How the Vestry came to choose our new Mission Statement: "Jesus accepts all to his table; so do we." Tweaks may still happen and can be discussed at the Sunday Seminar on March 13.
Basic Ecclesial Community Orientation:
1. What it Means to be a Parish
2. Parish Pastoral Council
3. Church Ministries
4. Church Movements and Organization
5. Integral Evangelization
6. The What and Why of BEC
7. The How of BEC
Christ Presbyterian Church, Fairfax Virginia PC(USA) Nominating Committee Ini...Geoff McLean
This is a inital briefing given to the nominating committee of Christ Presbyterian Church. The goal of this presentation is to reinforce the need to find qulified Spritiaul leaders not just bodies to fill open slots. Feel free to use it and make it your own, just give me a little credit somewhere.
Focuses on the identity and role of the local church in God\'s mission, and how to mobilize the whole church for the whole mission of God in the world world.
The National Association Catholic Family Life Ministers Professional Development Conference on “The Spirituality of the Family Life Minister" with Sr. Rose Marie Adams, I.H.M.
How the Vestry came to choose our new Mission Statement: "Jesus accepts all to his table; so do we." Tweaks may still happen and can be discussed at the Sunday Seminar on March 13.
Basic Ecclesial Community Orientation:
1. What it Means to be a Parish
2. Parish Pastoral Council
3. Church Ministries
4. Church Movements and Organization
5. Integral Evangelization
6. The What and Why of BEC
7. The How of BEC
Christ Presbyterian Church, Fairfax Virginia PC(USA) Nominating Committee Ini...Geoff McLean
This is a inital briefing given to the nominating committee of Christ Presbyterian Church. The goal of this presentation is to reinforce the need to find qulified Spritiaul leaders not just bodies to fill open slots. Feel free to use it and make it your own, just give me a little credit somewhere.
Focuses on the identity and role of the local church in God\'s mission, and how to mobilize the whole church for the whole mission of God in the world world.
The National Association Catholic Family Life Ministers Professional Development Conference on “The Spirituality of the Family Life Minister" with Sr. Rose Marie Adams, I.H.M.
A presentation I prepared for a workshop on inclusive spirituality, deepening your faith, and relating to people who have different traditions from yours. :)
Being Present: A Spiritual Care Workshop for Healthcare ProfessionalsJoel High
This is a presentation I delivered to healthcare staff at Alegent Health a few years ago. Alegent Health is a large regional healthcare system based in Omaha, NE and affiliated with CHI. The primary message here is that all staff that interact with patients can impact a patient's spiritual care.
What Should be the Christian View of Anime?Joe Muraguri
We will learn what Anime is and see what a Christian should consider before watching anime movies? We will also learn a little bit of Shintoism religion and hentai (the craze of internet pornography today).
The PBHP DYC ~ Reflections on The Dhamma (English).pptxOH TEIK BIN
A PowerPoint Presentation based on the Dhamma Reflections for the PBHP DYC for the years 1993 – 2012. To motivate and inspire DYC members to keep on practicing the Dhamma and to do the meritorious deed of Dhammaduta work.
The texts are in English.
For the Video with audio narration, comments and texts in English, please check out the Link:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zF2g_43NEa0
Homily: The Solemnity of the Most Holy Trinity Sunday 2024.docxJames Knipper
Countless volumes have been written trying to explain the mystery of three persons in one true God, leaving us to resort to metaphors such as the three-leaf clover to try to comprehend the Divinity. Many of us grew up with the quintessential pyramidal Trinity structure of God at the top and Son and Spirit in opposite corners. But what if we looked at this ‘mystery’ from a different perspective? What if we shifted our language of God as a being towards the concept of God as love? What if we focused more on the relationship within the Trinity versus the persons of the Trinity? What if stopped looking at God as a noun…and instead considered God as a verb? Check it out…
The Chakra System in our body - A Portal to Interdimensional Consciousness.pptxBharat Technology
each chakra is studied in greater detail, several steps have been included to
strengthen your personal intention to open each chakra more fully. These are designed
to draw forth the highest benefit for your spiritual growth.
