They are willing to do
whatever it takes to
accomplish that mission.
Where is God leading us? Let us
study, pray, share, learn and
grow together to discern that.
Once discerned, are we willing
to do whatever it takes to
accomplish what our prayerful
study and discernment has led us
to? It is time to step out into
that calling in obedience to the
Gospel.
3/13
April 2013
ON MISSION
Pastor Blair Morgan, Director
for Evangelical Mission
It is helpful from time to time
to remind you of what is
available from our Synod’s
Outreach Committee to support
your congregation in its
mission.
We believe that mission planning
is essential for a congregation
– aim at nothing and you will
generally hit it! Therefore, we
have multiple resources
available to help congregations
do mission planning. First, we
have the basic Congregational
Mission Planning guide
available on our synod website (www.swpasynod.org).
We can provide guidance to help
your congregation work through
this planning resource. We can
provide a more in-depth journey
of congregational renewal using
the ELCA Transformational
Ministry process. Here, we
work through a transforming
journey of spiritual renewal of
the team, the congregation and
then taking that renewal work
out into one’s community. We can
also provide a planning journey
through Natural Church
Development. This resource
enables a congregation to
evaluate its ministries based
eight key characteristics of
congregational ministry. We then
work with you to focus upon one
of those eight areas toward a
strengthening of your
congregation’s ministry and
mission.
We are continuing to redevelop
the Mission Partners
ministry of our synod. Here we
help congregations to connect
with a partner congregation in
ministry to provide support in a
cooperative fashion that can be
renewed each year. These
partnerships have proven
fruitful for both congregations
as they seek to strengthen and
expand their ministries.
Healthy Congregations
is a resource to help
congregational leadership in
developing better communication.
It is based on Family Systems
theory and has been a wonderful,
renewing resource in
congregations across the
country. The learning provided
in this training is invaluable
and proves to be a blessing not
just in each person’s
congregational involvement, but
also in their relationships in
their families, workplaces and
neighborhoods.
Sometimes a congregation is
looking for just a few new and
creative ideas for ministry.
Asset Mapping is a fun and
productive 2-hour experience
that enables a congregational
group to explore the assets
already available in the life of
the congregation and to see new
ways they can be combined for
ministry.
We continue to explore new ways
of Cooperative Ministry
between congregations. There are
many ways that relationships can
be developed between
congregations to enable ministry
to be more powerful and
effective. Youth ministries,
educational ministries,
fellowship ministries, and
outreach ministries can often be
much more effective when we
combine our efforts with some
other congregations of our
synod. There are numerous
examples of this that we can
share and help to make happen
for your congregation.
Finally, we have a limited
amount of funding available to
help new outreach ministry
ventures in congregations that
we call Opening Doors Grants.
We receive applications for
these twice a year.
If any of these resources have
sparked your interest, please
call me at the Synod Office
(412-367-8222) and we can talk
further how to pursue stronger
mission and ministry in your
congregation.
4/13
May 2013
ON MISSION
Pastor Blair Morgan, Director
for Evangelical Mission
It may be news to you that there
is a way that you can save your
money, receive interest and yet
also help Lutheran congregations
all over the country. This is
true both for congregations and
individuals in congregations. It
can happen through our Mission
Investment Fund. The following
paragraph shares basic
information about this mission
tool for savings:
When you invest with the Mission Investment Fund (MIF) you help
strengthen the ministry of our
church, even as you save for
your future. That’s because we
use the money you invest to fund
building and renovation loans
for ELCA congregations and
ministries. Not only do your
investments earn you a great
rate of return, they replace
sagging church roofs, expand
Sunday school classrooms, and
build brand new church buildings
from the ground up. Plus, as an
MIF investor, you can rest
assured knowing that in the
nearly 100-year history of MIF
and its predecessors, no one has
ever lost a penny on one of our
investments.
It may now not be news to you, but you may want to know more about
how the Mission Investment Fund
can make loans available to
congregations as they face major
building challenges. Here is
some further basic information:
Why borrow with us? MIF specializes in church building projects, so
we understand the unique needs
of congregations and ministries.
Our church building consultants
help guide you through the
planning, building and financing
process, free of charge. And our
green services help you build in
ways that care for creation. But
the most beautiful part of
borrowing with MIF is knowing
that the interest you pay on
your loan helps fund the loans
of other ELCA congregations, so
that they can share God’s love,
too.
If you would like to learn more about this special mission support
opportunity, you can go to their
website:
www.mif.elca.org.
5/13
June 2013
ON MISSION
Pastor Blair Morgan, Director
for Evangelical Mission
On a separate page of
this edition of the ECHO
(SEE BELOW) you will find our
announcement of the founding of
the newest ministry in the life
of our synod that is being
called Abiding Ministries.
Christine Rotella, a Diaconal
Minister on the roster of our
synod, is the Mission Developer
of this Synod Authorized
Worshiping Community (SAWC).
Chris does a wonderful job in
that Descriptive Narrative
sharing the background to the
focus of the mission of Abiding
Ministries.
One of the exciting aspects of
what Chris often calls this
“church without walls” is that
there are other ELCA examples of
this kind of ministry across the
country. In a conversation with
the Rev. Ruben Duran, Director
for Development of New
Congregations for the ELCA, I
heard his excitement as he
shared how the Holy Spirit is
inspiring these special
ministries in many places.
Each city has its own approach,
but the commitment is to seeing
people who have been
marginalized by our economy, our
culture, and our prejudices
having opportunities to be
integrally involved in these new
congregations. These are not
congregations looking to serve
people with great challenges.
These are congregations made up
of people who are living through
the great challenges that their
lives have brought them.
We look forward to sharing more
of the journey of Abiding
Ministries in the future and
providing ways that you can be a
part of this new mission venture
within our
synod.
6/13
Abiding Ministries
(Pittsburgh)
Below you will find an
introduction to the newest
ministry in our synod. The
Synod Council voted in
January to establish this
Synod Authorized Worshiping
Community (SAWC). The SAWC
designation enables a new
ministry to begin within the
support of the ELCA
structure for congregations
at all stages. We are
excited about this special
ministry and you will learn
more about its development
in the months to come.
If you would like to hear
more or provide support for
this new ministry, you may
contact Pastor Blair Morgan,
our Director for Evangelical
Mission at the Synod Office
by phone (412-367-8222) or
e-mail (blair.morgan@elca.org)
or e-mail the Mission
Developer, Christine Rotella
(mcrotella@comcast.net).
A Descriptive Narrative
about Abiding Ministries
A New Synod Authorized
Worshiping Community (SAWC)
of the Southwestern
Pennsylvania Synod
Christine Rotella, Diaconal
Minister, Mission Developer
The name Abiding Ministries
is inspired primarily by
scripture, the Gospel of
John, and Jesus’ explanation
of what it means to abide in
one another (John 14).
Abiding is what God does,
and is what God calls us to
do. Abiding is about
relationship. It is not a
program. It is not a number
or census. It is about
steady, contextual, healing,
reconciling, and remembering
relationships. It is often
living the Gospel, listening
for and pointing to the Good
News happening, more of an
Emmaus event waiting for the
question that invites
proclamation.
I have accompanied a woman
named Faith from the street
community for the past 9
months. Faith has been doing
a lot of remembering in
recent months and the impact
of that journey with her led
her into the needs of
another woman that she knows
as Erin. Faith’s initiative
led her to present Erin and
her family’s problems to us.
She shared, with
expectation, the love and
care that would be necessary
in the moment to abide with
Erin and her young family.
They were about to be
evicted. This included some
financial challenges with
rent that then led us into a
relationship with Erin’s
landlord. That landlord is
now a partner and consultant
to our ministry.
That was a defining moment
for the mission of Abiding
Ministries – a voice from
within this faith community
and street family abiding
with us and with a friend.
Faith continues to heal, to
make good and at times
difficult choices, seeking
out ways to carry the
ministry forward.
Erin, in turn, reached out
to another single mother who
we are now working with to
catch her before she and her
two children (one with
autism) are evicted.
Similar to our experience in
the first case, this second
landlord is beginning to
remember and tell his own
story and acting with
empathy. This empathy has
thus far led him to have a
change of heart. He too has
agreed to serve as a
rental/shelter consultant
for our community. He and I
spoke recently. We thanked
one another and he took a
moment to talk a little
about his faith.
Abiding will most likely
never be a typical
congregation according to
the institutional and
constitutional experiences
of the church. That is okay
and even a good thing.
Abiding is both transient
and relational. We are
companions on the way. We
are becoming. We are
together. We live in and are
part of the remembering of
the Body of Christ.
We pray together, share
communion, bless camps
(places where our people
spend their nights), and
make hospital visits. There
is a possible baptism on the
horizon. We share meals,
keep track of one another,
share our resources in many
different ways. We washed
feet in the Severe Weather
Shelter on Holy Thursday.
