As the shape of ministry changes across our diocese, many people are feeling called to offer spiritual leadership in their local church.
Focal Ministry is the name being given to this emerging form of ministry, which involves enabling prayer and worship, encouraging others in deepening their faith and equipping local churches to bless their communities.
The role of a Focal Minister is to offer spiritual leadership to a local church or benefice. They are faithful people who are:
- Rooted in their community
- The visible face of the church
- Fruitful in encouraging the growth of faith and gifts in others.
This video explains more about Focal Ministry:
Liz Rawlings, our Discipleship and Vocations Enabler, has been reflecting on what she has been noticing, and explains: “As I have travelled around the diocese, I have met a number of people offering local leadership in their churches, enabling prayer and worship, building faith in others and connecting the church with the community.
“It seems that God is at work growing local spiritual leaders and it’s inspiring to hear their stories. Our task now is to serve and support this ministry and share what the Spirit is doing among us.”
In response to this, the Diocese Vocations Team are looking for ways to recognise, equip and support those who are already effectively fulfilling the role of Focal Minister, and those who may be feeling called to do so.
Of those people we’ve noticed who are currently carrying out this type of ministry, some are existing licensed lay ministers, others are not, but all have naturally grown into their role in their church context.
As Minster Communities form, Focal Ministry could be one of the ways ministry is supported in local churches.
A pilot group has been formed to help develop the role further and to road-test some training resources.
The Vocations Team are working with the Diocesan Lay Ministry Council to generate suitable processes for discerning vocations to Focal Ministry in the future and to consider how they might be authorised and equipped as well as identifying what support is required to ensure that they can continue to grow and flourish.
The Vocations Team are keen to connect with those who would like to discover more about Focal Ministry and are hosting a Zoom Q&A session on Tuesday 14 January at 7pm. If you would like to attend, simply use the link below on the day:
You can also visit our Focal Ministry webpage for more information.