In Jude 17-23 Jude shifts from piling up examples of false teachers from the Old Testament to a series of practical exhortations that flow from apostolic instruction. He preserves for us what may well have been part of the apostolic catechism for the first generation of Christ-followers. In these instructions Jude exhorts the believer to deal with 3 different groups of people: scoffers who are "devoid of the Spirit", believers who have come under the influence of scoffers and believers who are so entrenched in false teaching that they need rescue and pose some real spiritual risk for the rescuer. In all of this Jude emphasizes Jesus' call to rescue straying sheep, leaving the 99 safely behind and pursuing the 1.
The Book of Joshua is the sixth book in the Hebrew Bible and the Old Testament, and is the first book of the Deuteronomistic history, the story of Israel from the conquest of Canaan to the Babylonian exile.
Lesson 9 - Resisting Temptation Along the Way.pptxCelso Napoleon
Lesson 9 - Resisting Temptation Along the Way
SBs – Sunday Bible School
Adult Bible Lessons 2nd quarter 2024 CPAD
MAGAZINE: THE CAREER THAT IS PROPOSED TO US: The Path of Salvation, Holiness and Perseverance to Reach Heaven
Commentator: Pastor Osiel Gomes
Presentation: Missionary Celso Napoleon
Renewed in Grace
The Good News, newsletter for June 2024 is hereNoHo FUMC
Our monthly newsletter is available to read online. We hope you will join us each Sunday in person for our worship service. Make sure to subscribe and follow us on YouTube and social media.
2. SOME ASPECTS TO EXPLORE…
What is “Prayer”
What do we understand by “Spirituality?”
How do we develop & maintain our
Personal Spirituality?
3. PRAYER AND APPROACHES TO PRAYER
What is “prayer” and what are we doing?
A conscious relationship with God; includes words,
thoughts and meditation
Importance of prayer
A “barometer” of our faith; it is at heart of Christian life
Aspects/forms of prayer
Adoration, Confession, Thanksgiving, Supplication
Ways/approaches to prayer
Written, read, ex tempore, silent, Scripture, objects
When to pray ...and whom to pray for
yourself...at church... church meetings...pastoral visits.
4. CHRISTIAN SPIRITUALITY
Spirituality (generally) expresses the
intimacy of our association with the divine.
Christian spirituality is the way we realize
our relationship with God through Jesus.
Reformed Spirituality
Emphasis of access to God through personal
experience.
A “thoughtful faith” that combines mystery and
rationality to provoke thinking what faith
means in a complex world of life and work.
6. REFORMED SPIRITUALITY EXPRESSED BY
Focus on Scripture
For ordering of personal & church life by
reflection on Scriptures and Bible study.
Openness to the Holy Spirit
being at work and present throughout daily
life.
Creativity (always “reforming”)
new patterns of worship, prayer and service.
Emphasis on the “local”
church is seen fully in each local gathering.
Intellectual grappling with faith
allowing doubts and questions to be
7. A PERSONAL SPIRITUALITY …
Will largely direct how we pray and how we
relate to God in our daily lives.
Is a function of how we view Christ …
Christ as suffering for us/others,
Christ as preacher/teacher,
Christ as a healer/reconciler,
Christ as missionary (i.e. ‘boundary crosser’).
How we view Christ, and how we develop an
internal spirituality, will determine how we
take action in response to our spiritual
calling.
8. THE SPIRITUAL LIFE & JOURNEY
Is a prayerful life where life becomes prayer.
The spiritual journey is a two-way journey.
from inside-out …
… and from outside-in.
Eldership is both a “spiritual calling”
and a “spiritual task”
called to exercise pastoral care and spiritual oversight of
the church.