A recent day of ministry
included assisting someone
as she applied for her
Social Security, helping her
to connect with a case
manager, getting her care
for infected dermatitis. A
little later I provided some
communication boards to the
downtown ministerium to help
their walk-in ministry.
Every day is different.
Even as I write this, I just
now finished praying with
and guiding a newly
sheltered woman who is
supporting a friend. The
friend has just learned that
his young nephew is
hospitalized and will most
likely die tonight.
“Chaplain, how do I pray
with him through this?”
“What do I say?” I was
called “chaplain” because
that is how they have known
me, as one attending to
their pastoral needs both on
the streets and in the
hospital. I also serve a
part-time call as the
chaplain at Western
Psychiatric Institute and
Clinic. These two calls fit
hand in glove.
We have shared and will
continue to share communion
at regular public worship on
the streets as a faith
community and a street
family. This time I will
intentionally invite those
present to be the worship
team, welcoming whoever
joins us. They will lead
prayer, music, serve as
communion assistants, read
scripture…as much as they
feel called to do. I am
hoping to recruit some of
our local pastors to be
present with us for the
celebration so that we might
enjoy and participate in the
full means of grace, so
essential to our abiding.
We are building a website
(http://www.abidingministriespittsburgh.com).
We can envision a City Rim
Conference of support. We
have begun investigating and
building partnerships with
business and community
leaders. We have a long-term
vision to create
community-based industries
for and with people in
transition, with mental
illness and limited
capacities, with police
records, and who are caught
in poverty and on the edge.
Together we can contribute
and be a blessing as we are
blessed.
That’s what Abiding is up
to. We are living boldly
from God’s abundant and
abiding grace!
I pray that this is helpful
in understanding this
journey. We are most
grateful for your support in
whatever form you are led to
provide it. We are thankful
for the support of the Holy
Spirit in mission – even as
we find at times we feel
ready and at times we are
not!
Christine Rotella, Diaconal
Minister
Mission Developer for
Abiding Ministries
July 2013
ON MISSION
Pastor Blair Morgan, Director
for Evangelical Mission
I recently had a conversation
around evangelism with Pastor
Jennifer McCurry, of Emmanuel,
in Etna. She had asked me for
some resources around helping
people share their faith. In the
process, she also shared with me
a number of things that they
were doing, around evangelism,
at Emmanuel. I asked her if she
would write some of them up
briefly, so that I could share
them with you. Here are some
evangelism ideas being lived out
in one of our synod
congregations. Feel free to give
her a call if you desire to
learn more about any of these:
·
In the winter, our evangelism
committee requested that small
ministry groups (midweek Bible
study, council, choir, adult &
teen Sunday classes) include a
time of inviting prayer requests
from people and to pray
together. Our goal was to
intentionally include more clear
conversation about faith in our
spiritual friendships here, and
for the congregation to grow in
care and concern for one another
and for the people around us. It
has been amazing to see how the
prayer lists have grown and how
much more "normal" this practice
seems, even after only four
months. Council members have
been in tears as we have prayed
for one another and for issues
important to us as a community.
·
In April, a couple weeks after
Easter, our teens were sharing
special worship leadership on a
Sunday which had scripture
lessons with a theme of "Seeing
Jesus." The week beforehand, we
included a bulletin insert
asking everyone to consider
where or when they had seen
Jesus in their daily lives. The
middle and senior high school
classes met a couple times
together and they considered how
they would answer the same
question. On the day of their
leadership, I shared brief
reflections on two of our
scripture readings, preparing
for the conversations that would
come. Then the teens spread out
in the congregation, each
gathering people into small
groups by where they were
sitting. The groups shared
together where they had seen
Jesus. The teens who didn't know
how to answer the question
themselves still gathered the
group initiated the
conversation, but were honest
about their uncertainty and
genuinely asked to hear the
thoughts of others. It was such
a blessing for the congregation!
The teenagers grew more
confident in leading
congregation members and trying
to articulate their own faith.
The rest of the congregation was
stunned by what they heard in
their small groups, sometimes
from people whom they didn't
expect, whether they were teens
or another age group.
·
The evangelism committee has
invited our Christian Education
Committee to a joint meeting,
when they hope to brainstorm
together about how they can
collaborate and support the work
of one another. Possibilities
include:
1. finding attention-grabbing
and faithful ways to share about
our Christian education
opportunities at community
events and with appropriate
signage outside our church
building;
2. integrating conversations
about faith into our Christian
education offerings (like the
prayer requests and praying
mentioned above) for all ages,
not just adults and teens;
3. regularly involving
children in projects that are
pointed outward to our
relationships with the community
around us;
4. having a special
epiphany-season series of
classes for teens and adults
that studies our biblical call
to share our faith and
practicing how we can do that in
small ways in everyday lives
(that's what I talked with Blair
about).
·
We are planning a prayer walk
(~Unbinding the gospel) through
the community of Etna, in
September, which fits into
Emmanuel's "Walking with Jesus"
theme from July - October. The
evangelism committee requested
that I reach out to our
ecumenical friends to invite
their participation with enough
warning that it can be scheduled
at the most accessible time for
everyone. I'm waiting to hear
back from them.
There have been additional and
recent conversations with a few
other pastors expressing
interest in resources around
evangelism to me and to Beth
Caywood, of our Resource Center.
She and I are beginning to
explore the possibility of
providing an evangelism training
event, similar to what we are
already doing with stewardship
through our Stewards for
Stewardship workshops.
It is our hope that the synod
can be providing solid and
regular resourcing around these
two particularly challenging
ministry areas for our
congregations. Please let Beth
or me know if this is something
to which you and your evangelism
leaders would come.
7/13
September 2013
ON MISSION
Pastor Blair Morgan, Director
for Evangelical Mission
There is a map in the back of most of
our Bibles that turns out to be
a powerful analogy for mission
(and even stewardship as one
might think about it). A
modern version of the map that
includes two seas is printed
below:
The Sea of Galilee is fed by water
that runs down from the
mountains to the north. It
is famous in our biblical
writings for the fish that live
in it and the fishermen who
caught them. It is a vital lake
in a very arid land. Key
to that vitality is the outflow
through the Jordan River.
Waters rush into the lake from
the north and bless the lake
with freshness and opportunity.
Water than pours out of the lake
at the southern end and becomes
the Jordan River.
This “outpouring” of its water is a
key aspect of the Sea’s
vitality. This is
dramatically evidenced because
of the other sea that is
connected to the Jordan River.
Water pours down the Jordan and into
the “Dead” Sea! BUT, there
is no outlet for water to flow
OUT of the Dead Sea. Here
is a portion of an article from
the website “HowStuffWorks”
regarding the Dead Sea:
"The Dead Sea owes its high
mineral salt content to several
factors. First, it's
completely landlocked, so any
fresh or saltwater that flows
into it from the Jordan River
and other tributaries (estimated
at six and a half million tons
per day) is trapped -- until it
evaporates [source: Catholic
Encyclopedia].
Evaporation happens quickly
because that portion of the
world is, to put it mildly,
extremely hot. When the
water evaporates, the salty
minerals are left behind,
causing the remaining water to
become more and more
concentrated with salt."
Jesus is quoted in Acts 20:35 with
this famous saying: “It is more
blessed to give than to
receive.” For disciples and for
congregations it is essential
that mission be a part of the
faith journey. Reaching
out brings life! There is
no future in just looking
inward. We end up just
being a “Dead Sea!”
9/13
October 2013
ON MISSION
Pastor Blair Morgan, Director
for Evangelical Mission
One of the books that I am currently
reading is Christianity for
the Rest of Us: How the
Neighborhood Church is
Transforming Faith, by Diana
Butler Bass. I found a mission
story of a congregation tucked
into the chapter entitled
“Justice” to be valuable.
Phinney Ridge Lutheran Church in
Seattle, Washington was featured
in this story. It talks about
the fact that Phinney Ridge has
newcomers to their congregation
go through a year-long process
that emphasizes four
disciplines: worship, prayer,
scripture reflection and
ministry in the world. They have
found this training to be
invaluable in forming disciples
and not just adding members to
the congregation.
A few years ago the church was asked
to host a Tent City for the
homeless on their church’s front
lawn. There were people,
including some key leaders, who
were nervous that this would
become an issue that would
“split the church” because
people might threaten to leave
if these homeless people were
invited on to the church’s
property in this way. So, they
held deliberative meetings with
the congregation.
Their pastor shares, “As a
staff, we were prepared for
people to say, ‘If you bring the
Tent City to this congregation,
we will leave; we will have to
find someplace else to worship’”
He laughs. “We were ready to
hear that and we were ready to
respond in ways that I think
were pastoral, faithful, and
appropriate.” But, he says, the
church staff was not prepared
for what happened: “We weren’t
prepared for the newly baptized
to say, If you don’t bring Tent
City to live on our front lawn,
we’re afraid we won’t be able to
stay with this congregation.
