There were some excellent workshops – I just wish I
could have gone to them all. I chose Mike Rayson, ‘Transitioning a Church
Through Difficult Change’, and Andrew Roberts, ‘Holy Habits’.
What were some of the key themes that emerged?
·
Intentional
Discipleship. Methodists are good at welcoming, but weak at
intentional discipleship. Holy Habits is one resource which seeks to address
this. I am resolved to practice Gladness and Generosity!
·
Passionate
Worship. Great worship
is undergirded by prayer. Who is our
audience? It is God. Every service needs to involve the intellect,
engage the heart and inspire action. It
is a personal encounter with the living God in Christ.
·
Permissive
not prescriptive. We need a
permission giving church - relational not organisational.
In conversations I had, a number of barriers to change were identified, which I believe we need to address:
·
The plan – if churches are to grow, there needs to be consistency. It is not about style of
worship, but excellence. If we are asking people to invite others to come, we need confidence in what they will find!
·
A
licence for local preachers – perhaps for 5 years? Which can be renewed, but needs to be
reviewed. It is also about making sure that local preachers are being used
appropriately to their gifting.
·
Succession
planning - how can we ensure continuity
for a thriving church, with appropriate leadership? How does stationing help or hinder?
What can we do next? Engage in debate – not be afraid to ask the difficult questions or
tackle the elephants in the room – and who knows where the Spirit will lead us! I, for one, am excited to find out.
(NB All views expressed here are entirely my own!!)
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