FIEC Resources for Church Leaders

The ‘not quite’ election of Kate Forbes as First Minister in Scotland has once again raised the question of whether Christians can get stuck into politics. Tim Farron, MP and host of Premier’s ‘A Mucky Business’ podcast, and James Mildred, Director of Communications and Engagement at Christian Action, Research, and Education (CARE), will help us understand how we can see politics positively, how w...

A place of perfect justice is coming, a place of delight and joy. Injustice will not be remembered, nor need to be, as wrongs are righted. We will be glad in God and he will be delighted in us. There will be no weeping or crying because God will eliminate the cause of all tears. So, let us point to the God who will put an end to injustice forever. We ended our 2023 conference sent out anticipating...

Jesus was sent in the power of the Spirit to proclaim the good news of the kingdom of God to the world, and now his people are too. The church needs to be the just community it is called to be. John Stevens (FIEC National Director) preached from Isaiah 61:1-11 to show how the work of the church is not simply to enjoy God’s justice, but to display it to the world as servants of Christ. This talk is...

Isaiah wrote: "You who call on the Lord, give yourselves no rest, and give him no rest till he establishes Jerusalem and makes her the praise of the earth." (Isaiah 62:6-7) Matt Oliver (Pastor, Hardwick Baptist Church) preached from Isaiah 62 to boldly encourage us to give God “no rest” as we gathered to pray for gospel work in our churches and our land at our Leaders' Conference. Th...

Jason Roach (Director of Ministries, London City Mission) helps us see how the justice of God is declared in the work of the cross and justification, preaching from Isaiah 52:13-53:12. Jesus is the servant that Isaiah spoke of, who would bring true justice to the world. He is a wise servant, who was also despised and suffered as our substitute. He was cut off so that his people could be justified,...

The foundation for our 2023 conference was to understand and rejoice in the character of God – and in particular his justice. He will do and does do right in his world. Ray Brown opened the conference by preaching from Isaiah 1:21-31: that God’s wrath at the failure of his people to exercise justice reveals the deep heart of the Father, and that the promised restoration and transformation brings h...

What could partnership between new churches look like? What does it take to start a new church? In this roundtable discussion, Trevor Archer (Director for London) is joined by the leaders of The Globe Church, Hope Church Vauxhall, and Stockwell Baptist Church to find out what their partnership as leaders looks like and to discuss church planting. 00:00 - New London churches working together 10:12...

How does the local community affect local church life? How can partnerships with churches that are different help us grow and glorify God? In this roundtable discussion, Trevor Archer (FIEC Director for London) is joined by the leaders of The Globe Church, Hope Church Vauxhall, and Stockwell Baptist Church to discuss how they reflect their local communities and the benefits of learning from one an...

Three new churches in central London are located in close proximity yet serve in very distinct settings. What can we learn from their shared experiences in different contexts? In this roundtable discussion, Trevor Archer (Director for London) is joined by the leaders of  The Globe Church ,  Hope Church Vauxhall , and  Stockwell Baptist Church  to find out about the differences in their local conte...

Our Local Conferences in 2023 aimed to help church leaders go deeper into the themes of  the 2022 Leaders' Conference . They explored the pressing need for direct partnerships between churches, and how we can overcome some of the challenges. Andy Hunter (FIEC Acting Head of Local Ministries) opened the Liverpool Local Conference by preaching from Ephesians 1, reflecting on the unity involved i...

FIEC churches unite around our Doctrinal Basis, but they also agree to our Ethos Statements which bring clarity to our life and ministry as a Fellowship: gospel unity; women in ministry; and same sex marriage. FIEC was founded in 1922 to be Independent churches united by primary gospel truths but with diversity on secondary issues. That unity has always been defined by  the FIEC Doctrinal Basis  b...

As the temple of the living God, we must not join with darkness but be yoked with Christ. Andy Rees (pastor, CityGates Church, Norwich) gives the second of three talks at The Hub conference from 2 Corinthians 6:11-7:3 to encourage those considering church ministry. You can access further resources for church leaders on the FIEC website . About The Hub : The Hub conference is a weekend dedicated to...

