Resources for Parish Ministry Published by St. Alban's School of Ministry with the encouragement of EFAC
Leadership Grief by David Jones |
Transforming Mission |
Y2K The Real Challenge |
Knowing Who You Are by Peter Brain |
Joke |
Practice Essentials : Giving |
New Music Resources |
Ideas and Resources: Pastor toPastor |
Explaining Christian Giving |
Resources on the Web |
Leadership Grief
By David
Jones
Somehow there seems to be a gap between working towards biblical goals and what actually happens in the parish churches I have led. There are reasons for this gap.
It is easy to live in fantasy land. The disciples did. On the eve of Jesus' death they all declare that they would stick by him to the end. But only Jesus stayed in reality. He predicts their failure and desertion. They sleep through his time of trial and cannot watch with him even one hour. Protesting that they will not abandon him, they finally scatter and run away. Peter even swore that he did not know Jesus! (Matthew 26:35, 40, 56, 74)
A major reason for difficulty is that a leader is still a person. Other people in the parish do things to our person. They may criticize or judge what we do. They may frustrate our plans. We respond to these things. We experience grief.
This past month I attended a Good Grief seminar conducted by a Anne Noonan of Wellsprings. In one of the exercises she showed us a large poster of Michaelangelo's DAVID and posters of other of his works in Florence all of which look 'unfinished'. Apparently his view was that the figure was always there, but 'imprisoned' in the marble. It just needed to be set free by having the stone chipped away. Some of the figures were still 'prisoner' in stone, only partially set free. She also showed a picture of Michaelangelo chipping out a self portrait. We then did a reflection.
1. What are some of the tools you could use to chip away at your prison?
2. What is the new image of yourself that lies imbedded in your grief?
I found this a timely exercise. My wife, Gretta, and I both had in mind the death of our son, Stephen, when we decided to enrol in the seminar. However the seminar also helped me look again at other grief associated with my work as rector of a parish church.
In December 1995, when I received the invitation to consider coming west to this church, I felt the Lord speak to me and say, 'This is me' and then 'You don't have to go, but if you do it will be refreshing'. Coming west was quite a change of direction for the whole family. Eventually we came to a peace about it. I am finding it truly refreshing.
I realise now that I needed space and time to reflect on my ministry experiences of the previous 19 years up to that point, including the last 9 as rector of a large traditional church in Sydney. I had battled to try and find an effective way of taking up my role, in what I found was a fairly abused church, which was also abusing. I am very grateful to God for the 9 years we had there, in a rich and varied experience of church life and ministry. But for various reasons I felt more and more under pressure. Even though many good things were happening I felt I was becoming ineffective and uncreative, with poor judgement, and Gretta's cancer really knocked me down. The question I actually asked in January 1996 as we considered this move was, 'Do I have another shot in me?' I think the church where I was serving would have been largely unaware of this, because I wasn't aware of it. I really wasn't sharing myself with anyone apart from God and Gretta.
Twelve years ago we moved to Sydney. It was a month after Stephen had died in Kyabram. I am not sure I worked through the grief very well.
The first thing God provided even before I moved to Perth 3 years ago was a neighbouring clergyman who became a kind of 'soul friend'. We met in Sydney before the move, at an Arch Hart seminar on the 'Minister's personal growth and skill development'! His first words to me, after I told him where I was going, were, 'your parish was carved out of mine!' Joe Sullivan is about to leave Whitford's parish and go out with BCA to the remote parish of Paraburdoo and Tom Price in the Pilbara. So I'm praying for another soul friend.
My answers to the 2 questions in the Michaelangelo exercise were:
Tools: relaxation, prayer, quietness, the fresh air and exercise, meditation (I follow Bill Hybels' practice of journalling, writing Yesterday' at the top of a page and describing what happened. It really helps me slow down enough to have some reality in my prayer time.)
New Image: contented, forgiving, grateful - O so grateful, courageous, perceptive - seeing God's hand at work, having time to LISTEN (to others).
A great hindrance to health in the life of a congregation is lack of reality in the life of the minister. How we deal with the losses and griefs of life, including those that come with the territory in our work, will help determine the level of unreality in our relationships, and the health of the church.
David Jones Sorrento
Y2K The Real
Challenge
by John Piper
Do you want a prophetic word about Y2K? I have two prophetic words about Y2K.
First, the greatest need on January 1, 2000, will not be basements stocked with food and water and generators, but hearts stocked with the Word of God. You will be fruitful, you will flourish, you will be life-giving not by seeking the very things the world seeks (Matthew 6:32), but by delighting in the Word of God and meditating on it day and night.
What the world will need and does need from the church is the Word of God that fits us to say, "Who will separate us from the love of Christ? Will tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? . . . In all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us" (Romans 8:35-37).