Because on our way into the
baptismal waters, you told us
that we would be washed to serve
the world and if we can’t do
that in this place, then we
believe God will call us to
another place where that is
possible.” The newcomers
insisted the church be, as Susan
recalls, “a spiritual community
that actually walks the walk.”
Needless to say, they hosted the
tent city. The experience
changed the way the congregation
practices justice.
Our Lord’s Great Commission calls us
to: “Go therefore and make
disciples of all nations,
baptizing them in the name of
the Father and of the Son and of
the Holy Spirit, and teaching
them to obey everything that I
have commanded you. And
remember, I am with you always,
to the end of the age.”
Our mission takes us out beyond the
walls of our churches into our
communities, into the lives of
our neighbors and their needs.
It involves risks. It involves
change. It involves love.
What mission is your congregation on
that involves these
things?
10/13
November 2013
ON MISSION
Pastor Blair Morgan, Director
for Evangelical Mission
One of the planning resources
that we offer to congregations
in our synod is Natural Church
Development. I think it is a
useful tool for congregations
who have done some mission
planning over the years, have a
helpful mix of ministries going
on, and are looking for a way to
evaluate their ministries and
take a new and stronger step
into the future.
Part of the process is for 30
active people in the
congregation and the pastor(s)
to take a survey regarding the
congregation’s ministries. These
surveys are processed through
the Lutheran Center in Chicago
and results are returned to the
congregation through their coach
(me or a member of our team).
The evaluation is built around 8
key characteristics that the
creator of this process,
Christian Schwarz, has
determined through a thorough
study of Christian congregations
across the world. The
characteristics are:
Empowering Leadership
> This is leadership where the
leader seeks to help those he or
she leads to be empowered into
the ministries to which they
feel called.
Gift-based Ministry
> This is where congregations
help people identify their gifts
and integrate them into
ministries that match their
gifts.
Passionate Spirituality
> This focuses not so much on a
particular “style” of
spirituality, but looking for
whether one’s spirituality is
lived out with commitment, fire
and enthusiasm.
Effective Structures
> Recognizing that church
organizational structures are
not an end in themselves, but a
means to the end of effective
ministry in the congregation.
Inspiring Worship Service >
This is a focus not on a
particular worship style, but
whether those that worship find
the experience inspiring,
renewing, strengthening to their
journeys with God.
Holistic Small Groups
> Most churches have small
groups of one sort or another.
This characteristic lifts up the
importance of those groups
providing community, practical
help for their daily lives and
intensive spiritual interaction.
Need-Oriented Evangelism
> This emphasizes the importance
of the needs and challenges of
the other person and not the
agenda of the person sharing
their faith. Does the evangelism
of the congregation share the
Gospel in words and actions that
respond to the needs encountered
in the lives of their neighbors.
Loving Relationships
> This looks at the
relationships between people in
the congregation and whether
they enjoy each other’s company
and find caring in the
relationships they have within
the congregation. Do they ever
spend time together outside the
life and ministry of the
congregation?
This tool helps a congregation
discern the characteristic in
which they are weakest. It then
seeks to help the congregation
address and strengthen that
weakness by using its other
strengths.
If this process sounds
interesting, please feel free to
give me a call and we can
discuss if Natural Church
Development might be a resource
to strengthen your
congregation’s ministry. (Office
Phone Number: 412-367-8222;
e-mail address:
blair.morgan@elca.org)
11/13
January 2014
ON MISSION
Pastor Blair Morgan, Director for
Evangelical Mission
Since there are some wonderful
mission resources on the
ELCA website (www.elca.org),
I would like to provide you with
specific directions to get to
this information and resources
that you may find helpful:
1.
Go to
www.elca.org
2.
Near the top, just below
the words “God’s work. Our
hands.,” there are six choices
and then the CAMPAIGN FOR THE
ELCA box and a GIVE box. The
six choices are: ABOUT; FAITH;
INTERACTIVE MAP; RESOURCES; NEWS
AND EVENTS; and OUR WORK.
3.
Place your mouse’s cursor
over RESOURCES. A Drop Down Box
appears and in the far left
column you will see two more
choices come up in blue:
Downloadable Resources; and
Items to Order.
4.
Click on Downloadable
Resources.
5.
You will arrive at a page
with over 50 categories of
possible resources that could be
useful to a congregation. BUT,
you are looking for Mission
related items. Below I provide
you with some suggested
categories to explore in
alphabetical order:
6.
Click on Advocacy
and find ways to speak out to
your elected officials and to
your congregation around public
issues. Click on
Congregational Based Organizing
and you find resources for you
to help your congregation be a
resource in your community to
organize and effect change on
problems being faced. Click on
Corporate Social
Responsibility and learn
ways that your congregation can
address and affect corporations
around public issues. Click on
Disability Ministry and
learn how your congregation
might be more effective in
relating with and ministering
with people with a disability.
Click on Global Church
Sponsorship and discover how
your congregation can connect
with and support mission work
across the world. Click on such
items as ELCA Good Gifts,
ELCA Malaria Campaign, ELCA
World Hunger, Justice for Women,
Lutheran Disaster Response,
Peace not Walls and
Racial Justice and discover
ways that your congregation can
be a part of outreach and
support of efforts to make a
difference in each of these
areas both domestically and
abroad. Click on Mission
Planning and discover
resources for your congregation
to develop a Mission Plan.
Included there is our own
synod’s resource called
Manual for Congregational
Mission Planning.
7.
Any problems or questions
regarding these resources?
E-mail your Director for
Evangelical Mission, Pastor
Blair Morgan, at
blair.morgan@elca.org.
Or, call me at the synod office
at: 412-367-8222.
1/14
February 2014
ON MISSION
Pastor Blair Morgan, Director for
Evangelical Mission
Often February is the month in
congregations when Congregation
Councils get reformed. Most
Annual Meetings are in January
and most congregational
elections are held at these
meetings. New people are voted
into office on the Congregation
Councils. The February meeting
can sometimes be a retreat, but
it will at least be a time to
distribute responsibilities as
new people come on board the
leadership team.
It is always helpful for
congregations to do some serious
thought about mission. Our
Outreach Committee of the synod
has been lifting up the Mission
Planning process that we created
a few years ago to help
congregations work through the
development of a mission plan.
We hope that your leadership
team would consider taking this
important step.
However, some situations may
just not be ready for such an in
depth process. Yet, there are
still questions about how a
Council and whatever
sub-committees may be
represented might take new steps
in mission in the coming year.
A simple technique that I have
found helpful is a little
process that I might call –
Evaluation and One New Step
Forward.
As your council, your team or
teams examine the key areas of
your congregation’s ministries –
Christian Education, Worship,
Outreach (some may split this
between social ministry and
evangelism), Fellowship,
Stewardship – it is important to
take time to evaluate what
happened last year and make sure
the key aspects are in place to
continue the ministries. It is
not unusual in congregations for
there to be little if any
evaluation of what took place,
whether the activity is still
important to continue, and how
it might be carried out in the
new year.
BUT, what also can be done is to
ask a very simple question: What
is one new ministry step that we
could take in 2014? Maybe it
could be an expansion in some
way of something that is already
being done well and could take a
new step. Maybe it is something
new that could touch some lives
with the Gospel in a way that
your congregation has never
tried before. We do not have to
do 5 new things in every area.
But, taking one new step brings
a refreshing challenge and a
stretching of ministry that can
often allow the Holy Spirit to
blow through the congregation in
a whole new way. New steps also
can provide opportunities for
new people to get involved. New
things are often more attractive
for new people to work with than
what already is entrenched in
the annual schedule of your
congregation.
Maybe this year your council or
your committees could try:
EVALUATION AND ONE NEW STEP
FORWARD!
You never know what God might do
as we try to listen and take a
new step in mission!
2/14
March 2014
ON MISSION
Pastor Blair Morgan, Director for
Evangelical Mission
I continue to learn about the
ministry and mission of the
Gospel through being a part of
our new start – Abiding
Ministries. Chris Rotella,
our Mission Developer,
encouraged the reading of a
number of books, one of which
was: Souls in the Hands of a
Tender God by Craig
Rennebohm. The book helped
me to begin to understand the
central goal of accompaniment
that Abiding is seeking to live
out and to encourage in new ways
across our synod and beyond.
An excerpt from the book could
help to understand “abiding with
– accompanying” as a ministry
model (page 99):
“Lo, I am always with you,” says
Jesus in the last verse of the
Gospel of Matthew: a personal,
human-being-to-human-being
expression of the infinite and
unceasing, tender Spirit of care
that holds us each no matter how
complex and difficult our
circumstances.
In companionship, we accompany
another as a living embodiment
of the creative, nurturing, and
grace-full love that is present
in every life. When I met
Karl at the jail, the Spirit of
God was already at work amid his
struggle. The Spirit was seeking
to foster Karl’s inmost
well-being by creating around
him a circle of support;
seeking, that is, to knit Karl,
in company with others, into a
fabric of care. I happened
to be available and present at
the moment when the circle of
support began to form.
