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Hi! My name is Matt Fell, and my friends at ChristCentral have asked me to introduce myself. I run the ID training course on behalf of Relational Mission churches.

ID stands for Intentional Discipleship, it’s our equivalent of the Impact training course, a year-long church internship and discipleship programme. I’ve had the pleasure of leading ID for seven years now. I love spending time with young people, hearing their stories and sharing the gospel with them. It’s a privilege to help them think through the big questions and hopefully set them up for a lifetime of loving Jesus and serving his church.

Over the past year, ID has partnered with New Ground churches, Catalyst Churches, and a couple of ChristCentral churches to help provide the training for their impact programmes. This happened because the pandemic knocked our number down, which was sad at first. However, the Lord has worked it for good. It’s been an immense joy and privilege to spend time with the students from across our Newfrontiers family. It’s really enriched the whole training experience bringing together young people from different parts of the UK, giving them a bigger apostolic picture. We’ve also been able to draw on a wider bank of teachers and all in all, it’s been brilliant! In fact, it’s gone so well that Catalyst, New Ground and now ChristCentral have all decided to keep the partnership going for the foreseeable future.

ChristCentral are continuing to encourage churches to host intern students, and ID will provide the theological training and international mission aspects of the internship programme, as we have done for the past two years.

We deliver the teaching through residential training weeks and online teaching. The residential training happens in Cambridge, where I’m based, three times a year (September, November and March). It’s a great place for folks to come and learn, is quite central and also easy to get to. Then once a year, we take the students to a Newfrontiers church plant in Europe for a week of cross-cultural experience, mission and teaching.

Alongside the in-person training, we do online teaching. This happens every Monday throughout term time over Zoom. Each week we take three hours (with breaks) to catch up with one another, discuss what we’re reading in Scripture, and hear from brilliant teachers who come and join us. It’s an excellent way of keeping in touch with the gang throughout the year, drip-feeding the teaching, and keep journeying with them.

It’s been a real joy to partner with ChristCentral, and I’m so excited that, that will continue. Please do continue recruiting for your internship years. It’s such a huge blessing, both to the people who come through the course and the churches that host them. 

ChristCentral have put together a training page which gives loads more information about ID, how it works and how young people can register. To find out more and to register today visit: christcentralchurches.org/id

ID Taster Event
We have an ID taster event coming up in a few weeks on the 23rd of May. It’s on a Monday evening 7:45pm to 9pm and will be over Zoom. It’s a chance for those interested in ID / Impact to tune in, listen to some teaching, find out what the year looks like, and ask any questions they may have. We’ve done these over the past few years, and they’ve been influential for a lot of people who have come through and signed up for the course. People can sign up here.