Stepping Into 2026 With Hope, Vision, and Courage
As we step into a brand-new year, we do so with a deep sense of gratitude for all God has been doing across rural Britain, and with an even deeper expectation for what lies ahead. Rural Missions began with a simple conviction: that every rural community, every chapel, every village, every farm, and every person matters to God, and that the rural church carries a unique and irreplaceable role in His mission.
2025 was a landmark year.
We saw extraordinary growth in relationships, resources, and reach, from our consultations, toolkits distributed nationwide, the launch of our Visiting Church Booklet, and the merger with The Resources Cupboard bringing dedicated children, youth, and families expertise into our work. We celebrated two years of journeying with Sharnbrook Deanery and watched churches catch fresh vision for their communities. We partnered with networks like the Growing Faith Foundation and Amplify. And we saw more than ever that when rural churches are encouraged, supported, and equipped, mission flourishes.
Yet 2026 is not about repeating what has come before.
It’s about building on strong foundations and stepping boldly into the opportunities God is opening.
Our Focus for 2026
1. Deepening Support Through Tailor-Made Consultations
We will continue strengthening churches, networks and deaneries through our flagship consultations, listening, discerning, and shaping missional action in context. More dioceses, denominations, and networks are joining the journey, and we can’t wait to see the stories that unfold.
2. Expanding Children, Youth, and Families Ministry Across Rural Areas
With our new CYF Mission Team in place, 2026 will see new toolkits, training, and resources designed specifically for rural churches with small teams, limited budgets, and big hearts.
3. Launching the in-person Rural Missions Network
A national ecosystem of encouragement, collaboration, and shared learning, a space where rural leaders can find community, support, and practical ideas that work on the ground.
4. Resourcing the Whole Church With High-Quality Tools
From new videos to assembly resources to missional guides and research partnerships, we want to keep empowering leaders with what they need to thrive.
5. Strengthening Partnerships for Greater Kingdom Impact
We believe more than ever that rural mission is a shared work. We’re excited to grow collaborations with dioceses, denominations, charities, schools, and local leaders, because when we work together, our reach multiplies.
A Year to Be Courageous
Rural mission is not easy. Many leaders serve faithfully in isolation, with small congregations, ageing buildings, and vast geography. But the rural church is also resilient, innovative, faithful, and full of potential.
2026 is a year to be courageous.
A year to try new things.
A year to invest in the next generation.
A year to seek God’s heart for your community with fresh eyes.
And a year to believe that He is not finished with the rural church, far from it.
Thank You for Being Part of the Journey
Whether you’ve used a toolkit, shared a resource, invited us to run a consultation, financially partnered with us, prayed for us, or cheered us on, thank you.
Your support means more than you know.
It enables us to keep saying “yes” to churches that need encouragement, wisdom, resourcing, and hope.
As we begin 2026, we are praying this will be a year of renewal, of fresh vision, and of remarkable stories of God at work in rural places across the UK.
Here’s to the adventure ahead.
Together in His mission,
Bob Goody
CEO, Rural Missions
