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Thursday, 26 February 09 - 12:41 PM (GMT -06:00)
in General
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from A Peculiar Prophet by
William H. Willimon
Sometime ago I meditated on the plight of our congregations, particularly our small churches, particularly those who limited their mission and ministry to care of those in that congregation. In every case decline is the result.
Let me tell you another story. Johnson Chapel is a small congregation. In October of 2002 Tom Salter, a retired pastor, was appointed there, sure that he would be the last pastor. For a couple of years, Johnson Chapel continued to decline (attendance under 20) then in 2005, in Tom’s words, “the stone was rolled away . . . and a near-death revival began.” Attendance doubled, offerings increased 80%, 28 new members were received in the next two years.
Because dozens of our congregations currently suffer the same plight as the old Johnson Chapel, I asked Tom to cite the major things he has learned about small churches:
“Our priorities (of focus and of financial support) are #1, outreach ministries and missions: #2, congregational ministries; #3, facilities and properties; #4, pastor’s compensation.
Factors contributing to our amazing growth are:
First: A giving spirit. A dying organism tends to preserve itself by conserving its resources. If you want to live – give!
Second: A seeker-friendly atmosphere. I have not made a single ‘cold-call’; the people reach out first. We use monthly ‘Friendship Suppers’ to attract community people. We now have an early worship service, and an inter-service ‘coffee time’ for mingling.
Third: Strong care ministries, both lay and pastoral. We now have an effective card ministry for sick, confined, and needy persons in the community. A ‘Compassionate Hand’ ministry is a community benevolence fund for the needy. We are asked by the school to ‘adopt’ 4 needy children. Instead, we adopted 11. Many of our new congregants came to Johnson Chapel as a result of our pastoral care outreach.
Fourth: Stable pastoral leadership. I have stayed there. The growth spurt did not begin until my third year.”
Our small congregations can grow! Thanks to this able “retired” pastor for his leadership. We are all learning what God can do when we join Jesus “beyond the boundaries.”
William H. Willimon
Bishop, North Alabama Conference of the UMC
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Wednesday, 14 January 09 - 09:38 AM (GMT -06:00)
in General
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Posted on January 14, 2009 by sheyduck
I just heard someone say, “Your apportionments pay my salary. [pause] So keep those apportionments coming.”
I guessed wrong at the pause. I was sure the next words out of the person’s mouth were going to be, “So thank you.”
Perhaps I am misinterpreting; but it isn’t often that I hear gratitude out of the mouth of United Methodists who serve in positions that are supported by apportionment dollars.
For those of you not familiar with apportionments, “apportionments” is the term used for the funds local congregations of the United Methodist Church to support administration and mission that is beyond what individual churches do. Apportionments usually range between 12 and 18% of the budget of a congregation.
Some people in some churches refer to apportionments as “taxes,” though this is frowned upon.
A little gratitude would go a long way toward apportionments not feeling like “taxes.”
Steve is chaplin at Methodsit Children's Home in Waco TX. Steve blogs at Everyday Theology.
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Sunday, 04 January 09 - 11:56 AM (GMT -06:00)
in General
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Mike spoke this morning about change coming. After the service I wandered over to my office and the first thing I read was the followingf rom Seth Godin's blog:
Unless you work in a nuclear power plant, the answer is certainly no (and if you work there, I hope the answer is yes.)
No, everything is not okay. Not in a growing organization. Not if your company is making change happen, or dealing with customers. How could it be?
And yet, that's what so many managers focus on. How to make everything okay.
We spend so much time smoothing things out, we lose the opportunity for change, or for texture or creativity.
Instead of working so hard to make everything okay, perhaps it is more helpful to work hard at living with a world that rarely is.
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Thursday, 30 October 08 - 11:13 AM (GMT -06:00)
in General
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with my promises to blog daily. I have spent time each day looking deeper into the questions posted on Monday (asked Sunday). I have come one of two conclusions:
You don't want to read 2500 words on the subject or a quick blog doesn't do justice to the spirit of the question.
So, I feel a bit like a weasel, in the since that you're not getting what I promised. I'd like to continue the dialog. Instead, I'm posting some of my questions. Perhaps we can sort each other out together!
Today's question:
Can a Catholic join the Methodist Church without fear of "burning in hell" forever because they left "The Church"?
While living in Austin, we had several families that joined our church that were Catholic. All genuinely struggled with their decision. They found the Methodist church (University UMC particularly) because of it's high order worship and strong understanding of a social gospel a good fit for them.
I am not a scholar in these matters. However, it is apparent that the Catholic Church recognizes salvation outside of the Church. Below is a section of the Catholic Catechism:
Wounds to unity
817 In fact, "in this one and only Church of God from its very beginnings there arose certain rifts, which the Apostle strongly censures as damnable. But in subsequent centuries much more serious dissensions appeared and large communities became separated from full communion with the Catholic Church - for which, often enough, men of both sides were to blame."269 The ruptures that wound the unity of Christ's Body - here we must distinguish heresy, apostasy, and schism270 - do not occur without human sin:
- Where there are sins, there are also divisions, schisms, heresies, and disputes. Where there is virtue, however, there also are harmony and unity, from which arise the one heart and one soul of all believers.271
818 "However, one cannot charge with the sin of the separation those who at present are born into these communities [that resulted from such separation] and in them are brought up in the faith of Christ, and the Catholic Church accepts them with respect and affection as brothers . . . . All who have been justified by faith in Baptism are incorporated into Christ; they therefore have a right to be called Christians, and with good reason are accepted as brothers in the Lord by the children of the Catholic Church."272
819 "Furthermore, many elements of sanctification and of truth"273 are found outside the visible confines of the Catholic Church: "the written Word of God; the life of grace; faith, hope, and charity, with the other interior gifts of the Holy Spirit, as well as visible elements."274 Christ's Spirit uses these Churches and ecclesial communities as means of salvation, whose power derives from the fullness of grace and truth that Christ has entrusted to the Catholic Church. All these blessings come from Christ and lead to him,275 and are in themselves calls to "Catholic unity."276
Does paragraph 818 imply that if you are born into the the Catholic Church and join a protestant denomination that you are charged with the "sin of seperation" and there for no salvation outside the Catholic Church?
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