BLOGGING TOWARD SUNDAY…

When asked by a colleague a few weeks ago what programs Broadway United
Methodist Church offers, Mike Mather, its pastor, answered “None.”

The inquirer was obviously flummoxed and asked again. Rev. Mather said, “We
don’t ‘do’ programs at Broadway. We worship God.”

What may seem a strange answer is actually a succinct description of the
vision and the ministries of the people who gather at Broadway’s near
downtown Indianapolis campus. What they do together as a congregation is
worship. And that they “do up right!” This year, they have applied for and
received grants to help strengthen their worship with a jazz combo, the Indy
Strings and folksinger Carrie Newcomer, plus consultations and presentations
by Marcia McFee and Brian Wren.

Broadway focuses a lot of time and resources on worship. What happens beyond
that they entrust to the gifts, passion and commitment of the people in the
congregation and neighborhood.

Why? Because “we worship God.” As Broadway sees it, the God they worship has
already provided everything needed and desired in the surrounding
neighborhood through the abundance of gifts and passion already there, just
waiting to be tapped, connected, and set free to do all the good they were
given for.

If you can say Broadway has any “program” beside worship, it might be
described as acting on the good news that the reign of the God they worship
is actually present in their midst.

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Some Questions for Discussion

1. If you were to “boil down” the vision of our congregation to a short
sentence, what would it be?

2. How does our congregation’s vision of the God we worship inform how you
do everything else you do?

3. What gifts and passion for action are already present in our
congregation and neighborhood, just waiting for the people who worship God
to tap, connect, and set free to do all the good they were given for?

Filed under: Blogging Toward Sunday