9. PERSONAL SPIRITUALITY NEVER IN ISOLATION
Development of our spirituality is not all
private.
Done within the context of a spiritual community:
spiritual community of our families
within the spiritual community of the Church,
and in a prayer/house or other small groups.
These communities serve useful purposes for
mutual education, support, and spiritual growth.
We influence others’ growth in spiritually as part of
our spiritual growth through our role in community.
10. PERSONAL SPIRITUALITY AND ‘OTHERS’
As a ‘living stone’ in the temple of God (1Peter
2:5)
What is your foundation (your
core belief & theology)?
Who supports you?
Who do you support?
Who is there beside you?
YOU
11. RESTORING YOUR SPIRITUAL PASSION
Passion dissipates & needs to be
restored.
Conditions that threaten spiritual passion:
(From “Restoring Your Spiritual Passion” G. MacDonald)
The drained condition – Elijah in the wilderness 1Kgs19:3f
The dried out condition – running on ‘empty’
The disillusioned condition – disappointment at lost dreams
The defeated condition – like Peter after betraying Jesus
12. RESTORING YOUR SPIRITUAL PASSION
Kinds of people that affect spiritual
passion:
Very Resourceful People – they ignite our passion
Very Important People – they share our passion
Very Trainable People – catch our passion (we ignite them)
Very Nice People – they tolerate our passion – no input
Very Draining People – they sap our passion
‘Spirits’ that destroy spiritual passion:
Competitive – jealousy drains our energy
Critical – looking for flaws, faults & weaknesses
Vain – the need to impress others
Adversarial – how we deal with resentment/opposition
13. DEVELOPING PERSONAL SPIRITUALITY
Picture yourself as a ‘tree’ (Psalm 1:3):
What has caused your shape?
What nourishes you & how often?
What needs ‘pruning’?
What fruit are you producing? (cf Galatians 5)
14. PRAYING WITH AND FOR PEOPLE
Elders’ visits are about Pastoral Care and
the building up of others’ spiritual lives.
This can be aided through praying for
people.
Always ask permission before praying (not all
want it often because of their context/situation)
Take a written prayer or a Bible verse to help you
Use a well known prayers such as the Lord’s
Prayer, the 23rd Psalm, the Aaronic blessing
(Num 6:24-26)
Prayers don’t need to be long and complicated
15. DEVELOPING THE CHURCH’S LIFE OF PRAYER
AND WORSHIP
Vital role for Elders not just for pulpit supply
but to encourage congregation participation.
Members can be involved through:
Bible readings, leading prayers, in music
through instruments or singing,
Also producing items for multi-sensory worship
such as prayer and visual displays, or discussion
items.
Don’t forget to involve children & young people
too
Elders can use feedback from congregation
Editor's Notes
This slide shows some of the aspects we will explore ...
....are there particular aspects the group wants to explore or look at in depth?
Looking at the concept of Prayer as well as some “approaches/forms” of prayer
What is “prayer” ...and what are we doing when we pray?
A definition is that prayer is conscious relationship with God; which includes words, thoughts and meditation 9even action/activity)
Importance of prayer
Prayer is often referred to as the “barometer” of our faith; it is at heart of Christian life and should be a natural outgrowth of our faith
If we are in relationship with someone we want to communicate with them and that includes (especially) our relationship with God.
Aspects/forms of prayer
Ask what folk see as the main “aspects” that constitute prayer ... Get them to think of a typical worship service on a Sunday and to name the times of prayer and what they represent ...
A very simple way of remembering the main “components” of prayer is by using the acrostic “A C T S” ......Adoration ... Confession ... Thanksgiving ... Supplication
Ways/approaches to prayer
Ask folk what they normally do when praying (possibly they would feel more comfortable doing this in small groups of 2s or 3s) ...
Now ask if folk think that there are “correct” ways to pray ...and if so what are they ...and if not then why do they think so ....
Ask what “forms/ways” of prayer they can think of ....
