First Presbyterian Church

“So the churches were strengthened in the faith and increased in numbers daily.” - Acts 16:5

You may have heard the phrase “Acts 16:5” used around church by the elders and deacons and been wondering what it is. Well, it is obviously a reference to a verse in the book of Acts which is quoted above, but it is also an initiative sponsored by Salem Presbytery in which the churches take disciplined and intentional steps toward creating new ministries to reach new people while honoring and strengthening the work of present ministry.

The Acts 16:5 initiative began in our Presbytery in January when Stan Ott of the Vital Church Institute came and gave a two day introductory training seminar on the theories and practices of congregational transformation. Following this seminar, churches were given the opportunity to partner with the Presbytery and the Vital Church Institute for a three year process of training and guidance. The initiative was introduced to our Session and Deacons in January and then discussed and explored in February and March. At its April meeting, the Session voted to join the initiative.

Through intensive instruction with ongoing personal coaching and encouragement, we will be trained to reflect upon, design, and evaluate ministry so that we become intentional in connecting our church’s ministry and people to the Living Christ. This is not so much of a program as it is a process of ministry design and transformational thinking. It is the Session’s hope that our participation will help us achieve our vision of “becoming a community of believers where people are being transformed into the image of Christ.” The initiative will grow our ability to be a vital center of Christian faith and life in which we will be encouraged to grow in faith, discipleship, and the life of service.

So what does Acts 16:5 look like practically in our congregation? Initially, we have formed an Acts 16:5 Vision team whose responsibility includes learning the theories and practices of congregational transformation and creating ways to make these concepts a reality in the life of our congregation. Your Acts 16:5 vision team is made up of Joy Harman, Mac Ingraham , Ann Kiefer, Ann McMurray, Robin Team, and myself. We are meeting every 2-3 weeks. We spend about one third of our time in Bible reflection and prayer and the rest of the time learning the theories and concepts. Once we become fully versed in the process, we will begin planning ways to strengthen our present ministries and exploring new opportunities to reach our community with the Gospel.

In addition, I am meeting once a month with three other pastors whose churches are also participating. We spend time in Bible study and prayer and then help each other reflect on how the initiative is going in our churches. It is a time of accountability and encouragement.

If I had to sum up why we decided to join this initiative, it would be because we really do want a deeper vitality of faith in the lives of the members of our church, and we want to see our people energized and gain momentum for mission. God is doing a new thing in the life of the Church, and we want to be open to God’s leading.

Pray for our Vision Team and our church as we seek to glorify God and grow in our love for Christ!

Your friend and pastor,
Pastor Lee