Ministry, Church and Society "Lab reports"

Regular "lab reports" were due in MCS throughout the semester. Those lab reports were to be based on your participation the previous week or weeks (depending on how often the reports are submitted) in the life of a local church. These lab reports were NOT to be sermon summaries. They were to be thoughtful reflections on what you observe in a local congregation's life and ministry as a community of faith.

Writing something about your attendance at an SNU chapel or a dorm Bible study did not fulfill the objectives of this assignment. This assignment had to reflect your current attendance in an activity of a multi-generational community of faith.

drawing of church as a community

Starter questions

You need not answer any (and certainly not all) of these

  1. What triggered some ecclesiological reflections (thoughts about what the church is supposed to be and do)?
  2. This week, how did you sense God's purposes for His Church being fulfilled in a local congregation?
  3. In what ways did you feel God's presence?
  4. What is the "glue" that holds this church together?
  5. Do the members of this congregation view their church as cruise ship or as a battleship?
  6. What is this church doing that proclaims it to be a community that lifts up Jesus Christ as Lord?
  7. What evidences are there that this is a covenant people of God made new in Christ?
  8. In what ways is this church building community?
  9. How is this church making listening to a sermon or taking an offering or singing a song into acts of worship?
  10. How is that congregation ministering in Jesus name?
  11. In what specific ways was this congregation's obedience to Christ highlighted this week?
  12. What are the evidences you see of mutual accountability?
  13. Did you see some unexpected avenues of ministry open up?
  14. Did you find yourself reflecting on specific things we have covered in the textbooks or in the classroom?
  15. What person's ministry did you most appreciate this week?
  16. If you had to compose a prayer of thanks to God for this church experience, what items would be on the list?
  17. Ask yourself: "What kind of a Christian will I be after attending this church for 10 years?"

"Churches," Ed Robinson wrote, "are faith communities that are shaped and formed over time. They wind up with:

As you write these "lab reports," think about how the congregation you are reporting on in the light of Ed Robinson's list of characteristics.

"As a follower of Jesus, I can't be all I ought to be without the church, and the church can't be all it ought to be without me." — Travis Collins, pastor in Richmond, Virginia

    -- Howard Culbertson,

How should Christians view the surrounding culture?

arrow pointing rightWhat position should believers take vis-a-vis the culture in which they live? [ more ]

Case studies    10/40 Window explanation and map     Searching for God's will?    African martyr's commitment     "Lord, teach us to pray"    Fundraising for your mission trip     Ten ways to ruin mission your trip    PowerPoint presentations used in classes     Ministry, Church and Society course resources