April – September 2014
catalyst But those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles. Isaiah 40:31
Multi-parish initiative launched Taking big leaps on Ventures Healthy growth in Nottingham making disciples, developing leaders, growing churches
making disciples, developing leaders, growing churches Mission: CPAS enables churches to help every person hear and discover the good news of Jesus Christ.
Our vision:
Our passion:
We long to see a Christ-centred, Bible-based, mission-focused Church where leaders are clear about their call to discipleship, growing in Christ-like character, and competent to lead in a time of rapid change;
We are a committed evangelical mission agency, and since 1836 we have been working for the evangelisation of the UK. In what seems to be an environment of ever-growing secularism across the UK and Republic of Ireland, the urgency of the gospel has never been clearer.
where leaders discern God’s direction, enable action, build teams, develop leaders, facilitate communication, and nurture people; where leaders work in teams, reflecting the diversity of ministries, and model themselves on the servant character of Jesus; where leaders help transform inherited churches, pioneer emerging churches and deliver creative residential ministry, effectively helping children, young people and adults hear and discover the good news of Jesus Christ.
We are fundamentally committed to the local church. Our founders made an obligation to support the evangelistic endeavours of local churches, while our support now focuses on developing and equipping the leaders of local churches. We believe the message of the cross is real and relevant to all people. It is a good news story: of grace (God’s unmerited favour towards us), mercy (forgiveness when we deserved punishment) and love (John 3:16). We are passionately committed to the revitalisation of the Church of England. We have never wavered in this passion and our commitment to patronage, Ventures and Falcon Camps and leadership development flows out of our aspirations for the Church of England. Unless otherwise stated all Bible quotations taken from the New International Version (NIV)
Catalyst
Editor: Olly Du Croz Design: Catherine Jackson Copyright CPAS 2014. All rights reserved. Permission is granted for the reproduction of text from this publication for CPAS promotional use only. For all other uses, please contact us. This magazine is printed on paper from farmed forest: for each tree felled, another is planted. The paper is chlorine-free and environmentally friendly.
Contact CPAS Sovereign Court One (Unit 3), Sir William Lyons Road, University of Warwick Science Park, COVENTRY CV4 7EZ T 0300 123 0780 E info@cpas.org.uk W www.cpas.org.uk Church Pastoral Aid Society Registered charity no 1007820 A company limited by guarantee Registered in England no 2673220 Registered office at address above
welcome
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he Church of England’s latest research on church growth has recently landed on my desk – a piece of work whose stated aim is to clarify what helps churches grow and what gets in the way. For CPAS this is a wonderful gift, as we enable growth and help churches overcome some of the barriers they face. The report’s executive summary includes the following: ‘What seems crucial is that congregations are constantly engaged in reflection; churches cannot soar on autopilot. Growth is a product of good leadership (lay and ordained) working with a willing set of churchgoers in a favourable environment.’ (Professor David Voas) This statement resonates with the heartbeat of CPAS. At a recent staff prayer meeting, my colleague Michelle read from the book of Isaiah: ‘But those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles’ (Isaiah 40:31). I believe that God is among his Church and at work in our nation, but an unreflective autopilot mentality will not enable us to ‘soar’, it will cause us to nosedive at a time when our nation really needs us.
good leaders in partnership with dioceses and theological colleges; and releasing good leaders to run residential camps for children and young people. The research also says that ‘three quarters of churches that offer retreats, conferences or camps for youth report growth, against half among those that don’t.’ So let’s act now and get more young people on Venture holidays, just like those you can read about at St Andrew’s in Plymouth (page 4). We praise God that some churches are growing, as the story from Nottingham (page 6) illustrates, and in our changing times we need the encouragement from every good example we can find. However, the report gives cause for concern over the growth statistics among multiparish groupings. Clearly we need to explore what works with people who are leading in these situations, and the article on page 12 will give you an update on our work in this vital area. Thank you so much for reading this edition of Catalyst, for your financial and prayerful support, and for joining with us in our ‘hope in the Lord’.
Good leadership is our great passion: appointing good leaders to our patronage churches; training Graham Archer, Director of Ministry
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Contents 10
04 06 09 10 12 14 15
Taking big leaps on Ventures Healthy growth in Nottingham Lead On Delivering in partnership A multi-parish journey to growth Mentoring update Supporting CPAS
taking big leaps Individual stories of young people coming to faith on Ventures are always a real highlight of what we do each year. However, a week of fun activities, Bible talks and discussions often has a far broader impact for youth groups and churches across the country as relationships are built, gifts are developed and lifelong friendships are made.
