Hope Community Church, Basingstoke

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Hope Community Church, Basingstoke

We're a Christian church located in the centre of Basingstoke. We are a group of people from a variety of nationalities and backgrounds.

None of us are perfect, in fact we are all 'work-in-progress', but we are committed to each other and to following Jesus. We have become Christians and wish to live out their faith together. As a church we are part of Basingstoke Community Churches, and we are involved with the other churches in Basingstoke. We are a group of people who have become Christians and wish to live out their faith toget

her. We do that because we believe God does not want us to be on our own, but to be part of a vibrant community. We aim to be like a family, where everyone is valued for who they are - and for who God has made them. We are all 'work in progress'! None of us are perfect, in fact being a Christian is learning how to live your life in a way which pleases God. We are finding out together that as God changes our lives we in turn can bring hope and transformation to those around us. We want Jesus to be at the centre of everything we do. In all our diversity, we are united by our love for him. We believe that church is not just about meeting on a Sunday, so we run a variety of midweek groups too. Our faith is to be lived out in our day-to-day lives; at home, work, school, college, gym or at the

We meet every Sunday at 10:30am at The Sarum Hill Centre, Sarum Hill, RG21 8SR

Getting together is a strong visual reminder that all ages, abilities, nationalities and backgrounds are united in Jesus. We will usually sing together songs of praise and worship led by a music group. There is freedom for individuals to bring their own prayers, and to share what God is saying. We will regularly pray, share updates on church life and have some form of Bible teaching (which we trust brings alive the truth and meaning of the Bible in a relevant and contemporary way!). We provide a crèche, groups for children (called kidzaloud) and for young people. Our gatherings are fairly informal. On occasions we stay for a shared lunch together.

06/09/2026

A very special morning, as we had the joy of baptising seven people! Each person shared their story of how they came to this momentous occasion. It was a wonderful time together😍

Listen: hopebasingstoke.org/podcasts/baptisms-6-sept-26

04/09/2026

Coming up on Sunday...
Baptising a whole bunch of people🥳
Come and hear how God is changing lives✅
10:30am | The Sarum Hill Centre | RG21 8SR📍

02/09/2026

Last weekend my wife and I, went to our church network’s ‘Summer Camp’. It was held Friday to Monday in the stunning grounds of Ashburnham Place, near Battle in East Sussex.

We have attended lots of these types of events, for over 35 years, many of them under canvas. Fortunately, this venue offered both camping and on-site accommodation – we chose the latter.

I was involved with leading the sung worship, playing drums in the band (not at the same time) and delivering an all age gathering. I can report that all went well!

Despite the weather being wet and windy for some of the weekend, we had a wonderful time. There was a great group from our church, the guest speakers were inspiring and most importantly God met with us!

These kind of events are sometimes referred to as ‘mountain top experiences’. They do happen in the Bible, with a significant one in the New Testament…

Jesus took with him Peter, James and John the brother of James, and led them up a high mountain by themselves. There he was transfigured before them. His face shone like the sun, and his clothes became as white as the light. Just then there appeared before them Moses and Elijah, talking with Jesus.
Matthew 17:1-3 The NIV Bible

On the mountain, Peter, James and John encountered God in a very dramatic way. They were very privileged to see Jesus ‘glowing’ and talking with two heroes from the Old Testament, Moses and Elijah!

I suspect they never forgot that experience. Later in that chapter it says that Peter offered to build a shelter for Jesus, Moses and Elijah, implying that he wanted then to stay there.

Fortunately, that never happened, and they came down the mountain with Jesus, and continued life with him.

Mountain top experiences are special, memorable and can be life changing. They are something out of the ordinary that connects us to things above and beyond the everyday.

They are not home, rather a moment of encounter and impact. In my experience, they have been few, but profound and deeply meaningful.

We don’t live by them, but they are a wonderful encouragement when they happen.

God bless😃
Gary Bastin - church leader

01/09/2026

On the last Sunday in August, Simon Aspray concluded our ‘Great Big God’ summer series looking at generosity. He guided us through the entire Bible revealing how generous God is!😁

Listen: hopebasingstoke.org/podcasts/great-big-god-generosity

28/08/2026

Coming up on Sunday...
Great Big God: Generosity🤲
Trusting in God is sometimes easier to say than do. What if that trust is built on the knowledge that God is generous?
10:30am | The Sarum Hill Centre | RG21 8SR📍

26/08/2026

Last Saturday I conducted the wedding for a young couple at our church building. The bride, and her family have been part of our community for many years.