The other prophetic word about Y2K is this: Nothing is going to happen on January 1, 2000, nothing, that is as bad as what is already happening to persecuted and starving Christians in Sudan. Or to the staggering number of orphans in Malawi and other AIDS-devastated countries of Africa. Or to survivors in Honduras and Nicaragua. Or to lonely, dying old people in dozens of skilled care centers around the Twin Cities who have outlived their families.
There is something that smells of hypocrisy in the talk about stockpiling supplies in our homes to "minister" to others in the coming Y2K crisis when there are more places to minister this very day that are worse crises than anything that is going to happen a year from now. Y2K will happen to someone every day in 1999 - many of them within your reach.
Delight yourself in the Word of God, meditate on it day and night, and then take the fruit of your life and go minister to the lost and the hungry and the thirsty that are already so many. Then you won't even notice when Y2K happens.
""Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more important than food, and the body more important than clothes? Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life? "And why do you worry about clothes? See how the lilies of the field grow. They do not labour or spin. Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendour was dressed like one of these. If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith? So do not worry, saying, `What shall we eat?' or `What shall we drink?' or `What shall we wear?' For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own." Matthew 6:25-34, NIV.
Copyright: Clergy/Leaders' Mailing List
TRANSFORMING
MISSION
Paradigm Shifts in Theology of Mission.
By David J. Bosch Orbis Books, Maryknoll New York 1991. 519 pages, plus Indices, and Bibliography. $44.95
This massive work is Number 16 in the American Society of Missiology Series, written by the Professor of Missiology at the University of South Africa.
David Bosch,already well-known to students of missiology, examines five major paradigms that have described how God saves, and how people respond to God's salvation. He then outlines a "post-modern" paradigm for an emerging ecumenical mission theory.
Bosch examines the history of "mission", noting that until the sixteenth century, the term was used exclusively with reference to the doctrine of the Trinity. The Jesuits introduced the word into the vocabulary of the spreading of the faith. The new expansion of the faith throughout the world in the following period was closely associated with European colonial expansion into the non-Western world.
More recently the assumptions which underlay this missionary expansion have been modified, questioned and in some cases abandoned altogether. Bosch identifies a major crisis in mission itself, that has to do with the authority, aims and nature of the mission.
This crisis is linked with a wider crisis in the church at large. His analysis of this crisis is very informative. He lists six elements:
1. The advance of secularisation.
2. The steady de-christianising of the West - the traditional base of the whole modern missionary enterprise.
3. A change from a world divided into "Christian" and "non-Christian", to a religiously pluralist world in which the followers of some faiths are more aggressively missionary than many Christians.
4. The guilt of Western Christians because of their involvement in the subjugation and exploitation of coloured peoples.
5. The increasing gap between rich and poor, and the fact that the rich are those who consider themselves to be Christians; which leads to anger and frustration on the part of the poor, and a reluctance on the part of affluent Christians to share their faith.
6. Western ecclesial ways, and Western theology are now suspect and have been by and large replaced by various indigenous practices and theologies in the Third World. This has added to the confusion in the Western church.
Bosch attempts to show a way forward and provide a paradigm for a mission practice that takes modern realities into account.
He introduces the book with an "interim" definition of mission which the book spells out in detail. He has thirteen elements in his definition:
1. The Christian faith is intrinsically missionary.
2. Missiology is not neutral, but views the world from the standpoint of Christian theology.
3. But this must be continually reassessed, so a narrow or permanent definition is not possible.
4. A necessary foundation for mission lies in God's self- communication in Christ.
5. The Bible does not give a set of unchangeable laws of mission. Mission is an ambivalent enterprise which remains an act of faith.
6. The entire Christian existence is a missionary existence.
7. Foreign missions is not a separate entity to home missions. Both are grounded in the gospel.
8. Mission is God's mission. Missions are particular forms of participation in God's mission.
9. The missionary task includes the whole set of needs and aspects of human life.
10. Mission is thus God's "Yes" to the world.
11. Mission includes evangelism as one of its crucial elements. "Evangelism is the proclamation of salvation in Christ to those who do not believe in him, calling them to repentance and conversion, announcing forgiveness of sins, and inviting them to become living members of Christ's earthly community and to begin a life of service to others in the power of the Holy Spirit." (p. 11)
12. Mission is also God's "No" to the world.
13. The church-in-mission is a sign in the sense of pointer, symbol, example or model. It is a sacrament in the sense of mediation, representation, or anticipation.
Bosch has an extended survey of New Testament models of mission. He discusses the early church's missionary practice and considers whether there were alternative approaches that may have made the ultimate exclusion of Jews from the church less likely. He outlines missionary paradigms of Matthew, Luke and Paul.
He traces four subsequent historical missionary paradigms: that of
* the Eastern church;
* the medieval Roman Catholic church;
* the Protestant reformation; and
* mission in the wake of the Enlightenment.