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ick Ashton is a youth worker at St Andrew’s in Plymouth and has been leading on Ventures for several years, taking young people to both Sparkford 3 and Barnstaple. Having grown up understanding the importance of residential camps which he describes as ‘influential for me as a teenager’, Nick has seen great fruit from his time away with young people.
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‘Wherever a young person is on the faith spectrum, they can take a big leap forward on a Venture. Last year we had a teenager at Sparkford who hadn’t previously said a prayer of commitment to Jesus, and it’s been massively encouraging to see the difference in his life since then. In previous years we had a girl who wasn’t from a church background and had been coming along to Bible studies for a while, but didn’t really get what the gospel meant. It wasn’t until being on a Venture that everything clicked for her.‘ Nick also has family connections to the rich heritage of decades of Venture holidays as the son of Mark Ashton, who was head of CYFA in the 1980s before becoming vicar of St Andrew the Great in Cambridge. In fact, part of a book written by his late father makes Nick even more convinced about the value of Ventures. He added: ‘Dad wrote that if the Church just tries to give young people entertainment they’ll find something more entertaining by the time they’re 18. However, all young people value a depth of relationships, so we need to develop friendships and grow in love for one another. ‘Ventures massively help that because a group goes away and has a fantastic holiday together, as well as getting a good standard of Bible studies. Two years ago I saw an incredible impact on three girls we took to Barnstaple who had been on the fringes of church. They had a great time and their friendships with each other really grew, which then had an effect on Bible teaching back at church because they were more confident, far better engaged and more willing to contribute.’
‘For the young people themselves, beyond giving good Bible teaching the best thing I can do for them is take them on a Venture’
Highlights like that are what Nick loves about Ventures, as well as the opportunity for him to develop friendships with other youth workers and the joy of helping young people find out about Jesus. ‘Ventures are also the best training out there for other youth leaders at our church who come along,’ he added. ‘Where else can they lead a few Bible studies as well as be trained and encouraged in evangelism with young people? It’s great to then see them take the initiative back at church because they’ve been so well equipped on the Venture. ‘For the young people themselves, beyond giving good Bible teaching the best thing I can do for them is take them on a Venture. It’s great for individuals, but also really good to help the group grow together. Many of the young people tell me it’s the best week of their year because they have great fun and the spiritual element of the programme isn’t too intense or over-bearing for people who aren’t used to Christian-led camps. ‘Above all, Ventures are massively beneficial for the Church. Whatever the young people or leaders go on to do in life, they’re more able to have gospel conversations with other people and be a real blessing in their local churches.’
Inspired by Nick’s story? Want your youth group to get involved, or visit a Venture yourself? Get in touch on www.ventures.org.uk or 0300 123 0780.
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The number of CPAS training centres is growing as we develop more links with local churches across the UK. Thanks to these partnerships, we can provide leadership development which is focused on the needs in different parts of the country.
healthy growth
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t Nic’s Nottingham hosted its first event as a CPAS training centre earlier this year, with Graham Archer leading an event about developing effective teams, and vicar Steve Silvester believes this is one of various partnerships which are contributing towards the church’s growth. ‘Growing disciples is at the heart of our vision based on Jesus’ great commission (Matthew 28),’ said Steve. ‘Anything we can do with other organisations such as CPAS which helps us do this becomes part of our mission. As a training centre we can be a resource for other churches to do that as well, especially as the agenda for future events is set by local churches as we all draw on the expertise available through CPAS.’ St Nic’s is also developing partnerships with other groups such as Nottingham Citizens, a community group made up of 40 multi-faith and educational organisations working together for social justice. Steve believes this is ‘helping people in the church see how they can live as Christians and build God’s kingdom while working alongside people of different faiths’. ‘St Nic’s is now on more of a mission footing and healthier than we’ve been for a while,’
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he added. ‘I’d really encourage other churches to make health a priority, because where the body of Christ is healthy growth tends to happen. Integrity is really important to that, so as a leadership team we focus on our personal discipleship and being accountable to each other. As leaders we want to be what we want the church to be, so the church leadership team models that by eating together, encouraging each other in discipleship and holding each other accountable, as well as discussing church matters.’ While developing leadership at St Nic’s in a new way to create missional communities, Steve is also keen to stress the importance of his own development, which currently includes being part of a learning community run by 3DM based around bi-annual gatherings with other leaders. One of last year’s highlights at St Nic’s was being part of a preaching festival to celebrate the 150th anniversary of St John’s College, culminating in a visit from J John. The church also hosted The Gap, a series of performances on topics such as food, beauty and money which were followed by opportunities for discussion with Bishop Paul Butler.
