Missional River – A Report from the Listening Team

Peace has embarked on a yearlong journey in the Missional River, following the Tune-In Guide, a 10-step process led by a listening team that emphasizes three different phases of listening:  Listening to God in Scripture and Prayer, Listening to God in the Congregation, and Listening to God in the Neighborhood. Deep listening means tuning in to God more clearly, with a firm belief that God is working in others just as surely as God is working in our own lives. The purpose of this kind of listening is to lead the congregation into new partnerships, participating in God’s mission in new ways. Peace’s core listening team will be inviting participation in many forms from everyone at Peace, and we have a great journey of listening and learning ahead of us.

The team has begun Step 1: Building and training the core listening team with a two-day seminar in March, and has met for an additional three hours of training in developing and improving listening skills. We will wrap up our training during May. At the seminar, we also began Step 2: Listening to God in Scripture and Prayer. Our focus is on the Book of Acts, and in March and April, we have spent 30 minutes of each meeting dwelling on Acts 2:42-47, to be followed by dwelling in Acts 8 and 10. Coincidently, the first readings during the Easter season are from Acts, so we are reading Acts during worship as well. We invite you all to spend time reading and listening to Acts in your personal devotions and as part of your group meetings.

The members of the core listening team are Pastor Carolyn, Maureen White Eagle, Daniel Villarreal, Ernie Klatt, Gene Holiman, and Betty Klatt. Please pray for the team and the congregation as we continue this journey. Feel free to contact any member of the team with any questions that you may have about the process.