Awakening West is the name we have given to what God is doing within the Church in the Western Suburbs of Melbourne. He is waking us up to who we are and what our purpose is in the City as members of the body of Christ.

Many of the pastors/ministers in Hobsons Bay have been gathering for prayer, as have many in other cities of Western Melbourne. As they have shared their hearts with each other they have discovered an incredible appreciation for one another. They have confirmed that we are not in competition as churches but are all part of the body of Christ. They want to work together for the extension of Christ's kingdom.

So, what began as a movement of unity amongst the ministers is now extending in the vision of Awakening Hobsons Bay, and we are invited to be a part of this.

What brought the ministers together originally was the working together in outreach and mission. This will remain the key focus and will be the theme that will flow through this movement until we can truly look at Hobsons Bay as a city that has been awakened to the transforming power of the good news of Jesus Christ.

While the Hobsons Bay pastors were meeting for mutual support, another movement was also developing. This was called Christmas West, and exists for the recovering of the celebration of Christmas for Jesus Christ. For several years events have been planned and coordinated across Melbourne's West, as Christians from many churches have come together to celebrate the birth of Jesus.

While these events were successful and enjoyable, two factors emerged from the experience:

• It is difficult to encourage people to attend events which are outside of their own geographical area.
• There is more to the year than just Christmas.

In the light of these discoveries, Christmas West decided that instead of trying to arrange large events for the whole Western Suburbs, they would resource and facilitate events that churches run in their own cities, and coordinate and publicise these events. In this way many more people across the cities could become involved.

Out of these initiatives Awakening West was born.

Awakening West has come to an agreement with the Awakening Movement that enables us to use their many resources developed during the exciting times of the Prayers around Parliament and the Easter Marches.

There are other networks of people who have been involved in the development of Awakening West. For example, Intercessors for Hobsons Bay which is affiliated with Intercessors for Melbourne has been praying for the pastors of our city for many years, and for just such a movement of unity to arise. They have agreed to become the intercessory arm of Awakening Hobsons Bay, and we hope that in a similar way intercessors groups from the other cities will agree to undergird the developing movements in each place.

The Melbourne Pastors Network, with whom the Hobsons Bay Pastors Network is affiliated, also plays an important part in supporting the ministers and pastors in each city.