The concluding section outlines elements in a post-modern ecumenical missionary paradigm. These include: Mission as the church-with-others; as Missio Dei; as mediating Salvation; as the Quest for Justice; as Evangelism; as Contextualisation; as Liberation; as Inculturation; as Common Witness; as Ministry by the Whole people of God; as Witness to People of Other Living Faiths; as Theology; and as Action in Hope.
Bosch offers a profile of what mission is in terms of six aspects of Christ's ministry: Incarnation; The Cross; The Resurrection; The Ascension; Pentecost; and The Parousia. His insights about how these great events affect the nature and method of our mission are very suggestive.
He concludes by raising again the modern criticisms of mission, exemplified in John Mott's question asked before the Edinburgh Conference, "Do you consider that we now have on the home field a type of Christianity which should be propagated all over the world?" Bosch rejects the idea that mission is merely western colonialism in disguise, and points to its origin in the missio Dei. It is not the church which undertakes mission but the missio Dei which constitutes the church - and purifies it.
"...mission is, quite simply, the participation of Christians in the liberating mission of Jesus, wagering on a future that verifiable experience seems to belie. It is the good news of God's love, incarnated in the witness of a community, for the sake of the world." p.519.
Transforming Mission is a mighty work, that deserves to be read by clergy and all who are thinking and planning in any area of the church's mission.
Dale Appleby
Knowing Who You
Are
By Peter Brain
Knowing who we are is more important than knowing ourselves. Shakespeare's words 'know thyself' are often quoted as the final word not only on self-discovery but on self worth.
I find little encouragement in 'knowing myself' for the further I go on in life the more I can agree with Pascal's diagnosis that 'man is the glory and the scandal of the universe.'
Indeed. as a Christian the more I get to know God through the ministry of His Holy Spirit teaching me through scripture the more I'm shown up. When Larry Crabb wrote his book Principles of Effective Biblical Counselling he wanted to call it 'I'm a mess, you're a mess.' It was in response to the popular 'I'm O.K. your O.K.' In my experience a much more realistic, scriptural and therefore helpful approach.
So where is the encouragement for us pastors? We who have many bosses whose work so easily keeps us on the edge of burnout, whose status in the community is steadily declining and who so often feel the brunt of 'projected anger with God'?
Well it comes from knowing who we are in God's sight and purposes. I'm the creation of a personal God 'who is fearfully and wonderfully made.' As such I'm ready for relationship with Him and with others. I've been endowed with the ability to take and use His creation creatively for His glory. This means I can allow myself to rest and enjoy His creation. But it gets better. I'm a Christian, one who has been born again and in relying upon Jesus for pardon, has become a child of God, my sins no longer held against me (I'm justified). God the Holy Spirit dwelling within has now granted to me a new desire to obey and follow Christ (I'm being sanctified). My eternity is secure in Christ (I will be glorified).
When the pressure of life, the realities of my own struggle with obedient discipleship combine with the cares of ministry to rob me of joy and cause me to feel failure, I do well to remember that I'm a Christian before I'm a pastor, saved by grace and not by works. What a glorious remedy this is to satanic and self defeating thoughts. In the words of Bonar.
"When Satan tempts me to despair
and tells me of the guilt within
upward I look and see Him there
who made an end of all my sin."
"Because the sinless Saviour died
my sinful soul is counted free
for God the just is satisfied
to look on Him and pardon me."
And I am a pastor, one who has been called by God to a work that is at the heart of His eternal purposes. God the Father, that great Shepherd and Jesus, the good Shepherd have called me to be a gentle shepherd of His sheep. God chooses to work through us as we live under His gracious care and pastor by teaching His living word. As we teach the Bible we are engaged in the unique task of gathering His people, from the world and shepherding them into eternity.
Knowing who we are; people, made, redeemed and now used by God should be the source of great encouragement for a life time of ministry.
Peter Brain
We have a non-numbered envelope system at St Andrew's, Shelley. There is teaching on percentage giving and belonging each year. Also the congregation is reminded in the pew bulletin of the current giving amounts over the month and what the budget amount is (so that people see how we are travelling). If this is done too often people can become disheartened, so I try to make it once per month.
Also (paradoxically) giving seems to be higher when there are a number of calls on people's money in the church which people deem worthwhile and healthy. For instance, our giving this month (March) has been higher since we launched an appeal for the church to financially support the young people with a new sound system and new musical instruments. Car washes and music afternoons have not adversely affected the levels of Sunday giving! It tends to set the mood and expectation from the leadership to the rest of the congregation.
Greg Jordan Riverton
At St. Alban's we use a duplex envelope system from Whightons. One side is for giving to the parish council's budget and the other is for our mission projects. These mission projects are decided by Parish Council each year and are printed on the envelope so that people can indicate how they want their mission giving to be allocated.