This is how I saw my role in
Karl’s journey with the Spirit:
I wanted to honor Karl’s own
capacity to experience, explore,
initiate, and decide – reinforce
his fullest sense of becoming
whole. Wherever possible,
I wanted to join the activity of
the Spirit and amplify it.
If I could help prompt a
thought, clarify a choice, open
up a direction, assist with
Karl’s memory, or encourage him
to persist, this was how I could
be of use. In the act of
accompaniment, I sought to
understand how the Spirit moved
as, together, we – Karl
and I – were embraced by healing
and recovery.
All of us are part of the larger
spiritual network in each
other’s lives. All that we
embody or reflect of the Spirit
in our actions, words and
decisions has an impact on those
with whom we are sharing the
human journey...
“With” is such an essential word
in this ministry and mission
model. Often, ministry comes in
the form that doesn’t risk
change, as one person offers
something to another from some
detached position of
superiority. “With” brings
a certain vulnerability and a
valuing of what the other has to
offer that makes all the
difference in accompaniment.
The very presence of a human Son
of God in our midst is this –
his vulnerability, his walking
with, his willingness to lose.
The fact that the Bible speaks
of the Holy Spirit’s role as the
“paraclete” – one who comes
along side – is this.
I am continuing to learn, but I
hope that as you find different
ways of connecting to Abiding
Ministries that it is into
accompaniment that you find the
Holy Spirit’s challenge and
calling.
3/14
May 2014
ON MISSION
Pastor Blair Morgan, Director for
Evangelical Mission
I have begun my morning
half-hour walks with my good old
dog, Blazer. I do not walk in
winter, but it is finally
spring. I don’t particularly,
or at least initially, enjoy
these walks – although Blazer
does (she thinks we are hunting
squirrels). I know that it is
good for me. Now, as it becomes
a habit, the walks become more
enjoyable. I often see certain
people that I enjoy greeting
briefly. It becomes a physical
encouragement to beginning my
day. I pray. I enjoy the
beauty of God’s creation as my
neighbors begin their flower
plantings and as their annuals
spring up at the appointed
times. So, it takes some
commitment, but it turns into a
special blessing.
In one of my early walks I
realized this reality - just
doing it and finding that it
will grow to be the blessing it
needs to be – echoed a passage
from Mark Alan Powell’s
wonderful book, Loving Jesus
(Fortress Press). There, Powell
talked about his experience in
one of the early churches he
served of making calls on the “inactives.”
He shared that in those days he
was not aware of the opinions of
pastoral ministry experts that
these visits rarely result in
people returning. He just spent
a year listening and visiting
because he thought he was
supposed to. One of the things
he learned is shared on
pp.130-131:
For an entire year, I sat in
homes and listened to people
tell me why they had quit coming
to church. Of course, I looked
for patterns, but the reasons
were diverse: some people
thought the church was too
liberal (or too conservative);
some didn’t like the liturgy
(for example, the “new hymnal”);
some didn’t like the youth
program, or the way we did
Communion. People said, “I
wasn’t getting fed” or “I just
didn’t fell inspired” or “The
people weren’t very friendly” or
“I thought it was boring.” It
took me a while to find the
common denominator: everyone was
saying in some way, shape or
form, “I quit coming to church
because I wasn’t getting out of
it what I thought I should get
out of it.”
Now this struck me as odd. When
I was little, my mother used to
pile us in the car every Sunday
morning and drive us to church,
and she would say, “We are going
to worship God.” I always
thought that that was why
people went to church: to
worship God. But these inactive
members, apparently, did not
have mothers like mine, and they
had all somehow gotten the idea
that the reason one goes
to church is to get something
out of it. Frankly, as a child,
I’m not sure if I ever expected
to get anything out of it or
not. At any rate, that wasn’t
the point. “Six days a week,
God is good to us, “my mother
would say, “and on Sundays we
give thanks.”
Where do we get the idea that
what happens in church is about
us? It is the Lord’s
day. We go to worship the Lord.
Hmmm, I have found that regular
worship is the central weekly
event that lays the groundwork
for mission in my life.
Certainly, some mornings are
more inspirational than others.
But, I do find that as worship
is a faithful part of my weekly
routine, it is that which draws
me into the realization that
this life of ours is at its best
when it is about God.
This is the underlying meaning
of being disciples – God leads,
we follow where God leads us!
Mission is nurtured in faithful,
weekly worship. It’s about God.
5/14
June 2014
ON MISSION
Pastor Blair Morgan, Director for
Evangelical Mission
It seems like I am reading about
six books at once – and this is
not a recent experience, but a
way I have approached being a
pastor over many years. One of
the books, therefore, that I
have been “in” for a while is
Diana Butler Bass’
Christianity for the Rest of Us:
How the Neighborhood Church is
Transforming the Faith
(Harper One, 2006). It is likely
a book that some of you read a
long time ago. I am just getting
around to it.
I find her journey through about
10 congregations and her
learning’s from that journey
helpful. The signs of life she
found in these congregations
were shared in 10 chapters
headed in the following way:
Hospitality, Discernment,
Healing, Contemplation,
Testimony, Diversity, Justice,
Worship, Reflection, and Beauty.
Those headings are not something
she had in mind before she ever
walked through these
congregations and their
ministries. These were the
headings of chapters because it
was in these areas that she
witnessed life, energy,
inspiration and encouragement
for mainline congregations –
finding them not as doomed as
many like to predict.
Thus, as I have finished that
central portion of the book, it
has led me to wonder how these
particular aspects of ministry
are being lived out in our
congregations:
·
Hospitality
takes intentionality. It
means actually wanting new
people to feel welcome and
to have a place in the
ministry – even being
willing to see some changes
as they join in.
·
Discernment
implies that rostered and
lay leadership believe that
God is the leader of the
congregation and its
ministries. It means
leadership consistently
takes seriously working
toward living out God’s will
for the congregation.
·
Healing
is an interesting one, don’t
you think? Does our
congregation care about
healing – the physical,
mental and spiritual healing
of each person as needed? Do
we believe that, in the
Gospel, healing can take
place?
·
Opportunities for
Contemplation lead us
into a deeper sense of our
experience of God. It can
mean prayer. It can mean
Bible study. It can mean
training to deepen people’s
discipleship. But, it
matters to us that we go
deeper in our faith.
·
Testimony
is something that we hardly
talk about in our tradition.
Yet, she found that
congregations that gave
people an opportunity to
learn how to talk about
their faith and encouraged
that testimony had a
contagious vitality to their
ministry that she felt was
important. Hmmmm.
·
Diversity
matters – political,
theological, cultural,
racial, economic, etc.. If
we only want and welcome
people just like us our
future is not as promising.
Of course, also, that
approach of only wanting
people like us has little to
do with the call of the
Gospel!
·
Justice
is one of those words that
everyone is for, but often
there is only energy for it
if we have experienced
injustice. Yet, in the
Affirmation of Baptism
liturgy we hear the words,
and to strive for justice
and peace in all the earth.
Some congregations have
embraced this and found
vital ministry through
taking justice in the world
seriously.
·
Worship
is something that every
pastor believes that they do
well. I have rarely met a
pastor that believes that
preaching is NOT one of
their gifts and that worship
planning is NOT central to
their work. Yet, a lot of
worship is dreadful. We
easily blame our people and
their expectations and
approach to worship, but we
all have room for
improvement in this.
·
Reflection
is the opportunity for us to
look at our lives in a
faithful way of seeking to
be more of what God would
have us be. Do we do this
ourselves? Do we provide
ways for our people to
experience this in an
affirming, growing way?
·
Beauty
is the reality that we can
find great beauty in our
experience of God and we can
find God in the midst of
great experiences of beauty.
The arts can lead us into
the profound depths of God.
Creation has great ability
to take us deeper in our
journeys with
God. Are we providing our
people with experiences of
this beauty and/or allowing
them to share such
experiences?
Just some thoughts on a book and
our desires to be more of what
God would have us be as
disciples and as congregations.
6/14
July 2014
ON MISSION
Pastor Blair Morgan, Director for
Evangelical Mission
It has been five years now that
I have had the privilege of
serving as the Director for
Evangelical Mission (DEM) in our
synod. I have learned a
lot over that period of time and
I also hope that it has been a
period of opportunity for the
Lord to use the gifts that I
have in serving the
congregations and rostered staff
of the synod.
One of the things that I am sure
is still not understood is
exactly what my responsibilities
are as the DEM. The job
description under which I was
called involved about 3 - 4
pages of responsibilities.
I have often reduced that in
conversation to the phrase: “I
am a resource person provided by
the church-wide organization of
the ELCA to this synod for
support of mission and
stewardship to congregations and
rostered leaders.”
Recently, I found a nice summary
of the key responsibilities for
DEM’s. This list is now posted
on the door of my office at the
Synod Offices and also near my
desk. It seemed that it
might be a helpful reminder to
be shared in the ECHO as well.
