Transforming Presence: Reimagining Ministry

All of those exploring the possibility of ordained ministry in the Chelmsford Diocese are asked to do the priesthood project. This involves interviewing a selection of Church of England ministers from across the church traditions, reading a particular book on ministry and then exploring the nature of priesthood in an essay drawing on the interviews and your reading.

When I did this at the end of the 1990s I took Ephesians 4. 1 – 16 as the key text for understanding Church and ministry. So I am very pleased that Bishop Stephen has chosen the same passage when he writes about ‘Reimagining Ministry’ in Transforming Presence:

“I would see my role, as vicar in a parish church, as being one of serving the royal priesthood in that locality by identifying, developing and co-ordinating the gifts and roles of the people within the priesthood so that we become a fully functioning part of the body of Christ able to reveal Jesus clearly in practice. Ephesians 4: 11-16 describes this as the task of every leader within Christ’s body:

“It was he [Jesus] who gave some to be apostles, some to be prophets, some to be evangelists, and some to be pastors and teachers, to prepare God’s people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ.

Then we will no longer be infants, tossed back and forth by the waves, and blown here and there by every wind of teaching and by the cunning and craftiness of men in their deceitful scheming. Instead, speaking the truth in love, we will in all things grow up into him who is the Head, that is, Christ. From him the whole body, joined and held together by every supporting ligament, grows and builds itself up in love, as each part does its work.”      

The differing roles of leaders mentioned here combine to realise the same aim – preparation of God’s people for ministry (works of service). It is God’s people who minister - who serve and are served - and it is the leaders of the church who prepare God’s people for that service. Both serving and being served build up the body of Christ until the whole measure of the fullness of Christ is attained. Such service will include the priestly sacrifice of whole lives, possessions, praise, money, and evangelism.

The corporate nature of full and effective ministry is vital because God as Trinity is corporate. Jesus does not exist as a sole entity but as part of the Godhead, a distinct part of an inter-related whole that is God – Father, Son and Spirit. As this is the nature of God so it must also be the nature of the Church. Diversity within unity and unity within diversity with God and the Church seen fully as they are seen whole. This is the gift of Jesus, to be drawn into and to reflect corporately the inter-relationship of God himself.

The kind of ministry which I am attempting to describe draws heavily on the example of David Watson and the church structures and approaches that were introduced under his ministry at St Michael-le-Belfrey, York. Watson describes their model and approach in his book ‘I believe in the Church’. In his preface to this book, Michael Green isolates the key characteristics of the approach taken at St Michael-le-Belfrey:

“It is a church where the leadership is shared, where prayer is central, where the sacraments are dynamic, where art and drama and dance adorn the worship. A church where the gifts of the Spirit mingle with His graces of character – and also, no doubt, with many failures! But it is a church which does not depend on its minister. Indeed, it tends to grow when he is away. It is a church that has learnt the pastoral value of the small group, the renewing power of the Holy Spirit, the mutual caring of members one for another.” 

Green argues that Watson’s approach involves “the rediscovery of biblical precedents and principles which are often enough forgotten”. Watson points to six principles of Christian ministry:

1.         No distinction either in form, language or theory between clergy and laity was ever accepted by the New Testament Church.

2.         The ministry is co-extensive with the entire church (1 Corinthians 12: 7).

3.         The local church in the apostolic age always functioned under a plurality of leadership.

4.         There are no uniform models for ministry in the New Testament; the patterns are flexible and versatile.

5.         In the New Testament church can be found both leadership and authority, but no kind of hierarchical structure.

6.         There is one, and only one, valid distinction which the New Testament appears to recognise within the ministry, apart from the different functions to which we have been alluding, the distinction between local and itinerent ministries.”

Much of that remains what I try, very inadequately, to do as your Vicar and much of it overlaps significantly with Bishop Stephen’s vision for reimaging ministry.

Here are the basic principles which Bishop Stephen thinks, with our agreement, could form the basis of a more radical forward thinking look at the ministry of God’s church in our diocese:

·    Ministry belongs to the whole people of God. Every person, because of their baptism, has a ministry. We must nurture an expectation that every Christian gives expression to this ministry in their daily life and in their participation in the life of the Church.

·    Stipendiary priests will need to be more episcopal in the way they understand and express their ministry. They will become much more obviously those who have oversight of the ministry of the church in a cluster of rural communities, or in a town or suburb. Their role will be to lead and facilitate ministry in that area, not provide all that ministry themselves. They will, of course, be involved; but their main task will be to animate the ministry of the whole church.

·    For this to work, there also needs to be a huge flourishing of authorised lay ministry (especially youth and children’s workers, authorised preachers, catechists, pastors and evangelists) and ordained self-supporting ministry. And of course we already have many Readers. Alongside some priests being more episcopal we need many others who will be more diaconal, taking on a pastoral, catechetical and evangelistic ministry at the local level.

