Church Work as Worship: A Model for Meetings
Begin meetings with a few minutes of silence. Ask people to be aware of God's Spirit and to focus on the task at hand. After silence, offer a brief prayer, asking for God's presence and guidance.
- Ground the business in Scripture. Read a selection related to the work of the meeting, a section of the Lectionary, or a psalm of praise for the opportunity to work with God. Spend a few minutes sharing thoughts raised by Scripture.
- Close the Scripture reflection with a prayer, asking for God's guidance.
- Throughout the meeting, watch for indications of the Spirit's presence; ask others to do the same.
- Don't hesitate to suspend discussion for moments of silence and/or prayer if that seems appropriate.
- Close the meeting with a prayer of gratitude for the presence/guidance of the Holy Spirit and the contributions of the people present.
Meditation . . . A Reflective Moment for You & for the Groups You Work With
Picture in your mind's eye the person whose opinion of what's best right now for your congregation is most different from your opinion. If you don't know who that might be, imagine one of the church leaders. Take a moment to choose a specific person and clearly picture that person in your mind.
Now imagine you and the other person walking toward Christ. You are each carrying as a gift for Christ what you believe is best for the congregation. Imagine both of you standing before Christ, holding out your gift for him. Now see Christ hugging both of you. To Christ, both gifts are equally valuable. Then Jesus does something amazing. He takes both gifts and puts them together in a way you couldn't have imagined. It is so beautiful and so much bigger than what your two gifts were alone. Now it is so big that, as Jesus hands it back to you, it takes both of you to carry it. As he hands it back, you can't help but notice the wounds in his hands and you remember he once gave his best, not just for one but for all. And now he sends you out into the world to carry the combined gift, plus the gift of Christ to others who are waiting.
Submitted by Pete Kufeke, FaithQuest leader; based on a sermon by Fr. Paul Garrett delivered June 16, 2002.