.... Some ideas are: Written out to help especially when in public (eg leading a service), reading of prayers, ex tempore, praying in silence, following prayers in Scripture or using Scripture as a guide to frame a prayer, using objects to aid in prayer (eg holding a cross, lighting a candle, etc.)
When is the best time (or most appropriate time) to pray ... Is there such always in our lives ...... and whom to pray for when we pray ...?
Ask them how many of them pray for themselves... at church (when-before, during, just after a service?)... What sorts of prayers are undertaken at church meetings (by whom, when, why and about what?)...
... what about pastoral visits; when are folk aware of the need for prayers (as visitors and as being visited)?
Christian Spirituality
Ask how folk would define “spirituality” and what it may mean to be “spiritual”
Spirituality (in general terms) expresses the intimacy of our association with the divine, to be devout or holy.
What then is “Christian Spirituality”? ...
Christian spirituality can be defined as the way we realize our relationship with God through Jesus.
So to then explore what we might mean as “Reformed Spirituality” ...
In contrast to traditions which place a central emphasis on the role of a priest, Reformed spirituality emphasizes the possibility of access to God through personal experience….
…. in prayer, in the reading of scripture, in the community of the believers and in the daily round of life, at work or at home.
In particular in Reformed Spirituality we look at its focus on:
An emphasis of access to God through personal experience – no need for ministers or clergy.
A consideration of it being a “thoughtful faith” that combines mystery and rationality to provoke thinking what faith means in a complex world of life and work.
This diagram shows the different emphasises placed by the main Christian groups
This spirituality is expressed in a variety of ways:
Openness to the Holy Spirit. This is reflected in an understanding of the Holy Spirit being at work throughout daily life. God is encountered in the home or at work, as well as in the shared corporate worship life.
Creativity. The openness to the Holy Spirit in every part of life leads to a development of new patterns of worship and prayer and an exploration of different ways of serving the community. The annual Prayer Handbook and publications as Roots and the development of creative liturgies in a number of churches as well as the Church related Community Work programme and the strong social justice commitment are examples of these.
An emphasis on the local. The church has been seen fully in each local gathering of people. This emphasises the way in which God is at work amongst local communities.
Intellectual grappling with faith. In the Reformed tradition there is a well-rooted emphasis on allowing doubts and questions to be expressed, as part of a grappling with the contemporary issues of faith in each generation. This appeal to the mind and an emphasis on a scholarly tradition has provided another dimension to our understanding of spirituality.
Through the Scriptures. The emphasis on the importance of scripture, has allowed people to order their lives and the life of the church through the reading, meditation upon and reflection on the Scriptures. This is achieved through personal and communal Bible Study.
Questions for Discussion
Does this description of Reformed Spirituality make sense to you?
Could your Elders Meeting make better use of this variety of ways of expressing spirituality in your worship and prayer time together?
Looking at our own personal spirituality we can see that it:
Will largely direct how we pray and how we relate to God in our daily lives.
... because it is based on what we emphasise as important in our own theology and view of Christianity.
In particular it is a function of how we view Christ …
Christ as suffering for us/others,
Christ as preacher/teacher,
Christ as a healer/reconciler,
Christ as missionary (i.e. ‘boundary crosser’).
How we view Christ, and how we develop an internal spirituality, will determine how we take action in response to our spiritual calling.
It is an outworking of our theology and discipleship ...how we “follow” Christ in spirit and in deed/action as well as how we relate to others ...and even how we share our faith with them.
Spirituality is a journey
It is a prayerful life where life becomes prayer.
The spiritual journey is a two-way journey.
from inside-out …
...We have to be renewed inwardly (renewing of our minds in Romans 12:2 and Eph 4:23) in order to make that renewal externally visible
and from outside-in...
... As we are renewed we engage within our community and often that very engagement causes a transformation and renewal within us as we see with a new perspective.
