Posted Tuesday 18 March 2008
Rev Darren McFarland reports on an inspirational church growth course.
With anticipation and not a small amount of uncertainty, 60 members of the diocese representing 21 congregations arrived at the Glynhill Hotel in Renfrew to grapple with church growth and mission.
It was a pleasant surprise to discover that the two priests leading the course were down-to-earth and witty and in their presentation, well grounded in their experience of parish life and realistic about the level of growth that is possible for the average congregation.
We relaxed somewhat as we realised that this was not going to be three days of textbook mission and evangelism.
The event was organised by the Diocesan Mission Core Group, which had invited a well established Church of England course entitled Leading Your Church into Growth (LYCIG) to come to Glasgow and Galloway.
Tim Sledge, who is the missioner for Peterborough diocese, and Damian Feeney, a parish priest from Preston, were the team members who came north.
It was immediately clear that they brought with them experience and expertise in the area of church growth and church planting.
We learned about the basic tools of mission with Prayer, Presence, Proclamation and Persuasion (the four Ps).
We accepted that we have to use what we have rather than lamenting the things that we do not have.
We were challenged to rediscover the sense of vocation within ourselves and our churches.
We discussed how we approach decline and the difference in being a vestry that is reactive and one that is strategic in its thinking and work. We were challenged to look at how much time we spend on finance and buildings compared to the time and energy we give the four Ps.
We spent some time looking as worship as missionary, and the local church as a loving community.
This was a course that has challenged and transformed those who attended. It will now hopefully challenge and transform the churches to which we belong.
Don’t keep it to yourself
Delegates who attended the LYCIG course are invited to keep on exchanging ideas, encouragement and experiences through a new church growth Yahoo group, set up by the diocesan Information and Communications Network.
Please one thing from the course that made you sit up. Think snapshot rather than essay – a statistic, a quote, a new idea in just a few words. And keep them coming.
And finally – whether you attended LYCIG or not – please use DNS to tell us all about upcoming mission and evangelism projects.
Category: Mission Core Group
