Context

• post-Christian
• Pluralist
• global
• huge crisis: CRC problems like an iceberg. 10% are visible. What’s not obvious is the reality of the unseen 90%. What’s really underneath the surface.
• 85% are stuck or declining
• What’s underneath the surface? 53% reported zero members gained through evangelism
• This changed context requires congregations to change.

• It also requires CRHM to change the way we do our work.
• God is stirring us.

Direction

• 5 behavioral values
• Local congregations and ministries
• Three key priority areas
• Starting and strengthening churches
• Church planting is critical.
• We are averaging 20 churches a year for the last 20 years.
• In the next 10 years CRHM wants to double that number
• The need to increase the funding. Grateful for the donors including the CMI with the RCA and something similar in Canada.
• Strengthening Established Churches
• Turning away from programs delivered out of GR and Burlington and asking how can we become better ministry partners for the mission. We’re committed to listening into a journey of reciprocal relationships.
• We are shifting in the way we are leading. You as classes and congregations have to make the shift with us. To becoming more catalytic. Connecting churches. Networking. Bring diverse leaders together for the journey. The new learning are in the churches, we want to bring them out, nurture them, etc.
• SPACT: Slide of lacking mutual relationships. Our defaults tend to be programmatic and less relational. Humbling to name our own defaults and problems.
• We are addressing this through “experiments”. Short term, low risk endeavors.
• CRHM is currently working on experiments. How your congregation can engage with us in that pilot transformational initiative for your congregation.
• Developing disciples, leaders, campus ministries
• example from Hillcrest Denver.
• Engaging Clusters, Classes and Communities
• On the ground relationships, partnerships nurtured over many years.
• Missional clusters, a cohort, small network group of mission leaders. CRHM has established a network of 59 clusters.
• example: cluster in Philadelphia.
• For God’s Name and Renown

Posture

• Hope: abundant opportunity
• slide on abundance.

• Prayer
• Slide: the LORD establishes their steps.

• Slide: open windows

Q/A

• Brett: What is happening in Coffee Break?
• Coffee Break is in the midst of a reset/relaunch.
• John Hoekema: prayer aspect?
• There will be more prayer summits.
• Dr. Richard Mouw said that kingdom people haven’t often thought of prayer, and prayer people haven’t often thought of kingdom. If kingdom people learn to pray it could be dynamite.
• Rod: Clusters. hard to find church planters in the CRC. Urge the delegates to raise up leaders and call them to the task of planting churches. Something powerful about a cluster.
• Mack: In GR many of the resources go to the south rather than the north area.
• We are asking how do we better partner with classes.
• Theody: We have to be more and more on our knees. Classical prayer summits.
• Ron Chu: International students become missionaries when they return home. Most of the candidates were Anglos. His dreams is that we’ll have more Hispanics, Asians, etc. Assessment process is geared towards Anglo planters. Look into and come up with a strategy will not only go through the current process but that they will be equipped to take into consider cultural considerations.
• James Jones: How can we pray for you, Moses and the staff?
• I always ask people to pray for me because the challenge is too big. Pray for wisdom, discernment and courage.
• Jose Reyes: The future of CRHM is in the efforts to connect and communicate. Not everyone who is planting churches are commissioned pastors. He wants to say thank you.