The mission projects are approved on the basis that there is a person in the congregation who will act as a representative for that mission and promote its interests.
Each month after the parish council meeting we report to the congregation on the state of our finances. Twice a year we write to everyone asking them to consider how much they give and urging them to use the envelopes. We ask them to respond with a tear off slip which indicates they have considered and decided how much to give. We do not ask them to indicate an amount to us. We try to avoid extra appeals and other methods of fund-raising.
Dale Appleby Highgate
Ideas and Resources: Pastor to Pastor
Pastor to Pastor is a series of audiocassette for busy pastors (and others no doubt - are there any others?). It is published by Focus on the Family and features HB London as the host of a series of interviews and panel discussions. Each volume contains two cassettes.
Each volume follows a theme of interest to pastors such as Imperfect Expectations, Holidays and Sabbaticals; Holiness and Morality. An accompanying leaflet lists other resources on the theme.
The series is worth trying since it aims to encourage pastors in areas that are crucial and common to their calling.
Subscription costs $25.00 for six issues per year, and can be obtained from Focus on the Family PO Box 5210 Clayton Vic 3168 (03 9558 2977). Write for their catalogue.
Ad 2000 And Beyond: A Church for Every People and the Gospel for Every Person by the Year 2000 The AD2000 & Beyond Movement is a global, informal network of Christian missionary agencies, denominations, churches and individuals committed to world evangelism.
http://www.ad2000.org/
Barna Research Online
Ministry Resources, Seminars, Data & Trends, Custom Research,
http://www.barna.org/ViewFrames.htm
Science And Christianity - Allies Or Enemies?
There are many people who are convinced that Christian belief is true - and that you do not have to throw out your brain when you become a Christian!
They also give some details of organisations that exist to link together those who are interested in the relationship between science and Christian belief.
http://homepages.tcp.co.uk/~carling/main_sci.html
The Hall of Church History
Theology from A Bunch of Dead Guys™
http://www.gty.org/~phil/hall.htm
Electronic Theological Journals
http://www.loclnet.com/co/TJOURNL.HTM
Pastornet
The Australian Christian Network
http://www.pastornet.net.au/
Reverend Fun
http://www.gospelcom.net/rev-fun/rf.php3
Prayer Book Society of Canada
http://justus.anglican.org/resources/pbsc/pbscmain.htm
Evangelical Environmental Network
caring for God's creation in practical ways, guided by the Bible
http://homepages.tcp.co.uk/~carling/een/
The American Anglican Council is a network of individuals, parishes, specialized ministries, and a council of Episcopal Bishops who affirm Biblical authority and Anglican orthodoxy within the Episcopal Church, committed to proclaiming the Good News, and working to reform and renew our Church.
http://www.episcopalian.org/aac/
What music books can churches use that want to include more contemporary songs in their worship?
Here are a three possible resources:
The Source
Compiled by Graham Kendrick and published by Kevin Mayhew. It includes 608 songs in a modern Kendrick type range from a variety of composers. The music edition is $39.95 at Koorong, words $4.95 and various arrangements editions for instruments in different keys are around $20 each. It also has overheads available for $179.95, although most of the songs will be in the CCLI list so you can make your own overheads.
Songs of Fellowship Volume II
published by Kingsway is now available and like the first volume contains songs that are in the contemporary and traditional repertoire. Volume II has songs numbered from 641 - 1150. The music edition costs $49.95. Combined words edition of volumes I & II is $4.95. The music edition comes with a computer disk (Windows) with the words on it. Since most of the songs will be on the CCLI list you can use this to make your own overheads.
Either of these two collections would be the place to start for congregations who want to increase their range from the AHB.
Australian Worship Collection
Published by Kevin Mayhew contains 140 songs from the Hillsongs stable including songs by Geoff Bullock and Marlene Zesch. The music book is $29.95 and various arrangements books for instruments in different keys are $22.95. This collection would be useful for people who have been using the traditional contemporary songs and want to try some Hillsongs music.
A first-grade teacher was overseeing her students as they experimented with their desk computers. One boy sat staring at the screen, unsure how to get the computer going.
The teacher walked over and read what was on his screen. In her most reassuring voice, she said, "The computer wants to know what your name is." Then she walked over to the next child.
The boy leaned toward the screen and whispered, "My name is David."
Advert: Explaining Christian Giving
Published by Sovereign World Press is a study booklet suitable for church attenders and especially Parish Councils and other church leaders.
It outlines bible teaching about giving and includes study discussion questions.
Its main theme is generosity rather than tithing and challenges people to see giving as a broad ministry rather than merely putting money in the plate.
It is available from St. Alban's School of Ministry. Contact us for more info.