Fall 2002

 

 

BACKGROUND -- “We’ve Come This Far by Faith”

 

Working together in an area of approximately 100,000 square miles takes creative, deliberate, and sustained effort – but that’s what the churches of Classis Atlantic Northeast (hereafter CANE) have been investing in their life together.  It’s a heartening story of persistence and servant leadership coupled with an unrelenting commitment to follow the Spirit’s leading.  It’s a story of courageous, assertive, missional thinking and acting.  It’s a story of following the Spirit’s leading with fear and faith.  Here’s an outline of the story:[1]

 

In 1976, when the churches of Classes Hackensack and Hudson realigned themselves, the churches in the New England States and New York formed the new Classis Atlantic Northeast.  When CANE turned down a proposal in 1995 to do classical strategic planning, the classical Home Missions committee then became the spark point for this increased activity, enthusiasm, and leadership. 

 

CANE’s Classical Home Missions Committee (CHMC) realized with a deepening conviction over the last five years that God wants his lost children found.  So it was intent to pray for, plan for, and assist the churches to be churches where those outside of Christ can be called to faith in him, enfolded in the new community, challenged to live their life for him, and equipped to be his witnesses.  

 

Although the CHMC did not have a complete blueprint in hand five years ago, the Holy Spirit has been etching a vision in its soul that is becoming increasingly clear and compelling – and to which the CHMC is being obedient.  The CHMC has developed a deepening belief that this vision must become a reality – slowly, step-by-step, trusting the Spirit to make clear each “next step.” 

 

And that’s how God has written CANE’s story so far; one step at a time with each next step believingly taken leading to a next step to be courageously taken. 

 

This commitment, however, to following Jesus poses its risks including the possibility of failure.  The stakes are certainly high in being obedient in a world thoroughly broken by sin, but the stakes are much higher -- though not always obviously so -- in not being obedient to the vision.  The CHMC was firmly convicted that Jesus is wholly adequate to make its inadequate efforts part of his master blueprint.

 

 

 

In the light of the above, here are brief sketches of five strategically defining decisions and directions that the Spirit used to build missional ministry momentum in CANE during the last five years.

 

 

 

In October 1998 ten of the fifteen churches sent a ministry leadership team to the Church Leadership Conference sponsored by the Willow Creek Association and held in South Barrington, Illinois.

 

In the context of this common experience, the Spirit rebirthed the urgency of their mission in God’s world and the need to work together.   It unmistakably underlined in their hearts the fact that God wants his lost children found.  The three, back-to-back stories Jesus told recorded in Luke 15 became memorable.  Reaching out for these “lost” became a non-negotiable assignment.  God chose Abraham and Sarah to be a blessing to all the families of the earth, and that vision remains and extends in the person of Jesus Christ – and his radiant Bride, the Church – “Jesus-in-action for the sake of the World.”[2]  And the leaders of these churches attending that conference were called to be the diligent leaders of the church in that mission in this generation.[3] 

 

This leadership conference experience provided a common, urgent conviction that evangelism is a non-negotiable assignment from God himself and simply not a ministry option. 

 

 

 

In 1995 and again in 2000 the CRC Classical Renewal Ministry Team sponsored two conferences at the Glen Eryie conference grounds in Colorado Springs, Colorado, to which they invited two delegates from each

of the forty-eight classes in the CRC.  As a result of CANE’s sending delegates to each of these two conferences, CANE considered alternative ways for doing the work of classis.  CANE then adopted a different way of living together that it thought could renew its sense of urgency and commitment to the mission of the church. 

 

These conference learnings regarding the life and work of classis provided CANE with a sense that a different way working together not only is possible and appropriate, but also would increase its effectiveness.

 

 

 

God intends his church to be “diligently led”[4] by those to whom he gives the gift of leadership.  Without this “diligence,” the church will lose energy, miss strategic ministry opportunities, and soften in its focused call to Christian discipleship in a world at fierce odds with its Creator.  

 

So with the encouragement and assistance of Christian Reformed Home Missions and CRWRC, part-time staff people were engaged to help the CHMC do its work and carry out the mandate that classis had given it.  Training and encouragement were provided the last four years at the Willow Creek Leadership Summit.  As a result a leadership culture is being birthed in CANE.  In addition, on the broader missional scene, CANE’s delegates to both Christian Reformed Home Missions and World Missions are serving as their board presidents.

 

The growth of a leadership culture in CANE is providing the energy needed to lead the churches with an urgent, Christian hope and to build and to sustain a missional momentum in the churches.

 

 

 

The CHMC on behalf of CANE has worked deliberately in setting ministry goals and holding itself accountable to focus its energies toward making these goals a reality.

