Who we are |
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BEGINNINGS In mid 1985 - pioneered by Gordon and Julie Brown. WHAT INITIATED OUR BEGINNINGS? In May 1985, after 3½ years travelling throughout New Zealand serving alongside Jim and Ida Heath in a teaching and evangelistic ministry - the Spirit of God spoke to Gordon as it were by a prophecy out of his own mouth: “Go to and set up a well.” WHY ANOTHER CHURCH? We believe that under direct leadership of the Holy Spirit, “Well of Life” (as it was called then) was sent to New Plymouth to be what it's name declares.
You will notice on this page a logo of an old well – this well no longer operates by the original method in which man made it, but rather is empowered by the methods and power of another source. This also is the vision God showed Gordon just after he had spoken about setting up a well. Therefore this logo completely revealed the purpose and vision of this church. It is clear from scripture that every ministry, every church community and every individual life must understand the principle of pilgrimage. Our existence in the Kingdom of God is not to be one of stagnation. We have endeavoured as a church to keep moving with God’s present emphasis in the earth, and that has of course required an open and teachable spirit both in the leadership and the congregation themselves. In the early part of this decade, a very clear prophetic word came forward – and it spoke of God doing a new thing. We began to declare it and God led us into what is now being called “Apostolic Reformation.” Our church community began to turn a corner and enter into greater accuracy concerning God’s mind and heart for this strategic time in which we are now living. In the year of 2004 a long time vision was finally made manifest – the launching of a School of Ministry that would take people into a greater level of maturity and function. While Gordon and Julie were in Trinidad in the year of 2003 they were called out to come to the front of a large corporate meeting and there were prophets present who brought forth a number of prophetic words over them. One of these words spoke a lot about water – which of course aroused their attention, but this water spoken of was no longer just coming up out of the ground like a well would, but it was coming down from the high places more like a dam would operate. This is when they realised that there was change and a further journeying on to greater things. This is when the church community began to tap more purposefully into apostolic grace in order to be even more able to carry out the mandate and vision that was upon the ministry of Life Advance. The way we did this was by the establishing of strong relationships with those carrying the grace and revelation of this present speaking of God in the earth. We also began “Breakthrough School of Ministry,” which carries this same apostolic grace, so each person would have the opportunity to embrace very strongly the truth that God is imparting into our midst. About this time also is when the ministry was renamed and the new logo introduced. Let’s investigate the meaning of this new logo and this new name as it perfectly describes our mission and vision. The word “life” is the Greek word “zoe” which means the absolute life of God, or His abundant life. This has been kept from the old name and the word “advance” has been added. Advance means: to move or cause to move forward, to grow, to put in front, progress, be instrumental, succeed, breakthrough, upgrade, increase, to rise in rank, position or value.
The new logo means a ripple effect that spreads out and impacts our environment and our community – like the message spreading. It represents an arrowhead typifying a moving forward, a journeying and also reveals a global and borderless community. It also represents corporate unity through diversity. When this is all put together it describes something very much in line with God’s Kingdom purposes in the earth. We have adopted a brief and very clear mission/vision statement: “GATHERING, EQUIPPING & COMMISSIONING” |
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