(First of Three installments)

To the Company of Elders from the Mission Coordinating Council

From the Mission Coordinating Council

Signs and Wonders

We live in a season of new birth. From the legacy of the past, seeds of renewal take root and begin to bud as creativity bursts forth in new forms of worship, fellowship, and mission.  Just as the Holy Spirit in the Acts of the Apostles showed God's people new ways of being his instruments in mission, so, too, do we experience the Holy Spirit instilling faithfulness across our presbytery. Clearly, we continue on a journey...a new holy pilgrimage... as we serve in the power of the Holy Spirit. 

We see fresh ways of being church.  (At the Zanesville meeting, did you hear the four testimonies explaining how four congregations are addressing hunger issues?).  We also see new signs and wonders. During the four days in Michigan, forty-eight pastors, elders, and leaders gathered and experienced renewal and a unanimous realization that we can't keep doing things the same way and expect change.

Just as the Apostles on Pentecost called for a new openness, the Foundations of our Book of Order call for "a new openness."  That openness is evident in our interactions with one another as a presbytery and across our parishes. 

We are hungry to grow in Christ so that we might more effectively be Christ in the world! To do so, we believe certain mission efforts are best done together. As a Council of the church, we "exist to help congregations and the church as a whole to be more faithful participants in the mission of Christ" (G-3.101).  Given that, we commit ourselves to:

• Inviting teaching and ruling elders and their congregations to "find their place" in the journey
• Gathering the scattered together to be in communion with one another as we await the new birth
• Supporting the missional endeavors arising out of the hearts of our leaders, congregations and parishes as part of the celebration of new birth
• Focusing on the birth of the new instead of the death of the old

In this time of transition, we give thanks for the work and ministry of the Parish Elders.  The Committee on Ministry and Committee on Preparation remain committed to supporting the parishes.  Administration, in partnership with the Presbyterian Foundation, will help us to explore new ways of developing our stewardship as well as being a resource on financial and personnel matters. The Discernment & Discipleship Ministry Team (formerly known as Nominating) looks forward to celebrating with you the ways in which God is at work in your parish, your congregation, and your life. 

Our General Presbyter will continue to serve us as our Sentinel (Jer. 6:17) on the watch-tower, looking for ways God is coming to us and for signs of danger and obstacles to God's coming, communicating and informing the Presbytery of what she observes and discerns; our Midwife (Ex. 1:17) who coaches us to be healthy and engaged in the process of birth even in the face of inevitable losses that come with the transition to something new; and our Tender of Vineyards (in response to Jesus' call in John 15:1-17) who nurtures God's emerging work by paying particular attention to community-based ministries that result in transformed communities as well as nurturing ways of being the Body of Christ.  As in all ministry on a presbytery level, the general presbyter will continue to combine responsibility and authority with accountability.

Wait! Take time to Remember and Celebrate

Before we reflect on the process for moving forward, we thought it helpful to remember and celebrate the many ways in which God has been at work within us.  We remember in order to not forget who and whose we are in Christ.  We remember in order to live forward.  For as no less a theologian than the White Queen in Alice in Wonderland reminds us: "It's a poor sort of memory that only works backwards."

To set our journey in context, we have looked to the book of Acts, a book Lloyd Ogilvie once called "the drumbeat of love," marching orders for Christians with a passion to feed hungry Christians with the Word of God.  In particular, we have reflected on the discipleship behaviors of the early church:

1. Wait to be empowered by The Holy Spirit (Acts 1-2)
2. Depend upon God (1:8-8:1; 16:6; 19:10; and its antithesis, 5:1-11)
3. Anticipate God at work (8:1-8; 12:1-19)
4. Expect & look for divine appointments (5:16-39; 8:26-40)
5. Observe & go with what God is doing (9:1-31; 17:16-17)
6. Stand strong in the face of opposition (5:40-6:1; 7:59-60)
7. Praise God in and out of adversity (3:6-10; 16:22-30)
8. Step outside the conventional ministry box  (10:1-29; 11:18)
9. Empower & release people to ministry (6:5-7:60; 13:1-3; 13:5)
10. Relentlessly witness to the power of God at work (all of Acts).

Is this presbytery ready for a new ACTS of the Holy Spirit?  We believe so.  We are humbled and excited, because we see signs of God's wonders (2:43) all around us-stories shared at every gathering of Presbytery, Parish, Council, and Committees.

This remains a critical time for the Presbyterian Church (USA) and, more particularly, for we who covenanted together as Muskingum Valley Presbytery.  Even as our denominational identity is challenged, even as some of our sister congregations leave for other denominations (or simply go "independent"), we understand that we have been blessed to be a blessing-we exist for our communities to the glory of God.  No longer are we measuring ourselves by attendance, buildings, and cash on hand; rather we are counting lives touched, partnerships formed, communities transformed as the Holy Spirit moves among us.

We have described ourselves as a presbytery journeying with Jesus to touch the world.  Yet our journey of the last decade has been more an exodus into exile, than a touching of the world through ministry and mission.   To be sure, ministry and mission have taken place, but in the midst of deep change that has led us to a holy place born of God's making.

