Welcome to the Neighbo(u)rhood Webinar Series
More and more churches are wanting to connect and engage with their communities. But how do we get involved in our communities in a healthy way? This series of 7 webinars explores ways churches can be better neighbours!
Interested in accessing recordings of this webinar series for yourself or your church? Fill out the following form and we will ensure you receive access by email.
Featured Sessions
God in our Neighbourhood
Feeling worn out from doing good? “Doing justice and loving mercy” takes a toll if we aren’t walking humbly and being rooted in Christ. Guest Peter Watts, Pastor of The ROCK church, Coordinator of RCA African American Black Council, City Director, ReWire, will share his story and the importance of listening to God and seeing God at work in order to act with justice.
Working WITH our Neighbourhood
What happens if churches would invest in our neighbourhoods and communities as good neighbours not saviors? Come be inspired by these stories of working WITH community for real transformation. Al Santino was born and raised in New York City and worked in community development since 1986. He is currently the Project Manager of Community Engagement at City to City, Redeemer, and also serves at Viva Uptown Inc., a church based collaborative in Northern Manhattan, NY. Nikki Johnson and her husband Josh started The Exchange Cooperative in Rochester MN after asking the question, “What would a co-operative community of God look like?” She helps her community be a place where everybody helps, everybody belongs, everybody grows.
The Future of the Neighbourhood
We’re racing into a new year and a time of accelerated change. How is your church adapting? In this webinar you’ll discover three practices and innovative ideas that are vital to anticipate and creatively respond to life and make a difference in your community. Tom Sine, Author and foresight Consultant for faith based organizations and denominations, will guide us into new ways of thinking for 2021 and beyond.
Creating Space for Neighbouring
We can believe that we should be good neighbours but how do we live that out? Join Sarah Rinsema-Sybenga of Community EnCompass, as they share stories of how that is happening in the McLaughlin Neighbourhood of Muskegon, MI. They envision a restored neighbourhood, in which all neighbours have identified and have opportunity to use their God-given gifts towards the building and strengthening of their community.
Seeing our Neighbourhood
Rather than experts of our community, what if we committed to being students of our community? Looking for strengths, resources, possibilities, and partnerships is key to being good neighbours. In this interactive webinar, Jodi Koeman and Ron Vanden Brink will lead you through exercises and activities to help you discover the Strengths of your church property, people, and resources, as well as the neighbourhood it is located in.
Connecting to our Neighbourhood
Sometimes we need to let things go in order to bring something to life. Mike Mather, Pastor, First United Methodist of Boulder CO, faculty of ABCD Institute, Author, Having Nothing, Possessing Everything: Finding Abundant Communities in Unexpected Places has pastored churches in Indianapolis and now in Boulder, CO. He has noticed that while his church was serving people, they weren’t really making a lasting impact in those people’s lives or the neighbourhood. Working through the efforts of neighbourhood member, De’Amon Harges, they decided to “put to death” the programs and bring to life relationships and social capital. This small but significant shift changed their way of being church.
Learning Together About our Neighbourhoods
Bring your questions to a moderated discussion about mercy, compassion, justice, community transformation. This is your chance to learn from and listen to one another. If you are a deacon, leading an outreach team, or involved in compassion, mercy or justice or other type of ministry, this roundtable will be especially helpful. What are some innovative things your church is doing with your neighbours? How are you working WITH your community – not for them? What are you struggling with? What resources have you found helpful?
