COMMITTEE ON EVANGELISM AND YOUTH

GENERAL ASSEMBLY 2001

For many years the inside cover of Stedfast held a statement of 'Our Church's Position and Principles.' This statement began with the words, 'As a branch of the Church of Christ, one and indivisible, we stand for an Evangelical Gospel based on New Testament principles, acknowledging Jesus Christ, as the supreme King and only head of the Church.' Standing for an 'Evangelical Gospel' means having a heart for the lost, seeking to bring them to faith in Christ and providing them with the resources and the opportunities to grow in that faith. We know this to be central to the Great Commission Christ gave the Church of leading men and women to Christ. Evangelism ought therefore to be one of the main activities of the Church, not necessarily as a programme or an event, but rather as a natural overflow of the life and witness of the local congregation within the community. As a Committee and, indeed, as a Church, we are involved in the task of fulfilling Christ's Commission but like many of our congregations, we are searching for ways in which we can do this effectively.

In recent years initiatives such as 'The Church, Alive and Growing' and 'Mission 2000' have sought to cast the vision for spiritual growth throughout the Church in the areas of worship, prayer, discipleship, pastoral care, service and evangelism. Within these initiatives was the belief that the Church will be most effective evangelistically when it is spiritually healthy in each of these areas. This suggests that evangelism is not primarily about methods, programmes, or events, but is more about a healthy Church reaching out to the community in which it exists as a living, dynamic expression of the life of Christ in the world. The Committee has been encouraged therefore by the paper on The Kirk Session from the Committee on Business and Administration which highlights each of these areas as the main function of Kirk Sessions.

The Committee would appeal to Ministers and Kirk Sessions to work with the Committee and create a dialogue so that we can encourage each other with our achievements and support one another in our struggles.

EVANGELISM

RESOURCE PACK

Mission in the local setting can be challenging, exciting and frustrating. It is an area in which all our congregations struggle. In the belief that many of our congregations are running or have run mission programmes or projects, the Committee felt it would be good to share these ideas with one another as a resource that could be used in mission. It was hoped to produce a resource pack containing a variety of ideas that congregations could use for mission and which would be made available to all our congregations to select ideas that are appropriate to their own particular situation.

The Committee asked Kirk Sessions to help:

1. By sharing their knowledge and experience. We asked them to let us know what they are doing in the area of mission and to provide details such as,

• What programmes or projects are currently running or have recently been run?
• If using a resource from an organisation such as Navigators, Alpha, or Willow Creek, to include details of costs and where the materials can be viewed/ purchased?
• How were the programmes organised? Who ran them? Who was involved?
• How successful/ unsuccessful was this and why?
• Who could we contact for more information if required?

1. By appointing a Mission Co-ordinator and if possible a Mission Group responsible for mission in the church, whom we could contact regarding mission.

2. By discussing and letting us know what they considered their needs to be at present regarding mission. This would be appropriate whether or not they had recently been active in mission and would aid us in our attempts to serve our churches better as a Committee.

The response to this has to date been slow. It is hoped this is due to time constraints and that further replies will be forthcoming.

SCHOOL OF MISSION & EVANGELISM

The Committee believes that there are those within the Church who have a desire for growing in their faith, developing and exercising their spiritual gifts, and reaching the lost for Christ. What they often lack is the encouragement of being equipped with the necessary tools for the job. In many ways we are good at preaching about evangelism and encouraging people to 'do it', but we are very often inadequate in training and equipping them with the skills to do so effectively - and that only serves to reinforce their belief that it is not for them or that they do not have what it takes. The Committee hopes to contribute to the encouraging and equipping of these folks and hopefully to excite others at least to explore the possibilities. We will do what is within our power to provide the necessary tools for mission, but again we will depend on the support of ministers and church leaders.

Plans are underway for a School of Mission and Evangelism to be run as a two year course beginning Autumn 2002 and covering six sessions over the two years. i.e. September - December, January - March, April - June. The course content would be practical. At the end of each session there would be tasks to complete in the following weeks. This would give people an opportunity to ground the principles they learn within their own situation and to practice the skills learned, our belief being that people learn best when they are actually doing something. It is envisaged that groups would meet within Presbyteries at some point throughout the following weeks to support, encourage and aid one another in the course work.

It is open to anyone in the church who has a desire for mission, or who would be interested, but does not know what is involved or how to go about mission.

To lay the groundwork for the School, the Committee will approach the relevant Presbytery Committee to identify two or three motivated people within Presbytery who could work with the Committee in the organisation and outworking of the School. If there is no appropriate Committee the Presbytery will be asked to appoint 2 or 3 people who could work with this Committee. Representatives of the Committee would then meet with them and outline the aims and objectives of the course.

