## **2022 Report and Accounts for the Audacious Faith International Church (AFIC), (Derby-Nottingham)** Produced by the Audacious Faith International Church Committee (AFICTC), this report offers the chance to telling the aims of the church and what we are doing to make them happen. The following pages review the report section by section. ## **Aim and purposes** The Audacious Faith International Church Trustees Committee (AFICTC) has the responsibility of cooperating with the incumbent, the Reverend Pastor Didier Hyde Kuku Mesa, in promoting in the ecclesiastical local parishes (Derby and Nottingham), the whole mission of the Church, pastoral, evangelistic, social and ecumenical. The AFICTC is also specifically responsible for all the Church activities related dealings set to promote the effective and efficient running of the Church’s mission. ## **Objectives and Activities** The AFICTC is committed to enabling as many people as possible to worship at our church and to become part of our Church community at Audacious Faith International Church with an inclusive approach. Our services and worship put faith into practice through prayer and scripture, music and sacrament. Our approach within the AFICTC is to maintain an overview of worship throughout our local branches and makes suggestions on how our services can try and involve, as well spiritually and morally as socially, the many groups that live within our Congregation When planning our activities for the year, we have considered the Commission’s guidance on public benefit and, in particular, the supplementary guidance on charities for the advancement of religion. In particular, we try to enable ordinary people to experience and practice their faith in God within our ministry through: - Worship and prayer; learning about the Gospel; and developing their knowledge and trust in Jesus. - Provision of pastoral care for fellow Church members. - Missionary and outreach work. It has come the attention of the AFICTC, throughout the year, for instance, that there was a significant need of getting the children of our Church community in extra activities. Thus, in efforts to try to fulfil the aims of the church for the benefit of everyone (fulfilling pastoral and social aims) in our Congregation, the AFICTC, has, for instance, considered organising, for the children of our Church Sunday School groups (involving more or less 35 children), ludic extra activities such as outings, and other games and fitness activities from time to time as well as day out activities (especially in summer school holidays time). ## **Achievements and Performance** The delivery activity of our Church throughout 2022 mainly involved evangelisation and preaching throughout which some dozens of souls were gained to Christ within the region. It is important to stress here that, in the aftermath of the Covid-19 crisis, returning to our normal activities became a significant struggle for our church community. The fear and trauma experienced during the pandemic left a lasting impact, hesitant particularly on those who were directly affected by illness. Many members were to come back, and got used to attending online church Services throughout that period which influenced the way we conducted our activities. Despite these challenges, we managed to make progress in resuming our gatherings and events gradually. In order to comply with the legal requirements as to the good practice in dealing with the Church community and guarantee, the AFICTC managed to put in place a Safeguarding policy. ## **Worship and Prayer** The AFICTC resumed the Church worship and prayer as normal on a weekly basis as to Sunday worship Services and on a monthly basis as to the Church prayer sessions involving family, children, youth as well as couples. The average weekly attendance counted during the year was 50 worshipers, but this number increased at special specific conferences, festivals Christmas and Easter Services. As well as our regular services, we enable our community to celebrate and thank God at the milestones of the journey through life. A dozen of young people were baptised. At present there are 68 Church members all of whom are not resident within the Congregation area (Derby and Nottingham). Guest Speakers from within the United Kingdom were invited over to come and minister in support to our congregation. ## **The Church Centre Complex** The AFIC Congregation holds its activities in a hired Church building located in the Normanton area of Derby. The AFICTC is pleased to confirm that the venue conditions meet the required standards, while most of the features offered remain sensitively useful to a smooth running of our activities. We mostly use the building on Sundays for our Sunday Worship, and Saturdays should any rehearsal sessions and/or any special prayer session be scheduled. Certainly, we would want our church to be open to our community for private prayer and other youth related activities in week days evening and/or Saturdays, but, unfortunately, due to the building being used by another organisation sometimes in week days, this would not always be feasible; although we are however pleased that, from time to time, this can be achieved through making special arrangements with the building owners. Meanwhile, the AFICTC and the Congregation leadership resort to the use of social media upon addressing aspect of their mission like prayer meeting, teachings, etc. The AFICTC set a team made of volunteers from our Congregation, all of whom have been CRB checked and are First Aid qualified people. ## **Pastoral Care** Reverend Didier Hyde Kuku took to organise some one- to-one sessions for the purpose of sharing various concerns and praying for/and with those in need. He also paid visits to the Church member families who requested his assistance, celebrated communion with them either at their homes or in hospital. As for those members of our Congregation who could not be reached physically, virtually meeting and/or phone calls were considered. ## **Mission and Evangelism** At AFIC we strongly