Download - Small Churches Make Good Neighbors
Small Churches Make Good Neighbors
10 Ways Your Congregation Can Change Your Community
The Church we have known
Monocultural, modern, insular, and institutional
The world in which we live
Multicultural Postmodern Connected Organic
Church attendance as % of population(The American Church in Crisis, David Olson)
0
5
10
15
20
25
1990 1995 2000 2005 2010 2015 2020
How Large are US Congregations?(A Field Guide to US Congregations, Woolever & Bruce)
The median congregation:
Associated w/congregation: 200Regular participators: 110Regular participating adults: 80Avg worship attendance: 90
The Question
How can
small churches
thrive in this
new world?
Bringing in the sheaves…
Taking it to the streets!
“No one knows all the answers. We may not even be asking the right questions. We are all in this together, and we’ll need all the help we can get.”
- ‘Running the Planet,’ Walt Patterson
Myths of Non-profits
Perfect management Brand-name awareness Breakthrough idea Textbook mission statements High ratings on conventional
metrics Large budgets
Forces for Good, Crutchfield & Grant, p 18.
Translation: Myths of churches
Perfect leadership Name awareness Breakthrough new idea Textbook mission statements High ratings on conventional
metrics Large budgets
6 Criteria for a church model
Biblical Practical Proven Scalable Effective Affordable
…we needed a modelectomy..
Walt Kallestad, Community Church of Joy
Our community
Small town Rural Virginia Hard times Untrained workers Population loss Revitalization plan
Our small church
Aging membership Attendance
decline Leader shortage Limited resources Great history
The Story We Needed
We needed a story to:
Capture our imagination Help us think differently Guide our ministry Expand our horizons
Two resources
The Celtic Way of Evangelism George Hunter III, Asbury Seminary A look at how ancient Celtic abbeys
evangelized Ireland
Fling Open the Doors Paul Nixon Case study of “giving the church away
to the community”
Back to the Future
“…ancient Celtic Christianity could show the way today…” -- The Celtic Way of Evangelism, p10.
Gulf Breeze U M Church
“With the building of our next facility, we would move from being a church that was open to the community to being a church that was by design, a community center in the fullest sense.”
- Fling Open the Doors, p. 45
Six Practices of High-Impact Non-Profits
Advocate and serve. Make markets work. Inspire evangelists. Nurture non-profit networks. Master the art of adaptation. Share leadership.
Forces for Good, p 18.
Abbey churches...
Embraced the community.
Connected with the culture.
Welcomed all. Practiced their
faith. Transformed the
nation.
The C.E.L.T.I.C. P.A.T.H.
Care Economics Life Rule Transformation Inclusion Communion
Peacemaking Arts Teaching Hospitality
Care: Meeting real life needs
Matthew 25:35-36 NIV For I was hungry and you gave me
something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.'
Care: The Abbey
One abbey fed over 1,000 people per day.
Care: Resources
Churches That Make a Difference, Ronald J. Sider, et al
Angel Food Ministries Local Social Services Dept
Care: Cradock Baptist Church
School Supplies Community Day Angel Food
Economics: Participating in the marketplace
Luke 12:42-44 NIVThe Lord answered, "Who then is the faithful
and wise manager, whom the master puts in charge of his servants to give them their food allowance at the proper time? It will be good for that servant whom the master finds doing so when he returns. I tell you the truth, he will put him in charge of all his possessions.
Economics: The Abbeys
Abbeys employed stonemasons, craftspersons, and herdsmen and created an economy around the function of the abbey.
Economics: Resources
Deep Economy, Bill McKibben
First Baptist, San Antonio – 4th Street Café
Coffee Shops The Sorting Room Taco church
Economics: The Potter’s House
Begun by Church of the Savior in DC
Bookstore, restaurant, gathering place
Life rule: Daily faith practice
Matthew 6:9-13 NIV "This, then, is how you should pray:
" 'Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name, your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us today our daily bread. Forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one.'
