For More Information, Contact:
   Rev. Steve Stephens
   527 North Blvd.
   Baton Rouge, LA 70802
   HEStephens@bellsouth.net

Brochure [PDF]

II. What are the elements of the transformation process?

The Challenge today

The mission of the church is to discern, celebrate, and participate in God's redemptive mission in the world. The greatest challenge facing churches today is to live missionally - to develop missionary sensitivities, vision, and practices for engaging in God's mission. The many efforts churches are making to “keep up” or “survive” are futile if this fundamental challenge is not addressed. This missional reorientation represents a profound learning curve for most churches and a strategic challenge for most church leaders.

In light of this challenge, judicatory leaders seek to be a helpful resource to churches. But regional church budgets are being squeezed from many directions. Staff responsibilities and requests for service and support are on the rise. What is required are creative, cost effective and fruitful ways to leverage resources of time, staff experience and money for their most primary challenge of all -- transforming churches toward mission.

Underlying Assumptions about transforming churches toward a missional posture

The mission of the church is to be found in God's mission. God who is always doing "a new thing" (Isaiah 43:19) calls the church to discern, celebrate, and participate in God's impression.
      •  The church, therefore, is called to bring the good news of the kingdom into engagement with the deep yearnings and concrete challenges of its worldly context.
      •  To engage today's context with the good news requires the formation of a disciple community - the faithful body of Jesus Christ - to be a sign, foretaste, and instrument of the reign of God.
      •  In many churches this requires a radically new vision, new ways of thinking and new patterns of behavior.
      •  Church leaders must become equipped with skills, support, and resources for leading the journey.

A Partner in Ministry: 

The mission of the Center for Parish Development is to provide counsel and resources to facilitate the transformation of churches seeking to discern, celebrate, and participate more fully in God's mission. The Center has partnered with the Louisiana Annual Conference to to share its resources and experience to support regional leaders and teams who seek, who pray, and who work for the church’s renewal as God's new creation community.

Churches being transformed into a missional posture are learning to:

Pay attention to their missional context:
      They are developing skills for discovering, interpreting, and purposefully engaging their missionary context. They are moving beyond demographics to discern powerful cultural patterns, beliefs, and values that shape them and those with whom they live, work, and worship They are responding to social and local realities (such as increased ethnic diversity, consumerism, nationalism, and variety of spiritualities) - with the resources of the Gospel.

Pay attention to the Spirit:
      They are cultivating the church as a community of the Holy Spirit. The Spirit - Who calls, equips, and sends the church - empowers the faith community through biblical study to perceive, think, and behave as the People of God As they learn about the world and about the Gospel, people are becoming knowledgeable and articulate. Evangelism groves naturally out of their commitment and excitement.

Pay attention to one another:
      They are shaping anew the church's common life in ways that are a sign and foretaste of God's reign. They are developing and sustaining rich practices of "one-anothering" -joining and sharing, eating and drinking, listening and caring, testing and deciding, welcoming and befriending. They are drawing a critical mass of the congregation into study, prayer, conversation, discernment, and transformation as a disciple community.

Pay attention to change:
      They are equipping leaders (lay and clergy together) to think, organize and lead frame-bending change toward a Additional identity and vocation. They are creating readiness for significant spiritual renewal, building commitment to the major changes that are required. They are building and equipping leadership teams, thinking systemically discerning God's vision for their church, inventing new ways to demonstrate their faith, and embedding innovation.

What is the transformation journey like for congregations?

The transformation journey toward a missional posture is

•  Participatory: The process involves the entire congregation in a variety of ways and times, in gatherings large and small, in study, prayer, conversation, discernment, planning and action.

•  Missional: The process is not based on marketing surveys or focus groups. Rather, members and leaders engage one another in discerning God's calling, taking seriously the current cultural context, and discovering life together as a community formed by the Holy Spirit.

•  Strategic: The congregation makes direction-setting decisions from a missional perspective. It makes decisions that will have long-term effects, impacting every aspect and segment of life in our congregation.

•  Engaging: Leaders and members together will discover this to be a learning journey of spiritual depth. Participants will experiment with and experience Christian community 'in new ways. They consistently report, “We are learning what it means to be the church and to live missionally.” There is new excitement and shared focus."

Transformation is not simply a new way to keep doing what is presently going on. It does not offer merely a "tune-up," or adaptations to existing programs and priorities. Rather, in a very constructive and faith-filled manner, it enables the congregation to evaluate and define anew the nature, purpose, and practices of its life together in light of God's mission. It offers the opportunity to make the changes discerned to be necessary in order to become more faithful to God's calling and purpose in their situation.

Missional Questions asked and answered in a Transformation Process

     •  Where are -we?

     •  What is God doing here?

     •  Whose are we and how is God calling us?

     •  How is God sending us?

     •  How will we live as a called and sent people of God?

Practical Training Manuals for local church teams

Training manuals are provided for local church teams, guiding them step by step along a transformation journey. Manuals offer solid theological and concept training as well as practical tasks for local church teams.

     Called to be Faithful (Introductory resource)
     Getting Ready for the journey (Phase One)
     Discovering Our Strategic Profile (Phase Two)
     Discerning God's Call (Phase Three)
     Designing Strategic Ministries (Phase Four)
     Embedding a Missional Posture (Phase Five)

III. What is the timeline for the process?

The churchanew 2.0 process is an 18 month process of training and consultation to prepare churches to move into their future.

            10:00 a.m. – 2:30 p.m.       COME AND SEE
            Introductory event for church leaders

After they commit to be a part of the process, each church’s coordinating team and pastor will attend 5 cluster workshop held in your church or your district:

1.         10:00 a.m. – 2:30 p.m.       GETTING READY FOR THE JOURNEY
            Teams from each district church meet together to begin the process.

2.         10:00 a.m. – 2:30 p.m.       DISCOVERING OUR STRATEGIC PROFILE
            Teams from each district prepare to discover a common view of reality.

3.         10:00 a.m. – 2:30 p.m.       DISCERNING GOD’S VISION FOR OUR FUTURE
            Teams from each district will be equipped for congregational discernment.

4.         10:00 a.m. – 2:30 p.m.       DESIGNING MISSIONAL LIFE AND WITNESS
            Teams from each district will design ongoing life and witness of congregation.

5.         10:00 a.m. – 2:30 p.m.       EMBEDDING A MISSIONAL POSTURE
            Teams from each district will focus on managing transitions and changes.

Each pastor will attend 4 clergy training workshops during the 18 month transformations period.

Throughout this process, your district missioner will meet regularly with your pastor and coordinating team to guide you through the phases.

IV. What is the cost for participation in the process?

Costs are conveniently spread over three budget years.

Initial registration fee                                                                                          $  250                           
   (due at time of commitment)

Consultation and Material fee                                                                            $1,000 - $2,000
    (1/4 due first year, 1/2 due second year, 1/4 due third year)

There will be additional meal costs for all laity and clergy attending cluster workshops and clergy days training sessions.  These costs are generally picked up by individual attendees.

Several bible studies are available that correspond with the transformation phases.  Churches are encouraged to utilize bible study in each phase.  Some of the bible studies are included in the manuals and several other recommended studies are available for $7 per copy.

None of the materials provided by the Center for Parish Development can be photocopie.  All materials are protected under copyrigh.  The Louisiana Annual Conference has a copyright agreement with the Center to provide handouts and other materials to each church.

Yearly costs are as follows:

For more information contact:

Rev H.E. “Steve” Stephens – Director of Church Extension and Transformation

225-346-1646 or 888-239-5286 extension 231

hestephens@bellsouth.net