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Introducing the Presbytery of Lake Michigan's
Stewardship Program
Building Hope
Dear Partners in Christ,
It is our privilege to bring you a new program called Building Hope. It is far more than a stewardship program. It is a life-changing event that turns pew sitting Christians into agents of God’s love. The program is grounded in the certainty of God’s power, love, and grace allowing us to build new lives through our Lord Jesus Christ.
We are called upon even in these tough times to risk boldly for the gospel. We need to build an altar of hope in our lives and the lives of others through personal encounters in mission and in the mission work we do together through the local church, Presbytery, Synod, and Genera l Assembly.
This participatory program includes a DVD of personal stories of change through involvement in mission. It also provides other tools such as worship resources, including children’s sermons; a six week curriculum; and a ritual of personal commitment to be a builder of hope throughout the coming week. We will be setting up an on-line presence where videos of your mission experiences may be posted and where you can share thoughts, ideas and questions. Printed material will also be available on the Presbytery’s website. www.lakemichiganpresbytery.org
Building Hope is designed to be as flexible as possible. You may choose to use the DVDs as minutes for mission or you may use the curriculum as a stand- alone Bible study. Feel free to use and even modify the resources to meet the needs of your congregation. We have included a sample design you may find useful.
We pray that you and your congregation will be reenergized as you experience mission both through individual action and through the stories of what we do together as one body in Christ. We know that mission changes lives --- our lives as well as the lives of those we touch through our gifts.
May God richly bless your ministry,
If you have any questions, contact the
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Administration Ministry Team, Presbytery of Lake Michigan
Advent House
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Share your stories of hope (public welcome)
Benton Harbor
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Share your stories of hope (public welcome)
Mobile Health Fair
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Share your stories of hope (public welcome)
Military Chaplain
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Share your stories of hope (public welcome)
Theme: These are tough times but we are called upon even now to risk boldly for the gospel, building in faith an altar to God of hope realized.
Possible Audiences: Congregations as a whole using minutes for mission, worship resources, and / or Bible studies; session studies; small group Bible studies; persons interacting through the internet sites.
A Six Week Study: Each study session may include:
3-4 minute video on mission – showing faith and hope lived out;
10 minutes of sharing personal stories of hope resulting from previous week’s commitment;
10 minute study/ discussion;
5 minute ritual of personal commitment to become an ambassador of hope (see below).
Each session will last approximately 30 minutes and could easily expand to 60 minutes.
Each week builds upon the previous week’s commitment with each participant using a stone to build a community altar. A new stone is given each week and serves as a reminder of each person’s commitment to be an ambassador of hope to the world in which they live. Commitments may range from listening to the story of someone who is hurting, to serving in a soup kitchen, to going on a mission trip.
Each participant will share their story of hope as they have acted as the incarnation of hope to others. After sharing their story, they will put their stone on the altar as it grows larger and larger. If the study is with a large group, have two or three people share their stories giving time for everyone to put their own stone on the altar.
Suggested Outline Of Sessions
- Recommitting to the call of God by building an altar of praise and obedience
- Reaching out to local community
- Reaching out through the Presbytery
- Reaching out through the Synod
- Reaching out through General Assembly
- Committing to build an altar of love witnessed to by our lives
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