We are no longer certain of the word
"Reconnecting" because it is presumptuous. It is as if people are not connected
with God, or was once connected and not now. Also connecting with God doesn't
recognise the more scriptural idea of God abiding in us and we in God
(1 John 4:13).
Nevertheless we started with this
terminology and it has stuck. For all its presumptuousness it did reflect
something of the situation where Project Reconnect began and the goal that we
set and to which we have adhered in our planning and implementation.
It was perceived that for many people
"God" was something we did on Sunday. It involved activities, the primary one
being going to church. Also "God" was a moral code. But there was little sense
of a connection with God that gives meaning, gives vitality, creates hope,
realises grace, and develops and encourages an ethos of generosity and abundance (Mathew 22:
37).
One of the most important moments of
the Christian life - community worship - seemed to be failing individuals by the
way it almost enforces a passive experience. The leader of worship did it all.
The worshipper could sit through worship and never be really present. They could
just as easily be thinking about the things they have to do when they get home.
So Project Reconnect set about the task
of finding ways that would help members of congregations have a much more
personal experience of God, in a way that helps them sense their ongoing
journeying with God, and where they are very intentional in that journey. It was
believed, and has been shown to be true, that such a way of expressing the
Christian life gives vitality to each individual in every sphere of his or her
life.
Rather than village worship groups
being the poor cousins of the larger central, or regional churches, the small
church is starting to reflect the heart beat of God in the dynamic presence of
the Holy Spirit in and through people's lives (John 10: 10b).
October 10, 2007 - December 2009