Newton musings…Jottings from Judy
January 11, 2012
Yesterday’s Presbytery meeting was a good way to begin a way of looking beyond ourselves. I’ve heard a lot of positive remarks about the opportunity to break bread and worship with our brothers and sisters at Abraham’s Table.
Think about how you and/or members of your congregation might connect to the ongoing possibilities in Newton Presbytery in 2012. Each of the following opportunities has been advertised separately…but let’s consider what particular outcome you might expect:
If you want to know more about your neighborhood and are interested in discerning God’s preferred future for your congregation consider on or a combination of the following—
Come and See about New Beginnings on January 27 from 7 to 9:30 p.m. at the Wharton Community Church. This is the most comprehensive opportunity we have to learn about our communities and to learn how to make discerning decisions about God’s preferred future for each congregation. The $2800/congregation fee will be split 50/50 using Church Redevelopment funds;
From the Outside In (CDRC’s book of 2012) Read it just for yourself or join a Book Study Group that meets on the third Wednesday of each month from 10 until after lunch—first meeting is Janaury 18-- at Wharton Community Church. Lunch is served for $5…and there are bagels and coffee when we gather.
We are pleased to have Doug Anderson on the docket for the March meeting of Presbytery. The following day, March 14 he will dig deeper into his topic of becoming missional church. That event is also at the Wharton Community Church from 9-3.
Discernment often leads to change and change often leads to misunderstandings. If you want to learn some ways to plan for change and manage healthier interactions in your congregation:
Plan on attending the Committee on Ministry sponsored Healthy Congregations Workshop March 2 from 6:30-9:30p.m and Saturday, March 3 from 9:00-4:30. Richard Blackburn, Executive Director of Lombard Mennonite Peace Center is the presenter. The workshop is fully subsidized by the COM which allows every Newton Presbytery participant to come to the event for $30, the cost of the workbook and lunch! The event is planned to accommodate groups from congregations. Bring a Session, bring members, COME!
Registration Forms are on the web page. We are still seeking a site for this event.
A couple of other events that are sponsored by others are worth mentioning:
Friday March 9, 9:30-2:30 Gil Rendle , the author of Leading Change in the Congregation, will be featured in the Weber Memorial Lectures of the Moravian Seminary in Bethlehem. His topic is “Conversation as Courageous Discernment for a Wilderness Time” It’s free and available as an in person event or as a streaming experience.
Thursday, April 23, 9:30-2:30 Carol Howard Merritt will speak on “Christian Community and Practice for a New Generation.” It is also free and at the Moravian Seminary. www.moravianseminary.edu/crossroads
In June(12-14) in Indianapolis there is a great opportunity for all of us who shake our heads and say “we haven’t got the money” or “sounds good, but we can’t afford it” The Center of Faith and Giving is presenting a Symposium on Preaching and Stewardship featuring James Forbes, Lance Pape, Carol Johnston, Ronald Allen and Bruce Barkhauer. The early bird registration is $99 and they are providing special rates at near by hotels. I keep watching for registration…should be open any day. Check www.centerforfaithandgiving for more information.
I know that there is a lot to do in ministry. I also know that none of us is in this alone. We need opportunities to reflect, time to breathe, and challenges to prod us along. Please consider taking advantage of at least one of these opportunities!
Here’s a summary chronologically:
January 27 --COME and SEE about NEW BEGINNINGS
March 2 and 3 --HEALTHY CONGREGATIONS
March 9—Gil Rendle at Moravian Seminary
March 13—Presbytery Meeting with Doug Anderson
March 14—Digging Deeper with Doug Anderson
April 23—Carol Howard Merritt at Moravian Seminary
June 12-14—Symposium on Preaching and Stewardship in Indianapolis
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December 12, 2011
2011 is coming to an end…plans are in the works for 2012
Two opportunities are coming soon to the Presbytery. Mark your calendars now and plan to be present at both:
January 27, 2012 at 7p.m. : Elders on sessions and Pastors are cordially invited by the Church Development and Redevelopment Committee to come and see about New Beginnings. New Beginnings staff will be present to answer questions about congregational participation. Don’t miss out on this…CDRC will match dollar for dollar for each congregation who does decide to be a part of the initiative by February 27th.
