Making Disciples for the
Transformation of the World
Salem's Plan Presented to
the 2005 Church Conference
Describe the
"disciple-making" plan you are currently implementing or that you hope
to implement in the near future.
"Making Disciples" conjures visions that today's over-extended,
hyper-active human beings can be re-manufactured into disciples through
some process or program. "Disciple-making" is about transformation,
not production. It is our understanding therefore, that individuals
become disciples primarily when they have an opportunity to witness for
themselves the love of God through the actions of another.
Our
current "plan" is to provide a variety of opportunities for members and
non-members of our congregation to show the love of God by encouraging
participation in a wide variety of outreach programs. Salem has an
extensive missions program. Salem is the home of the Olive Branch
Gift Shop which provides an outlet for artisans in developing countries to
sell their products and sells coffee from a cooperative farm in Nicaragua.
We are organizing a work trip and collection of Christmas gifts for the
people whose lives have been devastated by Hurricane Katrina. We
serve meals and provide entertainment for Miryam's Place, which ministers
to disadvantaged women in Pittsburgh. We serve a Thanksgiving meal
to persons in the community, which this year will double the number of
people who are being helped. These programs help us to connect with
our community. We have found that people who are looking for
churches are interested in participating in these types of mission
programs.
We
also have a coffee house which periodically provides live jazz
entertainment. Salem operates a preschool with over 130 children
that is well-known in the community. We are continuing to build
relationships with these families through cooperative missions programs
and the presence of the pastor and lay persons in the life of the school.
We
understand also that an opportunity to share life's struggles is an
extremely important component of discipleship formation. To struggle
with the questions is more important than being given "the answer".
A spiritual journey can not be taken alone, and thus we offer a variety of
Christian educational and care experiences that encourage and support the
concept of a shared journey.
We
offer Sunday School for all ages and a youth group for people in grades
7-12. The pastor regularly offers weekday Bible study opportunities.
We work to keep these classes open and invite new people to participate.
We have a Caring Angels group that responds to needs of persons who are in
need of support. We are exploring the Stephen Ministries program.
We
recognize that it is difficult to encourage discipleship in a monetarily
affluent community which at the same time suffers from sever time poverty.
Salem is no longer a "country" church. We find ourselves surrounded
by non-denominational enterprises with significant resources and a
simplistic theology. These church are attractive because they seem
to offer easy answers instead of a commitment to a disciple's journey.
The
most important step we can take to improve our disciple-making efforts is
to better understand who we are as a congregation and the unique gifts,
strengths and weaknesses we have. During the coming year, we will
explore the Igniting Ministries program, Natural Church Development
information and outside congregational assessment services with the aim to
develop a more focused plan for 2006, a plan that will maximize the time,
talent and resources of Salem for disciple-making.
There are, however, some more immediate steps that we will be taking to
increase membership and worship attendance. Our Receiving Team is
implementing procedures that will enable us to be more intentionally
welcoming to visitors. We will be working to improve our signage.
What system is being put in
place in order to support the disciple-making process?
Using the terms "system" and "disciple-making process" in the same
sentence completely fail to recognize the spiritual concept of
transformation with respect to discipleship. The only "system" we
are putting in place is a revision to the cumbersome and unproductive
organizational structure dictated by the Discipline in prior years.
Following the new guidelines, the Council and the supporting components
have been reorganized over the past two years to improve leadership
development, communication, program focus and efficiency in managing the
physical and financial resources of the church. We now have a Rapid
Ministry Teams that address short-term needs and crisis. Of
particular note has been the work of our Lay Leadership Team which has
been able to encourage an increasing level of participation and leadership
within the new structure.
We
are not planning on putting into place a "system" to count disciples or
measure "disciple-making" success. The goal of our organizational
structure is to identify, encourage, nurture and support an individual's
call to share God's love through their unique gifts and talents.
It
is our opinion that this approach best follows Jesus example with his own
disciples.
What fruits of
disciple-making are currently evident in your local church? Where
do you see or anticipate transformation taking place in your local
church/community as a result of your disciple-making plan?
The
fruits of discipleship are as diverse as the gifts of the individual
disciples. Evidence can be found in the following:
-
This congregation displays a strong willingness to serve beyond Salem's
doors, references the mission efforts described above.
-
Salem has an inordinate representation within the District and Annual
Conference relative to it's size.
-
Salem members (disciples) are active in community peace making and
efforts to build a more tolerant and racially inclusive community.
-
The church sponsors a scouting program and provides facilities for two
Alcoholics Anonymous groups and a food bank.
-
The church operates a pre-school open to all community children.
-
Adult education participation has grown and is producing deeper and more
caring personal prayer-based relationships.
It
is difficult to anticipate the fruit of the spirit. Seeds planted as
a result of education, mission, worship and prayer produce fruit in due
season and usually in unexpected places. Our plan is to watch for
and encourage signs of transformation in individual members and within the
community, supporting growth and change wherever it appears.
What measurable goals are you
setting as a result of this disciple-making plan?
We
will track the following indicators of participation:
-
Number of contacts made by the Receiving Team
-
Number of individuals trained by Igniting Ministries
-
Percentage of pledging units to total family membership units
-
Percentage of members attending worship
-
Percentage of member participation in educational activities
-
Number of participants in the Conference camping program
-
Number of times Salem is mentioned in local media
What measurements are you
willing to be held accountable for?
We
will work to show an Increase in the number of new participants in the new
organizational structure of the church 2005 vs. 2006. We will work
to increase worship attendance and membership.
How are the poor, the
children, and those on the margins being incorporated into the Body of
Christ in your local church?
We
are developing a partnership with the Church of Our Savior in Northview
Heights, which is in its initial phase, and providing musical and other
events for Miryams on a regular basis directly addresses providing for the
poor, the children and the marginalized. A very recent development
is a potential partnership with a preschool at Bethany House in Northview
Heights, which is being administered by the United Methodist Church Union.
Salem has initiated a Thanksgiving dinner for needy individuals in the
North Hills area and, in conjunction with other churches, plans to more
than double the number of people served.
Salem's Olive Branch gift shop works with SERRV to provide an outlet for
the products of individuals in poverty stricken areas throughout the world
and invests excess revenue in local mission projects.