believe that helping those in need (especially spiritual need) is a demonstration of our faith, making it possible that, these efforts on behalf of others can be combined with opportunities for fellowship. The AFICTC has considered launching a monthly leaflet release (both in English and French languages) with the aim of providing spiritual support and summarised teaching through useful and experienced related Biblical verses and other short exhortations, in order to keep warm the fellow members’ faith and trust in Christ. ## **Ecumenical Relationships** The Audacious Faith International Church (AFIC) is a member of the Blessing Churches: the Johan Maasbach World Mission whose headquarters are based in Netherlands. We have held joint services, conferences and other youth camps throughout the year in Derby, Nottingham and Rotterdam (Holland). These activities subsequently informed the designing of a Biblical College related project to be launched in the aftermath of the COVID-19 related lockdown. We have also worked in various circumstances (including Easter processions, Christmas Carols, etc.) with Derby St Augustine’s Church which is a Church of England parish in Derby to celebrate those Christian special events. ## **Financial Review** Most of the Audacious Faith International Church’s funding is hundred percent essentially made of the fellowship contribution through ordinary offerings and other tithes. Thus, depending on the nature of the needs to address, the income is used the cover all the Church’s financial needs, including the rent, stationeries, fuel, liturgical equipment, evangelical activities, promotion, children related activities, as well as other Church events organisation costs. Moreover, where and when required, the income is also used to support (to some extent) people from our Church community in financial difficulties. ## **Our Reserves Policy** The AFIC’s reliance on a very limited income streams (whose principal sources are offerings and tithes) remains a real fact. However, AFIC’s Reserves Policy paradigm has been set to promote the strategy of keeping a reasonable amount of money, in order to face any situation of ‘rainy day’. This is to ensure we are able to maintain adequate free reserves to enable the management of any reasonably foreseeable contingency. It is indeed held to smooth out fluctuations in cash flow and to meet emergencies. Although it is important to admit that the Church does not always afford keeping the reserves at their highest level. Thus, on a three month payments equivalence basis taken as a reference, £800 restricted funds have been set as standard to keep our financial balance on a ‘rainy day’ prospect. We are thankful to the Church community for its effective involvement in making this happen, despite all the difficulties and other hardships having faced the UK community as a whole throughout the lockdown period. As an example, the Church resorted to the reserve funds to financially assist through a small donation a group fellow church members whom financial vulnerability and precariousness throughout the lockdown period required some attention. Total receipts on income stream funds were £1,936 including offerings and tithes, a 45% decrease in income compared to the previous year, due to COVID-19 related lockdown. So was the case with the expenditures. We would like to thank all the volunteers, church wardens, deacons and deaconesses, worshipers and other Church’s ministers who work so hard to make our church the lively and resilient community it is. Each one of them in a particular area of their intervention has tirelessly been a special asset to our church community. ## **Our Structure** The method of appointment of the Audacious Faith International Church Committee (AFICTC) members is set out in the Church Representation Rules. At AFIC the membership of the AFICC consists of the incumbent (Senior Reverend Pastor), Churchwardens, Assistant Pastor, appointed and/or co-opted ex-officio Treasurer, Reader, Department Leaders and college of Preachers all of which are on the electoral roll of the church. All those who attend our services / members of the congregation are encouraged to register on the Electoral Roll and stand for election to the AFICTC. The AFICTC members are responsible for making decisions on all matters of general concern and importance to the Congregation, including deciding on how the funds of the AFICTC are to be spent. New members receive initial training into the workings of the AFICC. The full AFICTC met four times during the year with an average level of attendance of 80%. The AFICTC has a number of departments, each dealing with a particular aspect of the Congregations’ life. These committees, which include worship, mission and outreach, women promotion, Sunday School, and finance, are all responsible to the AFICTC and report back to it regularly with minutes of their decisions being received by the full AFICTC and discussed as necessary. ## **Administrative information** The Audacious Faith International Church is located in Derby on Upper Dale Road/Normanton (at the St Augustine’s Church Upper Dale Road Derby/Normanton DE23 8BP), and has its correspondence address at 20 Lorne Walk Nottingham NG3 4FX. The AFIC is part of the Blessing Churches: Johan Maasbach World Mission, and is a charity currently accepted registration with the Charity Commission. AFICTC members who have served at any time from 1st January 2020 until the date this report was approved are: Ex Officio members: - Incumbent: The Reverend Didier Hyde Kuku (Chair of trustees and Senior Pastor) - Joel Kabamba: Assistant Pastor - Bernard Kalenga: Secretary General - Joseph Kasongo: Treasurer - Papy Bokola: Elder - Kouzi Kuzimbila: Deacon - Gisèle Mushiku: Deaconess - Betty Kambala: Deaconess - Maguy Lemo: Deaconess - Arlette Tshama: Deaconess - Carol Shabantu: Sunday School Representative - Nathalie Kasongo: Usher Team Leader Approved by the AFICC on 12 June 2023 and signed on their behalf by the Reverend Didier Hyde Kuku (AFICC Chair of trustees and Senior Pastor).