‘I’d really encourage other churches to make health a priority, because where the body of Christ is healthy growth tends to happen.’ ‘These events are great, but we’re more focused on organic growth which is based on relationships,’ added Steve. ‘As a gathered church, wherever we live we want to invite people to “come and see” (John 1) as we share life together. ‘The recent re-ordering of the church has also helped re-connect us to the cityscape in ways which we weren’t before, and more people now feel like this is a place they can come in and feel welcome. As part of the city’s Light Night we had 1,000 people through the building in one evening, and our carol services are increasingly popular. ‘We’re seeing growth in a number of areas, including young adults and students, as well as a group of teenage boys which is seeing more young people come to Christ.’ As a CPAS patronage church, St Nic’s is part of the
city’s evangelical landscape, something that Steve says is thriving at the moment: ‘It’s a very exciting time seeing God at work in Nottingham, especially through a strong network of evangelical churches which is based on good relationships and mutual respect.’ Steve’s hopes for the future are based on the church’s vision of responding to Christ, relating to each other in community, reaching into the city and resourcing disciples. He is especially keen for St Nic’s to become more of a house of prayer and a prophetic presence in the city centre, as well as increasing the justice agenda by tackling food poverty through the End Hunger Fast campaign. Under Steve’s leadership, please pray that St Nic’s continues to grow into an increasingly healthy community with a sharp mission focus.
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grove leadership series
Biblical, l and thoughtfu ooks practical b dership on key lea topics
View the entire series at 08
www.cpas.org.uk/grove
It has been nearly two years since we launched the Lead On monthly leadership email. Written by leaders for leaders, this has proved to be a popular resource received by more than 3,000 men and women working in churches across the UK and Republic of Ireland.
lead n Each edition includes an indepth leadership article on a relevant topic, written by a mixture of CPAS staff and guest contributors. Some of the topics so have so far included: Engaging Gen Y (James Lawrence), Disciplemaking in a consumerist culture (Neil Hudson), Leadership: the art of asking good questions (Emma Ineson), Keeping evangelism central in our leadership (Dave Male), Maintaining relationship and direction in leadership (Rachel Treweek) and Ten mistakes that leaders make (John Dunnett). A recent edition of Lead On featured an article by Alastair McKay, executive director of Bridge Builders, who wrote about conflict. Here is an extract of his article:
James Lawrence
Becoming competent and resilient as a leader who engages with conflict
How do you feel about conflict in the church? Worried? Scared? Angry? Energised? Hopeful? Most of us tend to have negative associations with conflict, especially within the church, where we think the focus should be on loving one another. However, it is normal to have disagreements, tensions and low-level conflict in Christian ministry – these things go with being a living and authentic community of diverse people. When one is in a leadership role of any kind – especially if you’re in the primary leadership position – then there is a particular challenge and responsibility for working well with such tensions. Some can find this challenge and responsibility stressful, or can feel ill-equipped to carry the load. So let’s explore the question of how we can be both more competent and more resilient in working with conflict in the church.
Alastair’s article goes on to define conflict as ‘any situation where there are tensions over differences, not just escalated situations where there are stronger feelings and more likelihood of damaged relationships’, before exploring some key foundations for leaders to build and strengthen: A new attitude towards conflict. Greater self-awareness. An understanding of emotional process. Recognising which approach to conflict to use. Employing some conflict resolution tools. Learning process skills.
