A Look Back, A Look Ahead

". . . I press on toward the goal for the prize of the heavenly call of God in Christ Jesus. . . ." (Philippians 3.14)

This congregation is on a journey: a spiritual journey towards a deeper life with God. We are all on our own individual journeys toward a deeper life with God, but we are also, collectively, as one community of faith, on a journey toward a deeper life with God.

Last fall, nearly eighty of you participated in focus group conversations pertaining to matters of spirituality. In those focus groups, several themes came up time and time again. Here is a brief summary of what we learned about ourselves: (1) Many of us seem to be uncomfortable talking about matters of faith with one another because we view spirituality as a private and personal matter. (2) Many of us don't seem to have a good, working understanding of how the Bible can connect meaningfully with our lives today. (3) Many of us feel that there is a lack of small group settings in this congregation in which trust between individuals can be built and faith can be shared. (4) Many of us want deeper prayer lives than what we currently have, and many of us are not very comfortable offering prayer in public settings because we don't know what to say and/or we're afraid we might say something wrong. (5) Many of us have trouble articulating our faith verbally to others without feeling uncomfortable ourselves and/or without worrying that we are causing other people to feel uncomfortable.

Over the course of the past few months, we have taken what we learned about ourselves through those focus groups and we have been thinking seriously about what we need to do to address the concerns that were expressed repeatedly through the focus group process. The Natural Church Development implementation team (that facilitated the focus group process) decided to partner with the newly-formed Adult Spiritual Growth team, with the result that we now have close to ten people working collaboratively together trying to address these issues. Now, after a number of months of quiet, behind-the-scenes dialogue, conversation, and prayer, we are ready to begin unveiling some new ministries that are emerging here at Mason First Presbyterian Church.

In two words: small groups!

We will be launching different small groups gradually over a period of the next few months - basically, whenever a new one is ready to get off the ground, we're going to be ready to bless it, help launch it, and then support it on its way. One such group is already ready to go - the new online book discussion group that Sue Blonshine will be moderating. That group will start by discussing Rob Bell's first book, Velvet Elvis: Repainting the Christian Faith. The group discussion will be taking place via Facebook (search for "Mason Presby Book Group") and a discussion of the first chapter is scheduled to begin on July 1. This will be a great way for you to connect with other members during your summer travels. Other groups are in the process of being formed, even as I write these words, and I expect that by the time the September issue of the Cornerstone arrives in your mailbox, there will be more news to share. Barb Tornholm has written an article that appears later on in these pages describing these emerging small groups in more detail.

Also starting in September, I will be launching a year-long intensive exploration of the whole Bible, from Genesis through Revelation, through a curriculum called Disciple. Disciple doesn't want to just fill your head with Bible trivia - Disciple wants to help you figure out how to connect the Bible meaningfully to your daily life, here and now. Be warned - it's intense! Group meetings will last 2 1/2 hours every week, and participants can expect do to 20 minutes of reading six days a week. It's intended for people who are ready and eager to go deeper in their walk of faith. There is also a youth version of Disciple, aimed for grade 10 and up, that we will be offering as well if we have at least five youth who are ready to dive in with both feet. An orientation meeting for both the adult and the youth versions of Disciple is tentatively planned for the evening of Sunday, September 11; more details will follow in the September issue of the Cornerstone. In the meantime, I would invite you to prayerfully consider whether this is something you feel that God might be calling you to participate in.

Other groups and opportunities are coming. We've been talking about creating a variety of different kinds of groups to meet different needs and interests within the congregation. In some cases, we have a book in mind but no leader yet identified; in other cases, we have a leader and potentially interested people identified, but no content or theme yet. This is an emerging, evolving work-in-progress, and there will be much more to report as summer winds to a close. Watch for a bulletin board to appear in the Memorial Room sometime later this summer with information about the different groups that will potentially be forming in the fall.

In the meantime, between now and the arrival of fall, I invite you to prayerfully consider what kind of group might meaningfully connect with your life, and/or whether you feel God might be calling you to serve in some kind of leadership role. Please feel free to bring your thoughts, ideas, questions, and insights to any member of the combined Natural Church Development / Adult Spiritual Growth team: Sue Blonshine, Bonnie Friend, Ann Hall, Rex Hauser, Maggie Knust, Suzanne Lang, Joan Meinke, Barb Tornholm, or myself.

I look forward with eager anticipation to what God will be doing in our lives through these emerging ministries. If you've ever been in a good small group . . . you know what I mean. If you haven't . . . maybe now's the time for you to find out. A good small group can be an utterly remarkable, sometimes life-changing, experience, as participants draw closer to one another and to God.

Peace and blessings,

Bill