Core Leadership Team - September 2023

We returned to High Leigh to meet as Core Leadership Team and Trustees this week.  It was good to welcome new members – Mohan Pandian (BUGB Treasurer), Linda Donaldson (Regional Co-Team Leader NBA), Johnny Pozzo (Regional Co-Team Leader NBA) and Chris Jones (Support Services Team Leader).  David Pile, the minister at Basford Road Baptist Church in Nottingham was present with us as our Accompanier. 

God is making a way… After a fun activity to get us started we continued in worship as we remembered how God has been faithful to us as a Baptist family over the years.  We then reflected on Exodus 14.  In this passage God’s people ended up in a difficult place where it seemed like there was no way forward and no way back, caught between the sea and the Egyptians.  But Scripture reminds us that our God is always making a way, even when it looks impossible and so we renewed our faith and trust in God even though the way seems hidden from our sight right now.  The following day we read Isaiah 43:16-19 together.  We are called to forget the former things, not to dwell on the past, but continue to look for the new things that God is doing.  We prayed and shared those new things on lily pads!   





God may not be parting the sea or building a bridge, but he is giving us touch points to venture forward.  It was also shared that when tadpoles mature, if they don’t have lily pads to help them get out of the water, they drown.  How can we create enough lily pads to support and encourage the new things that are emerging so that they can thrive? 
 
Relationships – our focus on our first day was relationships.  As a team we discussed a draft document that articulated our expectations of each other in CLT and how we might hold one another to account if needed.  There was much helpful feedback, and this will be incorporated into a revised draft.  We also agreed how we could develop our induction for new CLT members.  We rounded off the section by sharing communion and praying together; especially giving thanks for Amie Buhari, Gale Richards and Judith Miller, as they come to the end of their term on CLT. 

Mission – Our Mission Forum sought the advice of those in the room regarding proposed research aimed at helping us identify appropriate measures for newer expressions of church and disciple-making movements. Recognising that what we measure tends to connect with more established groups of believers, which may impact the breadth of how we use our resources, we reflected on the value of research to further the work of God through Baptists in a variety of contexts.   

Young Adults – We were inspired and encouraged as we listened to Isabella Senior (Young Adults Co-ordinator), Clare Hooper (CYF Round Table & Co-Team leader, SCBA) and Andrew Ginn (Young Adults Round Table & Minister, Cemetery Road BC, Sheffield) feedback from the international Sent Mission Conference where 31 young adults from our movement were inspired and empowered for mission, and the Satellites Festival.  We prayed together that God would continue to release more mission and ministry among young adults. 



Financial Model Review – All the amazing mission that is in our hearts as a movement needs continued resourcing if we want to see greater fruitfulness.  This was our focus on Wednesday.  Recognising that nearly half the people in the room were fairly new to the work of the FMR Lynn began by giving an overview of the journey we have been on over the past decade and with this current project in particular.  With Chris Jones now appointed as our new Support Service Team Leader and with the addition of David Smith who has been recruited on a short-term basis to give dedicated support to the detailed work and options development and assessment that this project needs, I believe that we now have the internal capacity to deliver this project.  Despite both only being in post a short time, Chris and David gave an excellent presentation of our current situation and were able to engage us in focused discussion around how we can grow our resources for mission whilst also ensuring that we have a sustainable financial model in place to cover core costs.  Discussions were hopeful and creative with large and small-scale ideas shared. Chris is confident, “…we are hopeful, not hopeless.”  We also did some work together on the draft Memorandum of Understanding for Baptists Together, agreeing over-arching roles and responsibilities, and also clarifying our current governance and decision-making processes. As ever, we ended in prayer together. 

Consultation – on our final morning we focussed on plans to encourage participation in the survey before it closes on 30 November.  There has been steady response so far, but we all remain committed to hearing from as many Churches and ministers as possible to enable Council’s discernment next year.  Please can you participate if you are eligible and encourage others you know to do so too. We understand this may not be a topic you want to engage with; if so, please indicate this on the last page of the survey - you can skip the remainder of the questions. We really want to hear from all churches and members of Assembly, and this includes those who are not responding to the survey questions. If you have any queries or need help with the survey, please send them to consulation@baptist.org.uk The Consultation Steering Group proposed a process and timeline to prepare for Council in March 2024 which was discussed and agreed in readiness for October Council 23. 

Are you ready to cross over? – David Pile led worship on the final day and used Moses and the Burning Bush (Exodus 3) to shape our prayers.   



David also shared that as he had been praying during our time together, he sensed the Lord was offering us an invitation and a challenge, “Are you ready to cross over?” 

I am ready to cross over.  We are ready to cross over.  Are you? 
 


Lynn Green
September 2023
The Revd Lynn Green is General Secretary of our Baptist Union

The Core Leadership Team (CLT) is an expression of covenant and interdependence for us as Baptists.  It draws together many of those offering leadership across our Movement (Regional Team Leaders, College Principals, Specialist Team Leaders, our President, Treasurer, General Secretary, the Moderators of Council and the Trustee Board, together with a leader from each of our current priority areas) and its purpose is to perceive what God is doing, to encourage flourishing across Baptists Together and to model together what it means to be a Kingdom Movement. 

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Painting created by Mike Lowe using Midjourney.