At university she met and fell in love with a young man. He felt the same, so they got engaged which led to them getting married!

It was a beautiful occasion: the bride looked stunning, along with her bridesmaids. The groom and his groomsmen looked pretty good too! The room was filled with the fragrance of freshly cut summer flowers.

After the vows had been exchanged I spoke about love. I briefly unpacked four different Greek words used to describe love in the Bible. One of them is Agape.

This is the highest form of love, and is how God loves us. It is unconditional, selfless, and sacrificial. It’s not a feeling, but an act of the will.

I encouraged the young couple to have this kind of love for each other. I concluded my talk by focusing on a famous passage in the Bible about love…

Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It does not dishonour others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.
1 Corinthians 13:4-7

At the wedding, I wanted to make it more personal for them at the start of their married life. And so adapted it and read…

Be patient, be kind, do not envy, do not boast, do not be proud.
Do not dishonour others, do not be self-seeking.
Do not be easily angered, keep no record of wrongs.
Do not delight in evil but rejoice with the truth.
Always protect, always trust, always hope, always persevere.

I don’t believe that these verses are just to be used at weddings, as Paul wrote them to a Christian community in Corinth.

Let me encourage you to personalise it, and ask God to help you live, and love in the ‘Agape’ way.

God bless❤️
Gary Bastin - church leader

23/08/2026

Today, Biggsy (AKA Simon Biggs) spoke about God’s Great Big Love! We saw the difference to what the world and the Bible says about love❤️

Listen: hopebasingstoke.org/podcasts/great-big-god-love

21/08/2026

Coming up on Sunday...
Great Big God: Love❤️
God's love is so big that it includes and welcomes everyone! Come ready to hear (and share) stories of this kind of bold, inclusive love.😍
10:30am | The Sarum Hill Centre | RG21 8SR📍

19/08/2026

Last Saturday I was involved in an all-day band rehearsal, in preparation for our church network’s summer camp, coming up at the end of August.

During the morning I played drums, then switched to guitar and vocals for the afternoon.
I was a little rusty on the drums, as I don’t play as much these days, so it was good to work on my skills!

It was a joy and pleasure to play with such talented and ‘ego-less’ musicians and singers. We had an acoustic, electric and bass guitar, keyboards, drums, saxophone and vocals.

I loved hearing the instruments blend together and watching the players looking and listening out for one another. Together we made some wonderful music.

Over the years I have been in a number of bands. When these different musicians play together they produce something which is far greater than the individual parts! I have always seen this as a wonderful picture of the church.

In the Bible, Paul used the picture of a body to describe the church…

Just as a body, though one, has many parts, but all its many parts form one body, so it is with Christ. For we were all baptised by one Spirit so as to form one body – whether Jews or Gentiles, slave or free – and we were all given the one Spirit to drink. And so the body is not made up of one part but of many.
1 Corinthians 12:12-14 The NIV Bible

The church is a glorious mix of unique, talented, complex, broken, beautiful and wonderful people. All have had an encounter with God and are on a journey with Him.

It can be challenging, because of such diversity. There are times when I have encountered people who don’t see or do things in a way I would, and I have sometimes struggled with this.

I have to come back to this passage, and remind myself that we are all different, with our own perspectives, strengths and weaknesses.

In doing that, I again see the richness and variety of the church and can celebrate that people are not all like me!

You are unique, and so is everyone else! When we all keep our focus on God we can find ways to live and work together in unity.

I wonder if Paul had been in a band would he have used that to illustrate the church? When I get to heaven, I shall ask him…

God bless🥁
Gary Bastin - church leader

16/08/2026

Dorcas Oredoyin continued our summer series, sharing her journey of faith and the faithfulness of our ‘Great Big God’🤝🫶

Listen: hopebasingstoke.org/podcasts/great-big-god-faith

Address

The Sarum Hill Centre, Sarum Hill
Basingstoke
RG218SR

Telephone

+441256316003

Website

http://www.hopebasingstoke.org/

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