March 2 and 3rd we will host a Healthy Congregations Workshop presented by The Reverend Richard Blackburn, Executive Director of the Lombard Mennonite Peace Center. Some of you have met Richard…he presented the Conflict Mediation workshop last Spring. This workshop is for Pastors, Deacons, Elders, and church members. Watch for more information after the first of the year.
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November 15, 2011
Purple crayons and the church…
I was at a meeting of NJ presbytery leaders yesterday. Those who attended the recent Synod Assembly were talking about the new transitional leader…”George, Robert, no Harold is his name”, they told us. I asked quietly “Is Harold bringing his purple crayon?” Only one other person in the room knew what I was talking about.
Since then I’ve been thinking about Harold and his Purple Crayon. Do you remember the children’s book? Perhaps you got a glimpse of the TV show. Maybe you saw the DVD. A quick google revealed that the book has been around since 1955! The premise of the Harold and his Purple Crayon adventures is that a “four year old boy can create a world of his own simply by drawing it.”
Of course underneath the drawing is Harold’s capacity to notice, to imagine, to envision.
The church needs more purple crayons!
I visited Oxford Second Presbyterian Church last Sunday where I learned about the progress they are making with a purple crayon project of theirs, The Time Bank of Warren County. The idea is not unique, there are time banks as close as Lehigh County in Pennsylvania. Their vision is a bit different than the Lehigh model. In fact one who works in the Lehigh time bank told them that their model allows more freedom and flexibility…it’s better than the prototype.
Here is one more way that this church has pulled out their purple crayon to invest in ministry to their community…not just to their church, but to their neighborhood as well. I talked to Joicy, the Pastor, and she said they would love some other Warren County congregations as partners for this venture. You can learn more at www.timebankwc.org.
Maybe a time bank is not on your horizon. What is? Think about it, dream about it, envision it, and then pull out your purple crayon and create a new reality.
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November 1, 2011
The Importance of Colleague Groups
Early in its American history, the Presbyterian Church was organized into Presbyteries small enough to offer ministers a colleague group. These groups of colleagues met weekly for worship as well as peer support, peer challenge.
Isolation is not the best crucible for effective ministry…or for life in general. It is important that we continue to find groups of colleagues whom we can count on for both support and challenge.
Colleagues, by definition, are those who are engaged in the same profession. A colleague group may take on many forms. Some of our ministers meet once a month for a social gathering. Informal conversation usually includes something about their work. Others meet weekly in interdenominational groups where they study together to prepare for that week’s sermon. Still others have contracted with a pastoral counselor and meet as a therapeutic support group. I’m told there is even a group that combines Bible Study and target practice.
Three years ago the Presbytery’s members identified a few topics of interest and we began a variety of groups to address those topics. Most of those groups have run their course.
Two remain. The CDRC book group currently finishing up their study of Embracing Hope, the Presbytery’ book of the year. A new book will be given to all pastors at the January meeting of Presbytery and a study group will begin.
The other continuing group is studying leadership. The latter is about to begin a new book, Leadership Without Easy Answers by Ronald Heifetz. I checked to be sure…the group would welcome new members. This group meets at the Macaroni Grill on the fourth Thursday of month. They have a fellowship lunch, discuss the assigned chapter under the leadership of one of the group and engage another member’s prepared case study that reflects some of the chapter’s focus. They will begin their new study on Thursday, January 26th at 12:30. The assignment is Chapter One. Leaders have been assigned for the first session. If you’d like to be a part of this group, please let Sonja know and she’ll put you on the reminder e-mail list.
Not too long ago during a reference check with one of my colleagues I heard about a minister that had had a really tough time in his congregation but had made it through better for the experience. I asked how he had managed. The referencer’s response? ”He belongs to a group of colleagues that meet for about four hours every month. They study together, they support each other, they share their struggles. Each member of the group is better and stronger because of their experience in the group.”