DAY OF PRAYER

The Committee has been giving consideration to the Denominational Day of Prayer, and believes that in many ways it has moved away from its original intent. In the Paragraphs of Deliverance of the General Assembly of 1975, an indication of 'grave concern' about 'our spiritual welfare' was noted. The Assembly appeal was to all "to seek by prayer for the Spirit of God to revive His people." It was felt that only a Church renewed can effectively witness to a world suffering from a moral and spiritual sickness.

Renewal comes through "complete consecration." It was therefore proposed that Sunday 21^st November 1976 be observed throughout the Church as a Day of Prayer. Reports on the Day of Prayer held in November 1976 indicated that much blessing had resulted and Sunday 21 ^st November 1977 was designated for another Day of Prayer. A correspondence Course on Prayer was arranged as a result of the 1976 Day of Prayer but no details are available of number of participants.

It would appear that a "tradition" then set in of sending out guidelines and themes for the day to be used or not at the Minister's discretion. It would appear that "the Day" has evolved into just a 'nice idea', to draw congregations together bound by the common theme. There seems to be little, if any, 'urgency' or the 'grave concern' evident from the mid-seventies - "to be revived by the Holy Spirit in renewed consecration" etc. It is just a day of the common theme!

The Committee believes that we need to see the Day of Prayer in a new light and encourage ways of praying together. This year we would encourage our congregations to set aside 'REAL' time for prayer. The Day of Prayer is on Sunday, 9^th September 2001. Ideally, sermons and teaching on prayer ought to be done on or before Sunday 2^nd September so that the Day of Prayer itself can be just that - a day given to prayer by the Church. The material for the Day of Prayer will provide ideas for prayer over a two week period. This could be used by individuals during the week leading up to the Day of Prayer, and the week beyond, with the Day of Prayer itself landing in the middle, or it could be used during the fortnight leading up to the Day of Prayer. In this way a greater sense of involvement, faith, and expectancy may be known. There will be a sermon outline available, but only if requested. Please let the Committee know how things go in your congregation. It will help us in the future.

LEADERS' FORUM

At the year 2000 Leaders' Forum in Perth there was a good number of leaders present to hear Rev Tom Houston speak on the theme of "Adaptability in Ministry." The Committee continue to view this time as an excellent opportunity for leaders to meet for fellowship, encouragement, teaching, and prayer, prior to the opening of the General Assembly and would encourage church leaders to attend the Forum. The speaker at the 2001 Forum will be Miss Sheilah Steven, National Adviser to the Church of Scotland's Eldership Working Party. Sheilah will lead a Bible Study on "The Prayer Life of A Church."

RESOURCES

The Committee would remind congregations of the resources available to them which can be booked through Church Office. We hope these resources can help congregations with limited budgets or those aiming to have a large event. To ensure their availability we request that they be collected from and returned to the office on agreed dates. The resources are:

• An Overhead Projector
• A briefcase size Overhead Projector and Screen.
• Two combined TV and Video sets, one with a 14 inch screen and one with a 20 inch screen.
• A Video Projector.
• A Data / Video Projector and laptop Computer.

· Evangelistic Tools including Alpha Course, Network Course, Becoming a Contagious Christian

· Discipleship Tools including Navigators' Network 2.7 and the Emmaus Programme.

(Details of these tools have been given in recent issues of 'Stedfast'.)

YOUTH

CAMPS

The restructuring of the camps was very successful last year with around one hundred young people attending the four camps and exploring the theme of "Worship". Bible Study Notes were given to all young people attending the camps and a great encouragement was a letter received from the parents of one of the children who, after the camp, had asked for a time to be put aside each evening to read the Bible together as a family. Please pray for the camps being run this year.

The leadership teaching team of Rev Ian Robertson (Ayr), Miss Shelagh Coulter (Cathcart) and Mr Richard Bisset (Croftfoot) will have the addition of Mrs Diane Ledingham (Northfield), Miss Joy Rankine (Sauchie & Fishcross), Mr Gordon Mackenzie (Perth), and Mr David Shering (Auchterarder).

The Committee is grateful to Shelagh and Richard for the vision and work they have contributed to the Camps during the past two years. They both step down at the end of this year and the four new members of the team will lead the camps throughout the next two years. This has a double benefit in that it does not ask too much from our youth leaders and it allows others to gain experience and use their gifts in leading the camps. The theme for 2001 is "I'm Special", and the teaching will be based on the life of Peter.

The camps for 2001 are:

Presbytery of the East 4 - 6 May Carronvale House, Larbert.

