We have 2 main principles:

1. your neighbourhood is wherever you go
2. your neighbour is whoever you meet

Our vision is that, as the Church, we are called not to be a place that people come to, but to be a movement. We are to be led by the Holy Spirit into the places we go to share Jesus with the people we meet.

And so our vision is that we should be the church for your neighbourhood - that's where you live, work, study, shop, eat, socialise, walk the dog. Wherever you go and whatever you do, the people you come across are your neighbours - the parents at the school gate or your kids' activities, the staff in the shop, cafe and garage, your colleagues, fellow members of the gym/sports team/social club/slimming class!

So where did we get these ideas? Well, they're not new and they're not ours!

Let's think about what is probably Jesus' most famous parable - The Good Samaritan.

That parable starts with a question that Jesus is asked: 

‘Who is my neighbour?’

To answer the question, Jesus tells the parable of a man on a journey from Jerusalem to Jericho - a distance of more than 15 miles. While on the road, he is attacked and badly injured.

Two senior religious officials walk past and avoid the man, not wanting to get involved. But then a Samaritan - a sworn enemy of the Jews - comes by and goes out of his way to help the injured man.

The parable ends with Jesus asking a question: 'Which of these was a neighbour to that man?"

It was, of course, the Samaritan. The one who, while travelling, stopped to make a difference in the life of someone he encountered.

As West Derby Neighbourhood Church, we see our biggest priority as equipping people to make a difference in the lives of those they meet. In Jesus' name and in the power of the Spirit.