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Weekly Prayer Focus: Dereham Baptist Church

Week 27

Dereham is a growing town in north east Norfolk and home to Dereham Baptist Church founded in 1783 when a small number of people walked 15 miles from Norwich with a vision to plant a church there.

Today the church is led by minister Nigel Bayley and Associate minister Dave Ward with around 200 people of all ages and backgrounds meeting together each week. The church has fully regained the momentum lost during covid and there is now a lively and varied Sunday programme with two morning services on alternate weeks including a service specifically for families and an all-age service.

There are lots of weekly activities and work at the Community Hub which operates a community fridge and a Christian bookshop. There are plans to build up further community work.

A new toddler group at church – the Ark — is starting in September led by a new team of volunteers to replace the previous group which stopped during covid.

A toddler group – Little Fishes — has already been planted in neighbouring Toftwood and this has led to Fishes Sunday, which is a Sunday morning “service” that is now run twice a month in the village hall. This work is successfully reaching out to unchurched families, and they are beginning to see people come to faith and get baptised. This is an exciting outreach ministry for the church to a nearby community.

There is also a Portuguese congregation meeting on Saturdays and led by pastor Marcos Hernandez who is retiring in October.

Whilst DBC is good at building community and relationships there is now a new focus on being bolder and more intentional about sowing the seed of the gospel into the ground that has been broken( Isaiah 28:23-26).

Please pray for:

Wisdom, energy and vision for the church leadership in seeking God’s will for the way forward.
The new toddler group – the Ark — as it begins in September and the growing Little Fishes toddler group in Toftwood and the family outreach there.
That more people will come to a personal faith in Jesus and many will be added to the kingdom.
The Portuguese congregation as they seek a new minister to take over from Marcos.