The Eight Key Responsibilities
of a DEM:
As I have worked with our
Outreach Committee, our
Stewardship and Financial
Support Committee and our
Inclusiveness and Diversity
Committee we have found
opportunities to develop
resources and be at work in all
of these areas.
As you see this list, if there
is anything there that inspires
a conversation around mission
and stewardship, please call me.
I am ready and available to
address ministry needs in any of
these areas in the life of our
synod.
Synod Office phone: 412-367-8222
and my e-mail:
blair.morgan@elca.org.
7/14
September 2014
ON MISSION
Pastor Blair Morgan, Director for
Evangelical Mission
A couple of
months ago, I shared that I was
reading Diana Butler Bass’
Christianity for the Rest of Us:
How the Neighborhood Church is
Transforming the Faith
(Harper One, 2006). Well,
I finished the book!
I found her
journey through about 10
congregations and what she
learned from that journey
helpful. I shared the 10
chapter headings that
represented aspects of ministry
that were signs of life in the
mainline congregations that she
studied. They were:
Hospitality, Discernment,
Healing, Contemplation,
Testimony, Diversity, Justice,
Worship, Reflection, and Beauty.
Near the end of the book she
moves to sharing how she saw
these congregations involved in
the experiences of transforming
lives, transforming
congregations and transforming
the world. Tucked into the
chapter on transforming
congregations was this
insightful paragraph regarding
change (page 243):
In the churches along my way,
change was not gimmicky
innovation in search of cultural
relevance. Too often,
churches think that if they add
guitars to worship, put DVDs in
Sunday school rooms, or open a
food court in the foyer, new
people will join. This
kind of change smacks of market
tinkering – adjusting the
product to improve sales.
In my journey, churches changed
at a much deeper level and for
different reasons. In many
cases change was made inevitable
by numerical decline, financial
crisis, or neighborhood
transition. Spiritual
anxiety gripped the community,
pushing the congregation to
realize that it needed to be
different. Whether
threatened by spiritual boredom
or facing church closure, each
congregation had asked two
questions that sparked deep
change: Who are we? What
is God calling us to do?
They discovered a renewed sense
of identity and a clear purpose
in serving the world. They
experienced a change of heart
that transformed their communal
understanding of who God had
made them to be.
Who are we? What is God
calling us to do?
This congregational journey of
seeking to discern what God is
calling the congregation to do –
what is its mission – has been a
key piece of the work that I
have been doing with
congregations as the Director
for Evangelical Mission.
Our “Manual for Congregational
Mission Planning” that you can
find on our synod’s website (www.swpasynod.org)
has the subheading “Discerning
God’s Mission for Our
Congregation.” It is based
on three Listenings: Listening
to God – discerning our
identity, Listening to our
neighbors – discerning our
context, and Listening to our
own congregation – discerning
our purpose. Through these
three Listenings, a planning
team discovers key missional
objectives upon which to focus
over the next 2-3 years.
We are currently working with 7
congregations as they journey
through this mission discovery
process. We would love to
work with 7 more in the coming
months. If you would be
interested in exploring this
journey for your congregation
please call me at the synod
office (412-367-8222) or e-mail
(blair.morgan@elca.org).
9/14
October 2014
ON MISSION
Pastor Blair Morgan, Director for
Evangelical Mission
President Rick Barger of Trinity Lutheran Seminary in Columbus, Ohio
writes a weekly update from the seminary that I receive. Recently he
shared a story from his earlier days as a pastor:
"Up until a little over a
year ago, when I became Trinity's president, I served as a
congregational pastor. For years as a pastor, I began every gathering
with our middle and high school youth with a familiar litany. Whether
gathering as CIA (Confirmands in Action) on a Sunday afternoon or with a
mix of middle and high school youth at a weekend retreat at Camp
Lutheridge, we would begin this way:
Leader: Who are we?
All: The church!
Leader: Why are we here?
All: To be disciples!
Leader: What does the
church say?
All: He is risen!
Leader: What do we have
to offer?
All: Hope for the
world! "
It is a
brave thing to share something like this because my experience in the
life of the church is that many of us more easily find ways to dissect
and critique such sharing than appreciate it and adapt it for our own
ministry. I just thought, though, that this was an interesting regular
interaction for basic teaching those youth that had some Missional
roots.
It is
worth a try! Capture some key aspects of mission and ministry and
repeat them with your people in appropriate contexts on a regular basis.
Presiding Bishop Elizabeth Eaton has developed some key statements of
focus for our life together that she emphasizes in the many places that
she speaks in these early days of her service as our presiding bishop.
Have you seen them? Do you remember them?
·
We are church
·
We are
Lutheran.
·
We are church
together.
·
We are church
for the sake of the world.
Please
understand that this IS NOT an encouragement to dumbing down our
theology or mission to some catch phrases or to a bumper sticker
mentality. It is recognizing that key phrases can teach and inspire. I
think even Martin Luther recognized the possibilities! What about
something like:
·
Word Alone
·
Grace Alone
·
Faith Alone
·
Christ Alone
What
might your key phrases be? Just wondering?!
10/14
November 2014
ON MISSION
Pastor Blair Morgan, Director for
Evangelical Mission
We are moving into a season
where rostered leaders and
congregations are thinking about
having a Council Retreat. I am
often asked to be a resource for
these events or asked if I know
of some helpful resources for a
Council Retreat. Always
remember that Beth Caywood and
our Resource Center is another
source for ideas and leadership
around this aspect of leadership
development.
There is a new resource that has
been developed in the context of
the Book of Faith
materials. It is called
Story Matters: Naming, Claiming
and Living Our Biblical Identity.
You can find this resource at
www.bookoffaith.org. It is
featured on that title page with
the opportunity to click on
“Read more.” When you go to the
“read more” option, the booklet
is available as a .pdf file as
well as some additional
resources to help you lead this
process.
Story Matters
invites your group to
prayerfully work through a
process of choosing a particular
story of passage from Scripture
that would inspire and guide
your ministry as a congregation.
This could be used as a theme
for the year. It could be used
as an identity passage for your
congregation.
What if your congregational
leadership at all levels began
to live in and through a
particular scriptural passage
for a period of time? The key
here is a Dwelling in the
Word process that enables
your people to work again and
again with a passage in depth.
It invites them to live in the
passage rather than just have a
passage read briefly for just
one meeting with some quickly
shared thoughts and a prayer and
then moving on into the
“business” of the meeting.
What if your congregation took
on a deeper identity around the
Great Commission? Could the key
verbs of that passage inform the
active expression of your
ministries (go, make disciples,
baptize, teach)? Would it
always be helpful to be reminded
again and again of the presence
of Jesus within your meetings
and your ministries?
What if the story of the Parable
of the Good Samaritan became
your resource scripture? Could
the introduction of that story
around the two great love
commandments of Jesus provide
fruitful discussion again and
again? Could the story inspire
new perspectives around who YOUR
neighbors are and how YOUR
people might prove to BE
neighbors to them?
What stories or passages might
you seek to have your leaders
consider? What stories or
passages might they bring into
the conversation? Just the
discussion of how these biblical
options connect to your mission
and ministries could be
amazingly fruitful for grounding
your ongoing ministry in
scripture and centering it as a
journey in Christ.
The booklet and the resources
are such that you would be able
to lead through the process on
your own and adjust it to make
it your own. I know it can be
helpful to have an outside
person come into the leadership
discussion. This is a role that
I can serve if desired.
Mission planning centered on the
scriptures is absolutely worth
exploring. Please think and
pray about this as an option for
the coming year in your
congregation.
11/14
December 2014
ON MISSION
Pastor Blair Morgan, Director for
Evangelical Mission
I was recently given the
opportunity to see this blog
article of a non-scientific poll
of reasons why people do not
return for a second visit to
churches. I thought it was an
interesting discussion piece. It
was written by The Rev. Thom
Rainier, a Southern Baptist, and
can be found at this website
address:
http://thomrainer.com/2014/11/01/top-ten-ways-churches-drive-away-first-time-guests/.:
"If
you attend a church regularly,
you’ve probably noticed the
phenomenon. A guest shows up for
a worship service, but he or she
never returns. It is,
unfortunately, a common issue in
many churches.
I did a Twitter poll to ask
these first-time guests why they
chose not to return to a
particular church. While some of
the responses were anticipated,
I admit being a bit surprised
with some of them.
Though my poll is not
scientific, it is nevertheless
fascinating. Here are the top
ten responses in order of
frequency."
1.
Having a stand up and greet one
another time in the worship
service.
This response was my greatest
surprise for two reasons. First,
I was surprised how much guests
are really uncomfortable during
this time. Second, I was really
surprised that it was the most
frequent response.
2.
Unfriendly church members.
This response was anticipated.
But the surprise was the number
of respondents who included
non-genuine friendliness in
their answers. In other words,
the guests perceived some of the
church members were faking it.
3.
Unsafe and unclean children’s
area.
