Methodist Spirituality in a Post-Pandemic World

Methodist Spirituality in a Post-Pandemic World

According to Google, searches for prayer were at an all-time high during the height of the pandemic. Six out of ten people in the US and around the world prayed for an end to the pandemic. People were desperate for a solution. But now that COVID is receding, churches have reopened, and we are resuming familiar ways, prayer searches are back to normal. Yet the need for a deep connection with God remains. How do we help people cultivate their own relationship with God? Good news! Methodist spirituality can anchor us in our post-pandemic world.

In this article, I am going to share three strategies to deepen congregational-based spirituality in your setting. But first, a word of warning. If you are tempted to skip this article because you think your congregation already provides deep spirituality, please read on and keep an open mind. Too many churches confuse reading or hearing about God with experiencing God for themselves.

 

Jesus’ Emphasis on Spiritual Community

A peek into the community that Jesus formed with his circle of closest friends, known as The Twelve, gives us a good idea about life lived in spiritual community. These twelve disciples were a diverse group of people who might not normally mix, yet this group transcended their differences to become trusted friends.

How?

First, they embraced honesty and vulnerability by living a transparent life. As they journeyed through life together, challenging themselves and one another, their transparency built trust.

Life on the road with Jesus wasn’t easy. Several of the disciples thought about returning to their old lives. On more than one occasion they couldn’t understandJesus’ teaching and way of life.  Despite all this, Jesus never sent them away, nor did they leave. They felt safe enough to share their confusion, doubts, what they really thought, felt, and believed. In other words, they practiced vulnerability, which opened the door to accountability.

During their three years together, Jesus sent the Twelve (and others) on assignments where they were told to heal the sick, raise the dead, and share the coming and presence of God’s Kin(g)dom. When the disciples returned, they would give account of who they spoke with and what they accomplished. Sometimes they had miracles to share! Other times they returned empty-handed. Regardless of the outcome, the Twelve knew they were accountable to and loved by Jesus.

 

Spiritual Community in Early Methodism

In much the same way, early Methodists gathered in small groups, or “bands,” for spiritual growth. Historically, band meetings were centered around these five questions:

  1. What known sins have you committed since our last meeting?
  2. What temptations have you met with?
  3. How were you delivered?
  4. What have you thought, said, or done of which you doubt, whether it be sin or not?
  5. Have you nothing you desire to keep secret?

The purpose of these groups was to build genuine relationships with one another, and with God. This honesty, vulnerability, and accountability created powerful bonds between members, and with God. Methodist spirituality powerfully undergirded the church.

 

Post-Pandemic Spirituality Reimagined

Both Jesus’ community and Early Methodism give us examples of spiritual community. When you look at your church, do you sense this level of connectedness? When people gather for worship, Sunday school, classes or small groups, during fellowship or other events, do they transparently disclose what’s really happening in their lives? In the tough times, do they support each other, no matter how challenging or uncomfortable they feel? Do they share their struggles and overcome personal biases to be together?

If we are to emulate Jesus’ way, then we must build a true community within the church that is spiritual in nature rather than simply functional. Here are three strategies for building spiritual communities:

Strategy # 1:

Practice accountability. In my work with pastors and lay leaders around the country through Creating a Culture of Renewal®, I have been surprised how often spiritual leaders struggle with holding their people accountable. As institutions that generally put relationships first, learning how to cultivate relationships is paramount. Instead of focusing on keeping everyone happy and not rocking the boat, build true, genuine relationships with and amongst your people by creating safe environments where they can be honest about their life’s struggles and hold one another accountable as, together, you grow as disciples of Jesus.

Strategy # 2:

Highlight spiritual experiences contained in the scriptures. The God of the Bible is a God of direct encounters. Over the centuries, however, people of faith have taken the Bible and mined this recounting of spiritual experiences for morals, lessons, and do’s and dont’s. By focusing on the beliefs and behaviors rather than the transcendent states being described in them, church people begin to think that a direct experience of God is out of reach. Remind people that they can have an encounter with and experience the love and grace of God.

Strategy # 3:

Lengthen the time for silent prayer. Have you ever noticed that silent prayer during corporate worship might last only five to ten seconds before the space gets filled with words again? That brief silence in a noisy, crowded week doesn’t leave much room for people to connect with their soul or for God to speak with them. People are looking for something more substantive and more soulful. In fact, those who are leaving the church tell us that they want more spirituality in the church, not less. Allow your people time to talk to God, and for God to answer. You may find that this extra time allows you to nurture your own spirituality, which we too often become disconnected from when we are too busy working for God.

Excerpted and adapted from Rebekah’s upcoming book, Forging a New Path: Moving the Church Forward in a Post-Pandemic World (Market Square Publishers, 2022).

 

Copyright © 2022 rebekahsimonpeter.com, All Rights Reserved.

