A Soul Seeking…GROWTH in COMMUNITY

 A Soul Seeking…GROWTH in COMMUNITY

“The Church understands that classrooms, families, and communities all provide places for learning…to guide faithful discipleship.”

                                                                                Dean G. Blevins & Mark A. Maddix

Ministry Diagnosis: Our Local Context

The five ministries of the Church serve as a helpful framework for exploring the Practical Theology tasks. The first task that we explored in the congregational exegesis was the WHAT. Through this exploration I was able to identify who I am in the various ministry contexts that I serve through, the current condition of the congregation that I serve and serve in community with, and how this local congregation implicitly and explicitly lives out worship, fellowship, preaching, teaching, and service. The second Practical Theology task involves exploring WHY we do what we do as a local congregation. Specifically, what factors influence historically and currently how we live out this five ministries individually and as a congregation.

 

Historical Precedents

Africans and African Americans have historically found their faith and spiritual voice in leiturgia or worship. Whether through singing, instrumentation, and or dancing it has been the historic practice that the body was used holistically as an instrument of worship to God. The general acceptance of all these various forms of worship in our current ministry context is a reflection of this historic rootedness.  The implicit message is that it is important for this whole-being worship to be transmitted through the current and into the future generations. This messaging is reflected in how our youth and children are drawn into and valued as necessary contributors to all these forms of worship. Children and youth are called to sing and lead others (adults) in singing, play melody with their instruments to echo God love, and dance with joy with the task of leading the congregation in whole-being worship.

Denominational Commitments

Our denominational identity is one of the strongest influences on the reason for why we live out these five ministries in the manner that we do. The African Methodist Episcopal Church has a framework for living out ministry called the Doctrine and Discipline. The resource book contains extensive guidelines for organizational structures and frameworks for liturgy that are utilized to some degree throughout all the churches with the connection globally. The ministries of worship and fellowship are two aspects that reveal the strong influence of African Methodism in our local context. We utilize the order of worship prescribed by the Doctrine and Discipline each Sunday that includes a unified Call to Worship, a common Doxology, and a universal Apostle’s Creed. We gather in fellowship and worship with other churches throughout the Michigan Conference and Fourth District (which includes Illinois, Wisconsin, Canada, and India) for district events such as Church School Convention, Christian Education Conference, District Conference, and Annual Conference. The impact of gathering in community during these denominational events is that it affirms our communal identity of as Christians who live out our faith in the Methodist tradition within the cultural context as either African American or those committed to serving persons who need an encounter with a liberating theology.

 

Community Relationship

In assessing the reasons for the local congregation’s implicit and explicit engagement with the five ministeries there is an area where influence is lacking. This is in relationship to our surrounding community. Unfortunately, in this season the ministry our church is not being consistently influenced by the needs of the local community. Our congregations engagement with the surrounding neighborhood is very limited. In this season the majority of our membership commutes to the church from outside communities on average of thirty minutes away. There are no families that come to mind who live in walking distance from he church although there are at least four housing communities within a one mile radius from the church. The only consistent outreaching service to the local community is our weekly feeding program that provides groceries to families in need. There is an awareness that this service is limited in magnitude of engagement and capacity to build relationships. Persons simply drive up to the church and they are handed boxes of food and then they leave. There is no fellowship or “follow-ship” to engage them concerning the comprehensive needs in their lives and families. The next task in our practical theology investigation and to address how the “what” and “why” can be improved for the glory of God, the transformation of the Church, and the faith formation of the surrounding community.

                                                                    Come & Journey with US in Growth & Community!