Pathway Church

On a Journey Together with God

This is what the Lord says: “Stand at the crossroads and look; ask for the ancient paths, ask where the good way is, and walk in it, and you will find rest for your souls.” (Jeremiah 6:16)

The best way to get to know who we are is to meet us, by getting in touch or coming along to one of the different things going on. But this page also tried to give an idea of who we are by sharing our Vision and Values, explaining what unites us, and introducing our minister.

Who are we?

Our Vision – why ‘Pathway Church’?

Since 1934 when our church was started, it was known as ‘Beauchief Baptist Church’, but at the start of 2024 we renamed ourselves as ‘Pathway Church’? But why?

As a church, we believe there is a pathway for all of us to find from where we are now to a complete, full, and fulfilled life with God. We believe that pathway is found in Jesus, who once said, “I am the way and the truth and the life.” We have discovered that if we wish to have the fullest and truest life, then following Jesus is the way to find it. In fact, the earliest Christians didn’t call themselves ‘Christians’. They called themselves ‘followers of the way’, and we stand in line with them, on a journey together with God.

But this pathway and this and journey are not just for us! We believe God wants everyone to find it and discover the joy of walking it with him. That is why we seek to be an ‘open’ church, with different ways for people to engage with us, to meet together and to travel the journey of life and faith with God and with others. So we have four values as a church, and all are about being ‘open’.

Our Values:

We have four core values, all about being OPEN. Click the + sign to read what each of the values means.

  • “Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight.” (Wisdom found in Proverbs 3:5-6)

    As a church, God is central to everything, and we want to follow him instead of going our own way. So we are committed to remaining open to him through prayer, and through being guided by the Holy Spirit as individuals and collectively as we journey together.

  • “A voice of one calling in the wilderness, ‘Prepare the way for the Lord, make straight paths for him.’” (A description of someone who came just before Jesus and pointed others to him, in Matthew 3:3)

    As a church, we want the invitation to come and meet Jesus to ring loud and clear. So we want to be like John, Jesus’s cousin, who prepared the way and made straight paths for others to hear about, to meet and to follow him. Everyone is welcome, and we want everyone to find their place.

  • “Your word is a lamp for my feet, a light on my path.” (A description of the effect the Bible has in our lives, helping us know where to, found in Psalm 119:105)

    As a church, we believe God has revealed himself and what is true through the Bible. It is our guide and our map as we seek to navigate life in this world. So we commit to reading, studying and following what it says, both individually and together, and letting it be our guide in all things.

  • “In their hearts humans plan their course, but the Lord establishes their steps.” (A statement about the way we like to plan, but that God is in control, found in Proverbs 16:9)

    As a church, we are not set in stone when it comes to our structures, our rhythms and our activities together. So we make plans, but we also hold them lightly. We experiment and try things, and we submit all of our plans to God ask him to establish our steps and lead us on his pathway.

What unites us? We are followers of Jesus!

As a church, what unites us isn’t where we meet, what we’re interested in or the sorts of people we are. What unites us is that we are all on a journey together, and that journey is all about Jesus.

We believe that about 2,000 years ago, God entered the world he had made as a man: Jesus. He did that because, though he made the world to be perfect and so we could enjoy a perfect relationship with him, we broke that world. We choose to go on our own paths, pursue our own ways and decide how to live our own lives. But we know that often goes wrong, and we know the world is broken. So Jesus stepped in. God came close.

During his life, Jesus showed what it really means to live God’s ways, and started to fix the world and put it back to how it is meant to be. He gathered a community around him, known as disciples, to join in that work. And then he was killed in our place before rising again. Because of his death, we can be forgiven. Because of his resurrection, we can have life now and forever.

So as a church we are really a community trying to follow Jesus and his ways. Like those first disciples, we are trying to join with him in bringing healing to the world, and we know that only comes from Jesus. So we’re on his pathway, because we know it is far better than our own!

Whether you believe in Jesus or aren’t so sure, we would love to explore these things and take some steps together.

Meet our Minister:

Our minister is Dave Criddle. That means he is responsible for leading the church alongside a leadership team. Dave is married to Natalie and, along with their son Jed, moved to Sheffield in 2023 to join and lead the church.

They would love the chance to say hello if you haven’t already met!