Stepping forward in faith
"The angels in this world are not in the walls of churches."
April 2024 and it is nearly General Assembly time again. I can hardly believe that it is a whole year since the last one. It would certainly be fair to say that the last 12 months have been very eventful and full of challenges for us all.
This year the messaging to the GA from myself and the Assembly Trustees will be consistent with the last five years. We'll emphasise our financial standing, the necessary steps for the next phase of our reform journey, and our aspirations for the future. People often ask me how I maintain a positive outlook amidst the turbulence within the Church.
My answer lies in my deep-seated belief in the imperative of spreading God's word beyond the confines of our physical churches. As another of my favourite songs, Care by Marillion aptly puts it: "The angels in this world are not in the walls of churches." While our church walls and worship within them are vital, it's our actions beyond them that will make the biggest difference.
Our finances should not dominate our thinking and that is a fact. However, without addressing the financial situation we put our missional work and paying for the likes of our support arrangements and new presbytery structures at risk as we will eventually be barely able to cover ministry costs. Over the last five years we have significantly reduced our national outgoings against the 2018 baseline by over £8m annually, mostly in the central spending of the Church. In parallel with this we have had to manage our expenditure and use careful budgeting to annul a compound 24% of inflation over the last five years – in truth we should be increasing our income year on year just to stand still. Whilst doing this we have also reallocated money to the new presbyteries and Seeds for Growth. However, our continuing membership decline has resulted in a further decrease in income which cancels out the savings. Despite prudent financial management, we're still facing significant deficit budgets for the next five years without taking corrective measures.
This is where the national priorities, as agreed at GA 2023, and associated Priorities Project take on real importance as part of the way forward. The reality is we can only continue with the national work that makes a real, tangible difference at local level and is supported by our presbyteries. As a result, this will be another year of change whilst we continue to address the long-term goals of recruiting the next generation of inspiring ministers, paid for by congregational contributions, to match our future needs and reducing the high levels of vacant charges across the Church.
In terms of positive initiatives going forward much relies on working our way towards transferring responsibilities for mission planning and administering local finances to the presbyteries – an action that must be supported by truly collaborative working between all levels of the Church. All the while we need to remember that our core task is our ministry at home and abroad.
I tend to get quite a lot of feedback on the things that we write about and this includes the Life and Work articles. I know that some of our folk are cynical about our ability to change and renew with so much tactical work to progress at the minute. Many are weary from our journey thus far and cannot yet see the green shoots. However, when I'm out and about I am so encouraged by lots of things I see with real enthusiasm and visionary work in many areas. At a recent service I conducted I used the hymn Jesus walks beside us in Scotland - he certainly does and we need to truly believe this as we take our next steps forward in faith.
Take care and God Bless,
Dave.