The paradoxical emotions experienced on this journey must be honored, for we have experienced grief and joy, failure and possibility, a letting go that we might take hold. We have been waiting as a presbytery for ten plus years-some of us with deep intention, others of us caught up in the daily busyness of life... some of us somewhat fearful, others of us eagerly yearning the new... some of us grieving, others of us anticipating-we have been waiting for God's Spirit to break into our lives anew.

Jesus is clear that before we do anything, we must wait upon the Holy Spirit.  Too often, we try to do things drawing only on our own power.  The result is burnout.  "Waiting time" is notempty time.  Quite the opposite!  The waiting time provides the context in which we become aligned with God that God might do God's work in us and through us.

In the end, that's what it's all about, isn't it?  Doing God's work in the supply of the Spirit!  Wait!  Jesus tells us.  Wait to be empowered by the Holy Spirit.   And so, the disciples waited, returning to the Upper Room to pray and be in fellowship, to call forth leaders to witness to the resurrection (see Acts 1:12-26).   They waited upon the Lord and in God's time, received the Holy Spirit (see Acts 2:1-14).

We, too, have waited.  We, too, have come together in prayer and fellowship, calling forth leaders to witness to the resurrection.  And, in God's time, we, too, have received the gift of the Holy Spirit.

The Journey Timeline

They devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching and to fellowship,to the breaking of bread and to prayer. Acts 2:42

We have been on an intentional journey of transformation.  Some have felt that we have been in a holding pattern.  But, as the timeline below reflects, we have been very intentional in our waiting time, as we have moved from regulatory to mission-driven.  As one monastic put it: "When you're waiting, you're not doing nothing.  You're doing the most important something there is.  You're allowing your soul to grow up.  If you can't be still and wait, you can't become what God you created to be."

2002       MVP enters into a Season of Sabbath in which the work of all committee and teams,  

       except those mandated by the Book of Order, are set aside in order to discern God's will.

2006       MVP commits to a season of internal preparation through presbytery-wide study, training,  

       and equipping. 

In particular:

MVP Core Training

• Healthy Congregations Training/Emotionally Healthy Church
• Formational Prayer (with a focus on the healing of wounds)
• Discover Your Place in Ministry
• Discipleship Essentials & The Disciple-Making Church
• Incarnational Leadership: Emotional & Social Intelligence
• Managing Polarities
• Ten Lenses for Assessing Congregational Vitality
• Annual retreats offered by the Retreat Ministries Mission group
• Plus individual congregational consultations.

                MVP Cohorts: Acts 16.5 Initiative; Transformation Cohort; Small, Strong Cohort; First Call Cohort

• Living Forward... how will we be accountable to our continued growth and equipping as leaders?

                MVP Assessments & Consultations

• Assessments used in our developing an understanding of strength-based leadership: Change Style Indicator, Emotionally Healthy Inventory, ESCI 360, FIRO-B, Gallup Strengths, Influencing Style Indicator, Kolb Learning Style Indicator, MBTI, Personal Coaching Style Inventory.
• Consultations used with local congregations: Bridgebuilder, Healthy Congregations, Emotionally Healthy, Future Story, Mission Consultations, Formational Prayer, Faithful Listening, and the PATH.

                MVP Leader Studies (taught and/or preached)                              

• 2006: Acts: Behaviors of Disciples
• 2007: Holy Habit: Radical Hospitality
• 2008: Daniel: A Self Differentiated Man of God
• 2009: Holy Habit: Sabbath... An Acquired Taste
• 2010: The Journey: Growing Up In Christ
• 2011: Holy Habit: Generosity... First Love; First Fruits
• 2012: Follow Me: The Cycle of Call in the Life of Peter

2012       Naming of our "Hedgehog" as Equipping for Ministry in the 21^st Century

                Move into intentionally distributive system through introduction of Parishes & Parish Elders

                Back to Zero with Gil Rendle

                Introduction of Appreciative Inquiry to Presbytery Leadership

2013       Lent: All Presbytery Retreat: Seek the Shalom of the Community

                June: Mission Immersion, Adrian, Michigan-revival breaks out!

                Three Parishes begin to use Appreciative Inquiry in their communities

In a very real way this season has been focused on preparing the soil for the seeds of the future to be planted.  Even with the disruptive challenges coming from both the larger church and environment, there is a genuine sense of excitement about the future.

(Be looking for the next week's installment...)  

The Mission Coordinating Council

Jon Carlisle, moderator                                     

David de Vries, chair                             

Andy Gerhart, Administration              

Tom Houston, Area II                                        

Bob Meyer, Discipleship & Discernment

Cathy Piekarski, Preparation                

Tim Pollock, Area IV      

Suellen Skinner, Area III

Chris Stewart, Ministry

Karin Wright, Area I

Ex Officio

Paula Lane, transitional stated clerk

Shauna Engeldinger, ministry coordinator

Barb Schie, financial coordinator

Jim Spain, Treasurer

Debbie Rundlett, general presbyter