Called to be fruitful

Many years ago, before I was a vicar, I took a day off work. In a quiet garden, I think I can say I ‘heard’ God speak to me through Jesus’ words: ‘You didn’t choose me, but I chose you…to bear fruit that will last’. I believe that this is something Christ says to all who come to him. This brochure gives an update of some of the areas where as the community of St Aldates we feel called to bear fruit. On the theme of fruitfulness, Jesus also says: ‘Every branch that does bear fruit he prunes, that it may bear more fruit.’ (John 15:2). At first sight, this may not look like a verse to stick on your fridge because pruning=pain and is therefore unwelcome. And yet, Jesus the Master is outlining a simple truth as regards how things grow if you want them to ‘be fruitful’. If you are presently in a place of recession/pain/transition, and many of us are, may we have eyes to see that the pruning many are going through because of the current economic climate and for other reasons, though it is painful, God will also use for our growth, if we let Him.

Whether you are new to the Church or a longstanding member, we want you to feel drawn in to some of our current priorities. First and foremost, we want to be those who are seeking and spending time in the presence of the One who has made Himself present to us: Immanuel, God with us. May our pursuit of His presence be the ‘one thing’ we give ourselves to as a daily and non-negotiable priority.

Secondly, we want to be a community that loves and knows how to leans on, and to, one another. Alienation, loneliness and disintegration are so prevalent throughout our world today. There are so many infidelities, broken relationships, so many people who have not been faithful to the love they once promised, so many children in revolt against their parents. We believe we can and must bring to birth inclusive communities where the members live faithfully among themselves and with the poor. Such communities are signs and signposts of the love of God and at St Aldates we call them Pastorates (and cell groups for Students).

We’re committed to ‘life together’, and as such expect these extended families to eat together regularly, and celebrate together. Some pastorates even do holidays together! Anita and I went off for three days to France with one such group this summer and can recommend these times away together as relaxing and a good way to deepen relationships. Similarly, we believe that unpacking the Word together in community is incredibly nourishing and essential for healthy biblical living. This year, Pastorates will mainly be invited to study the Book of Romans with its challenging ethical and spiritual invitation to ‘do life’ in a Christian way. ‘There is a time to weep and a time to laugh’ (Ecclesiastes 3:4). These groups inevitably find there is sometimes sorrow as people face very tough stuff, as well as times of laughter. We are committed to building transparent, real, gritty, loving communities. We don’t pretend it is easy, but we believe it will be worth it!

Thirdly, we aim to be those fulfilling our calling before God and reaching out to the wider world. Anyone who walks through the ancient streets of Oxford will be aware that people from Asia, Europe, Africa, the Americas, Australasia throng our city and study in our universities. The sheer density of world population gathered on our doorstep is challenging. Furthermore, the kind of people gathering are often those who will be future world leaders – studying here. To carry the gospel to the nations, we simply have to cross the street or the college staircase. So it is that at St Aldates, we are committed to reach the wider world – whose future leaders often in fact live here, albeit briefly! We are working so that an ‘Oxford Centre for Church Growth’ would be born to train leaders from and for mainland Europe: that ‘the empty cradles of Europe – her Churches, would light up with a new generation of Christian leaders.’

But we know that the God who calls and equips leaders and nation-changers is the same God one who has compassion on the lost and the least. An increasing focus of our reach to the wider world, is to minister the love, compassion and tenderness of Christ to the broken and marginalised of our city. With the arrival of our new ACT! curate Phil Atkinson, our desire is that in the months ahead, we would be able to meet, support and mentor a greater number of those on our doorstep whose needs are all too obvious and yet all too often overlooked.

Our desire as a community is for each of you to fulfill your God-given calling to be fruitful in life. And as we lean towards the themes outlined above, we pray that any fruitfulness we may know together would spread through our whole city and surrounds so that Oxford becomes a city of justice, safety and the Light of God’s love: Is this possible? Well with God, nothing is impossible…

With love to you in Christ,

Charlie and Anita Cleverly