In church ministry, to give is to imitate the very heart of God as the gospel travels out into the world. Trevor Archer (FIEC Director for London) gives the third of three talks at The Hub conference from Acts 20:17-38 to encourage those considering church ministry. You can access further resources for church leaders on the FIEC website . About The Hub : The Hub conference is a weekend dedicated t...

Endurance is necessary in church ministry. But that ministry is a privilege like no other: "making many people rich". Andy Rees (pastor, CityGates Church, Norwich) gives the first of three talks at The Hub conference from 2 Corinthians 6:3-10 to encourage those considering church ministry. You can access further resources for church leaders on the FIEC website . About The Hub : The Hub conference...

A review of the past year - in which we emerged from lockdowns - and a look forward as we continue to serve God in FIEC's 100th year. We are grateful to God for growth after emerging from lockdown in the past year: FIEC churches are growing, FIEC is growing, and FIEC's capacity to help churches is growing. During the 2022 Leaders' Conference in Blackpool, FIEC National Director John Stevens gave a...

Too often we think about legal requirements in terms of restricting ministry, but in the current climate we need to see how good legal compliance can actually do the opposite; it will help contribute to a healthy church culture which enables gospel ministry and - in human terms – allows it to flourish. This seminar with our friends at Edward Connor Solicitors helps church leaders to understand how...

There has – rightly – been a lot of focus on some high-profile abuse in leadership. Many of us are wondering whether we have to rethink our own leadership styles and approaches. Richard and Carolyn Lacey ( Woodgreen Church , Worcester) will discuss the foundational principles underpinning a healthy leadership culture and explore how we make progress in our own leadership and helping others in our...

Many churches in the FIEC are ‘smaller’, with memberships of less than 35. Although some of these churches are in decline, being smaller does not necessarily mean being unhealthy. Jonathan Bond (FIEC Director for Smaller Churches) helps leaders of smaller churches be reminded of the joys and think about dealing with the challenges of serving in this context. Also, from a smaller church perspective...

An increasing number of church members have suffered trauma of one kind or another, including abuse of power within churches themselves. We need to know how to minister the grace of Christ to these saints without re-traumatising them. Phil Swann, pastor at Llanelli Free Evangelical Church in West Wales and facilitator of the Soul Care Network in the Wales Leadership Forum, will help leaders of all...

If we are to develop meaningful partnerships, how do we do so when so many differences exist between churches? Are our differences all of the same kind? And how do we navigate the challenge of being clear on secondaries, without letting them become primary? Inspired by the book of the same title , Mike Kendall, pastor at St Neots Evangelical Church , will explore how we ensure that we are finding...

We are most comfortable developing partnerships with people like us . But we need to recognise that such narrowness is not only unbiblical, it is severely limiting. In this seminar, Yannick Christos-Wahab (pastor at Stockwell Baptist Church in London) helps us explore what we need to look out for, what attitudes are necessary, and what realism we need to integrate alongside gospel optimism. Downlo...

Churches have often experienced sharpening divisions internally, for example, in how to respond to the Covid crisis. Sometimes elderships have been sharply divided. Colin Adams, pastor at Greenview Church in Glasgow, helps leaders think about developing perception and wisdom in our increasingly complex world. Download the handout . This seminar is from the 2022 FIEC Leaders' Conference held in Bla...

One of the strengths of the FIEC is the ability to gather and facilitate local partnerships. But that also means that we are weaker at developing partnerships that are outside of geographic areas yet equally meaningful. Tim Manson ( Gunnersbury Baptist Church , London) and Pete Roberts ( Trinity Church, Everton , Merseyside) will share their experience of partnership from the South-East to North-W...

If we are to work together to reach Britain for Christ, our churches and leaders must have meaningful local partnerships which are based on trust. Paul Gamston, pastor at South Craven Evangelical Church in North Yorkshire, helps us answer how such trust can be developed and built on for effective church ministry. This seminar is from the 2022 FIEC Leaders' Conference held in Blackpool from 7-9 Nov...

We may have attended many seminars and read many books on complementarianism; but how should it work in practice? Paul Rees and Rachel Sloan – both part of the pastoral team at Charlotte Chapel in Edinburgh – make connections with bible principles and church practice, including challenging some of our assumed orthopraxy when it comes to valuing and releasing the ministry of women in our local chur...