Listening to God’s Spirit in a Congregation
There are some theological assumptions undergirding this idea. First that the church is the Body of Christ. That means that the church is more than a human organization even though clearly it is also a human organization. There is something of the spirit involved in what is happening in a church. Second, based both on the Gospels and the letters of Paul, the assumption is that the spirit is at work especially when the church is struggling with real issues in its life. In fact, God can use the challenges of a church as a context for speaking to it and guiding it in its faith journey. The spirit doesn’t just speak when things are going smoothly or when people are at their faithful best but precisely when those things are not true. Third pastors can be most alive when they are responding to the call of God as a spiritual leader of a church. So one of the ways that the session can strengthen your pastor’s ministry is to consciously enter that process with him or her.
TAKE THESE STEPS
Step one: Ask the church leaders to identify the five most pressing issues facing the church at this time. These can be organizational issues, problems with upset members, failure to attract new members, financial problems, lack of commitment, etc. The point is that most leaders are fairly aware of some of the major challenges facing a church but often they don’t name them clearly.
Step two: Since this is the Body of Christ, and the current members, leaders, and pastors are the ones that God has invited to participate in this journey together, what is God trying to say to this church as it faces these issues. Other churches will have other issues and the message will be different but what is God trying to say in this particular church. This is not a problem solving discussion. Rather, the pastor and leaders are trying to identify the faith questions that are evident in a community of people facing these specific issues. As you look at each issue separately, try to identify the faith question that is present. In some cases there may be more than one but try to identify the central one.
Step 3: Take one question at a time. Allow for a time of meditative prayer and ask each member to consider what biblical story or liturgical event in the worship of the church comes to mind when they are reflecting on this faith question. It is not important that the person understand the connection but simply identify what comes to mind.
Step 4: Now allow the whole group to play with some of the biblical stories or liturgical acts identified and seek out possible connections.
Step 5: Even if you don’t know how to respond, try to identify what God might be trying to say to the congregation in this circumstance.
The same steps would be repeated with the other issues. You might benefit from having some time intervene between step 2 and 3 and ask everyone to keep the issue and biblical stories in their prayers during the intervening time.
In these days of distrust, engaging the congregation in such a conversation can enrich their lives and stimulate. Try it.
