Growing Interest

It has been good, in recent weeks, to see the idea of this new course being talked about rigorously in different contexts. At the Congregational Ministers' Conference people raised some interesting questions, and again at the recent 'training weekend', when students were invited to comment on the current thinking - not all of them new questions, but this shows that we're probably right to be working out how best to address particular issues: (1) How can churches be made to feel this is a course for them? By seeking to show what its benefits are likely to be - people getting over different kinds of hurdles which hold them back, people growing in confidence, people growing in relationship with each other, people believing new things are possible, churches building a sense of purpose and vision together, churches building a sense of the connection between learning together and doing mission together... (2) How can people be persuaded that they wouldn't need a trained leader to deliver the course? By making it clear that this course isn't about delivering lots of new information, but is about giving people useful questions, to help them explore together what they're about, by showing that it has worked in other contexts, and by making the material accessible - with a wide range of methods for different church groups to choose from... (3) Would people really commit to a whole course? If it's emphasised that it's about discipleship, and how we grow together, people could be encouraged to stay the course - especially if it meets the needs of churches, offering biblical ways of exploring a wide range of themes - different ways of learning, being creative in worship, relating to the culture around us, caring for one another, making decisions together, thinking ethically, and doing mission - all things which matter in our churches... So, let me know if your interest is growing, if you think your church might be interested in piloting some materials, if you can see some good questions to explore together, if you see some challenges we need to face - or if you want to help promote this new venture in your Area, to get other people on board. All contributions welcome!

Growing Together

First, thank you to everyone who has played some part in the conversation so far. It is good to see the ideas going backwards and forwards, and changing shape ... Secondly, a little more explanation: the vision for this new development is two-fold: i) to increase access to learning and training in Congregational churches, to make more people feel that 'taking things deeper' is something they can do; and ii) to help churches, both those looking for something different, and those who are not sure what they are looking for, to broaden people's horizons and grow in confidence ... With that in mind, thirdly, let me spell out where we are up to - the idea that this new course will not focus on developing individuals, but on aiding a church to grow as disciples together. Of course, we hope it will benefit individuals, and be a springboard for those who hope to be equipped by further training; but the focus is congregational growth and learning - giving resources to churches to help them in their discipleship and mission together. Imagine yourself asking: 'How can we, as a church, grow - through our learning with the Bible, through our worship, through our being a distinctive kind of community, and through our mission in God's world?' This course aims to help ...

Growing Conversations

So far, to help talk through the issues involved in creating this new course, there have been conversations with people in Market Harborough Congregational Church, trainers within the Baptist Union, members of the CF Training Board, people in the South West Midlands Area and Scotland, and conversations are beginning with those responsible for similar courses in the URC ... so it is exciting to see possibilities opening up ... But could you too be part of the conversation? How might a local church resource be helpful to you, in your situation? What issues of discipleship are you facing? Do you have some insights to offer - or perhaps simply some questions to raise? Please contribute to the conversation. Thank you. (Graham Adams, Training Development.)

Growing Disciples - a new initiative

Welcome to the Congregational Federation's Growing Disciples initiative. This programme, funded by the Council for World Mission's 'mission support programme', will involve the creation of a brand new 'discipleship course', which will be available to and promoted within local churches of the Congregational Federation. The aim is to launch this new course in May 2010, so we are only in the early stages of consultation and research - to explore what will be the most helpful kind of resource for churches. I am in post for two years to help make this happen - so I'm currently talking to people from other denominations who have launched other local courses, and to people in the Federation, to get a sense of people's dreams and visions, and how we might respond ... So please pray for this new venture. And soon I'll be inviting your comments and asking for your thoughts in relation to specific issues - so thank you for your interest, and hopefully we can create a worthwhile course, which will aid our churches in their discipleship and mission, and which will enable some people to go on further in their training, to Level 1 and/or 2 of the CF's Integrated Training Course. So watch this space for more information - and for some questions. And let's grow together ...!