The Surprising Truth about How to Do More with Less

The Surprising Truth about How to Do More with Less

Two long years. It has been two long years since the World Health Organization officially deemed Covid-19 a pandemic. Who would’ve imagined, way back in March 2020, where we would be today? I think it’s safe to say that everyone thought, or at least hoped, that this deadly virus would be long gone by now. Instead, the virus continues to spread throughout the world, businesses are desperate to recover, and churches are asking how do we do more with less? In this article, I want to share with you the surprising truth about how to do more with less.

My new book, Forging a New Path: Moving the Church Forward in a Post-Pandemic World, coming out in May 2022, deals with the culture shifts that need to take place within the church to withstand any external circumstance that may come along. In my research, I thought, who better to survey than the church leaders and colleagues in my program, Creating a Culture of Renewal®. I asked, “What would you like to see in a book about growing the post-pandemic church?” By far, the most common answer was, “We’d like to know how to do more with less.”

 

What have you found there is less of?

My follow-up question was this:  “What have you found that there is less of?” Their answers were relatively consistent: less people, less money, and less tech experience than needed. Makes sense. We have all felt the lack of contact with others during the quarantine, the loss of employment and income, the stress of adapting to unfamiliar situations, and the pinch of resources that were once more readily available.

 

Surprising Truth Revealed

While the tremendous losses can feel overwhelming, you can only see the full picture by looking at the other side of the coin too. So, I asked the same church leaders and pastors, “What have you found that you have had more of throughout the pandemic?” Here is where things really got interesting. Not only were their answers more varied, they offered a surprising truth. Even though people have less overall, they now have more of a sense of hope and togetherness, unexperienced before the pandemic. I heard answers such as “tighter knit congregations,” “more ways to connect,” “more time with God,” and “more ways to create community outside of our building.”

I was blown away. How beautiful and optimistic! While the focus had been on the negativity that surrounds the pandemic and all that has been lost, these leaders were taking ownership and intentionally looking for evidence of the Kingdom of God around them and what they and their churches gained in these long two years. It got me thinking about how we can utilize this time for learning and growing. What are people really yearning for?

The truth may surprise you. What people really want is a deeper sense of togetherness with God. People want to be in relationship with God, feel God’s presence, and know God is always by their side. Good news for us. There should be no better place to fulfill this desire than in the church. This doesn’t, however, happen by having a great worship service and fellowship dinners. We need to take one more step. We need to create the space for a deeper sense of togetherness with God by focusing on our own spirituality.

In my new book, I write about 4 models of spiritual growth. Below is one of the models, The Covenant Group Model, that I encourage you to try with your people.

 

Covenant Group Model

The focus of the Covenant Group Model is the desire to experience the presence of God. It requires a willingness to be honest, vulnerable, celebratory, and accountable. The covenant group model provides the space to dive beyond one’s everyday life into the realm of the soul. The experience is guided by these four questions:

 

  1. How is it with your soul?

The starting place of the spiritual journey is the core of your being, the well-spring from which life flows, a direct connection with God. When all of the world’s demands and distractions are moved aside, what is left? Honesty is the foundation of this question.

  1. Where have the challenges been?

As you move to the second question, vulnerability joins honesty in the conversation. Sharing your challenges is the first step to loosening their grip on your life. The difference between a challenge and a blessing is just a shift in perspective.

  1. Where have the joys been?

After honesty and vulnerability comes celebration. God is at work in your life. Give thanks and praise God for God’s never-ending presence. There is no limit to where sparks of joy can be found. Joy may be found in a simple smile at the right time or in a life-changing and unexpected shift to a better life. To see the Kin(g)dom of God around you, simply stop and notice.

  1. What would you like to be held accountable for?

The covenant group model of spiritual growth deepens from honesty, to vulnerability, to celebration and finally to accountability. It’s a way of saying, “Here’s my commitment; please hold me to it. Ask me the hard questions when I fail to follow through and rejoice with me when I succeed.”

 

Take your next steps

Participating in a covenant group is a powerful way to deepen your spirituality and build the bonds of community. It puts you in the flow of unconditional love, the wellspring of all spirituality. This love is the foundation of growth, discipleship, and the Kin(g)dom of God.

Even though you may feel you have to do more with less than you did before the pandemic, the surprising truth is that spirituality can give you more hope and togetherness than you had before.

Are you ready to try this model with your people? I’d love to hear how it goes! Share with me in the comments what you learned, what worked or didn’t work, or how you tailored it to fit your particular group.

To learn more about the surprising truth about how to do more with less, please join me for my upcoming workshop, How to Do More with Less, through Market Square Publishers.

 

Adapted and excerpted from Rebekah Simon-Peter’s upcoming book, Forging a New Path: Moving the Church Forward in a Post-Pandemic World (Market Square, 2022).

Copyright © 2022 rebekahsimonpeter.com, All Rights Reserved.