Growing and Learning with Bryn Mawr Presbyterian

November 14, 2017

 

Written by: Devin Johns

In September, we began our Day Immersion series with Bryn Mawr Presbyterian Church (BMPC). Together, we’ll be exploring topics of mission including Public Advocacy and Education, Cycles of Poverty, Community Development, Food Insecurity, and Trauma-Informed Mission. Throughout the series, our goals are to build deeper community with one another and to collect a library of stories about BMPC’s commitment to faithful mission in partnership. Our hope is that by the end, we’ve equipped and inspired over 100 BMPC congregants to feel empowered to share their own stories of mission to engage the wider congregation of BMPC.
On Tuesday, October 24, we welcomed 12 engaged, mission-minded adults from Bryn Mawr Presbyterian Church for the first Day Immersion in their 6 part series, occurring over the course of next 6 months. For this particular day, our focus was on watershed discipleship. Rev. Michele Ward used the idea of watershed discipleship to open a broader discussion about localized advocacy and education. By the end of the day, we compiled over 10 stories about how members and mission committees of BMPC have actively engaged and served their immediate, local community. According to their evaluations, our guests from BMPC left the day feeling energized and prepared to continue sharing their stories of mission back home and a renewed sense of commitment to serving their most immediate, vulnerable neighbors.

On Saturday, November 4 we welcomed 17 more folks from BMPC to discuss cycles of poverty, and together we played a challenging, eye-opening, and transformative game of Power Pictionary. Our discussion focused on what roles we have played in which we’ve had power over another group of people, situations in which we’ve be powerless, and situations in which we’ve been complicit upon observing unequal power dynamics in our world.

We look forward to exploring the topic of Community Development when we next meet in the end of January 2018.

According to Rev. Rebecca Kirkpatrick of BMPC, all sign-ups for the remaining 4 Day Immersions through April are full to capacity! We’re thrilled to continue growing in relationship with BMPC.

Here are some reflections from BMPC members on their time with us thus far:
“The focused time with my friends in service together to the BSM guests [was the most impactful part of my day]. Committing a day with no interruptions enabled me to absorb, reflect, and act upon what I have experienced.”

“I realized that I am contributing to society just by being me”

“It was an amazing experience that, in my opinion, brought two very different communities together”