The church plant that sprouted from a pub...

How many churches do you know that began life in the worst pub in town? Yet it was in this unlikely setting that the seeds for Rediscover Crediton were sown – and from them a church is beginning to blossom. Chris Rolfe reports

Steve and Joy Dunne hadn’t planned to plant a church in a pub.

In fact, they hadn’t been planning to plant at all.

They were between churches and had been reading Jim Cymbala’s Fresh Winds, Fresh Fire about the power of prayer.

As they read, they sensed God calling them to pray for Crediton, a town ten miles away from where they were living.

They should pray in Crediton itself, God directed, so they asked him where. As Joy walked down Crediton high street, a very unexpected answer came.

“Outside the worst pub in town was a notice that said, ‘Looking for a venue for your event? Why not try here?’” she says.

Up for the adventure, Steve, Joy and two friends headed there for a drink.

The right place

“It was not the most upmarket pub – a sticky pub with sticky tables – yet we knew it was the right place.”

And so, Steve and Joy found themselves holding their first prayer meeting for Crediton in the pub’s skittle alley on a freezing night in January 2009.

Eventually, the group relocated to a nursery. Swapping bar stools for toddler chairs, their numbers grew to around 30.

Steve and Joy had joined a New Frontiers church by this time, and its pastor was keen to see them plant a church from their group. The couple agreed, but the others – already members of other churches – weren’t keen to move from the congregations they were committed to.

For a few years, Steve and Joy kept praying, convinced it would one day be right to plant.

“We even moved into Crediton because we felt God calling us to be here,” says Steve.

They began visiting churches and came to Rediscover Exeter, of which Mark Pugh had become pastor six months earlier. They told Mark and his wife Nita about their prayer group and their idea of planting in Crediton.

“He agreed but advised us to watch and see what God would do first,” says Joy.

So, they immersed themselves in life at Rediscover Exeter – running a post-Alpha foundations course, joining the staff team as members of the pastoral team and overseeing life groups – all the while continuing their own group in Crediton.

Time to launch

Eventually, several things came together that confirmed the time was right to plant.

Steve and Joy had joined the Church Planting Academy where they were equipped and envisioned.

Meanwhile, the Crediton life group had grown to around 18 people.

“Ironically,” says Joy, “there was only us and two other people who lived in Crediton. Everyone else lived in the surrounding villages. But it became clear God was saying this plant would be a hub for the town and the surrounding area.”

The finding of a lost diary helped spin the wheels into motion.

“We’d received a lot of prophetic words about planting which we’d written in the diary,” says Steve.

“But we’d lost it. We’d hunted high and low for three years, then during the Academy we suddenly came across it in a drawer.

“It felt like confirmation as everything began coming together.”

Churches together

One prophetic word was that they would work with the other denominations and so Steve and Joy were keen to begin by creating good relationships with the other churches in Crediton.

They met with the leaders of the Anglican, Methodist and Congregational churches to explain their plans.

“We told them, ‘We’re not coming to take your people – we want to see people saved. We’re offering another expression of church alongside you and want to work with you’,” says Joy.

“We were in a coffee shop with the Anglican minister and weren’t sure how he’d react. He said, ‘This is going to transform Crediton. I’m so thrilled! Can we pray?’ He grabbed our hands and prayed God’s blessing.

“We had the same response from the others – ‘This is wonderful, how can we work together?’”

Next came three nights of worship and prayer in October and November 2023, with more prophecies shared.

“One was a picture of Crediton looking like a Wild West town of the 1800s,” says Joy. “Crediton is a rural market town. People are a bit suspicious of anything new, but this picture was of tumbleweed rolling up the high street catching fire as it went.”

The Elephant on the Green

The church decided to keep meeting on Wednesdays.

“People loved being at Rediscover Exeter and we didn’t feel we were big enough to branch out on Sundays yet,” says Joy.

They needed somewhere to meet in Crediton and booked The Elephant on the Green in the heart of the town.

“It’s great because it’s like a big shop front, with large windows. Everything we’re doing is on display to anyone who passes by,” says Steve.

The church began meeting there last September and has grown to nearly 30 people.

Reaching Crediton

They also began outreach, with their first event last October and another in May.

“We packed bags that say ‘Love Crediton’ with homemade biscuits, a leaflet about Rediscover Crediton and Why Jesus? or TryPraying leaflets,” says Joy.

“We also gave people flowers, telling them they were an expression of God’s love for them.”

Steve adds: “And we went to schools, the hospital, the doctor’s surgery, care homes and even the lollipop man. We gave them boxes of Heroes chocolates and letters to thank them for all they’re doing to support the town and to let them know that, as a church, we are praying for them.”

Sunday’s coming

For its next move, Rediscover Crediton is considering meeting twice a month on Sundays from September.

“For the man on the street, if you meet during the week you’re a group, but if you meet on a Sunday, you’re a church,” explains Steve.

Meeting on Sundays will allow them to connect with families too, he adds.

They have also been invited to join Christians Together in Crediton.

“We’re very embryonic but we want to see the Lord moving in power and people being saved, healed and set free,” says Steve.

“We want to see the gospel shared and the Holy Spirit moving in Crediton.”

This article first appeared in Direction Magazine. For further details, please click here.