Velocity course follows-up Rock Thurrock

Velocity courses start up this coming Monday around the borough to help disciple and ground new young believers in their new-found faith in Jesus.

This is the next stage of the Rock Thurrock project and is being facilitated in the main by Andy Blakey from the core team (left in the photo taken at the Civic Hall events last weekend, with core team leader Colin Baker).

The Velocity courses will be taking place in four centres around the borough - as with the Rock Thurrock Christian Life & Witness Courses in June - to which young people will be directed. The course is in seven parts held on seven evenings over seven weeks.

The dates and venues are as follows:

• Mondays 
  
• 3/10/17/24/31 October & 7/14 November
  
• Grays Baptist Church (central)
  
• Tuesdays 
  
• 4/11/18/25 October & 1/8/15 November 
• Fruitful Land, Tilbury (south)
  
• Wednesdays 
  
• 5/12/19/26 October & 2/9/16 November 
• Aveley Christian Centre (east)
  
• Thursdays 
  
• 6/13/20/27 October & 3/10/17 November
• Gateway Peoples Centre, Stanford-le-Hope (east)
  

• October
• 7th - Aveley Christian Centre
• 14th - Christ City Church (formerly Open Doors)
• 21st - Linford Methodist Church
• 28th - Corringham Baptist Church
• November
• 4th - venue still required!
• 11th - Aveley Christian Centre
• 18th - West Thurrock Chapel

Details of locations can be found on the Transformation Thurrock calendar by clicking on the event title (in green).


What is the Velocity course?

Rock Thurrock's core team leader Colin Baker explains how the project's follow-up will work.

The way the Velocity course is going to be used in Thurrock is that we shall be encouraging people to use the course as a discipleship follow-up course.

Velocity is 7-week course and will follow Celebration of Hope and Rock Thurrock after a week's break.
The topics are basic enough that people and churched people of all denominations will have little to disagree on. Some may conclude that there is a lot to disagree on, however, they can be assured that it is all very simple and it only gets complicated if Christians get into big debates about doctrine. Velocity is not the place for that discussion and there is not time to do it. The purpose is to encourage the new believer - just that.

The topics are:

• Salvation
• Assurance
• Lordship of Christ
• The Bible
• Prayer
• Holy Spirit
• Witness

The evenings last 75 minutes and the topics are explored by the group all at the same time. The leader doesn't go into a teachy mode but simply presents the passages to be discussed. The participants work through 3 objectives each week.

• Discovery - what does God Say?
• Understanding - what does the scripture mean?
• Application - how can this affect my life?

Each participant will be discovering from the scripture by

• circling key words or phrases
• answering questions
• defining key words
• paraphrasing a verse
• making application to daily life

For the youth follow-up we are hoping to encourage young people to lead the groups (who have completed CLWC or FM419) of which there will probably be four - Grays, Tilbury, Stanford and Aveley.

The rationale here is that we felt it best to disciple young people in larger groups in geographical venues and then to introduce them to the churches of their friends who brought them or their nearest supporting/supportive church where they will have the best opportunity to grow. (Details of this will be worked out on an individual basis).

For adults the groups will hopefully be led in local fellowships by those who have completed CLWC. It is felt that fellowships will be able to cater very well for those who are older in the smaller more intimate setting. Adults are more likely to settle in groups where they are already known without too much extra help, but with youngsters, some fellowships have very few young people, and this can be quite uncomfortable if you feel like a stranger.