This summer will see Grace Church shrink by a sixth as two families leave us. One family is our assistant and family who came for 3 years to be trained in pastoral ministry and having been trained is taking up a pastorate of his own even further north (Yes southerners, Doncaster is in the North but there is more north beyond it - that may have come as shock!). The other is family who have been with us about 5 years who are relocating down south to be nearer family.
It's interesting thinking about the challenges such movement poses to a small church. If everyone was there on a given Sunday - which never happens - we'd be about 60, which means we are losing a sixth of our church family. And that will be immediately obvious as from September if everyone is there we'll be slightly less than 50. That's quite a big change. But God is sovereign even over that change, God knows the challenges and opportunities that this summer poses to us as a church. God knows and cares about them too, because it's His Church. And here's the thing they aren't leaving the kingdom, just moving to serve in a different part of it.
It will mean we feel smaller, especially on weeks when others are away too. It will mean we are more stretched than we currently are, but that will simply open up opportunities for others to serve, as well as opening up new ways of doing things for us as a church.
It will be sad to see them go and it should make us sad and we need to acknowledge that. I'd worry more if it didn't. When part of your family moves away there is a right sense of loss. But God knows what he has in store for us and for them. God is at work growing his kingdom in their going as he was in their joining us.
Showing posts with label small church. Show all posts
Showing posts with label small church. Show all posts
Friday, 26 June 2015
Thursday, 2 October 2014
Small church struggles in reaching a needy community
Every church has it's pressures, no church is ideal, no church is perfect. But I wonder if small churches who are active in reaching their communities feel particular pressures. That is certainly the way it feels at the moment.
Praise God Grace Church has grown, if everyone was there on Sunday mornings we'd be 70ish, but 30 of those are under 13. Some mornings Sunday school is bigger than the remaining congregation. And the encouragement is that it's not just church kids, or even children of families who come to church, but some children come on their own. But the pressure is in staffing a Sunday school of 30, especially as one group now numbers 13-15. We'd love to split it into two but we simply don't have the people. 7 years of praying for more workers because the harvest field is ripe has seen some come join us but we desperately need more!
One of the biggest frustrations is the open doors we just don't have the man power or money to make the most of. We were asked again yesterday to run a CU or after school Christian club in a local school where we are involved. But we simply don't have the man power to do it, people in church are caring for one another, working hard at community involvement, and pastoral care of existing members and we simply can't meet this great gospel opportunity now. Oh for more gospel workers.
And the community, thanks to God's grace, now seem to regard Grace Church as one of the go to places for help when in crisis, which is brilliant but we are having to place strict limits on what we can and can't do, again simply because of manpower.
And now a new issue is increasingly presenting itself. We are visible on a Sunday but not during the week. We've been asked if we would set up a food back but have no space in which to do so. We'd love to run parenting courses and CAP courses but entering homes is a threshold too far for many in the community. Whereas a neutral space, or non-home space would open up all sorts of possibilities. The dream would be to buy a house on the estate and have offices upstairs for organisations to use and a larger space downstairs for groups to meet in, other services to use and a space where we could store and give out food as a food bank. But again the resources aren't there, with a budget deficit we can't afford even to look into property.
In the midst of so many encouragements and opportunities the frustrations are coming thick and fast, which is why God has graciously led us to study Acts. To remind me it is God's mission, he loves this community more than I do, he wants to show them and speak to them of the healing power of the gospel of Jesus Christ more than I do. And he is sovereign, so every frustration I need to turn into prayer. Prayer for more workers, prayer for more money to use to reach the community, prayer for the lost to be found, prayer for God to be glorified in us.
Praise God Grace Church has grown, if everyone was there on Sunday mornings we'd be 70ish, but 30 of those are under 13. Some mornings Sunday school is bigger than the remaining congregation. And the encouragement is that it's not just church kids, or even children of families who come to church, but some children come on their own. But the pressure is in staffing a Sunday school of 30, especially as one group now numbers 13-15. We'd love to split it into two but we simply don't have the people. 7 years of praying for more workers because the harvest field is ripe has seen some come join us but we desperately need more!
One of the biggest frustrations is the open doors we just don't have the man power or money to make the most of. We were asked again yesterday to run a CU or after school Christian club in a local school where we are involved. But we simply don't have the man power to do it, people in church are caring for one another, working hard at community involvement, and pastoral care of existing members and we simply can't meet this great gospel opportunity now. Oh for more gospel workers.
And the community, thanks to God's grace, now seem to regard Grace Church as one of the go to places for help when in crisis, which is brilliant but we are having to place strict limits on what we can and can't do, again simply because of manpower.
And now a new issue is increasingly presenting itself. We are visible on a Sunday but not during the week. We've been asked if we would set up a food back but have no space in which to do so. We'd love to run parenting courses and CAP courses but entering homes is a threshold too far for many in the community. Whereas a neutral space, or non-home space would open up all sorts of possibilities. The dream would be to buy a house on the estate and have offices upstairs for organisations to use and a larger space downstairs for groups to meet in, other services to use and a space where we could store and give out food as a food bank. But again the resources aren't there, with a budget deficit we can't afford even to look into property.
In the midst of so many encouragements and opportunities the frustrations are coming thick and fast, which is why God has graciously led us to study Acts. To remind me it is God's mission, he loves this community more than I do, he wants to show them and speak to them of the healing power of the gospel of Jesus Christ more than I do. And he is sovereign, so every frustration I need to turn into prayer. Prayer for more workers, prayer for more money to use to reach the community, prayer for the lost to be found, prayer for God to be glorified in us.
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