Thursday, September 21, 2006
The mentored ministry not-so-much-dilemma anymore
The window shade


I took that picture yesterday while laying on my couch. I was procrastinating reading hospitality stuff.

On Monday I had my certification at the Corporate Coffeeshop, thus completing my training. I am now a certified Jedi barista. And that's El Baristo to you, buddy. The manager says she had never seen a more perfect cappucino during a training. You better believe it.

So I am sure I've left everyone in baited anticipation regarding the Mentored Ministry situation of a week ago. Let me catch you up to speed. I finally met the pastor I'm working with last Thursday, and let me say that I am thrilled to be getting to meet with this guy on a weekly basis. He's a guy I can talk about the parallels between Beowulf and the Ugaritic Baal cycles and at the same time I'm sure he'll kick my ass if I'm a complacent, cliquish, lazy seminary student.

I had this brilliant idea to write a discipleship curriculum where a faith community would read through the whole Bible in 3 years together. Too big a project. I will, however, be teaching through the book of Amos on Sunday mornings starting this Sunday.

Though, the bulk of my time, I think, will be spent organizing a network of small groups for seminary and college students who live here in Wilmore but drive the half-hour to church on Sundays. There are quite a few of them, but not yet anything to connect us all here in Wilmore. Personally, I find it silly commuting 30 minutes to church and missing the church you live with.

So I'll be working on educating Wilmore residents about the mission, vision and opportunities available within the church. I also want to get together a prayer gathering once a week that's parallel to the prayer ministry that meets in Lexington for those of us that just can't make a midweek drive into town. And lastly, I want get people connected into small groups for all those things you're really supposed to give and get from church, like prayer and Eucharist and sharing life, but most especially to engage the wider community here in Jessamine County. In the back of my mind I have the idea of a little satellite community here connected to the wider church in Lexington.

I get to stand in the pulpit Sunday morning and pitch this to the church in two services, which gives me another couple of days to refine my language some more.

So that's where the whole Mentored Ministry thing is going.

posted by Peter at 12:43 AM
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