·    Each local church needs to have some sort of ministry team and, preferably, some minister to whom they identify as the worship leader and pastor of that community. Sometimes this will be a lay person, such as a Reader, and we should encourage lay led worship and ministry in many of our churches. In many cases I hope it will be an ordained self-supporting minister, so that the sacramental life of our church continues to flourish. But where there are lay led services of the Word it will still be possible within the cluster of communities under the oversight of the (probably) stipendiary priest, for there to be regular Sunday by Sunday Eucharistic provision. Some Self-Supporting Ministers will themselves be the leaders (‘episcopal’ priests) in these benefices.

Hopefully you can see the overlaps between these principles and Ephesians 4, as well as seeing that this is not radical for St John’s Seven Kings as it has been our direction of travel over the time that most of us have been here.

It stands or falls, however, on the understanding that ministry belongs to the whole people of God and on there being a real flourishing of authorised lay ministry. That is why it is so relevant to preach on Transforming Presence during our Stewardship month. Such service includes the priestly sacrifice of whole lives, possessions, praise, money, and evangelism or, as we put it in our Stewardship packs, time, talents and treasure.

All this is so that our churches can be a transforming presence in our community as: places of prayer; places where people learn about the faith and are active in discipleship; places where there is a ministry of evangelism; places where ministry is shared and developed; places which serve the local community; places that are inclusive and welcome to all; places which are seeking the unity of all God’s church and working with their neighbours locally and globally.

Next week, in our Patronal Festival Service, we bring our reflections on Stewardship and Transforming Presence in our annual recommitment of ourselves in the service of Christ by saying together:

I have a part in God’s great work; I am a link in a chain, a bond of connection between persons. He has not created me for nothing. I shall do good, I shall do his work; I shall be an angel of peace, a preacher of truth in my own place. Deign to fulfil your high purposes in me. I am here to serve you, to be yours, to be your instrument. May it be so for each one of us. Amen.

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The Staple Singer - Pray On, My Child.

Transforming Presence: Inhabiting our world distinctively

The opening and closing ceremonies for the Olympics and the opening ceremony for the Paralympics have all raised issues of what it means to be British; what there is in our history and culture that can be seem as being distinctively British. Between them they have included our green and pleasant land, the weather, the industrial revolution, scientific and technological discoveries, multi-racial popular culture, the Suffragettes, the NHS, popular music, the Queen, James Bond, Shakespeare, Isaac Newton, Isambard Kingdom Brunel and Stephen Hawking.

While all these have something to do with being British, do they sum up what is distinctive about the British? John Major famously described Britishness as being,"Long shadows on county cricket grounds, warm beer, invincible green suburbs, dog lovers and old maids bicycling through the morning mist." Would we identify with that, living where we do? Perhaps not! By contrast Gordon Brown stated that "Britain's roots are on the most solid foundation of all - a passion for liberty anchored in a sense of duty and an intrinsic commitment to tolerance and fair play." We might be more likely to agree but how distinctively British are those values? Aren’t they values that many around the world would agree with and practice, can we really claim them as distinctively British?

All of which goes to show that defining what makes us distinctive is a difficult task but it is one that our Bishop is asking to undertake together as Christians. Bishop Stephen has written a document for the Diocese called Transforming Presence which aims to give us four strategic priorities to focus on as a Diocese for the next 10 to 15 years.

Bishop Stephen’s hope is that every Christian and every Christian community in the Diocese will begin to prayerfully consider its own response to these priorities and to engage in a continuing conversation across the diocese as we seek to discern what sort of church God is calling us to become. Our Ministry Leadership Team has suggested that we begin thinking about our response to Transforming Presence by studying it in homegroups (some of our groups have already done this and others will begin shortly) and by having a sermon series on it during September (our Stewardship month).

The first priority is the issue that we’ve already begun thinking about together this morning; inhabiting the world distinctively. In Romans 12 Paul speaks about the new life in Christ describing the members of the church as being "one body in Christ" (Romans 12.5) He goes on: "We are members of one another. We have gifts that differ according to the grace given us." (Romans 12. 5b & 6) From verse 9 onwards he describes the marks of true Christian living and discipleship. He is saying that the Christian church is the Body of Christ in the world and each individual Christian a member of it, each called and equipped by God for ministry and service. It therefore follows that every Christian has a ministry and that every Christian should live a distinctive life.

Living that distinctive life is the way we worship God and it happens as we stop conforming to the standards of the world around us and instead let God transform us inwardly by a complete change of our mind. Of course this kind of inner transformation is the work of the Holy Spirit. It cannot be achieved by our hard work alone but there are certain things we need to do in order to create the fertile ground in which the Spirit can bring our faith to life, enabling us to live out our faith and give a reason for the hope that is in us.