Presbytery of the West 7 - 9 September Carronvale House, Larbert.

Presbytery of the North 28 - 30 September Lendrick Muir.

YOUTH ASSEMBLY

Looking to build on the success of our first Youth Assembly in 2000, the Committee was encouraged at having twenty three young people aged between 16 and 25 at Youth Assembly 2001. The Youth Assembly was held from 23^rd - 25^th March at Scripture Union's new residential Activity Centre at Lendrick Muir, Kinross. The Moderator, Rev J O Fulton opened the Youth Assembly on the Friday evening. Mrs J Begg brought greetings from the Women's Home and Overseas Committee and Miss Alyson Steel reported on her participation at General Assembly 2000. The praise was led by Miss Alyson Steel (Millerston) and Mr Mark Nelson (Drumchapel). On Saturday evening, Miss Gail Sweeney, a representative from Scottish Churches World Exchange, spoke of her recent visit to India, referring to the opportunities for volunteers to work overseas through World Exchange.

The topics covered this year were:

• Ethics & Current Affairs - The Scottish Parliament

• Ministry & Home Affairs - Does God Still Call People Today?

• Evangelism & Youth - Where Do We Go From Here?

  Our speaker this year was to be Miss Elaine Duncan, Regional Activities Director with Scripture Union. Unfortunately, due to illness, Elaine was unable to be with us at the Assembly and her sessions were rearranged. The Committee was most grateful to the speakers who stood in at short notice. Rev J O Fulton led a session on 'Our Vision of God', Rev A M Ford on 'A Vision of Church' and Rev I N Robertson on 'Our Vision for Ourselves.'

  A minute of the Youth Assembly follows this report. The Committee is grateful to Miss Shelagh Coulter for her willingness to record the minute of the Youth Assembly and commend her for the content. A representative of the Youth Assembly will again speak at the Ladies' Day on the Wednesday of General Assembly and another during the Report of the Committee on Evangelism and Youth. The Committee owe their thanks once again to the Women's Home and Overseas Committee who generously gifted £3000 to the Youth Assembly. This will be split between Youth Assembly 2001 and 2002.

YOUTH LEADERS MAGAZINE - stUFf

stUFf is now in its second year and by the responses received appears to be appreciated by youth leaders. Each issue has an item which focuses on youth work within one of our congregations, a prayer pin-board, a mix of ideas and suggestions that can be tried out, a diary of events across Scotland and an opportunity for feedback. If as a youth leader there are other items that you feel could be of help to you then please feel free to write to the editor who would be delighted to hear from you. Once again the Committee is grateful to Mr & Mrs Graham and Elaine Tait (Darnley), Mr Alistair Marshall (Millerston), and Miss Anne Greenwood (Portobello), for their work in editing and producing the magazine.

ORBIT

'Orbit' has undergone some changes this year with a new editorial team, new marker and a new format. The Committee is indebted to the 'Orbit' planning group of Mr & Mrs Catriona Brown (Croftfoot), Miss Alison Brodie (Croftfoot), Miss Morag Cowan (Cathcart), and Miss Lorna Craig (Stonehouse), for producing 'Orbit', and to Mrs Mary Lawless for marking the competition entries. With its new format, computer based graphics, and revised age ranges we hope that the content of 'Orbit' continues to be a useful tool for encouraging our young people to grow in their knowledge of the Bible.

For a few editions 'Orbit' was professionally printed. After careful consideration, however, the Committee felt that due to the costs involved in the printing of 'Orbit' for a minor change in quality, it would be better to photocopy 'Orbit' at Church office and advertise for a few volunteers who would be prepared to give a few hours a month to collating and mailing 'Orbit'.

EASTER SCHEME

The 2000 appeal was for the Christian Aid, Jambo Kenya 'Skills for Life' appeal and the young people of our denomination raised the sum of £3,500. Easter Scheme 2001 is for CHAS (Children's Hospice Association Scotland). As overall winners of the 'Orbit' Trophy last year, Torry Sunday School were approached to produce a design for this year's Easter Scheme Card. Congratulations to Graeme Anderson whose design appeared on the back page of the card.

YOUTH NIGHT

The programme for Youth Night 2000 was presented by a team from Youth For Christ. Once again the evening was a disappointment regarding the number of young people attending, but thank you to those commissioners who attended and who voluntarily and enthusiastically threw themselves into the evening's programme.

