We planted, but God makes it grow!

By Andy O'Connell

The title is borrowed from 1 Corinthians 3, where Paul says, of the church in Corinth, which he planted: “I planted the seed, Apollos watered it, but God has been making it grow.”

Everything healthy is part of something bigger!

By Andy O'Connell and Mark Eley

Everything healthy is part of something bigger! That's a deep longstanding conviction for our family of churches – it's why we are in fact a family of churches – and it helps us understand the point of conferences. Mark and I had this conversation recently with our apprentices, and we thought it was worth sharing more widely.

Before we talk about conferences specifically, 'everything healthy is part of something bigger' is about more than conferences:

Leadership changes in our Advance family of churches

By Andy O'Connell

This coming Sunday, we will be joined by Rich and Anna Ellwood. Having grown up in Oxfordshire, Rich and his Belgian wife, Anna, have spent 13 years leading a church in Brussels. They have now relocated with their family to the UK. Rich works for Christians Against Poverty, and as of September 2023, now leads Salt & Light Advance.  

Andy O'Connell

Fasting

By Elizabeth Clayton

We fast together as a whole church on particular days. If this is new to you, you might find it helpful to watch the video below where Elizabeth talks about what fasting is, why we do it, and how to fast.

We love Community Groups!

By Andy O'Connell and Sanjay Mahtani (on behalf of the Elders)

We’ve just completed a short series on Sundays entitled “Renewing our Community Groups”. Community Groups have long been really, really important in the life of OCC! Community Groups are OCC's midweek groups, small groups, house groups, fellowship groups – whatever you want to call them!

Andy O'Connell and Sanjay Mahtani (on behalf of the Elders)

Renewing our Community Groups - FAQs

By Andy O'Connell and Sanjay Mahtani (on behalf of the Elders)

“What are Community Groups for?”

Our Community Groups seek to be community in our transient, multi-cultural, 21st Century city. They love, serve, and reach the wider community, which could be those you live and work with, people in your local area, a certain demographic, or a group that you serve through a particular project.

Andy O'Connell and Sanjay Mahtani (on behalf of the Elders)

One new humanity in Christ Jesus

By Andy O'Connell

This blog seeks to window into how OCC is approaching questions of racism, racial justice, and ethnic diversity, at this point in time. I'm writing as one of the elders and Assistant Pastors, but also about my own story.

Full disclosure: I’m a white man of a certain age. I grew up in the UK in the late 20th century. This is a tricky subject to get right. It’s not my ‘lived experience’. It's a current, very live, and controversial topic. Writers, commentators and activists use a lot of terminology that you need get your head around.

Small town - growing town - Big God! 

By Mark Eley, leader of Lifehouse Community Church

Let me introduce Rich and Anna Houghton to you. We have known them for many years having been first connected in Kidlington. Anna works as a primary school teacher and Rich works as a project manager for a design agency. They have two children and are fun-loving people that love sharing life with others in Banbury.

Mark Eley, leader of Lifehouse Community Church

New life in the Garden Town

By Andy O'Connell

There's a church just north of Oxford that we're family with! Although its exciting, being actively part of a wider family of churches may be a new idea for some of you, so we want to tell the story of how we got there, and how relationships are sustained today.

Chapter 1: Oxfordshire

In the 1970s, UK churches were impacted by a new movement that came to be called both the ‘charismatic renewal’ and the ‘house church movement’. It placed emphasis on authentic community, participation in worship, spiritual gifts, and meaningful discipleship.