These are challenging times in the church, please find someone with whom to share the joys and struggles of what it is to be a leader in our particular time and place. If you are currently trying to ministry alone, I encourage you to find some colleagues with whom you can share, learn and laugh. If you’d be interested in starting a new group, I’ll be glad to help.
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October 24, 2011
One Size Does NOT Fit All!
I’ve been doing a lot of knitting recently--getting ready for Christmas (shhh…don’t tell anyone on my gift list). I just completed a “one size fits all” garment that I intended for a my daughter in law. She would swim in it!
One size fits all--really? How can that be? Just look around. We are all different sizes, different body shapes. Some of us need to learn to push back from the table, others would do well to add a few calories to their daily intake. Some need to exercise more, others need to learn to sit still! One size certainly does not fit all.
The same is true for church growth. There is no secret formula that will make a church grow numerically or spiritually. One program, one plan, one method will not fit all. And that, my friends is the beauty of the concept Ann Philbrick will come to talk about with us on November 2, 1-3 at Wharton Church.
Plan to attend, plan to bring others. Please call Sonja at the Presbytery Office 973-361-0084 to tell her you are coming and if you would like to have lunch before the workshop. Lunch is at noon. The workshop is 1-3 p.m.
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October 11, 2011
I am looking forward to time at home this weekend. I plan to plant some tulip and daffodil bulbs. Nothing says Spring like tulips and daffodils!
I admit that I am a bit anxious about this weekend’s planting. I am not concerned about the 100 holes I will have to dig, or the sore muscles I’ll acquire. I am more worried about the outcome. My personal experience has led me to believe that when you plant a bulb in the ground a flower will result. However, it appears times have changed. Last spring I planted 100 lily bulbs…and only 7 lilies came up! Seems Minnesota squirrels find lily bulbs an epicurean delicacy. Many of the bulbs didn’t even stay in the ground for 24 hours. The squirrels no doubt had a scout in the trees that marked every implant.
I don’t want to repeat my past mistakes. I don’t want to do the same thing over and over again and expect different results. I have to think of new ways of approaching the challenge.
I googled “planting bulbs with squirrels” where I learned that tulips are the number one choice for the squirrel’s palate. They don’t like daffodils…but they insist on digging them up just to be sure they really are daffodils and not tulips! I sense trouble ahead.
What can I do to guarantee that I will see 100 tulips and daffodils in the spring? There are no guarantees. But there are some things I can do to improve the chances that growth will occur…and I plan to employ every one of those options. I’m going to wrap the bulbs in wire mesh, plant with mothballs and sprinkle moth crystals on the top soil. If you know of a trick I am missing, please let me add it to my strategic plan!
Why? You might ask. Why go to all that trouble? Because after a long white winter in Minnesota, the tulip and the daffodil are indeed harbingers of spring that cheer the soul proclaiming change is on the way.
All this thinking about spring flowers made me think about church growth.
After all is said and done a tulip is still a tulip, a daffodil is still a daffodil…but a new disciple is God’s hope in a stuggling and broken world. God only knows what can become of an infusion of new disciples! Why would we want to stand in the way? What can we do to open our hearts to new possibilities?
What are we doing to improve our odds of having success when it comes to growing the church? What options do we have?
If you’d like to see your church grow…I’d suggest you plan on spending the afternoon of November 2nd with Ann Philbrick ,a member of the GA staff, and members of the Church Development and Redevelopment Committee at the Wharton Church. Save the date!
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September 12, 2011
It takes a long time to recover from a disaster. I was struck at how fresh the grief was as loved ones read the names one more time yesterday, September 11th in lower Manhattan. How can ten years ago seem like just yesterday?
I am certainly not ready to compare our brush with earthquake, hurricane and tropical storm with the magnitude of an event like September 11, 2001. Still when it is your disaster, it is big.
It was a busy weekend in Newton Presbytery. On Saturday Diane Curtis traveled with the Presbyterian Disaster Assistance Team as they visited Blairstown, Parsippany and Whippany, surveying the damage of storms named Irene and Lee. I understand that the team was able to offer advice as they went. I am still waiting for a report on their tour.
Pastor Don Mossa offered three opportunities for people to walk through the Whippany building. I took advantage of one of those tours. So far they have filled seven huge dumpsters like the one in the picture with things that cannot be refurbished. They have removed soaked carpeting and much of the flooring. Parts of walls have been torn out so that drying can take place. Huge fans hum throughout the space. The cabinets in the kitchen and fellowship hall are beyond repair. The Pre-school sustained a significant damage and suffered a great loss as well. Things that can be refurbished (porcelain sinks, toilets and the like) are stored in a trailer in the parking lot. The congregation is worshipping at a neighboring Roman Catholic chapel while they await the word that things are “good enough” to return to the building.
Sunday I visited the Blairstown Church. Although the condition of some equipment in the church building is still unknown (as in, will it work?), the congregation’s primary loss was in the Outreach Center on Main Street that was hit twice…once by Irene and then again by Lee. During Sunday’s prayers, Pastor David Harvey, remarked on the resiliency of the human spirit as an invitation was extended to come and clean up the food pantry and the outreach center one more time.
Although we know that our disaster does not equal the magnitude of an event like 9-11, we are not overlooked. We’ve received many notes from across the United States indicating that we are being held in prayer. A small church in Ohio asked how they might help. Davidson College called to offer the assistance of a work team. A group from The Presbyterian Church is Madison wondered where clean up muscles might be put to work. PDA provided monetary grants for congregations to continue ministry as well as suits to protect the workers cleaning up Parsippany.
For years we’ve given generously to One Great Hour of Sharing. This time we are grateful recipients. And still we pray for the people of God in other parts of the world who are suffering from flood, famine and fires. The Body of Christ: where the joys of one are the joys of all, and the sufferings of one are the sufferings of all. Thanks be to God who binds us together in this bundle of life.
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September 5, 2011
One week after Irene...
Pastor David Harvey in Blairstown
Sunday was my day to be with the Belvidere congregation. They did remarkably well during the storm. They reported some water in basements as well as the frustration of no electricity and residual loss of refrigerated foods. Many of us have experienced similar challenges. A few members are still without power.
Images are beginning to arrive. We welcome your pictures along with your updates.
The good news is that Blairstown has electricity again. Diane is our PDA contact. She reports more good news: hazmet suits will be sent to Parsippany to protect those engaged in clean up and PDA is standing by to assist Whippany FPC as they make pending decisions about space for worship and ministry.
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September 1, 2011
Newton Presbytery and its congregations weathered the storm called Irene fairly well.
Special thanks to Diane and Sonja who were our front line for communication over the weekend! Diane and I checked in with every church yesterday and learned that most of our congregations were on top of whatever clean up they had to do. Even the folks at Whippany, (Whippany First was our hardest hit church building), were moving right along. Diane’s conversation with Don Mossa indicated that there was a plan, there were volunteers to work, and they could see progress!
We do have some communities that experienced significant loss and trauma. We’ve invited PDA to come and see. Don Bragg’s experience with Katrina relief came home to roost. He is working in partnership with Parsippany officials to respond to the deep need of that community.
Rockaway is gearing up for the influx of people whose pantries and refrigerators are depleted.
A letter went to all churches yesterday suggesting ways for those of us who live in the area to help. This morning we got a phone call from a church in Virginia who has a group of youth signed up and all but packed to come north and help!
And we know of individuals whose lives have been forever changed. Stories are coming in from churches about people who were already living on the margins who literally lost everything they had except the clothes on their backs and life itself. One poignant story was about a single mom and her daughter who had just returned to a home rebuilt after fire only to see the house float away!
Communication is still difficult…internet service is spotty, some don’t have telephone service and electricity is still off in a variety of places.
One thing we know for sure…God is with us in this disaster and the people of God are channels of God’s grace and mercy. For that we give God thanks and praise!
