Last week I attended my
third (and final) year of the General Assembly sponsored Executive Leadership
Formation program. Scary to say, but I am now a trained executive leader, a
graduate no less! (Does this mean I am supposed to know what I am doing?)
One of the open space
workshops was a conversation about congregational renewal and revitalization.
What struck me in this conversation of presbytery leaders, all of whom were
pastors of churches before taking their new position, is that there is no
silver bullet, no magic formula for congregational renewal. The closest any of
us came to having a magic formula was the leader from Illinois who claimed to
have a magic wand that could transform a congregation. “Unfortunately,” he
added, “I can’t find the right size batteries to make it work!” And so we are
left to wonder and to work, to ponder and to pray.
The best ideas that
were offered centered around the notions of discovering one’s connection with
one’s community; to connect with one’s community in mission service that
creates friendships and establishes connection, sharing, service and
invitation. Churches seeking to engage renewal and revitalization through
community mission found renewed energy in a shared sense of purpose with one
another and an utter reliance on God’s help as they engage the twists and turns
of interacting not on our own turf and terms but in the midst of the lives of
our neighbors.
The best ideas that
were offered centered around the notions of discernment and dialogue. A
consistent story was that renewing and revitalizing churches were taking the
time to engage one another in conversations about core convictions, theological
values and how they get expressed in a congregation’s life together and in
their mission. As well as spending time together in prayer, especially as
leaders, these churches also entered into dialogue with God’s Holy Spirit.
Stories were abundant about how the plan that church leadership intended was
transformed by people, problems and opportunities God brought into their midst.
The best ideas that
were offered centered around the notions of experimentation. It was striking to
hear how many pastoral leaders expressed the need to lighten our grip on the
idea of mission alignment (i.e. the idea that our mission and vision drive our
staffing, our structure and guide us toward our internal ministry and external
mission) for the sake of mini-experiments which seek to explore possibilities
for God’s call upon a congregation. Several stories were told of congregational
energy and vitality being renewed by a church’s giving permission and creating
opportunities for members’ ideas and passions to be put into practice.
Do you desire to think
together, pray together and discuss together ways your congregation can lean
into renewal? Then mark your calendars for our first, “Ignite the Spark” event
sponsored by funds received from General Assembly through a presbytery
transformation grant (Friday, August 19 beginning
at 1:00 and continuing into the next day, Saturday,
August 20, at our combined presbytery meeting). Our keynote speaker will by
the Rev. Dr. Tom Tewell, former pastor of Memorial Drive Presbyterian Church in
Houston, Madison Avenue Presbyterian Church in Houston, and now executive
director of Macedonia Ministries in Atlanta (registration details to follow). I
look forward to seeing how God will work among us!
Jesus got a hold a me,
Brad Munroe
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