Blog

  The God who created you, the God who created the universe, the God of hope, life, freedom and joy, the God of immeasurably more isn’t simply looking to visit your small group, or show up if He has time. He is looking to make it his home!  When you show up to your small group, or when you lead your small...

Evangelism isn’t just for evangelists and mission isn’t just for missionaries. Naomi is a first-year student and has had a wild year at university! At the start of the year she was one of two Christian in her accommodation block, there are now 5 Christians. Naomi has countless stories of choosing to be bold and seeing God move, her testimony is one of faithfulness...

Before you get stuck into reading this blog I’d love you to pause and have a think about the best gift that you have been given that’s made a long term difference to your life. For example, the best gift to myself, from myself this year was a waterproof puffa jacket. We were heading into the tier system of lockdown and...

 "For as the soil makes the sprout come up and a garden causes seeds to grow..." (Isaiah 61:11) Today is Good Friday, the day we remember everything Jesus did for us on the cross and the sacrifice made on the very first Good Friday. The day grace poured out like living water, the day that brought the gift of forgiveness and...

"strangers will shepherd your flocks; foreigners will work your fields and vineyards..." (Isaiah 61:5) Yesterday, we were challenged on whether we are willing to facilitate the renewal of our ruined cities, campuses, and universities. We were invited to pray and to fast for a move of God. I want to add to that challenge, how are you praying beyond yourself? In today’s passage,...

Choosing a church to call home isn’t easy and COVID has certainly hasn’t made it any easier. I’m wondering why you have found your self reading this blog, perhaps you have never been to church in your life and you are keen to try now, maybe you’ve been home for Christmas and remembered that you are actually keen to follow...

So the Word became human and made his home among us. He was full of unfailing love and faithfulness. And we have seen his glory, the glory of the Father’s one and only Son. John 1:14 I remember being led in worship at a student night back in early October singing the Goodness Of God in which we sang "all my...

Can you join us in praying for students? This isn’t just a response to COVID, this a response to a generation of students that don't yet know the hope of Jesus. Universities and campuses aren’t closed and our prayers have a powerful impact. We believe this is for all of us, not just for students. Can you and your small group join in with...

Will you take a step of faith and prayer walk your campus? Can we see every University campus prayer walked this Autumn term? ’I am giving you every square inch of the land you set your foot on.” Joshua 1:3 We want to see the UK's universities covered in prayer as we head into this new era of student mission. We read in...

Try church, an invitation for every student to find hope in Jesus and home in the local church.  We have been working with churches, inviting students to try church for years now, but what does it look like in the wake of a pandemic? How do we continue to extend the invitation to try church when we are speaking into a...

Abby, like every other student graduating in 2020, finished uni at home. Abby's final submissions were all online. All those hours of working were no longer with mates but in her bedroom at her parents, and those moments of celebration every student anticipates in final year were no longer an option. Instead of accepting it was all a write off and...

"Students are stopping long enough to think and notice."  The pace of life has slowed, diaries have been cleared, the life we knew and rushed through has been suspended and it seems we are all learning to be still again. And in this stillness we are starting to notice the presence of God, or for some the lack of. And in...

In the face of uncertainty, many final year students have understandably had feelings of deep sadness and disappointment, frustration and anger, and fear and anxiety.  ‘My life is on hold’ is what many are declaring right now. However, this is not the case, your life is not on hold, your calling is not on hold and there is still purpose in...

Thrown by chaos?  Shaken by change?  Fearful in the unknown?  This is a crazy time of uncertainty. For students, particularly those in their final year, “what now?” and “what next?” are questions that are tough to answer and tough to navigate.  This blog isn’t going to answer “what now?” and “what next?” but will hopefully help you find your footing, help you remain grounded...

Have you read Fusion job adverts and checked out because the language is bold, it can take conviction to own and feels like a lot to live up to? This blog is for those of you who haven’t applied because you don’t see yourself as ‘fiery’, you’re not sure if you feel ‘called to student mission’ or don’t back yourself as...

IMAGINE BEING PART OF A SMALL GROUP THAT PEOPLE CAN'T WAIT TO GATHER FOR; IT'S FUN, IT'S ADVENTUROUS, IT'S ENERGISING.  Christina shares her story of how she has grown as a follower of Jesus in her time at university and the impact small group has had in her life. Desiring a deeper relationship with God?  Yearning for transforming community? Feeling called to radical obedience and...

Imagine being part of a Small Group that people can't wait to gather for; it's fun, it's adventurous, it's energising.  Micah is a student in her final year leading a freshers small group, check out her small group top tips and stories of God on the move... Plates full of snacks and mugs full of coffee... People that help out when Small Group is...

I spend a lot of my time with current students; students in the mix of uni life, discovering who they are and who they want to be. Decisions are a major part of uni life. I recently hung out with Abby and she shared her story and a decision she made that changed the course of not only her university...

So, we’ve been out, we’ve been inviting our mates to trychurch, and friends have started to say yes! Brilliant! As your community grows, it will begin to shift and change. Your small group will have new faces, your vulnerability will be challenged, and your level of comfort will be challenged. It’s worth acknowledging that like anything in life, growth can sometimes be painful....

Languages are not my thing. It’s embarrassing but I really struggle to pick them up and then remember them. I’m that classic Birt abroad who has to rely on pals, body language and google translate. Heading abroad can feel a bit intimidating, a bit of a whirlwind and sometimes tiring if you're not on a holiday and needing to understand the...

We can’t get on campus This is something we hear a lot. Churches and faith based groups are often not given permission to officially meet on campus and are regularly faced with red tape and policies.  Sam in Manchester has faced this time and time again, but this hasn’t stopped the churches making a kingdom impact on campus.  “Year on year we haven’t been...