First among these is prayer. More than anything else, we need to place a new priority on becoming a people of prayer, whose daily lives are formed and punctuated by our relationship with God in Jesus Christ. He is the centre of our lives, and new life in Christ is nurtured and shaped by a life of prayer and a commitment to worship and the discipleship that follows from it.

Therefore – and before anything else – teaching people to pray, encouraging greater biblical and theological literacy and developing a diocesan rule of life must become our priorities and must be reflected in the work that is done at every level of diocesan life: in every church school, in every parish community, in every chaplaincy.

Developing a diocesan rule of life would be so that there is a unity between us over the sort of lives we should be leading as God’s people in this place and some sort of mutual accountability. This rule will encompass those aspects of Christian living that we consider annually during Stewardship Week such as giving, participation in worship, ministry in our daily lives and also the way we inhabit the planet itself, including issues of ecological, social and political wellbeing.

"Hate what is evil, hold on to what is good. Love one another warmly and be eager to show respect for one another. Work hard … Let your hope keep you joyful, be patient in your troubles, and pray at all times. Share your belongings with your needy fellow Christians, and open your homes to strangers. Ask God to bless those who persecute you . .. Be happy with those who are happy, weep with those who weep. Have the same concern for everyone. Do not be proud, but accept humble duties. Do not think of yourselves as wise. If someone has done you wrong, do not repay him with a wrong. Try to do what everyone considers to be good. Do everything possible on your part to live in peace with everybody … conquer evil with good."

So giving generously to God, others and our world using our treasure, time and talents is what Stewardship and a Diocesan rule of life would be all about. God loves a cheerful giver, we are told, and whoever shares with others should do it generously.

So, the way we inhabit the world as Christians should be about this kind of generous living and the rule of life would form a basis of expectation about what it means to be a Christian in this diocese but, of course, this does not mean that we are somehow better than other people or that generosity itself is distinctively Christian. It is manifestly true that there are all sorts of good and generous people who are not yet part of the Christian community. It does mean, however, that there should be something distinctive and attractive about the way we live our lives. Conversely, if our lives are indistinguishable from anyone else’s it is then little wonder that people conclude that the Christian faith is our hobby; a fascinating and exhausting pastime, but not the life changing transformation that should be evident in the lives we lead Monday to Saturday.

By 2025 Bishop Stephen wants this to change and says that without this inner transformation no other worthwhile change will happen at all, and we will simply carry on managing church decline as gracefully as possible. None of us want that to happen although we all recognise the challenges we face as Christians and as a church. We did not choose to be born or to live in such an age; but if we let its problems challenge us, its discoveries exhilarate us, its injustices anger us, its possibilities inspire us and its vigour renew us then it will be as though we were born for such a time as this.

If we live distinctive Christian lives, as Romans 12 directs us and as Bishop Stephen encourages us then we can make a difference where God has placed us, here at St John’s, here in Seven Kings, here in our family, here in our workplace, here in our diocese, here in our nation, here in our world. Let us pray …

Saviour Christ, in whose way of love lies the secret of all life and the hope of all people, we pray for quiet courage to match this hour. We did not choose to be born or to live in such an age; but let its problems challenge us, its discoveries exhilarate us, its injustices anger us, its possibilities inspire us and its vigour renew us for your kingdom's sake. Amen.

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Woven Hand - In The Temple.

Giving thanks to God for people and places

Yesterday the Bishop of Barking visited St John's Seven Kings to commission our Ministry Leadership Team and to lead us in thanksgiving for the refurbishment of our Fellowship Room.

The Ministry Leadership Team is a group of those at St John’s who lead, encourage and build up the work of the whole Body of Christ on behalf of the PCC. The Team members are people whose were suggested by the congregation, who have a developing spiritual life of their own and are seeking to nurture and disciple others. The Ministry Leadership Team is working together with those involved in the five different areas of mission and ministry (Children & Youth; Mission; Pastoral; Peace & Justice; and Worship) to take forward their Area of Responsibility, meets regularly with the Staff Team to plan and pray together, and reports to the PCC on progress.

Before commissioning the Ministry Leadership Team, the Bishop spoke about St Paul's prayer for his ministry team from his letter to the Philippians and the way in which the Holy Spirit work to develop his characteristics (or fruit) in our lives. To illustrate this he distributed fruits to the congregation each labelled with one of the fruit of the Spirit - love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control.

In commissioning the Ministry Leadership Team, Bishop David used the following prayer: Holy Spirit, guide and strengthen the members of this ministry leadership team that they may do your will in the service of Christ. Make them humble, modest, strong and constant to observe the discipline of Christ. Let their life and witness so reflect your character that through them many will be encouraged to grow in their discipleship. As Jesus came not to be served but to serve, may the members of this Team share in his service to the glory of God. Amen.

