Grapevine the St. Francis
June 2018
Have you ever been hiking? A traveler hiking through mountains and forests can get a wonderful impression of things as they go by: a tree, a stream, or a wild animal. But it’s only from a high vantage point that we can see the bigger picture, and the relationship of the stream to the mountain, and the valley to the tree. The journey of life can be this way too. We go through life taking things one at a time as they come to us. We may find we only stop to reflect on the bigger picture when we face a fork in the road or a major crisis. Things right in front of us seem the most important and we think we know them very well. Things further away seem less important and we see them vaguely. And maybe the bigger purpose or plan of life, we have no clue at all. Jesus says “I am the way, and the truth, and the life.” (John 14:6) We believe that Jesus has the big picture for life. He knows the way. He IS the way. We also believe that following Jesus in the Church should be simple. Sometimes its hard to know: What’s most important? What’s the bigger picture? Where do I start? What is next? Where do I fit? Who are my people? We believe every person deserves a life-changing encounter with Jesus Christ. Once you encounter Jesus, you’ll start following Him and growing. Eventually, He’ll invite you to start serving in ministry and mission. This is called the Path of Discipleship. We want to make this path simple and clear. We call the three steps: Encounter, Grow, Serve. That’s why we are creating the Membership Series. Think of it as a roadmap for your faith journey, the Church, and life.
Membership 101: Start Here This two hour dinner and presentation held four times a year is specifically for new members of St. Francis parish or those who still feel disconnected. Also called the Newcomers Dinner, we’ll tell you what it means to be a member of our Church, the many ministries and resources we have, explain the Membership Series, and give you a roadmap to help you on your faith journey. We encourage people to join a Connect Group and experience Discovering Christ after this step. Membership 201: Next Steps We encourage people to attend this class who have had an encounter with Jesus, possibly through the Discovering Christ program, but are wondering what is next for them. We’ll cover the three basic habits of a disciple all of our Church members commit to: daily quiet, weekly worship, and monthly growth. We will also talk about the importance of community, and help you find a small group perfect for you to connect with. We encourage people to join or form a Discipleship Group after this step. Membership 301: Find Your Purpose After Discovering Christ and joining a small group, members are encouraged to attend this one day class, which will use the program Called and Gifted from the St. Catherine of Sienna Institute. This intensive workshop designed to help you discover the gifts in your life that God has given you will include presentations, an assessment, and an interview with a mentor to help you discern your gifts. We’ll also help recommend ministries in our parish we think would be a good fit for you. Membership 401: Find Your Mission After the previous classes, joining a small group and discerning your charisms, members should attend this class. We will cover the Church documents Redeptoris Missio and Evangeli Gaudium and discuss Jesus’ mission, missionary discipleship, the mission of the Church, and the mission of our parish. You’ll prayerfully discern where God is calling you to influence and reach those outside the walls of our parish. You’ll also learn about developing a missionary spirituality. We encourage people to attend a parish mission trip after this class, preferably with their small group.
A NEWSLETTER OF ST FRANCIS CATHOLIC CHURCH • 861 WILDWOOD LN, GRAPEVINE TX • SFATX.ORG