This fall, Grace has enrolled 10 members in Year One of the Vancouver School of Theology’s Missional Leadership Certificate. The first-year theme is “Missional Foundations for COVID19 and beyond”, is led by the Rev. Dr. Tim Dickau, and over seven months and six Saturdays, focuses on neighbourhood engagement, forming thicker community life, fostering affordable housing, enacting justice, forming leaders and making disciples. This month, Joanne Kellough, Clerk of Session, shares.
What did you learn in the September session?
- We identified barriers to forming missional community and building a theology of community (secularism, autonomy, consumerism, globalized economy, inequality, racism, and human induced climate change).
- We heard the story of Grandview Church, Vancouver, BC, and how Pastor Tim Dickau and his family journeyed with them to form a “porous thicker community.”
- We listened to the Rev. Dr. Darrell Guder share about how he became a missiologist, some reasons why becoming missional church is important, and what his hopes for the certificate program are.
How do these learnings apply to your personal faith story?
- Identifying barriers reminded me of what I have observed and experienced at churches I have worked at or been involved with.
- Grandview’s story of success plus the Rev. Dr. Guder’s goals for the certificate program excite and encourage me, as part of the Grace team who are participating in the program, to work together to discern the possibilities for Grace, to make a difference, and to be part of the solution instead of part of the problem.
- My personal faith story continues to be written via a meandering journey. When I look back at the ups and downs, curves, and even what occasionally appeared to be insurmountable obstacles, I see that God is with me every step of the way. This certificate program offers something in the way of a compass and map, and I look forward to the learnings that will come from it!