Our Fellowship Room was refurbished at the beginning of the year as a result of generous donations from the family of Philippa Page, the London over the Border Council and the AllChurches Trust. The old floor was removed and a new floor laid which now provides level access throughout the entire building, plus the room was completely redecorated. Since its refurbishment, the room is now being used regularly by a Luncheon Club, Asian Women’s Group, and Slimming World group, among other activities and events, enabling valued local services to be provided where they are needed.

As part of the act of thanksgiving, which was attended by the daughters of Philippa Page, Bishop David unveiled a plaque giving thanks to God for the generous donations and grants which enabled the work to be completed. 

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Galactic Cowboys - Fear Not.

Ascension challenge, Pentecostal means

In Jesus, God became a human being. That is what we celebrate at Christmas and what is emphasised by Jesus in this post-resurrection appearance (Luke 24. 36 - 53). God becomes Emmanuel, one with us, one of us.

As we read in Colossians 1. 19 Jesus had in himself, as a human being, the full nature of God. In other words, he showed God to us as fully as God can be seen in human form. This is because the creator must limit himself when he becomes part of his creation and so in Philippians 2. 7 we also read that Jesus gave up all he had when he took the nature of a servant by becoming a human being and appearing in human likeness. 

For God to become a human being involved limitation. A helpful analogy is that of an artist and his/her self-portrait. The self-portrait is the artist (in that it looks just like the artist, being an accurate representation of him or her) but it is much more limited than the artist (being paint on canvas rather than living flesh and bones). For the eternal, creator God to become a mortal part of his creation involved a similar level of limitation. Among the limitations as a human being that Jesus willingly accepted was being born in a particular time and place (1^st century Palestine) and living, ministering and dying only in that same time and place.

Jesus’ ascension was necessary then in order to overcome those limitations. Not so much by regaining his full divinity as by giving each of his followers his Spirit so that we can then be his hands and feet, his eyes, ears and mouth, his body in the world and throughout history. It is not possible for one person by himself to go to all peoples everywhere but it is possible for Christ’s disciples, his followers, to take his message and his Spirit from Jerusalem to all of Judea and Samaria and then to the ends of the earth.

The Gospel of Christ is able to go out into the whole world because we, the followers of Christ, are scattered throughout the world and can be his hands and feet, his eyes, ears and mouth, his body wherever we are. Suddenly, there are no limits on where the Body of Christ – his followers – can be. This is why, at his ascension, he says to his disciples, “you will be witnesses for me in Jerusalem, in all of Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth “(Acts 1. 8).

But this can only happen as we all play our own part in the Body of Christ. It can only happen as we act as the hands and feet, his eyes, ears and mouth, his body wherever we are. This is the challenge of the Ascension for us, but this challenge is combined with the promise that he will send his Spirit to us to empower and equip us to be his people, his Body, by doing what he would have done wherever we are. This is why he also says to his disciples, “when the Holy Spirit comes upon you, you will be filled with power, and you will be witnesses for me in Jerusalem, in all of Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth” (Acts 1. 8). 

For this reason, the Ascension and Pentecost are intimately linked. The Ascension provides the challenge – “Go, then, to all peoples everywhere and make them my disciples” (Matthew 28. 19) – and Pentecost provides the means - “when the Holy Spirit comes upon you, you will be filled with power, and you will be witnesses for me in Jerusalem, in all of Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”

2011 has been a year in which we at St John’s have responded to that challenge by focussing on the identification and development of the God-given talents of our congregation. Following on from the Vocations Sunday event we held in 2010, we have run the Diocese’s SHAPE, Care & Share and Child Protection courses, heard from different members of our congregation through video interviews about ministry in daily life, and over the course of the year identified people who could form our new Ministry Leadership Team, as well as seeing Charity Anyika take on her role as a new churchwarden, an expanded team take on the running of our Youth Group, Dr Winston Solomon licensed as an Authorised Local Preacher and Peter Humphrey take on the role of More Than Gold Champion. These developments also came in the light of the deanery Deployment of Ministry discussions during 2010 and our preparations for the end of Geoff Eze’s curacy at St Johns.

As a congregation, we thought and prayed about five areas of ministry here at St John’s on which we wanted to focus through a Ministry Leadership Team and also about which members of our congregation could provide strategic direction for each of these areas. By the end of 2011 we had identified those people who would form our Ministry Leadership Team which began in 2012. This team of people have begun meeting with the staff team and churchwardens to form the Ministry Leadership Team. Please do pray regularly and consistently for all involved.

We also completed two significant projects: the work on our Community Garden and also the refurbishment of the Fellowship Room. The Archdeacon of West Ham opened our Community Garden as part of a Creating Community day featuring information stalls from local community groups and a plant and table top sale. The success of this event reflected the positive regard in which St John’s is held among the local community because of our focus on community engagement through the St John’s Centre and our involvement in local community campaigns. The refurbishment of our Fellowship Room at the end of 2011 will, we hope, lead to more community activities/groups in the St John’s Centre.