HELP, I need some ideas to get started!    This isn’t a how-to guide to invite a generation of students to try church but it’s a starting point if you need some ideas to get going and to spark your imagination. Prayer  Starting in prayer sounds almost too obvious to state, but it’s vital. This is a huge task and we need to be...

Trychurch - An invitation to a generation of students.  That’s an invitation to 2.3 million students in the UK.  Feeling a bit overwhelmed by that number? I am.  I'm also completely convinced that the stats need to change. I'm not satisfied with knowing that only ~0.7% of 2.3 million students are connected with a local church. While this can feel like a huge task...

You have thought long and hard where you are going to uni, you have thought long and hard about what course you are studying. You have (If you’re anything like me) thought long and hard about what colour scheme you want in your new bedroom, and have curated photos and posters of all your mates and travels to go on...

5 Things I never thought I would say or do (until I became part of the Fusion Team):  Hangout with 8000 Catholics in Czech  Walk through a frozen paddling pool at 6am in Jan  Like coffee  Be sent to an unknown European destination, with only $20, for 48 hours  Travel the length & breadth of England, making many a brilliant pal along the way.  Ok, so those are...

I started uni determined to become a fashion photographer. Nottingham was a three-year stopgap to get trained up before heading to London to land a contract with Vogue (obviously). Three years later, a degree under my belt, a bunch of industry experience, a few exhibitions and some live commissions you would have thought I was ready to hit the ground running...

Have you ever walked into a room and there wasn’t a seat for you? Or have you been invited for dinner and there isn’t a chair at the table for you? If yes, that’s 10/10 awks and I’m sorry you’ve been through that. Hopefully, most of you reading this won’t have been in that situation! If you are part of a small...

The term is in full swing, the whirlwind of freshers is over and students are finding their feet in a new normal. For many students, this shift can emphasise loneliness and students can feel less at home in their new city.  There was recently a BBC Radio 4 survey that found 16-24's to be the loneliest age group. Students sit right in the...

Josh was at Gloucester University Freshers fair last week and has an incredible story of Unity. Have a read of his story...  The Uni of Gloucestershire has kicked off the new wave of welcoming Freshers (so early I know!) and we have had an amazing time at the Try Church stand. The night before the freshers fair many churches gathered from...

Term has ended and you’re home, back to your old normal. To familiar and to family. You have three months ahead of you, how are you going to use it? I know I used to struggle with the abrupt change of pace. The deadlines are done, the race to the end of term is over and the goodbyes to housemates have...

This is how you can invite a generation of students to #trychurch... Every year thousands of students wander through freshers fairs. They are invited to try sports, clubs and societies. They are offered free food, free drinks and a whole heap of new opportunities. Many of these students haven't been invited to #trychurch and we need to lead the way, as the church,...

I met with Tom from Christ Church Manchester a couple of weeks ago and he shared their vision for planting churches all over Manchester and how students play an in integral role in that. If you are a church leader, how are you going to release students to step up and lead? If you are a student, how are you going...

For most students this is the last week of term. In just a few days they will be ready to head home and flop, be looked after, and plug back into life at home. As their youth worker embrace this opportunity to welcome them home and back to church for maybe the first time all term. Grab this time to...

THE FUSION TEAM IS GROWING AND THERE HAS NEVER BEEN A BETTER TIME TO JOIN. This is an exciting opportunity to strengthen relationships with a growing network of more than 2000 churches in the uk. WE ARE LOOKING FOR DILIGENT AND ENTHUSIASTIC WORKERS TO HELP US best serve and resource every fusion connection church. COULD IT BE YOU?  As the number of connection...

Michael is a Student worker in Derby. check out his Student linkup freshers fair stand experience and the power of a simple invite to #Trychurch. For the second year running we set up a #TryChurch stand at Derby Uni's Freshers Fair to try and encourage and invite students, whether Christian or not, to give church a try at uni. I'm always amused by the variety...

Rhys has been a Christian for a whole year; he became a Christian in his first term at uni and I have picked his brains for all the best top tips on how to invite all students to #Trychurch. Check out his story…   Going through school, R.E. always made sense, but I didn't grow up around church. I didn’t know how...

Most students haven't stepped inside a church before, at least not on a Sunday.  A #TryChurch freshers stand creates a platform to connect with thousands of freshers and invite them to #TryChurch; dare them to experience something life changing, to discover community, discover home and discover Jesus. Key things to bear in mind... #TryChurch is banner under which churches can collectively share...

Confession time - I can be pretty chaotic and if I’m not careful this can spill out into my prayer life. Have you found yourself praying sporadically for different things with no consistency? Or maybe overwhelmed by the number of people you would love to be praying for, and unsure where to even start? If you can relate to this, check...

We have been at 21 Freshers fairs across the UK inviting all students to #Trychurch. We've heard so many encouraging stories. Here's Ed's: Ed's Story "Recently I helped run a stall at Chester University’s Fresher’s Fair with Fusion and #TryChurch. We talked to a lot of students and encouraged them to try church. This opened up conversations and questions and was a great opportunity to...

Over the last three weeks we have been at 21 different freshers fairs, inviting students to #Trychurch, daring them to experience something life changing, to discover community, discover home and discover Jesus.   "What is church like?" Across the 21 different cities, 421 students said yes to giving church a try, and one of the most asked questions was "what is church,...

Almost exactly 4 years ago to the day I was packing my polka dot tea towels and my cute new crockery into the car. My new duvet was squished in and I had blue tack and hundreds of photos of my besties ready to pin up on my wall. I realised in all of the busyness and all the goodbyes I...