Four Presbyterians took a crack Wednesday at defining what Spirit-inspired worship looks and feels like during a Vital Conversations webinar hosted by 1001 New Worshiping Communities and the Office of Vital Congregations. Watch the webinar here.
First Presbyterian Church of San Luis Obispo recently made the commitment to become a Matthew 25 church, and that marks the 1,000th registration received for the Matthew 25 vision, launched in April 2019.
Presbyterians love a well-crafted sermon and well-written prayers. But the Rev. Carlton Johnson, coordinator of Vital Congregations, believes that sometimes PC(USA) congregations need to return to vibrant prayer.
“I want to tell you a story,” the Rev. Dr. Kathryn Threadgill began a recent sermon, “about embodied grace and true hope.”
Threadgill, the Vital Congregations coordinator for the Presbyterian Mission Agency, preached for nearly 350 national staff of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) as part of Staff Development Day. Her text was Romans 5:1-5.
The Rev. Dr. Ralph Basui Watkins has no doubt preached in many settings over his long career in ministry and in training ministers to be.
Add the former garage he’s transformed into a gym to the list of his preaching venues.
After the first day of the Vital Congregations virtual facilitator training, the Rev. Neil Ricketts spoke with elders at the church he serves.
“I told them that we — our church — and denomination are in good hands,” he said. “How we had heard from God and were implementing a plan for a healthy vital church.”
During the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) #GivingTuesday 12-hour digital telethon set for Dec. 1, the Rev. Dr. Kathryn Threadgill and team will celebrate their Vital Congregations ministry. Along with dismantling structural racism and eradicating systemic poverty, building congregation vitality are the three foci of the denomination’s Matthew 25 invitation.
