Natural Church Development

The Vestry has decided to be part of a process named Natural Church Development. In an effort to better acquaint the congregation with NCD, members of the NCD Health Team are answering the following 2 questions: What is Natural Church Development and Why is St. Andrews committing itself to this process? Over the next few weeks the Health Team members' answers will appear in the newsnotes. You can also be part of an online discussion of NCD on our parish blog found on our website. Please pray that through the Natural Church Development process God might release the potential God has placed within St. Andrews.


From Diana Sherman:

NCD
Natural Church Development is a process for improving the quality of the church by focusing on the individuality of that church and by striving to reach the fullest potential of the gifts God has given us.

Rationale for St. Andrew's involvement.
"Our mission as St. Andrew's parish is to reflect God's love as revealed to us by the life, teaching, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ to all God's creation."
What better way to do this than to use the gifts God has given us to help our church grow spiritually and to passionately embrace the world around us.


From Jennifer Johnston:

What is NCD?
Natural Church Development is a process that helps congregations assess and improve the health of their church by leveraging their strengths to improve their weaknesses. As its name implies, the process of development is 'natural' - not something processed or artificial - and requires patience and nourishment from the people.
NCD is not something that begins and ends (think of it as healthy lifestyle choices rather than a crash diet)
NCD is not a set of rules or a specific model for churches to follow
NCD is not a membership drive
NCD is not committee run - it involves the entire church family - young and old alike


Rationale for St. Andrew's involvement
St. Andrew's is engaging in this process to ensure the future of the church. Just as parents plan and make decisions that affect the health and well-being of their children, the Church is interested in assessing and improving the health of the church for today's members and future generations.

From Barb Visota:

What is Natural Church Development?

NCD is a way of understanding church health and growth that views the church as a living organism. NCD is a means to improve the quality of our church's overall health by encouraging each individual to grow into the potential God has already put in each of us.

In 1 Corinthians 1:7 Paul tells us, "Now you have every spiritual gift you need as you eagerly wait for the return of our Lord Jesus Christ." Each of us has gifts, even though it may not always be clear to us just what those gifts are. NCD is a process that can help us discover and develop our gifts so that we can live up to our God-given potential.

As we each grow and develop in our relationship with God, our church, as a whole will naturally grow and develop too.

Why is St. Andrew's committed to NCD ?

According to our mission statement: "Our mission as St. Andrew's parish is to reflect God's love as revealed to us by the life, teachings, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ to all God's creation."

We are committed to NCD because it is a tool we can use to identify and remove any stumbling blocks that keep us from living out our mission.

We maintain our church building; keep it in good repair and make changes as we go along so that the building can better serve our purposes. NCD is a maintenance program for us as church members. It is a way for us to keep ourselves in good repair so that we can better serve God's purpose. It is a way for us, as members of the living church, to move closer to the Living God, a way to satisfy the longing in our hearts to experience more of what God has in store for us and for our church.