Coming
November 18th -- In August we had a
grand time with Tom Tewell at our initial Ignite the Spark! event. Coming soon
to a pre-Presbytery meeting near you, specifically on November 18, will be the
Rev. Ray Schulte from the Center for Parish Development in Chicago. Ray’s
passion is to resource congregations for missional discernment (where is God
calling us to connect with the world?) and missional ministry (how has God
gifted us to serve with those to whom God has called us to connect?).
The
Chicken or the Egg? – We often think in terms of “God’s
church has a mission,” but is this true? I know you probably think your church
has a mission; you have a mission committee, a mission statement, a mission
budget. Is there anything wrong with thinking that God’s Church has a mission?
Not necessarily…however, one critique of this statement can be that it begins
with us (the Church) rather than beginning with God.
In
Reformed faith we like to talk about how everything begins with God: “we love
God because God first loved us.” If truly everything begins with God, then even
our missional mind-set must begin there, too. Ray is a big advocate that “God’s mission has a Church,”
which is to say that what we do is preceded by the One to whom we belong and
who alone is Head of the Church. What is God’s mission? How can our
congregation do our small part in accomplishing God’s greater purposes?
Preview
of Coming Attractions – At the Ignite the Spark! event
Ray will talk with us about encouraging a missional mind-set in our
congregations and ways to explore missional possibilities. Sometimes missional
ministry begins with “Ready, Aim, Fire?” and sometimes it begins with “Ready,
Fire, Aim!” However we get there, God’s mission has a Church and we are it.
To get a preview of the kind of
resources the Center for Parish Development offers, please check out the
following links:
Rollin’ on down the
highway with Jesus,
Brad Munroe
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