Portals. . .? What’s this all about?
Portal -- It’s a word that has seemed to stick around Pasadena Presbyterian Church these days. We’ve used other words too: Doors, Hot Spots, Gateways, Grace Margins. . . But somehow the word ‘Portal’ has stuck with us.
And the word has emerged from a set of questions. How does a church become accessible to its neighborhood? What are the tangible ministries (read: Portals!) that exist now or could exist in the future which allow current members and friends of PPC. . .
1) . . . to get outside in the community where we can serve, love, and learn from our neighbors?
And provide spaces where. . .
2) . . . newcomers, who feel like outsiders, can start to feel like insiders?
How do portals get us outside and create safe spaces where people can come inside the life of this church, so that they can deepen a relationship with Jesus and find community for themselves?
Pasadena Presbyterian Church is quickly becoming Pasadena Portal Central! God is currently using you and your gifts to make this a reality.
How do I know this? I can see it everywhere.
You're breathing new life into old ministries (portals!) and you're beginning new ministries (portals!) Groups of people are informally gathering around portals by pouring their energy, imagination, and love into this congregation and this neighborhood. I will name just a few below:
-- Sunday Night Dream Team: A group of people is currently discerning ways to plan an Evening Worship Service for PPC.
-- Green Team: A group of people is exploring ways to care for our local and global environment by inviting our neighborhood into projects and discussion.
-- Mission Plan Team: A group of people has created a vibrant five-year Mission Plan for Spanish Language ministry.
-- Sacred Space for Children Team: A group of people is exploring how we can create a visible, colorful area for children and caregivers in our sanctuary.
-- Outdoors for the Neighborhood Team: A group of people is considering ways to make our church building and landscaping more inviting to newcomers.
These are only a few portals. Others keep popping up all around, and they are creating the spaces that 1) get us outside and 2) invite people inside.
What's your dream for PPC? What's your dream for this neighborhood? How can you use your gifts to portal-ize our church?
Keep thinking. Keep dreaming. Keep watching this happen!
Renee Roederer, Associate Pastor, Pasadena Presbyterian Church
Renee, I so appreciate your enthusiasm and I believe it is already making a difference at PPC! Here are some of my suggestions:
ReplyDelete=Light the bell tower--not that much cost upfront and inexpensive once it's done using LED lights.
=Green team--don't use styrofoam cups on Sundays. We used to have mugs, and could go pack to that entirely. Uses the recycling bin for something other than regular trash.
=Evening service--please do not go all Taize, which is very individualistic. Instead,have a time for sharing joys and concerns and praying for each other.
=Sacred space for children--make sure you chose a place parents will actually sit. The space under the south balcony (Madison side) was reserved years ago for children, but parents preferred sitting under the west balcony in front of the staircase.
When we used to have Wednesday night dinners every week, we used china & stainless. Volunteers washed up. We should do that for our meals as much as possible. Youth could do the cleanup and earn service hours for their schools, or perhaps apply those hours to the cost of the youth mission trip (as was done at the Methodist church across the street).
ReplyDeleteAs for Evening Worship, Taize is the template in terms of atmosphere, but there will be variety of musical styles, and the service we're planning will be very community based rather than individualistic.
ReplyDeleteLooking forward to it!