This response generated the
greatest emotional reactions. If
your church does not give a high
priority to children, don’t
expect young families to attend.
4.
No place to get information.
If your church does not have a
clear and obvious place to get
information, you probably have
lowered the chances of a return
visit by half. There should also
be someone to greet and assist
guests at that information
center as well.
5.
Bad church website.
Most of the church guests went
to the church website before
they attended a worship service.
Even if they attended the
service after visiting a bad
website, they attended with a
prejudicial perspective. The two
indispensable items guests want
on a website are address and
times of service. It’s just that
basic.
6.
Poor signage.
If you have been attending a
church for a few weeks, you
forget all about the signage.
You don’t need it any more. But
guests do. And they are
frustrated when it’s not there.
7.
Insider church language.
Most of the respondents were not
referring to theological
language as much as language
that only the members know. My
favorite example was: “The WMU
will meet in the CLC in the room
where the GAs usually meet.”
8.
Boring or bad service.
My surprise was not the presence
of this item. The surprise was
that it was not ranked higher.
9.
Members telling guests that they
were in their seat or pew.
Yes, this obviously still takes
place in some churches.
10.
Dirty facilities.
Some of the comments: “Didn’t
look like it had been cleaned in
a week.” “No trash cans
anywhere.” Restrooms were worse
than a bad truck stop.” “Pews
had more stains than a Tide
commercial.”
It seemed like an interesting
list and worth thinking about
and even talking about.
12/14
February 2015
ON MISSION
Pastor Blair Morgan, Director for
Evangelical Mission
Recently I was invited to lead a
Council Retreat around teamwork
and developing a team. The
following was a part of what I
presented that I thought could
be helpful in this time of year
as councils, committees and
teams recruit new members for
their work:
SOME THINGS TO DO TO CREATE A
TEAM:
·
PRAY
– No, really, pray! This
is God’s work and God wants this
to be something meaningful and
fulfilling in your life and the
lives of those with whom you
will work. God is on your
side in this.
o
Pray for guidance to think of
people with the gifts to do the
work that you have ahead and
with whom you can work, but the
GIFTS part is more important.
This is not just go find a
friend and guilt them into
helping you because you need
someone with whom to work.
o
Create a list of a few people –
more than you would need.
§
Are there people that are not
usually asked that you could
recruit?
§
Would there be a youth that
could be included for this task?
§
Talk with the pastor if you are
having trouble coming up with
alternatives.
·
ASK
– Explain to this person that
you are responsible for this
aspect of ministry in the
congregation – you have prayed
and feel that they have some
gifts to help with this in the
coming year or for this
particular project – give them
time to pray and think about
what they should do.
o
Accept their answer and thank
them.
o
A NO is as good as a YES because
you want to find those that are
able and willing to be about the
ministry.
·
INCLUDE
– If you bring people on to the
team, give them things to do as
you work at your ministry
responsibilities
o
If they miss a meeting or an
event, make sure they know when
the next meeting soon after the
meeting date is set, so that
they do not end up “out of the
loop.”
·
CELEBRATE
– Whatever event, work, ministry
you are about, make sure you
share with the congregation what
took place and how God was at
work!
o
Share who all worked on the
project, event, ministry.
o
Have some pictures taken and
post them out here in the
gathering area.
o
Have someone write up a
newsletter article about what
took place.
·
Remember that you are all in
this together and that you are
working with real people who are
sinners just like you.
They can forget things.
They can say awkward things.
They can do some things not as
well as you might have done
them.
o
The better you are at being
patient with these things, the
better they will be at being
patient with you when you
forget, or say something awkward
or are not able to do something
as well as they might.
o
THIS IS GOD’S WORK AND PEOPLE
MATTER.
2/15
March 2015
ON MISSION
Pastor Blair Morgan, Director for
Evangelical Mission
WITH
There is a very important word
that is a key focus of Abiding
Ministries, our Synod Authorized
Worshiping Community that works
WITH people experiencing
homelessness and poverty,
especially in the greater
downtown area of Pittsburgh.
Yes, WITH is the word.
A word that is often used to
describe this approach to
ministry is “accompaniment,” but
the most important word that
must become part of our
understanding as we work
together to be a part of this
ministry is “WITH.”
Over many years in
congregational ministry, I have
been a part of teams that take
food to shelters and had even
served as a volunteer chaplain
at a shelter for about 15 years.
I have experienced 99% of the
time teams that bring food
ready-made, distribute the food
with a small amount of
conversation as it is
distributed, and then do a quick
clean-up and leave. As part of
some of the those teams, I have
felt like I had accomplished
something special in ministry
and was impressed with the
appreciation I heard from those
men (it was a men’s shelter) for
what we were doing. All of this
was ministry “TO” people
experiencing homelessness and
poverty.
What happens with Abiding is
different. The food is fixed in
Trinity Lutheran’s kitchen with
a combination of those providing
the food and those coming for
the meal and fellowship.
Everyone works together to set
up the tables. Everyone works
together to pass out the food.
Everyone SITS together to eat
the food and talk about their
life journeys. Everyone works
together to clean up after the
meal. It is a journey “WITH”
each other rather than a doing
“for” or “to” those people.
“WITH” has become a very special
word for me. I have learned a
lot as I have participated from
time to time in the Day Shelter
events we are sponsoring during
very cold days over the winter
(If the daily high does not pass
19 degrees, we hold a Day
Shelter.)
I write this because our synod
congregations have been
blessings in providing clothing,
sleeping bags, tents, and
toiletry items. Some have taken
the extra step and come and
provided a breakfast or a lunch
or both for the weekly Thursday
Fellowship or the Day Shelters
(more are needed, by the way).
Some have provided financial
donations so that we can provide
food on the days no food teams
come and so that we can provide
other support items as they
arise and are immediately
needed. This can include bus
tickets, some clothing items not
available through donations,
rent support in certain
situations, and various other
unpredictable things that arise
in the lives of people
economically on the edge of our
society.
This ministry has grown and
could not have grown without all
that you have done and continue
to do.
But, please realize that an
encounter WITH Abiding
Ministries is an opportunity to
be on a journey WITH people in
this challenging time in their
lives. WITH is a word that also
transcends ministry to people in
poverty. It is actually a key
aspect of the INCARNATION and of
a key name of Jesus – EMMANUEL,
GOD WITH US.
We would love to have more of
you come and be WITH us on this
journey. Thank you so much!
3/15
May 2015
ON MISSION
Pastor Blair Morgan, Director for
Evangelical Mission
I was recently in a conversation
with a cross-section of
interested people from a
congregation about their
congregation’s challenges.
Some of them were on their
congregation council and some
were people involved in other
ways. At one point a
gentleman shared some thoughts
that I heard in this way: “My
family has just been coming here
for less than a year. We
have enjoyed the congregation
and our relationships within it.
Our kids have gotten involved
and been welcomed. I have
enjoyed the pastor’s ministry
here. I have been active
in other Lutheran congregations
over the years and have been
just observing over this time.
It seems to me that this
congregation just doesn’t yet
know what it wants to aim at.
I think if it took aim it could
really make a difference in
something.” This comment
was well received and helped
further the conversation that I
wanted to lead.
As the Director for Evangelical
Mission, I was greatly elated at
this comment. It came from
someone who had newly chosen to
be a part of the congregation.
It came from someone who had
children. It came from
someone else’s mouth besides my
own. And, it was spot on!
It is not unusual for both
pastors and lay leaders to think
that everybody knows what our
mission is – what we are aiming
to be about as a church.
We worship. We fellowship.
We teach. We minister
within and beyond our
congregation. Isn’t
obvious? We do church
stuff!
Aiming is an essential aspect in
hitting a target or goal.
An old saying goes, “Aim at
nothing and you generally hit
it!”
This is why we have been
encouraging Congregational
Mission Planning in our synod.
We can be very busy and end up
not accomplishing effectively
what our congregation is being
called by God to accomplish in
mission. It is possible
for congregations to just spin
their wheels and not really get
anywhere.
Mission is about impact upon the
needs and challenges of your
community. It is about
people finding themselves caught
up in the discipleship journey
of faithfully following Jesus
and being fulfilled in that
journey.
Living out this mission requires
prayer and discernment. It
takes seriously that God is
interested in matching the gifts
of a congregation with the
challenges of the community in
which they exist.
We have resources available to
help congregations on this
journey of mission discernment.
It is a helpful process that
enables a congregation to aim
its mission faithfully.
If this seems like a journey
upon which your congregation
needs to travel, please give me
a call at the synod office
(412-367-8222) or e-mail me at
blair.morgan@elca.org.
Our Outreach Committee is ready
to help you into this exciting
time of discernment.
5/15
June 2015
ON MISSION
Pastor Blair Morgan, Director for
Evangelical Mission
I was hungry and you formed a group
To discuss my hunger.
THANK YOU.
I was imprisoned and you crept off
quietly
To your chapel to pray for my release.
NICE.
I was naked and in your mind you
debated
The morality of my appearance.