Find out more about Lead On and read Alastair’s article in full at
www.cpas.org.uk/leadon 09
During the past year we’ve seen good progress in our work with several men and women who have been working alongside CPAS staff to deliver events and conferences on a wide range of leadership topics. For Catalyst, we spoke to a couple of CPAS partners who have used their experience and expertise to contribute towards different types of training events.
delivering in partnership Nikki Groarke
Nikki was appointed as the new Archdeacon of Dudley earlier this year, having been vicar of St Stephen’s Canonbury, in Islington, for five years. Her connection with CPAS started as a mentor for a participant on the Arrow Leadership Programme, and Nikki later ran the Growing Leaders course at St Stephen’s which she describes as ‘really transformative for the church’. ‘Having looked at all the topics which CPAS offers training on, I highlighted a few areas where I could make a contribution. It was then agreed for me to start with helping people through the transition into a first incumbency, so I co-led The Buck Stops Here with Graham Archer last year. ‘I’ve done lots of training in the past and the CPAS material is so good it’s relatively
easy to get started. Graham and I agreed how we would divide the responsibilities of leading the 48-hour conference, based on which sessions I could best work in examples from my own experience. ‘Using partners is a good model which combines the culture of CPAS training with a mixture of other practitioners who are grounded in the day-to-day reality of parish work. Also, it makes the events more enriching for delegates to have a combination of people teaching with different personalities and skills. ‘It is also helpful for my own development to work with a good organisation and interact with people from different dioceses through CPAS events, so I’m hoping to be involved again next year. I’d definitely encourage others to get involved as has felt like a great opportunity to contribute, rather than an extra burden.’
‘Using partners is a good model which combines the culture of CPAS training with a mixture of other practitioners who are grounded in the day-to-day reality of parish work.’ 10
Rod Street
Rod brings a wealth of experience having spent 25 years with major companies such as Deloitte, PwC (Pricewaterhouse Coopers) and IBM, and is now working as a consultant on topics such as strategy, change and customer management. Bringing his passionate interest in leadership to CPAS, over the past 15 years Rod has had two spells as a trustee and chairs the selection panel for the Arrow Leadership Programme. ‘Partners help give CPAS more flexibility, using the expertise of relevant people to deliver material which has been developed and honed by CPAS. This new model of delivery has already enabled me to get involved in the leadership programme for clergy in Exeter diocese, as well as a one-off Change Makers event in Ireland.
‘As a trainer it’s important for me to understand the context of the delegates, as well as how I’m contributing towards the CPAS vision for developing leaders. In Exeter I was involved as part of a longer-term programme, so working alongside Charles Burgess he could fill me in about the range of backgrounds and the mission challenges they’re facing. It’s impossible to go as in-depth on a one-day event like Change Makers, but it’s valuable even if each person goes away with one insight or framework to help them in the future. ‘CPAS brings high standards and good ways of approaching training. The result of involving partners adds more reach and bandwidth to the delivery of its events, increasing the support for church leaders working in all kinds of situations and with different types of training needs.’
Other CPAS partners include:
Steve Benoy (director of ordinands, Peterborough Diocese), Peter Mackenzie (vicar, St John’s Ealing), Sharon Prior (leadership coach and co-founder of the Sophia Network), Nigel Done (vicar, The Minster, Ilminster) and Tim Stilwell (vicar, St Dionis, Parsons Green). 11
multi-parish benefices:
a journey to growth With more and more churches becoming part of multi-parish benefices each year, investing in the men and women leading in these often challenging situations could have a hugely significant and longlasting impact on growth in the Church of England. To enable these churches to do mission and ministry more effectively, CPAS is facilitating learning communities for leaders in multi-parish benefices – now being piloted in three dioceses – in partnership with Lead Academy and the Arthur Rank Centre.
‘It is clear clergy need to be training for and supported in the increasingly dominant role of multi-church leadership and mini-episcope, which is very different to that of single church community leadership.’ Bob Jackson
M
ulti-parish benefices are increasingly widespread across the Church of England, but sadly growth in this setting is notoriously difficult. The skills needed to lead healthy, growing churches in a multi-parish benefice can differ wildly from those needed in a single-church setting, yet most clergy still receive little training on the complexities of leading several congregations. In many English dioceses over 40 per cent of benefices now have three or more churches, so CPAS is very keen to invest in both ordained and lay leaders working across multiple churches. Pilot learning communities were recently launched in York, Liverpool and Gloucester dioceses, specifically to address the needs of leaders working in this context. CPAS leadership specialist Pam Macnaughton said: ‘When it comes to best practice in multi-parish benefices, much of the expertise comes from those on the front-line, so the learning community model is ideal as there is a high proportion of group work.
Want to get your diocese involved? More information is available from CPAS leadership specialist Pam Macnaughton on 12
pmacnaughton@cpas.org.uk.
What is a learning community?
