Grace Church in Bognor Regis

The Grace Church site in Bognor Regis has been going for almost 12 years now. Right from the beginning of that journey, the vision has always been centred around mission. We have always wanted to do all we can to reach the wider community of Bognor Regis with the gospel of Jesus Christ.

Being a multi-site church (one church with one eldership, vision, and budget but in multiple locations) has undeniably helped us to do this over the years. We have made a deeper impact across a broader area than we would have otherwise would have made. And multiple people have come to faith in Christ through the work of Grace Church, as a result of us being a multi-site church. Praise God!

That said though, one of the questions we have regularly been asking ourselves over more recent years is this: At what point does the Bognor Regis site become less served by being part of the wider Grace Church than it is held back by being part of the wider Grace Church?

We have been asking this especially of Bognor for a couple of main reasons. One is that since 2020, Jonny Holder has been released to full-time to serve the Bognor site. The benefits of this have been clear in allowing the Bognor site to grow in its mission to its local community in a way that best serves them. But it’s not just about one man – church never is! In recent years, God has blessed Bognor with multiple young families, singles, and older couples, who have since taken ownership and borne weight in the running of the activities in Bognor. The result is that the site has all it needs to function more independently.

The Future

It is for those, and many other reasons, we now feel that the Bognor Regis site of Grace Church has reached that critical moment where being part of the wider Grace Church is holding the site back more than it is serving it, especially when it comes to local mission. The exciting news is, therefore, that over the course of 2025, the Bognor site will no longer be part of Grace Church but will be sent out to become an independent church in its own right in Bognor Regis.

As mentioned, there are a large number of reasons and factors in this decision but a few more are worth mentioning here.

One is a very clear sense that this is the direction that God is leading us in. We have been discussing this for quite a while as elders of Grace Church and we all feel very clear that this is right in God. Crucially, that includes Simpson Charlton and Jonny Holder who are both excited and clear that God is leading us in this direction. That is to say that this is not exclusively, or even primarily, a pragmatic decision but one that has been made in faith and with much prayer. It is certainly not without cost and sacrifice but taking big steps of faith in God never are!

As well as a clear broad sense of God’s leading, God has also spoken prophetically in a remarkable and encouraging way. When we were discussing this as elders back in May of last year, I was saying that one way to think of this development is as like a child growing up and leaving home. As any parents who have been through this will know, that is a moment of mixed feelings. In one sense, it is sad as you let go in a way you have never done before. But at the same time, you know it is good, healthy, necessary, and was always the plan and goal.

We discussed how this process felt like that and whilst there may be some sadness, this was a good and healthy moment in the maturity of the site in Bognor. The following Sunday morning, Eirlys Groves prophesied these precise words in Bognor:

I just feel God is taking us as a church into a new level of maturity and I know as kids grow older, they go through these growth spurts don’t they almost overnight?

They just get bigger and longer and they grow fast and I just feel God’s saying to us, spiritually, he’s maturing us quickly in this season. Actually, there’s a growth spurt that we’re doing not in terms of numbers, but in terms of us pressing into God. Of us knowing him. Of us being mature in our Christian faith.

I love it when the prophetic confirms what we are thinking as clearly as that!

Another important reason behind this decision that bears worth mentioning is that we consider it a high priority that we remain faithful to what we believe a local church is. The more we have released Simpson Charlton and Jonny Holder to serve and lead in Bognor Regis, the more difficult it has been for them to truly act as elders over the wider church. It’s also the case that the other elders have felt increasingly detached from the people in the Bognor site. Whilst we do consider this a natural and healthy development, it does mean we must be honest with ourselves about the fact that we are struggling to be biblical and faithful in what elders are called to be and do, as pastors of the flock.

It is, of course, central that both Jonny and Kim Holder are very excited about all of this and they feel a clear sense of the call of God. But don’t just take that from me. See what Jonny has to say on it here…

Rather Grief Than Relief

As I have said, there is some sadness in this decision. I have loved serving God and building the church of Christ alongside brothers and sisters in Bognor Regis for these past 12 years and it is with no shortage of grief that we send them out. But that is exactly how it should be!

The only other scenario would be that we were making this decision because we are all sick of each other and so saying goodbye brings only sweet relief. Rest assured that is not the case! This is all happening with some grief, but that is far healthier and better than if it were happening with relief.

It is inevitable that if everyone who is part of Grace Church will be considering what we think about this news. And it is important that we do think about how we feel about it. But I would ask and encourage you to not only be asking how you feel about it, but also (and primarily) asking whether you feel this is right in God. Is this what God is calling us to?

We are confident it is. We are really excited about it. It seems good to us and the Holy Spirit and ultimately a result of God’s blessing.

Time Frame and Details

There are, of course, very many things to consider in this and trust me when I say that we have been praying into, and discussing, these things a lot!

In the video below I lay out what some of the implications for what this decision actually means in practice, as well as giving some details on the planned time frame.

Faith for the Future

Grace Church has been built on God’s people stepping out in faith. We were planted in Chichester in 2006 by faith. We have launched multiple congregations since then by faith. We have purchased the Grace Centre by faith.

It is now by faith that we are sending the Bognor Regis site out in full confidence that as we do that, God will bless us and bring more glory to the name of Jesus.