StretchyChurch

So it begins!!

Today was my first full day of class for my Doctor of Ministry in Missional Leadership at Fuller Theological Seminary with Alan Roxburgh and Mark Lau Branson. And so far I love it!

What I love most so far is the cohort aspect. That is, we meet and interact with the same group of students for the entire four years of the program. It creates a great sense of camaraderie. And I love that, while we all come from very different contexts, we’re all wrestling with the questions of what it means to be the church in our world today.

Alan Roxburgh and Mark Lau Branson are terrific, as well. We got together for dinner last night and a time to introduce ourselves to the rest of the cohort. Today we reflected on and discussed the reading we’ve been doing so far–what gave us insight, what motivated us, and what questions we still have.

But the best part, I have to admit, was our time dwelling in the Scriptures first thing in the morning. Roxburgh said that this was not simply a devotional time that we do before we get down to the work of the class–this time of indwelling is part of our work. Our time in the Scriptures informs and shapes our discussions and our learning this week.

So for half an hour we went off and simply reflected on Psalm 1 (a Psalm written, surprisingly, during the Babylonian Exile–which adds a much deeper layer of meaning when we understand it in that context). Then we came back together to discuss our thoughts and reflections with the rest of the group.

I can tell this is gonna be a great week! Not only in terms of being with the rest of the cohort, but in terms of the learning. I think that my thinking is going to be significantly challenged.

I find myself somewhat stuck in my need for a program or model of ministry to follow in order to make our church successful. But a missional approach doesn’t provide a model. What does it provide? As Roxburgh puts it, it provides a space for discovering God’s mission in the world–or something along those lines.

Part of the challenge is the “fuzziness” of missional. While the idea of missional doesn’t lend itself well to definitions, explanations, or models of ministry, it does open the possibility to discover God in the mystery–to let God be God and do what God is doing without us fourcing our programs on his working.

Anyway… I hope that makes sense. In any case, it’s gonna be a great week!! I’ll keep you posted.