Consideration was given to the purpose and effectiveness of the Youth Night and it was concluded that we are not really achieving very much on these occasions. To try a different approach, it was decided that Youth Night 2001 should take a different format. At Youth Assembly 2000 it was clear that our young people want to dialogue with the older members within the church and so we are offering this opportunity in the hope that it will happen. Fifty places have been booked at the Holiday Inn Express, Leith and we would hope that a good balance of age ranges will participate in the evening where there will be food and fellowship followed by Worship and discussion. It is unfortunate that places are limited this year but if successful we would hope to secure a bigger venue next year.

SUMMER MISSION TEAMS

The Committee is currently gathering together a group of young people for a summer mission team. Some congregations have expressed interest and excitement at the prospect of a mission in 2002 and plans are underway for this. It is hoped this will provide a basis for similar teams in future years. Churches interested in having a team should let the Committee know as soon as possible.

YOUTH WORKER TRAINING

The Committee has been exploring the possibility of training Young People as Youth Workers and is looking to encourage suitable young people to undertake the Oasis Youth Ministry Course at International Christian College, Glasgow. The Oasis Youth Ministry Course is based on the conviction that only when academic study is balanced by the constant opportunity to turn theory into practice is excellence achieved. Each student is therefore taken on as a trainee youth worker in a local church or youth project which allows them to put theory and faith into action.

Students are based within church and other placements and travel to College for lectures and seminars for part of each week in term-time. The course operates on the principle that theory is based on, and always goes hand in hand with practice. A team of specialist tutors, supported by placement personnel, facilitate this process. Every hour a student spends in taught study is matched by at least an hour in youth work placement.

In addition to youth-work training, which itself is frequently animated with theological insight, students are also introduced to Biblical themes and textual scholarship, theories of doctrine and mission, church history, and skills in Christian leadership and worship. In each case these are related especially to work with young people.

Students are required to undertake youth-work placement in a Christian setting for a full two years. The emphasis in placement involvement is predominantly working with young people aged 13-18 years. Each training centre works with placements within a wide radius, providing students with a variety of placement contexts, ranging from inner city and "urban priority" areas through to rural village locations. In addition to their main placement, students participate weekly in contrasting youth work projects in the local community, alongside a professionally qualified youth worker and also undertake a short alternative placement to experience other work with young people (e.g. excluded pupil project, outdoor pursuits centre, drug rehabilitation centre, children's home).

The College would help placement churches develop a job description and work-plan for the student which is both realistic and achievable. This work-plan would be developed out of the church's local context. In addition to this the Committee would wish to appoint a co-ordinator responsible for liasing with the student, college, and placement church, the aim being to provide continuity and oversight to ensure the course requirements, student's needs, and church's vision are being met.

The course is validated by the Open University as a 3 year Degree in Theology with Youth Ministry. Students not wishing to complete a degree can exit with a validated 1 Year Cert. H.E. or 2Year Dip. H.E. award.

The Options Are:

• A one year part time course which gains a Certificate in Higher Education.
• A two year full time course which gains a Diploma in Higher Education.
• A three year full time course which gains the BA Degree in Theology with Youth Ministry.
• A Fourth Year for the BA Degree in Theology with Youth Ministry at Honours Level.

  The full time course includes 2 days in College and 20 hours placement per week. The part time course includes 1 day in College and 10 hours placement per week.

The Fees are:

1) Tuition Fees:

£3,175 per annum

£250 one off payment to register with Open University

The Student is responsible for the annual course fee plus the University registration fee.. Students undertaking study for the first time could be eligible for Local Education Authority Grants.

2) Placement Fees:

The placement centre (church) is responsible for the following provision for the full two years:

• All expenses paid accommodation
• Food Allowance
• £45 per week living allowance
• Travel costs to and from weekly group study periods at the training centres
• Occasional travel expenses to work-related conferences, retreat days, visits to alternative placements, etc.
• Working expenses (stationery, photocopying, outings with young people, etc)
• Resources for developing Youth Work
• £350 per year management fee
• Employers Liability Insurance

The College advise placement churches to budget around £6,000 per year. Their view is that in effect the church is getting a part time youth worker. However, if accommodation was available in the house of a church member etc, the costs could be reduced to around £3,000 - £3,500. If there were two linked churches or a group of churches within close distance then this cost could possibly be shared between them. The Committee would consider subsidising places at £1,000 - £1,500 per year.

Interest has already been shown in the course by two young people and this is being pursued by the Committee. Churches interested in becoming placement centres are asked to approach the Committee as soon as possible.

CONCLUSION

The Committee would like to express thanks to the Office Staff for all their help throughout the year.

In the name of the Committee

GARY J. A. BARCLAY (Convener)

GRAEME G. GARDNER (Vice-Convener)

IAN N. ROBERTSON (Vice-Convener)

JOHN O. FULTON (Secretary)