 

 

 

In Emerging Church Development

 

Prominent in these goals has been the planting of new (emerging – per Yearbook) churches – in Massachusetts, Maine, and Connecticut.  In 1984 the CHMC began to consider how classis could grow without spending large sums of money for start-up costs.  Potential congregations were identified and CRC pastors were loaned to these congregations.  Eventually CANE refined that initial concept and birthed its New York/New England Strategy.  As a result, two churches have joined classis and three more are seriously interested in affiliation.

 

The annual historical record of the CRCNA – The Yearbook’s “2001 Year in Review” -- featured these new church plants.[5] 

 

Marty and Jayne McGinn discovered CRHM church-planting strategies through a presentation given by Chris Mitchell at Gordon-Conwell Seminary.  Chris and Cindi (Mitchell) are planting a thriving new church near Boston.  As a result of this connection, the McGinns are planting a new church with the support of the CRHM in Chantilly, Virginia.

 

But that is not all. Mike and Laura Laird were also introduced to the CRC through Chris and now are planting a new church in Danvers, Massachusetts, just north of Boston.  In Glastonbury Connecticut, Will and Sue Gardner are planting a new CRC also.

 

In many interesting and different ways, God sent to CANE persons he called to develop new churches in the East, persons CANE did not know.  In the process, God also opened CANE’s eyes to how fertile nominally Roman Catholic New England is to the Christian gospel.  Churches are beginning to start new churches as evidenced by the strategy CANE adopted in the fall of 2001 for the growth of CANE in Maine.  

 

 

From the other side of the church life cycle for example – the “older” church side, in 1993 the-106-year old Pleasant St. CR Church in Whitinsville, Massachusetts, completed a Congregational Master Plan with the assistance of Christian Reformed Home Missions.   This vision of becoming an outreaching church rooted deeply as Pleasant Street Church worked patiently with one initiative at a time.  Church @ 11 now is designed to communicate with 21^st Century people.  Satellite technology is used for community wide live presentations such as “The Case for Christ” with Lee Strobel.  Alpha meets during the evening worship time.    

 

These sometimes risky experiences are providing the churches of CANE with a growing urgency to respond in new and effective ways to the huge missional challenges, and to courageously call people to life now and forever in God’s kingdom.

 

 

 

As a way to deal responsibly with their increased missional momentum and in the wake of the demise of the Atlantic Northeast Deaconal Conference (ANDC), CANE felt the need to rethink how strategically and stewardly it was organized and working.  As a result of this rethinking, CANE now has three delegates at each of its sessions – an elder, a deacon, and a pastor – to think creatively, critically, and strategically about the ministry opportunities God is assigning them.  

 

Further, CANE mandated its CHMC to propose the structure and workings of a classical ministries committee (CMC).  CANE approved this proposal and mandated its CHMC to edit it, recruit personnel to lead the four ministry teams, and present a final proposal to its fall 2002 meeting for implementation January 1, 2003.  The four ministry teams will be mandated to accomplish the following:

 

1.      Cultivate a leadership culture

2.      Stimulate organized church development

3.      Empower emerging church development

4.      Engender communication and prayer.

 

This re-grouping provides CANE with greater optimism for the future.  It invites more people into work of ministry.  It also evidences CANE’s courageous attempt to organize itself and to steward its resources so it is obedient to the missional challenge the Spirit is placing in front of her.

 

 

 

CANE’s CHALLENGE TODAY -  “Lead On, O King Eternal”

 

As the last word in all of CANE’s growth in missional understanding and activity, one thing needs to be emphasized:

 

 

 

 

ü     Who else could provide CANE with servant leaders who could easily weary with the enormous wisdom, courage, and energy needed for this task which is “central to the being” of God’s people, but instead have grown in bold obedience?[6]     

 

ü     Who else could underline the urgency and the dread of staring the cunningly clever Devil in the face and “announcing the one Name that saves?”[7]  

 

ü     Who else could make timid, innately selfish folks bold, assertive, wise, effective leaders in the cause of Christ?[8]

 

Only God! –  God the Father,

                             God the Holy Spirit.

 

God who did not turn his back

 on a world bent on destruction.[9]  

 

God who remembered his promise

 to reconcile the world to himself;

 and has come among us in Jesus Christ.[10]  

 

God the Spirit who thrusts

 God’s people into worldwide mission

 and goes before them and with them,

 pleading the cause of Christ.[11]  

 

               It’s God assigning CANE a significant part in what he is doing.             

               It’s God saying,

                   ”You I trust with the reigns of leadership in the churches.”

              

 

                            

 

Nothing is more important than to get this straight!

 

And nothing is more important NOW for CANE than

    to deeply trust the Spirit’s leading, 

    to act boldly in spite of its fears, and

    to hear God encouragingly say to CANE,