The General Assembly of 2016 has almost drawn to a close - tomorrow is Friday and as I am going away for the weekend to recover I thought I'd share some thoughts tonight. It has been a great week with a good atmosphere although not without its pain and challenge. The worship has been excellent and the singing heavenly. The Right Rev Russell Barr has navigated us well through the week and we have enjoyed the humour as well as the "head in hands" moments.
I have tried to value the whole experience though I must admit it always takes a couple of days to orient myself - the number of people including stewards and others means somewhere around 850 people are around although more than will pass through the halls and when you spend most of your working life on your own or in small groups it can be somewhat overwhelming. However, catching up with friends and making new ones, sharing ideas and moans are all part of the experience. And reminiscent of Jesus in Jerusalem there is the crush for coffee in the Rainy Hall, the quiet of the courtyard and many languages as ecumenical partners and overseas guests share with us.
I guess what strikes me most about the General Assembly is how much is about managing the institution and keeping the show on the road. Starting with worship certainly centres us in the why we are here but generally we celebrating the work done and looking forward to what might be done, focussing often on the how and the resources needed rather than the why (with the exception of facing the fact we are becoming the church on the margins). There have been some u-turns on the floor of the General Assembly as Councils and Committees feel the people power of the Commissioners. And difficult decisions have been handled gracefully but unlike previous years there hasn't been the same repeated call to prayer. Speakers have been varied with some regular contributors and some very random contributions.
I have enjoyed the General Assembly without a doubt and grateful for the experience. How much will impact on the local is yet to be seen but for me the timely reminder that I am part of something greater than the local has been important. Next year we celebrate 450 years of a church on the site of Blantyre Old. We are in the early stages of planning our celebrations and that is right to do. But as I listened, pondered and reflected I realised that there is more to celebrating what has been, there is what we are now and what we will be.
And so it is my intention to work towards becoming an eco-congregation because the World Mission reported reminded us all about creation and the importance of looking after the world not just for our sake but for our global brothers and sisters. I want to work towards Fair Trade status because Church and Society reminded us that where we put our money, our investments, our business can change the world for the better no matter how small. In line with the Ministries Council developments in ministry I want to strengthen the parish grouping, look at youth ministry and figure out what a hub ministry might look like in my locale.
If my first time at the General Assembly since 2013 helps me to consider again what it means to be church locally and globally then surely that must be a good thing. And to practise what I preach I must once again challenge myself to reconsider the discipleship of our children and whether we really are doing enough.
Sometimes we get so caught up in managing the institution even at the parish level we lose perspective. I appreciate that we can't do everything but as one speaker said "we can't do everything but everyone can do something". Always at the heart of what we do is the one true God - three in one - and as the Archbishop of Canterbury put it (paraphrased) - we worship and witness the same God.
Jesus replied, “No one who puts a hand to the plough and looks back is fit for service in the kingdom of God.” Luke 9:62
So let's look forward together and get a little perspective. After all this is God's church and we are his children.
May God bless you with a sprinkling of perspective and a lot of love.
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