WHAT GOOD DID THAT DO?
I was sick and you knelt and thanked
God
For your health.
BUT I NEEDED YOU.
I was homeless and you preached to me
Of the shelter of the love of God.
I WISH YOU’D TAKEN ME HOME.
I was lonely and you left me alone to
pray for me.
WHY DIDN’T YOU STAY?
You seem so holy, so close to God; but
I’m still
Very hungry, lonely, cold and still in
pain.
DOES IT MATTER?
ANONYMOUS
6/15
July 2015
ON MISSION
Pastor Blair Morgan, Director for
Evangelical Mission
“If you are not reaching out to
your immediate neighborhood, you
will die.”
This was a sentence that was
part of a recent conversation
with someone in my office.
It was not expressed about a
person, but expressed regarding
a congregation. I am not
sure whether I said it or they
said it, but it was so useful I
wrote it down.
So what do you think?
Where is the truth in this
statement? Are there
exceptions? Should there
be? Should we go
immediately to the exceptions or
think a bit about how it might
powerfully apply?
We have congregations in our
synod who know very few people
in the immediate neighborhood in
which their church building
sits. It is often because
most of the congregation is no
longer from that local community
and they do not know anyone that
lives there. Sometimes the
community is of a different
economic stratum.
Sometimes the neighborhood is of
a different racial or ethnic mix
than the most of the
congregation. And,
sometimes it is just because the
congregation is so busy with its
own “stuff” that connecting to
the neighborhood has not really
ever been attempted in an
intentional way.
Sometimes our buildings are
somewhat separated from any
particular neighborhood by
businesses or just the geography
of the location. Should we
then work a little harder to
discern what neighborhood would
see themselves as connected to a
congregation meeting in a church
building at that location?
Maybe it is on a key route to
the shopping area from a
neighborhood. Maybe we
host a community group in which
the majority of those
participants are from a
particular neighborhood close
by.
It is the rare mainline
congregation that is able to
live as a “destination church.”
Many of our people do drive
distances and pass other
congregations of their own
denomination to worship at a
distant one. But, the vast
majority of those people do so
out of loyalty to that building
and group of people with whom
they have worshipped for many
years – maybe their whole life.
When that generation begins to
die off or finds the distance
too difficult to navigate, our
congregations dwindle quickly.
If no effort has been made to
reach people nearby, the
congregation is dying and will
finally close.
Yes, there are exceptions for
exceptional congregations of
powerful, Gospel ministry.
But, powerful Gospel ministry is
worth the trip. Interestingly
enough, most powerful, Gospel
ministries are invested in their
local neighborhoods in one way
or another. Just saying!
It may be worth taking a look at
who is active in the life of
your congregation and how far
they travel to get to your
building.
Or, you may totally disagree
with this premise. Please,
let’s talk. I would love
to learn from you around that
conversation and your
perspective.
7/15
September 2015
ON MISSION
Pastor Blair Morgan, Director for
Evangelical Mission
Below is a recent article from
Luther Seminary’s Center for
Stewardship Leaders. You may
think that I put this under the
wrong heading, but it is a
powerful reminder that mission
can be accomplished in new and
creative ways. We are seeing
this through Abiding Ministries
and Community Three for One in
our synod and this stands as a
reminder to all of us to be
thinking outside the box when it
comes to mission.
The 2007-2008 financial crisis
was a particular shock to our
collective consumptive systems.
From what I saw, average giving
and membership often dropped as
people coped with financial
losses. Congregations struggled
to pay for facilities, staff,
and programs expanded prior to
the crisis.
However, a number of promising
cultural patterns have emerged
out of the crisis, including: a
rise in
social enterprise
- using commercial
strategies and social
collaboration for the sake of
neighbor and community - and the
emergence of
access economy
- the practice of
collaboratively trading goods
and services on the basis of
availability and need.
LydiaPlace Collaborative Communities
is a new ELCA mission start in
Saint Paul, Minnesota, dedicated
to exploring how collaboration
through social enterprise and
access economics can provide a
basis for resourcing new
Christian community.
In its context (a primarily
warehouse/industrial district
being transformed into a
multi-cultural creative
enterprise zone), Lydia has
intentionally focused on
building collaborative
relationships with like-minded
organizations and community
leaders. Some are distinctly
secular; others even skeptical
of the church. Yet, we have
united around shared social
concerns (social enterprise) by
sharing excess capacities
(access economy). What’s more,
some of these collaborations
have reduced the strain on
Lydia’s limited financial
capacity by providing low-cost
or free resources to the
ministry.
A few examples include:
-
A local brewpub provides
space for a Lydia sponsored
co-working community, at no
charge, during non-serving
hours. The community offers
professional (and spiritual)
support to self-employed,
entrepreneurial, and/or
“differently officed” people
at a minimal cost. Lydia
manages and promotes
co-working sessions and
provides high speed internet
and other resources. In
return, the brewpub gets
exposure to a new customer
base.
-
Lydia sponsors Hymntap, a
monthly beer and hymn event
at another pub. Hymntap
brings new patrons to the
pub, and Lydia provides
fellowship for hymn fans
while proclaiming the Good
News through song to people
who may never otherwise
interact with the church.
-
Wednesdays, at noon, Lydia
leads a public ecumenical
prayer service in a local
park. The relationships
built there are opening
avenues for collaboration
with other local churches,
businesses, organizations
and ventures.
-
Lydia is preparing to begin
public worship at a new art
gallery space. There’s no
charge to use the space.
Lydia brings new people
into the gallery as well as
providing chairs and tables
for the gallery’s use.
These are but a few examples;
more opportunities emerge
weekly. In order to respond
faithfully, Lydians actively
engage in missional discernment
and strategic practices (see
Dwight Zscheile’s book, The
Agile Church) in order to
be able to emphatically and
confidently say “yes” to new
opportunities as they arise.
Although co-working income and
monthly gifts from supporters
more than offset operational
costs, the margin is slim.
Lydia remains open to new
collaborations and
opportunities, and always to the
work of the Spirit in its midst.
9/15
October 2015
ON MISSION
Pastor Blair Morgan, Director for
Evangelical Mission
It is a very special time for
mission in the life of The
Church, and of the Evangelical
Lutheran Church in America and
for the Southwestern
Pennsylvania Synod. New
opportunities are arising for
congregations and faithful
Christians to be Christ into the
needs and challenges of their
neighbors.
How might you and/or your
congregation reach out into your
neighborhood with the love and
grace of Jesus our Lord?
This is not what was once a
question of pushing the
Christian theological salvation
agenda onto an unsuspecting
family member, friend, neighbor
or acquaintance. This is being a
caring listener with an
understanding that Christ and
the Gospel can provide strength,
hope, comfort and direction in
people’s lives.
But the mission is built around
the grace and love of the
Gospel. It is built around going
out and caring, walking WITH,
listening and hearing what is
going on in a person’s life
journey.
This expands for a congregation
in terms of going out and
listening to the challenges and
needs of a community and being
willing to take steps into those
challenges because of the grace
and love that is ours in Jesus
Christ.
What particularly makes this
time special is that
congregations and people are
doing this in very creative and
non-traditional ways across our
country.
House churches are springing up
as small, but powerful,
gatherings of faithful
Christians seeking to live out
the Gospel.
Pub ministries are being
developed where people gather
for Bible study and even worship
in the context of a local pub.
Feeding ministries are springing
up all over the place that are
providing free meals and caring
fellowship with the hope of
seeing opportunities for God’s
grace and the Gospel to grow
within and among the people
gathered.
How might you and/or your
congregation reach out into your
neighborhood with the love and
grace of Jesus our Lord?
Disciples grow in their faith
through reaching out.
Congregations grow in their
ministries through reaching out.
BUT, the growth comes in losing
one’s own needs and agendas and
walking WITH those one
encounters on the mission.
How might you and/or your
congregation reach out into your
neighborhood with the love and
grace of Jesus our Lord?
10/15
November 2015
ON MISSION
Pastor Blair Morgan, Director for
Evangelical Mission
There is no fear in love, but
perfect love casts out fear -
I John 4:18a
I recently read some responses
from Directors for Evangelical
Mission from across the ELCA to
questions around Area Mission
Strategies. This term is the
way staff with the ELCA talk
about combinations of
congregations working to be
involved in mission together in
a particular context.
A question was raised regarding
what often keeps congregations
from doing more of this working
together across congregational
lines and relationships. There
were multiple responses, but I
found it interesting that a key
word in so many of them was
“fears.” These fears were
expressed in many different ways
and with words other than fear,
but it interested me that this
word did pop up pretty
frequently from different parts
of the country.
It made me think. It is hard to
overcome our fears of what might
be: fears of change; fears of
losing what we have always
known; fears of having to work
with new people that we do not
know.
It seems easier to just keep
things the way they are. BUT,
it is false to think that things
STAY the way they are. Thus, we
often live in changing
circumstances because we were
afraid to move into something
new that might have required
change! Nothing really stays
the same. But, we are often
desperate to try to keep it the
way it has always been.
