Lay Church Renewal Journey

  A Journey of Spiritual Renewal--growth and discovery.

The Church Renewal Journey is a disciple making process that helps a church grow their members into On Mission Disciples. The Journey is led by the Laity of the church with pastoral involvement, rather than another program the pastor has to push. The Journey has three major steps or phases that are accomplished in church weekend events, each one building on the previous step. 

            The Lay Renewal Weekend is the first step in the Journey and is called the Awakening Stage. It is a weekend of family building among the church members and is referred to as an inward journey. The main purpose of the weekend is to renew our relationship with the Lord, remembering who we are and Whose we are and helps us understand where along our Christian Journey we are.

            When we accept Christ as our Lord and Savior, we begin our Spiritual Journey and many different people, events and experiences in our lives causes us to grow on that journey. Most of the time progress on our Spiritual Journey cannot be measured by time or by our age. Our relationship with our Lord grows in both the mountain top highs, when we celebrate and praise Him, as well as when we are in the low valley and desperately need and call on Him.

            A visiting team of Christians from other churches come and participates with the church during the weekend, leading in praise songs and testimonies about where they are on their Journey. They are not Super Christians, just ones that are aware of their journey and are willing to testify about what the Lord is doing in their life at the present time.

            The weekend begins at the church on Friday night with a church-wide meal then a General session in the Sanctuary. There are meetings in the church member’s homes on Saturday morning and separate meetings for Men and Ladies at lunch. From 2pm to 5pm is Free Time.  Saturday evening the church regroups for another meal and general session and special family prayer time. Part of the Sunday School time is used for testimonies from home church members about what the weekend has meant to them and a special Sunday Worship Service completes the visiting team member’s part of the weekend. The Highlight of the weekend is the Evaluation Service Sunday night, when the church as a body evaluates what the Holy Spirit has been saying to them during the Weekend.           

            The Lay Ministry Weekend is the second step or Equipping Phase of the Journey and usually follows the Renewal Weekend in 6 to 12 months. This weekend is about understanding that we are all called, gifted and sent by the Almighty Creator, who desires to accomplish His work using us as His instruments in reconciling His Creation back to Him.

            This weekend deals with helping church members to realize that they are all called and gifted, not just pastors.  This phase of the Journey is based around a weekend study about Spirituals Gifts, who has them and how the gifts are the used in ministry and how we can recognize them in each other. 

            When Christians know their spiritual gifts, they can serve deliberately rather than accidentally or only when called on. Rather than waiting for someone or the nominating committee to ask them to serve, they can seek out opportunities to use their gifts where they receive the joy and God receives the GLORY. When we start serving out of joy rather than guilt or oughtness and allow God to do His work in and through us, we are discipled. We then can help others find their gifts and callings and ministries.  When Jesus instructed us to go make Disciples, this is one of the main things we are told to teach.   

The North American Mission Board published a survey done by the Barna Research Group in 2001, stating that less than 3% of born again Christians know what spiritual gifts are or think they have one. If God works in our churches and communities and world, He will use those He has gifted and called. How can he accomplish his work if His people don’t understand that they are the very ones he gifted and called and wants to partner with to do His work?

            The schedule of this weekend is similar to the Renewal weekend with the addition of a Bible Resource Leader, who teaches about Spiritual Gifts and ways we can Discover our gifts and our SHAPE for Ministry during each General Session. After the Saturday night General Session the church has a special Affirmation Service, where the church members, who have been studying about gifts and how to recognize them, get a chance to affirm and encourage each other in their giftedness and ministries or service. This is always a powerful time for the church as they encourage and build up the body as Christ instructed us to do.

Experiencing God Weekend is the third step of the Journey and is the Sending or Penetrating phase. The weekend is similar to the Ministry weekend but with Henry Blackaby’s Seven Realities being taught during the general sessions.

            When one realizes how we each are uniquely gifted and called to a variety of different ministries, we can understand why one person may see God working in a certain area and others may see him working in a totally different area.

We also learn that when we see Him working, our love for Him is what causes us to want to join Him in what He is doing, rather than trying to do our own thing. No longer do we seek to do our own ideas of ministry in our timing but wait and join Him in His ministry in His timing. This study helps Christians, who want to serve, know that there is a BIG difference in doing His work His way rather than trying to do His work our way.

            We start understanding what pastors already know. When God calls, and He is always calling us, we must make whatever adjustments in our lives that are needed to join Him. These adjustments are a lot easier to make when we begin to want the same things He wants. Those things we used to love to do that took up most of our time, begin to lose their appeal and importance to us.

Blackaby says the Scriptures tell us that God desires a close loving relationship with each of His Children. Finding our place in His service is one of the best ways to maintain a close loving relationship with Him, because when we are doing His work, things that we could not do in our own strength, we must continually depend on Him and His love. This weekend is designed to create interest among church members to sign up for the complete Experiencing God 13 Week study.

What is the fourth step in the Journey?  By the time the church is ready for the fourth step in the       Church Renewal Journey, they will be able to decide the direction the Lord is leading them and can choose among many options for their next step. Of course a church can start with any weekend they think they are ready for, or go in a totally different direction as the Lord leads. Many other Church Renewal Journey weekends are available such as: Discipleship Weekends; Marker Place Ministry weekends, Family Weekends; Life in the Spirit Weekends; Concentric Circles Weekends; and others.

Church Renewal Journey 
North American Mission Board 
4200 North Point Parkway 
Alpharetta, GA 30022-4176
888 634-2462 ext 6481
crj@namb.net
www.churchrenewal.net