How were Kingdom Bank able to help?
If your church is considering a property project, we would love to see if we could help! You can find out more here, or please do get in touch to discuss whether a Kingdom Bank mortgage could be right for you.