{"id":25,"date":"2012-04-18T13:32:31","date_gmt":"2012-04-18T13:32:31","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/pbthomas.com\/thoughts\/?p=25"},"modified":"2012-04-18T13:32:31","modified_gmt":"2012-04-18T13:32:31","slug":"7-ideas-to-make-home-mission-support-more-effective","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/pbthomas.com\/thoughts\/?p=25","title":{"rendered":"7 ideas to make Home Mission support more effective"},"content":{"rendered":"

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As a Home Mission Visitor and a Mission Consultant for more
\nthan 20 years I offer the following suggestions about Home Mission support.
\nAlthough they referring primarily to churches receiving a grant to help them
\nhave a minister they can also apply to other mission situations.<\/o:p><\/font><\/font><\/p>\n

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1)  <\/span>There should be a
\ntime limit on grants. If after a set number of years a church has not reached the
\npoint where it is supporting its minister, then the conclusion should be that
\nthat church should only seek a part time minister. Grant support could however
\nstill be available under suggestion 2.<\/o:p><\/font><\/font><\/p>\n

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2)  <\/span>In most
\nsituations, grant support for a minister should imply that the minister spend
\nsome of his or her time and energy supporting Association life and mission
\nbeyond the church that has called them. If stipend plus pension contributions
\nplus manse is valued at around \u00a330,000 p.a. then a church receiving a Home
\nMission Grant of \u00a33,000 should release its minister to serve the wider Association
\nfor 10% of his time, \u00a36,000 implying 20% and so on. There are so many ways in
\nwhich those ministers could serve other churches within the Association, not
\nleast through suggestions 3-6 below.<\/o:p><\/font><\/font><\/p>\n

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3)  <\/span>Mission
\nConsultancies can be very helpful to churches. Grant supported churches should expect
\nto have a Mission Consultancy every three years, and be expected to make good
\nprogress with their action plans in between. Grant funding should be available
\nto help a church make the changes a Mission Consultancy reveals would be
\nhelpful. <\/o:p><\/font><\/font><\/p>\n

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4)  <\/span>A prior
\nincarnation of the current Mission Consultancy process was Action In Mission.
\nThis was in some ways a more in-depth examination not only of a church\u2019s
\nmission but of all aspects of its life, its patterns of worship and activities.
\nSome churches would surely benefit from such an extended \u201cMission Consultancy PLUS\u201d
\nand it would be good if such a process could be formulated and then offered to
\nany church which requests it. <\/o:p><\/font><\/font><\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

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5)  <\/span>In addition to
\nMission Consultancies, Grant supported churches (and any other churches who
\nwish) should have an Association recognised \u201cMission Partner\u201d or \u201cMission
\nMentor\u201d who will meet with the church leadership or church meeting say every
\nthree months to encourage and support the church with ideas, training and an objective
\n\u201coutsider\u2019s view\u201d of their life and mission.

\n

\n<\/o:p><\/font><\/font><\/p>\n

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6)  <\/span>Every church
\nshould be supported both with advice and finance in improving their
\ncommunications: effective signage, a functioning web presence, appropriate
\nstrategies for publicity, etc.<\/o:p><\/font><\/font><\/p>\n

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\n7)  <\/span>The present Home Mission grants
\nsystem does little to encourage relationships between churches. If another
\nchurch wishes to bless a grant aided church with financial support, this simply
\nleads to a reduction in next year\u2019s grant. There should be a mechanism whereby
\none church can take another church \u201cunder its wing\u201d in some respects, without
\ndisadvantaging that church. Suppose Church A offers a gift of \u00a35000 to
\ngrant-aided Church B. Why not let half of that gift go to Home Mission, and the
\nother half stay with Church B for their use with no penalty on the grant they
\nreceive. This would surely encourage churches with resources available to build
\nmeaningful links with other churches.<\/o:p><\/font><\/font><\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

<\/font><\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

As a Home Mission Visitor and a Mission Consultant for more than 20 years I offer the following suggestions about Home Mission support. Although they…<\/span><\/p>\n

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