Life rule: Keeping the hours
Fixed-hour prayer Rules for community Mostly applied to monks and nuns Rule of St. Benedict DSS Qumran Community Rule
Life rule: Resources
The Divine Hours, Phyllis Tickle Celtic Daily Prayer, Northumbria Labyrinth Devotional guides Prayer ministry All encourage faith practice
Life rule: Covenant Baptist Church
Transformation: Facilitating Kingdom change
Mark 1:15 NIV"The time has come," he said. "The
kingdom of God is near. Repent and believe the good news!"
Transformation: The abbeys
Abbeys sought to transform the culture from paganism and superstition to faith in God through Christ.
From kings to peasants, the abbeys worked for cultural transformation.
Transformation: Resources
Fling Open the Doors, Paul Nixon John Perkins, Christian Community
Development Building A Healthy Multi-Ethnic
Church, Mark DeYmaz
Transformation: Military Ave EPC
Inclusion: Belonging Comes Before Believing
Luke 19:5-7 5When Jesus reached the spot, he looked
up and said to him, "Zacchaeus, come down immediately. I must stay at your house today." 6So he came down at once and welcomed him gladly.
7All the people saw this and began to mutter, "He has gone to be the guest of a 'sinner.' "
Inclusion: The abbeys
Abbeys at crossroads, villages Open access Center of community Abbeys welcomed all for:
Meals Care Help Guidance
Inclusion: A new perspective
Inclusion: Belonging b4 believing
Inclusion: Lifechuch.tv
Communion: Gathering for Worship
Acts 2:46-4746Every day they continued to meet
together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, 47praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people. And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved.
Communion: Worship Resources
Jonny Bakerjonnybaker.blogs.com
smallfire.org
Communion: Opawa Baptist
Side Door Art Trust Angels and
Ordinary People Christmas Easter
Peacemaking: Bridges of hope
Matthew 5:9
Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called sons of God.
Peacemaking: The abbeys
Peacemaking: Resources
Sojourners Mustard Seed
Network
Peacemaking: Chatham Baptist
Building bridges Racial
reconciliation Martin Luther King
Day, 2008
Arts: Celebrating Creativity & Creator
Exodus 35:30-3330 Then Moses said to the Israelites, "See,
the LORD has chosen Bezalel…31 and he has filled him with the Spirit of God, with skill, ability and knowledge in all kinds of crafts- 32 to make artistic designs for work in gold, silver and bronze, 33 to cut and set stones, to work in wood and to engage in all kinds of artistic craftsmanship.
Arts: The abbeys
Book of Kells Illuminated
manuscripts Creation
theme
Arts: Resources
Taking It To The Streets Chatham Baptist Church
Chatham Arts Community Music School Soundcheck Christmas concert Fine music concerts
Arts: Art Under The Dome
University Baptist Church
Art gallery 500 people Sm group 30
Teaching: Models and Mentors
Philippians 4:9
Whatever you have learned or received or heard from me, or seen in me—put it into practice. And the God of peace will be with you.
Teaching: The abbeys
Five-fold Structure of Experiences:
Times of solitude Anamchara – soul friend Small group Participation in common life Help in fulfilling your “vocation”
Teaching: Resources
Reimagining Spiritual Formation, Doug Pagitt
For children: Catechesis of the Good Shepherd, Montessori approach to children’s spiritual formation
Teaching: Solomon’s Porch
“…exploring ideas about
spiritual formation
that extend beyond the education model.”
Reimagining Spiritual Formation Doug Pagitt
Worship Physicality Dialogue Hospitality Belief Creativity Service
Hospitality: Welcoming the stranger
Luke 10:38As Jesus and his disciples were on
their way, he came to a village where a woman named Martha opened her home to him.
Hospitality: The abbeys
“The monastic community’s highest commitment is hospitality to strangers, seekers, pilgrims, and refugees.”
- The Celtic Way of Evangelism, p52.
Hospitality: Resources
The Irresistible Revolution, Shane Claiborne
The Simple Way, Cleveland Mustard Seed Network, Tom and
Christine Sine Northumbria Community
Hospitality: The Columba Center
Celtic-inspired ministry Rahab’s sisters Bridgid’s Table Way of Columba rule of life Urban Iona, Kurt Neilson
Back to the Future