Vital Congregations Archives

Reclaiming evangelism in the Bible Belt

Posted September 23rd, 2019

At its most recent session meeting, McGregor Presbyterian Church elders and the church’s pastor, the Rev. Julie Walkup Bird, celebrated.

PMA’s student loan forgiveness aids widowed pastor serving small Florida church

Posted September 10th, 2019

Without the support of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.), the Rev. Denise McLeod isn’t sure she would have survived. A widowed minister serving a small church, Trinity Presbyterian, in Key West, Florida — and raising a son who is now a senior in college — she applied for the Presbyterian Mission Agency’s Loan Forgiveness for Pastors.

Is yours a ‘healthy’ congregation?

Posted June 20th, 2019

Theologian Emil Brunner famously stated, “The church exists by mission, just as fire exists by burning.” This didn’t quite sink in until I heard Darrell Guder, former dean and missiologist at Princeton Theological Seminary, put it more clearly for me: “The church does not exist primarily for the benefit of its own members. Instead, it exists for the benefit of those outside its walls.”

The power of fearless dialogue

Posted June 11th, 2019

The Rev. Dr. Gregory Ellison, one of the keynoters for the 1001 New Worshiping Communities and Vital Congregations national gathering October, remembers how he felt in the midst of a media firestorm six years ago.

Seldom is heard a discouraging word

Posted May 20th, 2019

The Rev. Dr. Tom Bryson, who is part of the Vital Congregations (VC) writing team, said he was floored at what he heard at VC gatherings in Denver and Atlanta the last two weeks.

The first to say yes

Posted May 16th, 2019

A small congregation has set its sights on making a big impact in its community. Earlier this year Olivet Presbyterian Church in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, a church of about 65 members, became the first church to officially accept the Matthew 25 invitation from the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.).

From anger and lament to wonder and awe

Posted May 16th, 2019

As Dr. William P. Brown, professor of Old Testament at Columbia Theological Seminary, confessed his personal anger and lament, Fairfield Hall at First Presbyterian Church in Atlanta went silent

Vital Congregations East Coast gathering opens with news of ‘God doing a new thing’

Posted May 14th, 2019

During opening worship at the East Coast Vital Congregations gathering at Atlanta’s First Presbyterian Church, the Rev. Amantha Barbee told nearly 100 mid council and other church leaders that if they want a vital congregation, they should “tell the truth, listen, take risks and above all preach the gospel.”

Vital Congregations initiative 2020 launch is underway

Posted May 6th, 2019

Nearly 140 leaders including representation from presbyteries, pastors, clerks of session and the Presbyterian Mission Agency are meeting at Montview Presbyterian Church in Denver this week to pray, plan and worship together during the West Coast Vital Congregations gathering.

Congregations are invited to become Matthew 25 churches

Posted March 22nd, 2019

While the Presbyterian Mission Agency’s Matthew 25 invitation officially rolls out April 1, it has already been underway informally and organically in a number of Presbyterian churches.