Pastor's Corner: What's in your garden?

“You are God’s garden…farm…field…” -1 Corinthians 3:9

What is a faith community – especially one centered in the God we know in Jesus?

A. A religious museum where you double-back to do some baptism, wedding and funeral rites of passage that might or might not have any impact on your life otherwise?

B. A religious mall where if we conjure up religious products that match some consumer life itch-nitch, they will come?

C. A people garden to nourish faith-life that reaches out to renew the community, even world?*

At Canterbury, we continue to seek remedial and advanced work on being a people-growing community, forming faith-lives to relieve hurt and increase good in the world.

Resulting from our comprehensive long-range planning process, “NEXT STEP” – 1,000 surveys, more than 200 in focus groups, 125 in a two-day workshop (basked in worship, prayer and Bible study; midwifed by a gifted ‘outside’ coach-consultant) – five strategic initiatives are off and running on their/our/God’s way for now and the future:

Good to Great With Children & Youth Faith Formation. In place: a birth-to-college roadmap of developmental steps for faith, worship, Bible and life application. Just now, the consultation group that helped us make a good thing even better with our youth ministry is working with our fine children’s ministry.

Making a Good Thing Better with Worship is ongoing in New Traditions, Traditional and Contemporary venues. Just launched, “The WAY” is for everyone attracted to its style and time, but especially for life application of young adults.

Radical Hospitality reaches out to newcomers; teaches us to respond from their perspective; seeks to transform the culture of our congregation into one that delights and excels in welcoming, including and seeking all and diverse comers.

Relational Outreach weaves our housing, food, health, tutoring and senior care into one area in a person-to-person way. Our Avondale-Canterbury Joint Venture service center opens in July for a community with great needs and great promise.

Whole Family Spiritual Growth. We are generation rich with all stages of the life arc. With opportunities for parenting, marriage, single life, faith application in our work and more, we seek the mutual faith and life enrichment of children, youth,and adults.

Thankfully, there are a number of faith people gardens in our area. We welcome all to the Canterbury garden.

* Hint: pick C.