Vision
To stand for justice, love mercy and desire to walk humbly with God.
(Micah 6:8)
As individuals and collectively as a church community, we strive to walk with God and to see His Kingdom come on earth. In particular, we want to show God’s impartiality, justice, kindness, mercy and love to all, and to share the good news of Jesus, but especially among the young, poor, marginalised and vulnerable in our locality and among those we meet.
We are not called to fulfil our purpose in isolation, but as a community of God’s people. We are not perfect, but we are committed to working things out together. We are a work in progress.
Values
Our values are the way in which we go about fulfilling our aims. At GCC we are not perfect, but we seek to maintain a culture based on four defining values:
Generosity
Giving rather than taking. Doing more than just what is necessary as a church and as individuals.
Because Jesus gave of himself, we give our time, money, effort and other resources, knowing God’s grace will sustain us.
Compassion
Recognising that we are all flawed, we seek restoration for those who have fallen and the revival of hope in those who have failed.
Demonstrating Jesus’ love and practical assistance to those in spiritual, emotional, mental or material need.
Relevance
Led by the Holy Spirit, both corporately and individually. Being naturally supernatural.
Using contemporary means to relate to those inside and outside of the church. Ensuring that all we do and say has meaning.
In seeking to be both relevant and inclusive, the current emphasis is for intergenerational church gatherings for our Sunday meetings.
We hope this will enable everyone to contribute to and participate in the worship and activity, respecting and valuing the contributions from people of all ages, abilities and stages of faith.
Openness
Transparency in all that is said and done.
Honest constructive dialogue between individuals and with other organisations.
Open accounting and records, whilst maintaining appropriate confidentiality, when required.
Building trust and confidence.
Keeping “short accounts” with one another by dealing with issues promptly and sincerely.
Nobody could ever hope to be “good enough” to approach God so, because he loves you, he has made a way, through faith in Jesus, for you to come to him just as you are. There is no “good behaviour” or “standard of holiness” that you have to reach before you can come to know God.
At GCC we hold to the principle of belonging before you believe. That is to say we want you to feel accepted and at home with us, no matter how good or bad you consider yourself to be, whilst you explore what it means to become a born-again Christian and the commitment to God and to each other involved in this. Once you truly put your trust in Jesus as your Saviour and Lord, you can rely on His power to help you to change from the inside out.
We are a growing community church, meeting together regularly on Sundays, in small groups, and for events such as Worship Evenings, Prayer, and Midweek Events. We have great Youth and Children’s Groups and welcome people from all backgrounds.
We aim to serve the community through faith and outreach programs.
We partner with the community to support vulnerable people in the local area. We run Open Door, a drop in service, the Gillingham Foodbank, and Acts 435 – a giving service.
Find out more about what we believe in the resources below:
