Session 3: Doing God’s Will
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PREPARATION
Read Scripture and background information. Reflect on the questions in the participant's book. Review links suggested in the lesson outline below.
Deepen Your Spiritual Life
One spiritual practice is to read the same Scripture passage for several days. Read Luke 18:30–19:27 (Day 3) several times, reflecting and writing ideas that come to you. What are the talents present in your congregation (financial, property, location in the world, spiritual gifts, professional skills, hobbies and interests)? How are the talents of your congregation invested? What keeps you (individually and corporately) from fully investing these talents? What do your reflections reveal about dealing with people you don't like? What do your reflections reveal about dealing with issues in the community? What do your reflections reveal about dealing with power inside and outside the congregation?
Train of Thought
Jesus initiated a new paradigm and redefined the mission for the people of God. A primary work of the congregation is to discover the vision that allows it to fulfill its mission. Understanding the current paradigm, the mission of the church, and how to deal with change readies the church to move forward.
Desired Outcomes
As a result of this session, participants should be able to:
- Understand congregations as systems filled with processes.
- Realize that the sub-optimization of even one process sub-optimizes the whole system.
- See that just tinkering with the wrong system will not yield better results. New results demand new systems.
Lesson Supplies
EXPLORATION AT GROUP SESSION
Total time: 50 minutes
Light the candle in your worship center, to remind all of the Presence of Christ as you meet. Follow up on prayer requests as appropriate. Pray together the prayer on page 27 of the participant's book.
Bible Study Focus Verses: Luke 9:10-17
This way of exploring the text can be done in 20 minutes if carefully timed. Prepare to share what you learn in 2-3 minutes. Ask participants about insights or questions they noted in their Bible study books. Ask participants to find the focus Scripture in their Bibles.
Explore the Text
Start by exploring what the text actually says. The goal is to be as objective as possible, searching for facts. Ask participants to work in pairs to discover what the text says. You might ask, "What happens in this story as Luke tells it? What did it likely mean to the people who were present? What does Luke seem to be saying about God?"
Information
Provide additional information from your advance reading in a brief (2-3 minute) lecture.
Apply the Text
Ask participants to work in pairs again, reflecting on the meaning of this passage for today. What elements of the story are the same or different now? What is the meaning of the passage for you? How do you feel about what it says or implies?
Transition to Our Time
"A Reflective Moment Along the Way" in Session 3 invites people to recall their own life journey as a connection of processes. Ask people to share insights that came from thinking of their lives this way. For participants unfamiliar with systems and processes, remind them that this is like learning a new language for their experience.
DISCOVERY — APPLYING IDEAS TO THE CONGREGATION
Total time: 45 minutes
Discussion Questions (30 minutes)
The examples of systems on page 31 in the Bible study focus on non-religious systems so that participants can practice thinking about systems and processes. Ask for their comments to questions on page 31, and make a transition to the Discovery Exercise on page 32 by asking, "How does understanding systems affect our understanding of the church?"
The Discovery Exercise on page 32 looks at the sub-processes that make up processes that make up systems. If this gets a little complex and confusing, that's okay. One of the main purposes of this exercise is to show how many processes and sub-processes exist in even the most simple of systems. In an organization as complex as a church, the number of systems, processes, and sub-processes is staggering. A systems understanding of ministry optimizes our potential for ministry. This exercise is intended to help people see the congregation as a system that is filled with processes. If people begin to feel frustrated by the scope of the exercise, encourage them by reminding them that this exercise is not intended to design anything specific or get a "right answer," but to broaden understanding. Click here for an outline of the way one group did this exercise.
Feedback & Evaluation (5 minutes)
Affirm the group's work together, highlighting examples of listening and of willingness to work with new ideas. Ask, "What have we learned in our time together? What questions do you have?"
Sending Forth (10 minutes)
Share prayer requests and close by praying the prayer on page 27 with which you opened the session.
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