One of our long running initiatives for serving the community, our MU-run Contact Centre, celebrated its 20th anniversary in September 2011.  Contact centres are an increasingly essential resource in the area of family support. Without them, the rights of many children to sustain a relationship with a departed parent in a safe place would be either undermined or lost completely. Another of the community services that St John’s people have consistently supported over the years – Redbridge Voluntary Care – was recognised in 2011 with a Queen’s Award for Voluntary Service. Our consistent support of mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo was also celebrated in 2011 when we heard Judy Acheson sum up all that God has done in that country through her work as a CMS Mission Partner.

We took part in the 'Give A Bible' Bible Year 2011 initiative in the Diocese of Chelmsford to encourage Church members in the diocese to bring a Bible to church on Bible Sunday (23 October) with the intention of subsequently giving it to a neighbour, work colleague or friend. Our 'Give a Bible' initiative placed Bibles back in homes and schools as we chose a range of different translations and versions of the Bible to give away to work colleagues, grandchildren, relatives and friends. These included a Polish translation for one work colleague. Several St John's members also bought a children's storyteller version of the Bible to give to Downshall Primary School for future use in their RE lessons and we also gave Bibles to Aldborough E-Act Free School.

We saw several of our own people take significant milestones in their faith including baptisms and confirmations. Others studied our START course as an introductory exploration of the Christian faith as part of their increased involvement here at St John’s.

During this year, we were preparing for Geoff Eze to move on from his curacy here at St John’s. Geoff’s time at St John’s ended when he began a placement at St Mary’s Walthamstow before his appointment as Team Vicar to the parish of Stoke Minister in 2012. As a parish we are very grateful for all that Geoff contributed during his curacy including the Tuesday afternoon fellowship group, pastoral visiting, schools ministry, youth work and, of course, the vibrancy and challenge of his preaching. We wish him well and pray for him in his new ministry. As part of our own preparation for his move, we expanded our youth work team (from the congregation, the cluster and the deanery) in order to keep the Youth Club running. We are very grateful for all who have given extra time and commitment in order to maintain this important ministry.

Our text for 2011 was: “I'm absolutely convinced that nothing — nothing living or dead, angelic or demonic, today or tomorrow, high or low, thinkable or unthinkable — absolutely nothing can get between us and God's love because of the way that Jesus our Master has embraced us” (Romans 8. 38-39 – The Message). In 2011, as this review of our year shows, we sought to live in the confidence that God’s ever-giving love brings into our lives and community.

2011 was in many ways a time of preparing for the future, while continuing to act as the hands and feet of God in our parish. The Ministry Leadership Team involves more of us in further developing our mission and ministry. The expansion of our Youth Work team gives a base for continuing our Youth Club. The refurbishment of the Fellowship Room will enable more groups to use our facilities providing more community services and addressing our financial issues. The arrival of a new curate will contribute to and support these developments and the growth in the numbers attending with young children.

There are many positive signs for the future as a result of all we have done together in the last five plus years. Our text for 2012 encourages us to run our race with determination by keeping our eyes fixed on Jesus. So, “let us run with the determination the race that lies before us. Let us keep our eyes fixed on Jesus, on whom our faith depends from beginning to end.”

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Philip Bailey - All Soldiers.

St John's Seven Kings: New developments

There have been several encouraging new developments for the mission and ministry of St John's Seven Kings at the beginning of 2012.
The photos above are of our refurbished Fellowship Room. Work began before Christmas to raise and relay the floor and to redecorate this room. That work is now complete and the room back in use again. The work, which provides level access throughout our building, has been made possible by donations/grants from the family of Philippa Page, London Over the Border and the AllChurches Trust. We are exploring options for locating a new project within this space and will give thanks for the refurbishment of the room when the Bishop of Barking visits us on Sunday 15th July.

Bishop David will be visiting us on that Sunday to commission the new Ministry Leadership Team which we have formed at St John's Seven Kings to develop strategies for Children and Youth, Mission, Pastoral Care, Peace and Justice, and Worship.

Other new developments include a monthly Communion Service at a local Supported Housing complex and the opportunity to input to RE lessons at Seven Kings High School. We have also been able to announce that a new Title Post Curate will join us in July.

We are also hosting a community campaigns meeting tomorrow. Seven Kings has had a number of well organised and effective community campaigns in recent years. Some have been single issue campaigns while others have been organised by community campaigning groups like TASK and the Seven Kings & Newbury Park Resident's Association (SKNPRA). Many of these campaigns have also benefited from the support or involvement of local councillors and/or MPs.

However, some of the energy for these campaigns has dissipated more recently as, for a variety of different reasons, the founding members of TASK are no longer able to take that grouping forward. As a result, I have suggested holding tomorrow's open meeting at which anyone interested in community campaigning in future to improve facilities in the area can discuss a new way forward.

