Seekers Church
February 2014 Stewards Meeting
Minutes
Present: Ken Burton (Moderator), Deborah Sokolove, Sandra Miller (Worship Leader), Margreta Silverstone, Jacqie Wallen, Trish Nemore (Recorder), Pat Conover, Cynthia Dahlin ,Brenda Seat, Keith Seat, Dave Lloyd (Angel), Peter Bankson, Marjory Bankson (Angel) Jesse Palidofsky, Kevin Barwick, Debbie Barwick, Vince Shepherd, Will Ramsey, Kate Amoss, Sheri Bergen
Worship: Sandra led worship reading Nan Merrill’s offering of Psalm 112, followed by the reading of the Stewards’ Commitment statement
Housekeeping: March meeting will be March 2 at 5 pm at Seekers Church. Moderator: Deborah, Recorder: Marjory, Worship Leader: Dave, Angels: Sandra and Margreta.
Art Hop: Sandra reported that Seekers will once again participate in Takoma Park’s Art Hop and that Margreta will be our featured artist. The timing coincides with a great Norwegian cultural event at Seekers; the Norwegians have graciously affirmed our use of the gallery space for the Art Hop traffic during their event.
Care Pack Winter update: The Care Pack Team has invested in the contents for five “warming bags” (blankets, hats, gloves, scarves, etc) to be distributed on especially frigid nights according to criteria the team will make. This is an interim response or experiment relating to the unfinished conversation about how Seekers might be hospitable to folks on the street during extreme weather.
Spiritual Autobiography: Kevin Barwick read his spiritual autobiography and was welcomed into Stewards.
Broken and Beloved Mission Group report: The group comprises Keith, Jesse, Kate Amoss, Sheri, Kevin and, most recently Michelle Frome. It meets every other week. It has two retreats per year and considers itself a model for other Seekers mission groups in that regard. Keith – moderator; Sheri – Celebrant and scribe; Kate – Spirit Director; Jesse – worship leader; Kevin – visionary. Growing Edges: adding a new person – Michelle – to a long established group brings new vitality and growing accountability. Challenges: always being honest and revealing – something they’ve grown in over the years. “We are all professionals and yet there are parts of us that are not so professional.” Ways they feed back into Seekers: support for those who preach; offering of classes and of Interplay.
Stewards Disciplines Discussion: We broke into four groups and discussed questions relating to three of the Stewards’ disciplines: Participation in annual Silent Retreat; Membership in a Mission Group; and writing of spirit reports.
Reporting Back:
Silent Retreat – positives
Direct experience of God
Community
Nurturing peacemaking spirit
Roots in creation
Silent Retreat – Issues or Suggestions
*Not good news for everybody (some need more sense of purpose, more structure and feel disconnected, distant and angry)
*Electronics have been discouraged in the past but are increasingly a part of how we read or write
*Urban retreats could work better for those unable to walk on the land
*Encourage retreat leaders to share reflection pieces, readings, questions with the whole community so those not on retreat can have part of the experience
*Encourage mission group retreats as a Stewards discipline
*Develop context for silent retreats (does anyone recall what this is about?)
Mission Group membership – positives
*Promotes mental health through intimate sharing/caring/working
*Knowing people deeply through shared work – tasks give each person a larger purpose
*Inward journey mission groups should have a task to work on; outer journey mission groups need “time out” for their very task-oriented agendas
*supports building church
*gives focus for issues
*Two stewards requirement, with flexibility allows mission groups to grow
Spiritual Reports
*Focus: articulating what’s important each week
*Received and responded to: getting feedback
*Keep us honest about ourselves
*Should be deep sharing, not a mere recounting of daily events
*A regular structure makes writing them easier: struggles, areas of gratitude and prayers for others is one suggested structure
*Silent retreat is a good place to review past spirit reports
One Steward Sharing: Cynthia Dahlin
Soul Talk
