Re Event Dates: Tuesday, September 25 (For Rostered Ministers)

Forming Mission Shaped Churches:An invitation for the BC Synod.

Monday, October 29 (For Congregations)

Dear Friends,

While there are many challenges and disruptions facing us as a church, God's Spirit is calling us to something new. In the midst of this disruption, many of us are wondering “What on earth is God up to?” And while some of us may ask this question out of frustration or anxiety – it turns out that “What is God is doing in the world right now?” is a great question for Christians to be asking as they try to find their bearings in this time of disruptive change.

A second question is like it: “How are we going to get involved with what God is doing out in the world right now?”

Working together as a synod, we intend to enter into a process that will help us begin to answer these two questions. We want to engage our congregations’ unique gifts and begin to discern the unique opportunities God is revealing in each of our communities. Through this process, our intention is to rediscover how God is at work in the everyday, local contexts in which we live, and to experience the joy of being disciples by taking part in what God is doing in our own neighbourhoods.

In order to help us begin this process, the BC Synod has engaged the spirited assistance of Rev. Dr. Alan Roxburgh, who was one of the keynote speakers at the 2012 BC Synod convention. Alan is a pastor, teacher, writer and consultant with more than 30 years of experience in church leadership, consulting and seminary education. Alan and his organization “The Missional Network” (themissionalnetwork.com)work worldwide with church organizations, helping them to renew and redevelop their ministries as they adapt to their changing contexts. There will be two orientation events: the first is for Rostered Ministers and will take place on Tuesday, September 25 at 9:30 am; the second is for congregations and will take place on Monday, October 29 at 7:00 pm. Please read through the accompanying "Question and Answer" section for further information.

I strongly encourage you to participate in this multi-year process. I believe such a process is extremely important for our congregations and synod in this time in which we live. As we enter into this process, we look forward to seeing what God will reveal for our church here in BC.
May God continue to guide and transform us,
Bishop Greg Mohr

What is this process going to look like?

This is an organic, bottom-up process that facilitates the discovery of God’s missional future among the people of a local church.
It is intended to be an ongoing process that will transform our congregations by equipping ourselves with new skills and an increased understanding of the challenges of being God’s Church in the present and future.
We will spend significant time working with Scripture.
We will be invited to discern and discover the ways the Spirit is calling us into mission and ministry across the street and around the world – which will inevitably be a transformative experience.
It will engage our creativity.
It will involve conversations and listening to the stories of others.
It will provide lay leaders and rostered ministers with new adaptive leadership skills to aid with the challenges involved in leading during times of discontinuous change.
There will be a component for rostered ministers, who will have regular (monthly) opportunities to engage with their colleagues in an action-learning environment, with the guidance of a coach.
There will be a separate, parallel component for groups of 3-5 lay leaders (“Guiding Teams”) from each participating congregation. The guiding teams will meet regularly to be trained and supported by a coach for the duration of the process.

Who is this for?

All congregations and rostered ministers in the BC synod are invited to apply to participate in this process.
Lay leaders will participate by forming a “guiding team” of 3-5 laypeople from their congregation.
Rostered ministers may participate even if their congregation does not form a guiding team at this point. The leadership development component will be helpful for a rostered minister’s on-going education and practice. A congregation may choose to form a guiding team and participate in future iterations of this process, ie. 2 or 4 years from now.
Congregations may not participate unless their pastor also participates.

Where can I get more information about how this is going to work?

There will be two information meetings held for people who are interested in learning more about this process: One meeting will be for rostered ministers, the second meeting will be for lay leaders from congregations.
The information meeting for rostered ministerswill take place on Tuesday, September 25th, beginning at 9:30AM, at First Lutheran Church - 5475 Wales Street, Vancouver. This meeting will also be live-streamed on the internet for people who are unable to attend in person. The live stream will be accessible at as the meeting begins. Shortly after the meeting is over, the recording of the meeting will be made available, both at and linked on the synod website: bcsynod.org
The information meeting for lay leaders will take place on Monday,October 29th from 7:00PM-9:00PM, at First Lutheran Church - 5475 Wales Street, Vancouver. People interested in being part of a congregational “guiding team” are encouraged to take part in this meeting; church councils contemplating whether they’d like their congregations to participate are also invited to this meeting. This meeting will also be live-streamed on the internet for people who are unable to attend in person. The live stream will be accessible at as the meeting begins.Shortly after the meeting is over, the recording of the meeting will be made available, both at and linked on the synod website: bcsynod.org

When does the actual process begin? How long will it take?

Both components of this process (one for rostered ministers, one for lay leaders) will begin in January 2013, and continue for approximately 18 months.
After the 18 months are complete, the process will start again, building on the learning and leadership capacity developed in the first round. Congregations which were unable to participate in the first round will have another opportunity in late 2014 or early 2015.
Rostered ministers will meet monthly (either in person or virtually) for the full 18 months.
Congregational guiding teams will gather with other guiding teams one Saturday every 3 months.

Where will these meetings take place?

Some meetings of rostered ministers and congregational guiding teams will happen face to face. At other times, these meetings will be arranged to accommodate virtual/ telephone meetings.
Strategies are being developed to help people living in remote areas to take part in this process. More details to be determined.

What will participating in this process require of me/us?

Time. Those involved will be expected to attend and participate at regularly set meetings.
A willingness to be in dialogue with peers, learn new skills, and engage in self-reflection in order to gain a greater understanding of adaptive leadership challenges.
There will be additional reading required of participants.
Those congregations wishing to participate will be expected to make a small, regular monthly financial commitment, based on average worship attendance, as an investment into this process. See the table below for details.

Average worship attendance / Monthly financial commitment
Less than 50 / $50
50-74 / $75
75-99 / $100
100-149 / $125
150 and greater / $150

These funds will cover many of the travel costs associated with bringing rostered ministers and guiding teams together, and enable others to participate in this process in coming years.

I have a question that isn’t answered here, what should I do?

Plan to attend the information meetings on September 25 and/or October 29th. Chances are good that your question will be answered there. Those tuning in to these meetings on the live stream will have the opportunity to have their questions relayed to the meeting via the text chat functionality of the live streaming site (more details on this and instructions to come soon).
Contact the synod office.

Guidefor participating in live streams of information meetings:

Go to the link for the live stream:

You may need to click the "Play" button to begin watching the video stream of the meeting.

To the right of the video window showing the meeting, you will see a chat box. To ask a question or make a comment, click on the text box directly to the left of the blue button marked "Say". Type your question or comment. Click on the "Say" button to send your comment.

The first time you make a comment or ask a question during the meeting, the chat box will prompt you to enter a nickname. Feel free to use your real name if you wish -- this name will let other chatroom participants keep track of who is speaking, and be attached to every comment that you make. Click on the box that says "Nickname", type the name you wish to use, then click the green "Save Changes" button at the bottom of the chat box.
You will be returned to a view of the chat box, and your comment should appear immediately, next to your chosen nickname and the time at which your message was sent. All other participants in the meeting will be able to read whatever appears in the chat box.

Please note that after the meeting is over, the recording of the meetings will be made available, both at and linked on the synod website: bcsynod.org