There are several options, such as: keeping TASK going; using existing groups like Resident's Associations, only doing single issue campaigns, joining a broader campaigning coalition like The East London Communities Organisation (TELCO - http://www.citizensuk.org/chapters/telco/). The idea of the meeting is to discuss the options open to us and to see whether there is a concensus able to provide a way forward.

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Evanescence - Bring Me To Life.

God is in the multiplication business

The kingdom of God is a place of multiplication. The kingdom of God is a place of exponential growth. The kingdom of God is a place where the tiniest seed can become the biggest plant. The kingdom of God is a place where a grain of yeast can make a whole batch of dough rise. The kingdom of God is a place where a child’s lunch can feed 5,000. The kingdom of God is a place where the salt of our behaviour can flavour the community in which we live. The kingdom of God is a place where the little we can offer can be used to the praise and glory of God.

The Holy Spirit’s presence is shown in us in some way for the good of all. We have been given the abilities we need for our particular service in God’s kingdom. Our lives have meaning and purpose because God has work that only we can do. That is why we are here and that is the message that we have been sharing at St John's Seven Kings over the past 12 months since our Vocations Sunday service last September. What we have been seeking to do over that time is affirm and encourage the calling of the whole people of God; to identify and release the gifts God has given us to be more effectively his church.

As a PCC we believe that to do that fully here at St Johns we need to set up a Ministry Leadership Team. A Ministry Leadership Team is essentially those who lead, encourage and build up the work of the whole Body of Christ on behalf of the PCC and the five people who form the Ministry Leadership Team will each have overall responsibility for one of five key areas in our mission and ministry; Children and Youth, Mission, Pastoral, Peace & Justice, and Worship.

So, for five people in our congregation we believe that God’s meaning and purpose for their lives involves becoming a part of the Ministry Leadership Team here at St John’s. And that is where we come back to the place where we began, as each of us are likely to feel that we don’t have the gifts or the confidence to take on these roles. But God is in the multiplication business and can take the little that we can offer and use to his praise and glory.

Just as in the parable of the mustard seed, our small inputs can have a big effect and, just as in the parable of the yeast, the influence that one person can have can affect a whole church or community. The same can be true in terms of the contribution that the members of the Ministry Leadership Team can make to our church as a whole as they enable each person here to contribute in some way to the mission and ministry of St Johns, however big or small that input may be.
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The Staple Singers - I'll Take You There.

Transform Your Church

Spirit of the living God, apart from You, we can do nothing.
Transform Your Church into the image of Jesus Christ.
Release Your power to bring healing to the sick,
freedom to the oppressed and comfort to those who mourn.
Pour Your love into our hearts and fill us with compassion
to answer the call of the homeless and the hungry
and to enfold orphans, widows and the elderly in Your care.
Give us wisdom and insight for the complex problems we face today.
Help us to use the resources of the earth for the well-being of all.
Holy Spirit, we need Your comfort and guidance.
Transform our hearts. Amen.

Christians across the UK have taken part in the Global Day of Prayer (GDOP) movement since it started by joining 220 Nations and 100’s of millions of Christians in prayer on Pentecost Sunday. Last year over 50 events took place across all 33 London boroughs and some of the Home Counties. In 2011 GDOP London is encouraging as many groups, churches, organisations and ministries as possible to participate in the Global Day of Prayer today by praying the Lord’s Prayer and Prayers for the World, of which the prayer above is a part.

Why prayer and why Pentecost Sunday? The belief is that, as 2 Chronicles 7: 14 states, “If My people, who are called by My name, will humble themselves and pray and seek My face and turn from their wicked ways, then will I hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and will heal their land.” That was the experience of the disciples on the first Day of Pentecost as they were filled with he Holy Spirit’s power and began to be witnesses for Jesus throughout the world.

Jesus promised, as we have heard in John 7. 27-39, stream of life-giving water will pour out from within anyone who believes in him. The writer of John’s Gospel says that when Jesus said this he was speaking about the Holy Spirit, which those who believed in him were going to receive. Jesus, himself, is the life-giving water which, through the work of the Holy Spirit, will flow out from within those who believe in Jesus.

Therefore, we pray for this to be our experience too. We pray, Spirit of the living God, transform us into the image of Jesus Christ. Release your power, pour your love into our hearts and fill us with compassion. Give us wisdom and insight, comfort and guidance. Transform our hearts.

But not for ourselves alone. We pray to be transformed so that in turn our world can be transformed and our land healed. That healing will be brought to the sick, freedom to the oppressed, comfort to those who mourn. That the call of the homeless and the hungry will be answered, orphans, widows and the elderly enfolded in God’ care, and the resources of the earth used for the well-being of all. That the Kingdom of God will come on earth, as in heaven.

