PASTOR'S  PERSPECTIVE

PASTOR’S PERSPECTIVE

EXPANDING SHARED MINISTRY AT CAMERON UMC

Two years ago, the congregation at Cameron Church decided to change the way it approached ministry within the church. Following the announcement that our Associate Pastor would be leaving for a new appointment, the congregation entered into a dialogue to prayerfully consider how to be a more faithful to our call to discipleship and improve the ministry of the Church. After several months of prayer and discussion, Cameron embarked on a new model of shared ministry, moving from a pastor-centered congregation to one of a Christ-center congregation, with the ministry of the church shared between clergy and laity.

Our model began by replacing the Associate Pastor with two part-time staff members called from the laity within Cameron Church. One became the Minister of Welcome and Witness and the other became the Minister of Discipling and Congregational Care. The congregation embraced the change and the shared ministry has become an integral part of our congregational life.

Last year, we expanded the opportunities for members of the congregation to participate in shared ministry by developing and distributing a booklet defining, in detail, all the ways that members of the congregation can participate in the life of the church. The possibilities ranged from helping to fold the weekly bulletins to chairing major committees of the church. Opportunities for ministry included adults, youth and children. This document, called ACTS (A Commitment to Serve), included a commitment form. Following our fall stewardship campaign, members of the congregation were invited to prayerfully consider where God was calling each of us to serve the church, to discuss it within their families and with other members of the congregation. Offering our gifts through the completed forms occurred during a worship service in Advent.

This year, we are participating in a seven week program based on the book by Bishop Robert Schnase, The Five Practices of a Fruitful Congregation. We began with an introduction and congregational dinner and will end with a celebration of who we are as a church, followed by a congregational picnic. In the five weeks in between, worship is centered on one of the Five Practices. In addition to the sermon by the Pastor, a lay member of the congregation speaks to ways in which Cameron Church can put these practices into action. During the week, there are small groups meeting to discuss each practice, to assess how Cameron Church is doing in each area and to suggest ways the Church can be more faithful to our calling and be a "fruitful" congregation.

Following our upcoming stewardship campaign, we will be looking at a new ACTS commitment, reorganized within the five groupings suggested by Bishop Schnase. Included in our ministry for the next year with be the implementation of the wonderful ideas which have come from the small group discussions. We will also work with those persons who have been called to new ministry as a result of these discussions to expand the ways in which we seek to further God’s vision for our church.

Grace and Peace,