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Emerge
Helps Lay Leaders Understand Church Systems Lay church leaders willing to spend a little extra time can learn what makes their church tick. Emerge combines training and mentoring to help leaders understand themselves and the church. "Self-awareness and understanding the church as a family system are probably the two greatest benefits," Robert Perry, Missouri program co-director, said. "Participants come away with a lot clearer awareness of their church, how to be supportive of their church staff and how to work better within the system." Spread throughout a year, Emerge utilizes four modules covered in three retreat sessions, with some project requirements completed at home. Retreats begin on a Friday evening and end on Sunday afternoon, usually at Windermere Baptist Conference Center. The sessions include personality, spiritual gifts, conflict style and other inventories for participants to take. They are led to understand the missional church concept and learn how churches can grow and remain healthy. Spiritual formation also is emphasized. Despite the time required, "at the end, the process was worth it," noted Jeff Langford, a member of Second Baptist Church, Liberty. He and his wife, who also participated, hold full-time jobs and have three children. They juggled schedules to make time. "Personally, it was invaluable, especially in terms of being with a group of people I wouldn’t have known or at as deep a connection," he said. "It raised my level of awareness of how things work…. I’m more aware of what my role is and can be in church leadership and how it can most effectively be done for the church." Langford added that the deeper understanding of church systems is helping him as his church faces replacing senior pastor Stephen Graham and its minister of education. "Our church is down by two staff. That leaves a vacuum which creates the potential for conflict in the church," he said. Although he believes that potential is minimal, Langford is convinced the Emerge training has given him a better understanding and tools to deal with the change. "I know we’ll be stronger leaders, more informed. Emerge will help us be better, stronger leaders during this time," he added. Perry and his wife, Marilyn Nelson, formed Emerge for lay leaders from a model Bob Dale developed for young ministers in Virginia, called "Young Leaders." Although the pair originally targeted laity from 30 to 50 years old, Emerge is open to those over 50, as well. Cooperative Baptist Fellowship of Missouri sponsors the state training. Dates for 2008 have not yet been set. Planning is in the early stages for Emerge to be offered in other areas through national CBF.
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Giving to CBF of
Missouri:
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