This is what Pentecost means. This is what the coming of the Holy Spirit can achieve. On the day of Pentecost, the Jews gave thanks for the first fruits of the wheat harvest. For Christians, the experience of the energy of the Spirit is a "first fruit" of the new era that has dawned for the believers; a “first fruit” of the coming Kingdom of God.

I would also like us to pray today at St John's Seven Kings for the coming of the Holy Spirit among us in a very particular way and for a very specific task that we are engaged in at this time. I said at our Annual Parochial Church Meeting that, as we seek to affirm and encourage the calling of the whole people of God by identifying and releasing all the gifts God has given us, we will be establishing a Ministry Leadership Team here at St John’s.

A Ministry Leadership Team is essentially those who lead, encourage and build up the work of the whole Body of Christ on behalf of the PCC. To help us to do this, we have divided up our mission and ministry here at St John’s into five areas – Children and Youth, Mission, Pastoral, Peace and Justice, and Worship.

Over the next couple of months we are looking to identify people who can take a lead at St John’s in these five areas and we need each of you to be involved in identifying who those people should be. First, we need you to pray. To pray for the Holy Spirit to equip those in our congregation who are being called to these roles and to pray for the Holy Spirit to lead and guide us as we identify those who are being called. Second, we will need you to suggest people for these different roles by filling in this sheet and returning it to us. Shortly I will be able to introduce you to Diocesan Advisers who will help us with this process.

As you pray and think about those that the Holy Spirit may be calling into these roles, bear in mind that the people we are seeking as members of the Ministry Leadership Team at St Johns are those who have a developing spiritual life of their own and who seek to nurture and disciple others. Those chosen to form the Ministry Leadership Team will work together with those involved in the activities listed on the sheet to take forward their Area of Responsibility, will meet regularly with the Staff Team to plan and pray together, and will report to the PCC.

It is the Holy Spirit, as we have seen, that gives gifts to God’s people to prepare all of us for God’s service in order to build up the body of Christ – “The Spirit’s presence is shown in some way in each person for the good of all.” As we identify and release all the gifts God has given us we become more effectively his church, we have growing confidence and a greater sense of moving forward, and we come back to patterns of church life that more resemble the missionary church of the first century.

As we ask God that that might happen, let pray together the prayer for the Global Day of Prayer with which we began:

Spirit of the living God, apart from You, we can do nothing.
Transform Your Church into the image of Jesus Christ.
Release Your power to bring healing to the sick,
freedom to the oppressed and comfort to those who mourn.
Pour Your love into our hearts and fill us with compassion
to answer the call of the homeless and the hungry
and to enfold orphans, widows and the elderly in Your care.
Give us wisdom and insight for the complex problems we face today.
Help us to use the resources of the earth for the well-being of all.
Holy Spirit, we need Your comfort and guidance.
Transform our hearts. Amen.

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St. Paul's Cathedral Choir - Come Holy Ghost Our Souls Inspire.

Ministry Leadership Team

Today was our Annual Parochial Church Meeting, which included the following sermon:

Acts 13.1-3 shows us one way in which a missionary church of the first century was organised in the period covered by the New Testament. In the church at Antioch, we see:

• Members exercised different gifts; as there were, at least, prophets and teachers in this church (13.1a);
• Barnabas, Simeon called Niger, Lucius of Cyrene, Manaen (who had been brought up with Herod the tetrarch) and Saul were representative of the culture of the area (13.1b);
• They were also part of the worshipping and praying congregation; as they were chosen while worshipping the Lord and fasting (13.2a);
• Set apart for kingdom work i.e. the work to which God called them (13.2b);
• Sent out for apostolic ministry in wider community (13.3); but
• Remained accountable to church leaders and members of the church (14.26-27).

Ministry as Partnership - MaP - is the name the Chelmsford Diocese has given to new models of Christian ministry which were beginning to be developed at the turn of the millennium and which aim to bring us back to patterns of church life that more resemble the missionary church of the first century.

At its heart, Ministry as Partnership seeks to affirm and encourage the calling of the whole people of God. It is about identifying and releasing all the gifts God has given us to be more effectively his church, principles which now underpin all diocesan and national strategies, including the major Mission Shaped Church and Fresh Expressions initiatives.

Within our changing world and culture, parishes are delivering ministry in many different ways. No one way is appropriate for all, but where the God-given gifts of all baptised members of the local church are being identified and used, there is growing confidence and a greater sense of moving forward. Historically, we may not have as many stipendiary posts, but there have never been so many following a calling, whether in a commissioned ministry or more informally.

Ministry as Partnership provides a process for establishing a Ministry Leadership Team within a local church. A Ministry Leadership Team is essentially those who lead, encourage and build up the work of the whole Body of Christ on behalf of the PCC. This year our PCC has taken the decision that we should set up a Ministry Leadership Team at St John’s Seven Kings.

