My apologies for this being late in posting.
The topic for our last cohort meeting was spiritual formation. To kick the topic off, we started with the excerpt in the post below. The question was: is this customized approach to spiritual formation really the way to go, or was there more to it?
As we discussed this throughout the evening it was a consensus that while the individualized spiritual formation idea was a good starting point, there needed to be more to it. Jared brought to our attention the idea of ASKING people to follow a customized spiritual growth plan as opposed to TELLING them. The idea being that spiritual formation is and should continue to be the result of personal initiative.
We also talked about how this might work in the house church setting. Obviously, in that small setting, the options that are available to a larger, more established community are missing. The idea was discussed about having a list of resources available for those in a house church to utilize for various areas of personal and spiritual growth (counsellors, Bible study groups, etc.). Also we talked about the idea of a tribal approach working in this setting. For example, in a Native American tribe a couple of centuries ago, a young man would be trained by the warriors of the tribe in the skills for hunting. All the boy’s play would be centered around the skills needed for hunting. One day, he might be invited to participate in the hunt with the warriors. If he was lacking in skills, the most skilled hunter in the group might take the young boy under his wing for additional tutelage. Perhaps the same thing could work with spiritual formation in the house church? Spiritual formation becomes a shared experience.
Much more that was discussed, and I hope that those present will add some comments for all to read. In the meantime, I expect that Jared will have information on the next Cohort meeting shortly. I don’t know what he’ll be discussing, but I do recall something about Lyotard… 
Peace,
Tim
Categories: Uncategorized
Hey Everyone!
The March meeting of the Akron/Canton Emergent Cohort will be Friday, March 9, at 8 PM. We’ll be meeting at my home: 2625 Maplewood St. in Cuyahoga Falls. Directions can be found here. Our topic will be spiritual formation, and to kick start the conversation I would like to leave everyone with a quote from Reggie McNeal’s book, The Present Future:
“Let’s return to that person or family who has just become a follower of Jesus and has joined a congregation or is considering becoming a part of church life. INSTEAD OF DUMPING A PACKET OF CHURCH CLUB MEMBER STUFF ON THEM, WHY NOT INTERVIEW THEM ABOUT WHAT THEY WOULD LIKE TO SEE HAPPEN IN THEIR LIVES IN TERMS OF THEIR SPIRITUAL DEVELOPMENT AND PERSONAL GROWTH? Maybe they’ve never thought in those terms. (Club members who have practiced churchianity for years would have more difficulty with this interview than spiritual seekers. Can’t you just imagine how many paragraphs of church-speak a person could generate to keep from saying anything that could lead to accountability?) Once a life coach or spiritual development coach completed this interview, they could then fashion a customized personal growth strategy for the person or family. This developmental strategy could pull from all the things the church offers currently. The coach might say, ‘Based on your interests, we recommend the Tuesday morning ladies’ Bible study and suggest you check out the group that ministers once a month in the juvenille detention facility downtown,’ or whatever. This could be done for each family member. What if the coach then said, ‘Let’s get back together in a month (and maybe every month for a period of time) to check on your progress’?
Imagine the difference in how this would come across to the new member. Instead of signaling to them that they are to find their way into church stuff and make the church successful, the focus is completely turned around. The church treats them as a market of one, convincing them that the church is there to help them develop an abundant life promised to them by Jesus.”
I think this is a good jumping off point for our discussion. I think that we’d all agree that the traditional, or even the purpose-driven way approach to spiritual development is quickly losing its impact in many corners of our country. This tailor made approach to spiritual formation based on interests, life stage, age, etc. makes a lot of sense. But is that all there is to it? Can we go even further? How do you go about doing something like this within the framework of a house church or a cell church network?
Let’s discuss on 3/9. See all of you then!
Peace,
Tim
Categories: Meeting Details