Feedback
Several leadership teams of multi-parish benefices meet together four times over two years. CPAS staff and partners facilitate clergy and lay leaders in addressing key issues together in order to benefit from one another’s experiences, knowledge and passion. Between meetings, teams work on agreed actions in their churches, and are visited by a supporter who offers advice, evaluation and encouragement.
‘It was so much more than I had envisaged.’
‘We were delighted to gather the first multi-parish benefice learning community in York in early 2014 on the theme of journey. It was a real encouragement to see people coming together around the goal of seeing God’s kingdom grow in their communities and to help them share their wisdom and experience. The teams identified prayer as foundational to the process of change – one group decided to start a weekly prayer time each Monday lunchtime dedicated to praying for growth.
collaboration, unity and vision can present unique challenges in a multi-parish benefice. ‘If we can help leaders get these things right, the impact on mission in their parishes could be enormous. Our big prayer is that we see renewal and growth, as clergy and lay leaders are developed, and churches gain more confidence to share the love of Jesus with their communities.
‘Beyond the pilot, we’d love to see more and more dioceses getting on board, and more and ‘Later in 2014, each learning more leadership teams being community will meet again to invested in. Ultimately, we hope consider the theme of leadership that the insights gained through and plan their next course of these learning communities can action. Discipleship and mission be shared and practised in the will be covered in 2015. Within vast number of multi-parish these broad themes, we recognise benefices across our nation. that the issues which affect It would be wonderful to see growth in multi-parish benefices hundreds and thousands more are often deep-seated and men, women and children come complex. Aspects of leadership to know Christ through the such as team-building, delegation, ministry of these churches.’
‘Really well delivered with care and thoughtfulness.’ ‘At the next gathering, I hope to learn as much as I did in this first meeting.’ ‘My hope is that by the next session, real progress will have been made to discover the many gifts that are all around us.’ Comments taken from the first multi-parish benefice learning community.
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mentoring matters Nurturing disciples, developing leaders Mentoring Matters contains everything you need to establish a church-based mentoring network. This resource offers practical guidance to church leaders about identifying, equipping and deploying mentors.
Part 1: Getting started An introduction to Christian mentoring, what it is and why it is needed. This has been specifically adapted for church leaders, potential mentors and potential mentees. Part 2: Training process Comprehensive and easy-to-use material for eight training sessions, based on seven core skills for mentors: Building rapport. Active listening. Dedicated prayer. Setting goals.
After three initial sessions, mentors are connected to mentees so the early stages of those relationships can be reviewed and evaluated as part of the training.
Part 3: Resources Various ways for the church to help support mentoring relationships, including resources for mentors, a series of e-bulletins, articles and publicity materials.
Asking questions. Using the Bible. Sense-making.
Mentoring Matters can be purchased at www.cpas.org.uk/mentoring, which also has details about the resource and training events for those interested in using the material. stop press: CPAS is partnering with the Evangelical Alliance and Stewardship on a new national mentoring initiative, which will launch in early 2015. We will be involved in training mentors for the leaders of churches and Christian organisations who are looking for support, challenge and 14 accountability. Watch out for more news later this year.
Promoting CPAS in your church is a fantastic way of encouraging greater support for our work enabling church growth across the UK and Republic of Ireland. Here are two ways you can get involved:
supporting CPAS Pray
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The thousands of faithful supporters who join us in prayer are hugely appreciated as we give thanks for all that God is doing through the work of CPAS, and ask for his guidance and inspiration for the future.
There are various ways you can inform people about the ministry of CPAS and inspire them to respond with greater support, either as a church or individually.
Please do consider how you can draw others into praying for CPAS: as part of your church’s intercessions for mission organisations, in your small group, or through a church newsletter or email circulation. You can view or subscribe to the Prayer Diary at www.cpas.org.uk/pray, or contact us on supporter.relations@cpas.org.uk for the latest prayer points. Daily prayers are also posted on Twitter (@CPASnews) and the PrayerMate app (www.geero.net/ prayermate).
You may be able to create a display on the church noticeboard, or give a short presentation about CPAS to the PCC or mission committee. Many supporters request additional copies of Catalyst to give to relevant people in their churches, if you would like to do this please contact us on supporter. relations@cpas.org.uk or 0300 123 0780. Please visit www.cpas.org.uk/promote for the full range of leaflets and display materials which we can provide for you free of charge.
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