The verse above came to mind as
I was thinking about this.
“Perfect love casts out fear.”
Even in contexts where people
try to take new steps, it seems
that we rarely lift up that it
was love was the driving force –
God’s deep, faithful, costly
love for us inspiring us to risk
and try something new. It often
is that love, but it is not
something that easily arises in
our language about what took
place.
Love requires risk. It requires
investment – commitment. “Love
is patient. Love is kind.” Love
“bears all things, believes all
things, hopes all thinks,
endures all things.” (I
Corinthians 13)
I think giving into fear turns
out to be easier. It requires
less of those costly things. It
can even feel like we are doing
the right thing.
As one goes just a little
further in I John we find an
even more famous sentence, “We
love because he first loved us.”
God can lovingly inspire us
into a love that can take us
beyond our fears.
Love is hard and can be costly.
Yet, love also yields a deeper
experience of life and
relationships that fear does not
allow.
I am just wondering if there are
times when we just need to see
that the harder thing, the more
uncertain thing, the more risky
thing may actually be the loving
thing and that to which God’s
love for us is calling us.
I am just wondering and would be
glad to talk further about this
with anyone and hear your
thoughts about fear and love.
11/15
December 2015 - January 2016
ON MISSION
Pastor Blair Morgan, Director for
Evangelical Mission
Recently, we placed on the
Southwestern Pennsylvania
website many of these articles
that have been written by me
over the last six years around
mission and stewardship.
You may access these Microsoft Word
documents by going to our
website:
www.swpasynod.org, and
clicking on “Resources,”
“Mission and Stewardship Tools,”
and then following the links to
the lists of articles. Or, here
is a direct link to the main
Mission and Stewardship Tools
page:
http://www.swpasynod.org/resources/mission-and-stewardship-tools.
Click the live links on that
page for the various resources
you are interested in.
There are 46 articles around
stewardship under six categories
and 54 articles around mission
under six categories.
As far as mission, the six categories
are:
·
Evangelism
·
Helpful book suggestions
on Mission
·
Inspirational articles
around Mission
·
Mission Planning
·
Resources for Mission
·
Scripture around Mission
Some articles that you might find
helpful include:
·
Why People Don’t Return to
a Congregation after a
First Visit
·
Mission in a Culture that
Sees Scarcity
·
Praying with Expectation
·
More Ideas for Reaching
Out into Your
Neighborhood
·
William Passavant and
Mission
·
Mission and the Importance
of WITH
·
Mission – Basic Planning 1
·
Mission Scripture and
Prayer
·
Finding Resources for
Mission on the ELCA
website
As you look for ideas to share with a
committee or for articles to
include in your newsletter, I
hope this library of articles
proves helpful to your mission
work!
12/15
February 2016
ON MISSION
Pastor Blair Morgan, Director for
Evangelical Mission
Mission articles take many forms.
This Mission article is
actually all about a form. It
is the report form that all ELCA
congregations are asked to
complete that updates basic
statistics and other
information.
This is not exciting stuff, these
forms!
Most people experience them as
difficult and time consuming.
Often we can find more
important things to work on –
sometimes this is true and
sometimes we find we will just
work on anything so that we do
not have to face a form.
But there is mission in these forms
and that is what I want to lift
up.
When someone wants to know more about
your congregation, one of the
places they can go is
www.elca.org. In the top
right corner of that home page
there is a little phrase that
states: “Find a Congregation.”
Anyone can go there and search
for information regarding any
congregation in the ELCA. One
of the options is “Full Trend
Report for this congregation.”
The Full Trend Report reveals the
information that your
congregation has reported over
the last seven years. If you
have not reported anything, then
it just shows all the same
numbers year after year. If
someone is seeking to learn more
about your congregation because
they want to visit, this implies
you really do not have anything
to share. It can imply that
nothing is happening or that
things are so bad that you are
afraid to report them. It can
imply that your congregation is
administratively irresponsible.
Thus, it does not put your best foot
forward to those interested in
your congregation.
Those reports are now due. Someone in
your congregation has the report
form on their desk. There are
even some new and exciting
questions about congregational
life that are asked this year.
For the sake of mission, make sure you
fill out the form!
2/16
March 2016
ON MISSION
Pastor Blair Morgan, Director for
Evangelical Mission
Mission requires a certain
nimbleness that institutions
have a hard time supplying.
Mission arises as the needs of
people are discovered through
personal encounters.
Someone sees a need and is
willing to say, “Why can’t we
reach out there and help?”
Who can go and walk with this
person and hear what their
challenges are and learn how we
can respond?
The institutional context tends
to reply with such thoughts as:
Well, what if the challenges are
greater than we can meet?
What if the relationship is
awkward? What if we are
not equal to the task in some
way and someone from our group
says or does something
inappropriate? If
something goes wrong, will our
insurance cover it? We are
having enough just trying to
meet our own budget – keep the
lights on, pay the heating bill,
cover the costs for the pastor.
And then, someone may say
something like, “I think we can
do this. I will look into
it. It seems like God is
calling us to respond. I
can ask _______ and _______ to
help me and we can explore and
figure this out.”
When that kind of statement
arises within the institutional
cautions, ministry begins to
happen.
It generally takes someone
willing to say, “I think we can
do this. I will look into
it.”
It could be the pastor, but it
rarely is the pastor that ends
up inspiring a whole new
ministry. It is often
someone of the congregation
willing to say, “I think we can
do this. I will look into
it.” The pastor is often a
key supporter in the looking
into. The pastor can speak
a word of support into the
context of the institution that
can break down barriers and open
up possibilities. But, it
is someone of the congregation
with a willing heart, moved by
the Holy Spirit, willing to “go
the extra mile” as Jesus said
that enables mission.
It is the caring person that
enables the nimbleness required
to do ministry. It is the
caring person that can enable
the institution to respond.
It is the personal relationships
that arise and the stories of
what God is doing and is ready
to do that make the difference.
Institutions have their place.
They need not be evil and in the
way. But, generally, they
need to be moved into action by
people – people inspired by the
Holy Spirit and willing, in
Christ, to go the extra mile of
investment to make a difference
in the name Christ.
Mission happens. It
requires a nimbleness of heart
and faith by someone to move the
institution. Maybe you
might be that someone that God
is moving right now in your
congregation!
3/16
June 2016
ON MISSION
Pastor Blair Morgan, Director for
Evangelical Mission
Please think about the following
model of the aging process of a
congregation and where your
congregation might find itself.
Your Synod Outreach Committee is
able to provide ongoing
resources for all congregations,
but especially to congregations
that find themselves on the
right side of this arrow. We
want to help you to be moving
back into the Creative Formation
area on the left.
6/16
October 2016
ON MISSION
Pastor Blair Morgan, Director for
Evangelical Mission
What would happen in the life of
your congregation or even your
Congregation Council if the
question was asked: What is the
Rationale for why our
congregation is here? Why do we
exist? What if someone said,
“That’s dumb! Everybody knows
why we’re here. It’s …” Then,
someone else said, “Well, yeah,
but what about …?” Then, a
conversation arose around the
purpose for your ministry! That
would seem pretty valuable and
worthwhile.
What if then it was asked, “What
Objectives might we identify to
accomplish this rationale or
purpose?” What do we seek to
accomplish to be about that
mission? Some might say, “Well,
we do what all churches do! We
worship. We have a building.
We teach the faith and stuff.”
What if a further conversation
arose around what the key
objectives for your ministry
work might be?
What if then it was asked, “What
strategies might we develop to
accomplish those objectives?”
What do we do to be about those
key things that make us a
faithful Lutheran Christian
congregation? How might we
improve on what we are doing or
expand it?
What if then, finally, someone
wondered, “Do we ever evaluate
the ministries which live out?”
Do we ever ask the questions:
How did it go? Could we have
improved on what we did? Should
this be continued and why or why
not?
It has been my experience as the
Director for Evangelical Mission
over these 7 years that most of
our congregations do not think
about these key questions very
often, if ever. We tend to just
try to keep doing the stuff we
have always done. We tend to
expect the people who have led
those things to continue doing
them until they just absolutely
quit, or even sad to say, die!
A few of our congregations have
sought ways to do some specific
planning. Some have used
resources that we provide
through the synod. Some have
resources that they have found
on their own.
At our recent Synod Assembly, a
memorial was passed to create a
pilot project to encourage
congregations to use the ROSE
process as a resource for
planning and focusing their
mission. ROSE stands for
Rationale, Objectives,
Strategies and Evaluation. What
I have described above is the
kind of thinking that we believe
could be a simple and helpful
step for many of our
congregations to take for better
focusing their mission.
A team is working to create a
ROSE process for congregations
interested in something that
might strengthen their
ministries. More will be coming
out about this in the next month
or so, but it seemed important
to start the thinking now. Why
is our congregation here?
10/16