Eldership is both a “spiritual calling” and a “spiritual task”
At its centre is the fact that Elders are called to exercise pastoral care and spiritual oversight of the church...
.... And this can only be done as part of a spiritual journey relying on prayer and our relationship with God.
Personal Spirituality can never be fully developed in isolation
Development of our spirituality is not all private....even though there are times when it is good/necessary to draw aside to spend time in prayer (Matt 6:6) and reflection (as Jesus did Mk 6:46 and Lk 6:12)
Generally our spirituality is developed within the context of a spiritual community such as:
the spiritual community of our families
within the spiritual community of the Church,
and (especially) in a prayer/house or other small groups.
These communities serve useful purposes for mutual education, support, and spiritual growth.
We influence others’ growth in spiritually as part of our spiritual growth through our role in community.
Some ideas to try for your Elders Meeting
Elders could each share how they regularly engage with prayer and develop their spiritual life, eg. using Bible study notes, practicing a prayer discipline of some kind, belonging to a prayer fellowship or community.
The Elders could decide, as a group, to try doing something together, eg. Using the same set of Bible study notes for a period of time, studying a book or using a web resource together.
Many churches use a ‘favourite hymns/songs of praise’ type format for some services, but what about your Elders leading a ‘my favourite/ most powerful Bible verse’ service, as a way of sharing together?
Personal Spirituality and ‘Others’
As a reference read about your place as a ‘living stone’ in the temple of God (1Peter 2:4-5) and then discuss/share the following:
What is your ‘theological foundation’ (your core belief & values in your theology)?
Who supports you through prayer/sharing in what you do in your ministry as an Elder and your work?
Who do you support through prayer and drawing alongside of, who are discipling/mentoring?
Who is there beside you? With whom are you able to share aspects of your life and faith in confidence?
Restoring Your Spiritual Passion
Spiritual Passion can dissipate & needs to be restored.
... We cannot hold on to it but need to renew and restore it on a regular basis (an encouragement and emphasis to be part of a nurturing group)
... refer to Romans 12:2 which puts the emphasis on “renewing of your mind” showing that the process is ongoing, not static and never totally accomplished just like our spiritual journey (as Paul encourages his readers by saying that he has not attained nor perfected his spiritual life but needs tp press on by laying hold of it cf Phil 3:12)
Listed below are some circumstances that threaten spiritual passion: (From the book “Restoring Your Spiritual Passion” by Gordon MacDonald)
The drained condition – Elijah in the wilderness 1Kgs19:3f
The dried out condition – running on ‘empty’ and trying to draw spiritual sustenance from an “empty well”
The disillusioned condition – disappointment at lost dreams or crushed hopes
The defeated condition – like Peter after betraying Jesus or not overcoming obstacles
What others could people suggest ....?
Conditions that threaten spiritual passion: (From “Restoring Your Spiritual Passion” G. MacDonald)
The drained condition – Elijah in the wilderness 1Kgs19:3f
The dried out condition – running on ‘empty’
The disillusioned condition – disappointment at lost dreams
The defeated condition – like Peter after betraying Jesus
Restoring Your Spiritual Passion continued ...
Some of the kinds of people that affect our spiritual passion
(Also from the book “Restoring Your Spiritual Passion” by Gordon MacDonald):
Very Resourceful People – they ignite our passion and we learn from them
Very Important People – they share our passion and provide mutual support
Very Trainable People – catch our passion (we ignite them with our passion)
Very Nice People – they tolerate our passion – but give very little input or support
Very Draining People – they sap our passion – by constantly nit picking or raising objections/obstacles to block us
Ask folk to think about the people they encounter (and not just at church!) and how would they describe them based on the above list ....
.... What can be done in terms of who we engage with and (try to) avoid?
...do they have mechanisms for dealing with people (avoidance as well as associating)?