The Ministry as Partnership process has five steps for establishing a Ministry Leadership Team within a local church:

• Building the vision – assessing where we are and discerning where we would like to be
• Making decisions – envisioning a team to suit local needs
• Forming a team – practical guidance for getting underway
• Staying fit – the ongoing life of the team, particularly at transition stages
• Going deeper – theology and ecclesiology for leaders and others

Looking at these five steps, you can see that we have already been working on the first two. We have our Church vision, which we reviewed in the first year or so that I was here:

That led to a renewed focus on our engagement with the local community which has in turn led to new people joining the church. As a result, we have moved onto Step 2 which is about envisioning all of us for ministry. Our Vocations Sunday service led on to the SHAPE course, the faith and work video interviews, and currently the Care and Share Lent course. All of which have emphasised that all believers of all ages and abilities have been called by God and have a vocation to follow. All have gifts to offer for the common good of the church and world.

All of which means that we are now ready for Step 3 which is where we form the Ministry Leadership Team itself. In the coming months, we will be asking you to think and pray about five areas of ministry here at St John’s and which members of our congregation could be responsible for each of these areas. It could be you! The five ministry areas are: Children and Youth; Mission; Pastoral; Peace and Justice; and Worship.

The kind of people that we will be seeking as leaders are those who have a developing spiritual life of their own and who seek to nurture and disciple others. Leadership is a gift for the common good and we will be asking those who become responsible for these areas of ministry to work in partnership with all those who are also involved in that area of ministry. Christian leadership is less to do with command-and-control than with establishing the environment within which others are empowered to use their gifts. The corporate leadership at St John’s (i.e. licensed minister(s), the PCC and the Ministry Leadership Team) are the guardians of God’s vision for this community of faith.

At St John's we will all have the opportunity over the next few months to reflect more on these areas of ministry and what is involved in taking them forward. Working towards partnership in ministry is a demanding and worthwhile challenge within which prayer deserves to be a high priority. In setting new directions, let us seek to keep in step with the purposes of God in the power of the Spirit; joining in partnership as God works in his world and his church.

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Delirious? - Now Is The Time.

Church vision

Yesterday we held an information session for our current PCC which ended by outlining the current vision for St John's Seven Kings.

It is our vision to grow together as a community of God's people, filled and empowered by the Holy Spirit to follow Jesus Christ's example and teaching.

We believe God has called us to be a:

• Worshipping Community - committed to prayer, study of the Bible, sharing of Holy Communion, praising God and listening to God as central to our lives and life together.
• Loving Community - committed to welcoming, accepting and caring for one another and all whom God brings to us.
• Inclusive Community - of many races and cultures, committed to learning together and growing together in unity and love.
• Growing Community - committed to seeking God's grace to grow in understanding, maturity of faith and love, and in numbers.
• Serving Community - committed to the people of the Seven Kings area, to use our God-given resources to meet needs as and when possible.
• Witnessing Community - committed joyfully and humbly to sharing the wonderful good news of God's love for all people.
• Healing Community - committed to seeking to grow in wholeness through care and prayer for one another and for those who seek God's healing in their lives.
• Prophetic Community - committed to seeking and speaking out for justice and peace in our community, nation and world.

Initially in my time at St John's we have focused on the renewal of the community/outward facing aspects of this vision – serving /prophetic/witnessing leading to growing. We have worked with the kingdom model of mission - God>World>Church - which starts with action and partnerships in the community, for the sake of the kingdom. Church is then for those who respond to the call to share in God’s transforming mission. Our texts for the year also reflected this approach - “Watch for the new thing I am going to do. It is happening already - you can see it now!” (Isaiah 43:19a) and “All of creation waits with eager longing for God to reveal his children” (Romans 8.19).

Among the action we have taken as a result have been:

• Promoting and developing the St John’s Centre as a centre for the community: 20+ community groups/activities and 100s of users;
• Community engagement – Take Action for Seven Kings / Seven Kings & Newbury Park Resident's Association / Living Streets campaigns for improved community facilities;
• Community Garden – a visible sign that we are here and we are for the community.
  

Next is to be renewal of the internal Church focus: worshipping/loving/ inclusive/healing leading to growing. Our text for 2010 reflects this focus: "Be alert, stand firm in the faith, be brave, be strong. Do all your work in love." (1 Corinthians 16 v 13-14). Among the actions which we expect to develop as a result of this focus are: planning our future deployment for ministry; holding a Vocations Day; and exploring the possibility of a Ministry Leadership Team.

Our prayer is: Lord, we are communities in communion with you, our rainbow-loving, promise-keeping Creating Father God. Bring us together in trust and hope, remembering the marginalised we must represent, the needy for whom we can speak, the poor with whom we are included. Amen.

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Van Morrison - In The Garden.