Could fear or busyness be holding you back from reaching out to the community and being a deep listener?
Both of those real-life challenges were raised during a recent online discussion about “Intentional Authentic Evangelism” and what obstacles stand in the way of accomplishing it.
The 90-minute discussion, attended by 34 people, was facilitated by Alicia Demartra-Pressley, Associate for Missional Equipping in the Office of Theology & Worship, a ministry area of Theology, Formation & Evangelism. It’s part of an ongoing series of conversations focused on the 7 Marks of Vital Congregations.
In the midst of the Covid pandemic, when the efficacy of new vaccines was still unknown and many churches were not back to worshiping inside, the Rev. Aisha Brooks-Johnson, executive presbyter of the Presbytery of Greater Atlanta, issued an invitation for congregations to join the Vital Congregations Initiative (VCI). The Rev. Katie Day, having accepted her call to Pleasant Hill Presbyterian Church in Duluth, Georgia, during the pandemic, remembers that her congregation was still worshiping in a parking lot and conducting meetings on Zoom.
Author and historian the Rev. Dr. Gary Neal Hansen, the author of the 2012 book “Kneeling with Giants: Learning to Pray with History’s Best Teachers,” used two hourlong keynote slots during The Immersion conference in part to offer attendees “a well-rounded diet of prayer.”
John 20 gives us one of those timeless settings. The disciples had gathered in a house. Doors were locked. Questions were spiraling. The fear was palpable. Jesus had been crucified just a few days prior and the disciples still hadn’t really figured out what their next move should be. So, they sat. Confused. Doing nothing except worry about how the entire world had changed.