The ‘spirits’ we can harbour that destroy our spiritual passion:
Competitive – jealousy drains our energy
Critical – looking for flaws, faults & weaknesses
Vain – the need to impress others
Adversarial – how we deal with resentment/opposition
Again have a look at the above “spirits” and ask how folk deal with their own negative “spirits” in order to become more positive and regain their passion?
Developing Our Personal Spirituality
Below is an exercise for personal reflection by the folk:
Picture yourself as a ‘tree’ (see Psalm 1:3) and reflect on:
What has caused your “shape”? – Think for instance of trees growing in a windswept area that have their trunks at angles to the ground other than being straight up....
What storms, conflicts have battered you in the past and perhaps put a few kinks in your development as well as when were there good times that enabled solid growth to take place?
What nourishes you & how often? – just as a tree requires nourishment from the sun, rain and ground we too get “spiritual nourishment” from different sources....
Who and What gives you spiritual nourishment and at what frequency do you (a) need this nourishment, and (b) how often do you actually get it? Is there anything you can do to improve it, and if so what or why not?
What needs ‘pruning’? – just as good growth requires regular pruning in order to bear good/better fruit (refer to the vine dressing analogy in John 15:1-8) so our lives in undergoing renewal also need the occasional pruning of no fruit bearing (or bad fruit) areas.....
Just as trees need pruning to allow the light in for the benefit of more branches and leaves (and fruit) so we need to allow the “light of Christ” into more areas of our lives in order for better development and fruit bearing...
Think of the different areas of your life that might do to have a pruning or de-cluttering ....
What fruit are you producing? (cf Galatians 5:22-26) – what fruit do we produce and by what fruit are we known by others (Matt 7:16f)?
Guidelines for praying with and for people
Many elders undertake pastoral visits to church members or adherents, and one way of building up the spiritual lives of others and assuring them of our care for them, placing them into God’s hands, is to pray for them and with them.
Some elders are nervous about this, so here are some practical tips:
Always ask permission before praying! You could start with ‘do you mind if I pray for you?’ and if the person is happy with this you could follow up with ‘would you like me to pray with you right now?’.
It is of course important to respect the answer you get, some people are just not comfortable being prayed with, perhaps because of where they are and who else is around – eg in hospital
For someone you know would like a prayer, and whose situation you know fairly well, you could take either a written prayer or a Bible verse with you, and then leave it with them once you have shared it together
Don’t be frightened to use a well known prayer such as the Lord’s Prayer, the 23rd Psalm, the Aaronic blessing (the Lord bless you and keep you...) or the Grace.
Even extempore prayers don’t need to be long and complicated. Sometimes a simple ‘Lord we place all that we have talked about into you hands. Bless and keep (name) in your love” will do very well.
You could ask the person what they would particularly like you to pray for, and then use their words as far as possible.
Remember to ask permission from them if you are going to share their prayer request in another place – eg at a church prayer meeting.
Developing the whole church’s life of prayer and worship
There is a vital role for Elders to play, not only to see that the ‘pulpit is filled’ on a Sunday (that a worship leader/preacher is arranged) but also to involve the church fellowship in leading worship according to their gifts.
Church members can be involved in reading the Bible, or presenting it in a dramatic way, in leading prayers, in leading the music through instruments or singing, as well as in producing items for multi-sensory worship such as prayer stations, visual displays, or items for discussion.
If you have children or young people in the life of the church, don’t forget to involve them, too. It may well be that worship can be offered at different times of the week, not only on a Sunday, and in different ways ranging from traditional to café-style to Fresh Expressions.
The Elders also have a responsibility to receive constructive feedback from the congregation so that the worship offered can grown and develop.
Questions for discussion:
In what ways can your Eldership support the spiritual and worshipping life of the whole fellowship, rather than jut leaving everything to visiting speakers and/or the minister?
Could at least some of your elders visit another worshipping community to get some fresh ideas?
Can you identify people in your church fellowship who have the gifts to develop the prayer life of others?
Are you enabling the church fellowship to pray for one another in a way which respects confidentiality?
