Our Faith In Action


“…brothers and sisters, select from among yourselves seven men of good standing, full of
the Spirit and of wisdom, whom we may appoint to this task, while we, for our part, will
devote ourselves to prayer and to serving the word.” What they said pleased the whole
community…” Acts 6:3-5a

I love this passage from Acts 6! For one thing,
it follows quickly upon Luke’s report that the
Jerusalem Christians were “all of one mind”
by reporting a rupture within the
congregation – doesn’t that sound like real
life? – and the Godly response of the leaders
(listen, respond, plan). Note how they
submitted their plans to the congregation in
shared discernment, the highest form of
Christian polity. It also holds up something
that systems research finds can be a strong
indicator of group health: various groups
within the congregation – demographic,
formal, and informal – all collaborated to
expand inclusion and care. Research shows
that when there is excessive concern about
“stepping on another group’s toes” the results
can be just as detrimental as ignoring
structures and norms. A loose, creative
approach to getting things done is both
extremely effective and gives participants the
greatest sense of joy and accomplishment.


In recent years we’ve sometimes struggled to
share leadership more equitably, engage
church members in the work of the church,
and call upon gifts from various groups to act
on creative suggestions from across the
congregation. Though these things are hardwired
into Presbyterian polity, like many
congregations, First Presbyterian of Honeoye
Falls did not have many Teams in place in
2018, so very heavy loads were carried by
individuals or by persons who had led teams
over many, many years. This often feeds
numerical decline in two ways; those who are
expected to do more than they should can
feel stressed and underappreciated, while
church members who would like to become
more involved feel they are not needed.


“God moves in mysterious ways,” and as we
came out of the highly-restrictive phase of
COVID-19 responses, we began to see not just
essential Teams, but additional ones form or
fill out more broadly. Starting with the
Nominating Committee’s conversations and
planning around specific gifts desired on the
Session, ultimately it was the excitement and
commitment of the congregation that has
turned the tide. Today, we have all the
standing committees considered essential for
church governance,
and many of them have systems in place to
repeatedly seek input and participation from
the congregation. We have some additional
teams that are very helpful, though not “standing committees.” We have some adhoc
Teams and are close to forming a
Membership Team, a must for every
congregation in today’s religious climate.


Yet what really excites me is the way that so
many Teams are working creatively
together. For example, the Generosity Team
chose artistic creativity as an expression of
our faith as their theme for this year, and
Buildings and Grounds has supported their
efforts to increase the spirituality our
gathering spaces. The Mission Team has
chosen a witness to our surrounding
communities as part of their mission and
proposed an event that can appeal to many
who do not attend church. It can provide
contact with new persons and allow for
conversations and interactions we’d never
have. Happily, another Team and some
Elders have agreed to join them in this
activity. Another, small, ad-hoc Team is
working on a project, invited two larger
Teams to take part, and members from
those Teams are helping to plan. This is how
we were designed to function, and it feels
very good to me.


Some people deride Presbyterian structure
as a superfluous, cumbersome ideal. The
truth is our polity was developed by tens of
millions of Christians over centuries after
they learned that servant-leaders joined in
shared work provide the best outcomes.
When members of different teams get
together and start sharing ideas, you can
feel the energy in the room! It certainly
seems like an Acts 6 situation. And this makes
sense; when we consider how God’s Spirit
always seeks paths that make the Gospel
known in word and deed, it’s not surprising
that energy is unleashed when various
groups work together. Sometimes it even
seems like God provided the very gifts we
need in the persons present for the task
before us. When I look at my calendar and
count off all the meetings, I’m reminded of
past, energizing conversations and the
potential that lies before us. My joy in
ministry is increased and my faith in the good
God we worship is affirmed. May we all find
renewed purpose and peace as our
congregation continues to grow in faith and
action.

Yours in Christ,
Pastor Kirk