Earlier this year, Ryan Vallee, Church Engagement Specialist with Alpha Australia, approached churches in Newcastle and the Hunter region to challenge them to launch a regional Alpha campaign. Ryan met with the Hunter Collective, the cross-denominational gathering of church leaders, and there was immediate enthusiasm for an Alpha campaign.
“We wanted to see what it could look like in a regional area for churches to gather to pray, work together and be supported in mission,” explains Ryan, “Alpha is something that all the churches can get on board with and be united in sharing.”
Churches in the Hunter region have a reputation for working together cross-denominationally, including hosting Mayors’ Breakfasts and annual Christmas Carols, so the idea of a combined outreach effort across Newcastle and the Hunter Region made sense.
Churches from across the region will run Alpha during August and September 2024. So far, 25 churches have signed up to be part of this “Hunter Alpha Collective”.
Approaching outreach with other local churches has been encouraging and empowering. Leaders, church representatives, and others keen to be a part of leading an Alpha group have gathered together for training nights across the region. These training sessions have been run by Alpha and have covered the practicalities of running Alpha conversations, as well as allowing for sharing of ideas and strategies to elevate Alpha within the churches and communities.
“There is something powerful and beautiful when Churches work together with a common goal of desiring that people come to know the love of Jesus,” reflects Matt Brown, Baptist Regional Minister for the Hunter and Senior Pastor at Swansea District Baptist Church, “this is a wonderful opportunity to do Alpha with other people and other churches. We’re seeing more people praying for their friends and building that culture of invitation”.
The Alpha groups in the Hunter and Newcastle region don’t start until August, but preparation already is well under way. The focus of July has been on prayer and invitation, including holding weekly online combined prayer nights. Churches from across the region come together to pray for who has been, or could be, invited to an Alpha conversation.
Whilst they have run similar evangelical programs in the past, Swansea Baptist hasn’t used Alpha before. The morning they announced the Alpha campaign to their church, Ryan visited and preached on “The Power of Invitation”.
“After we talked about the power of invitation on a Sunday morning, a new Christian in our Church went straight home and spoke to her neighbour about Alpha and invited her,” recounts Matt. “We don’t know how many people are going to come, but talking about Alpha has already stirred a new passion for people to be praying for their friends and neighbours”. Matt believes this culture of invitation that they’re growing their church for Alpha will pave the way for building that same culture of invitation to other church ministries and events.
Such combined mission efforts have been successful before. In 2023 Alpha worked with Queensland Baptist Ministries on a state-wide Alpha push. Queensland Baptist went from holding 120 Alpha conversations in 2022 to 230 Alpha conversations in 2023. Jason Elsmore, Director of Queensland Baptist Ministries says, “we baptised more new believers in Queensland Baptist churches than ever before, in a year when more churches in our Movement led more Alpha courses than ever before.”
“We want to get behind and resources churches cultivating a culture of invitation to see more people following Jesus and taking the plunge,” says Jamie Freeman, Associate Director of Mission and Church Development, “Alpha is a key partner in our prayer to see the number of baptisms in Baptist churches nationally double over the next decade.”
To find out more about how churches in the Hunter are working together to bring Alpha to their region, visit: https://www.alpha.org.au/hunter
