Practical Theology

Restory Church

Restoring the church to a lay-led community by embodying a healthy narrative and leading as interpretive guides.

Reviving Lay-Led Community

The Restory Church concept advocates for revitalizing church communities through storytelling, lay-led structures, and interpretive leadership, inspired by Jesus' ministry and emphasizing the importance of narrative cohesion and community relevance in navigating contemporary challenges.

Jesus Culture - Lay-Led Storytelling
The Restory Church concept seeks to emulate Jesus' approach to storytelling, disciple-making, and grassroots community-building, aiming to create inclusive and transformative church communities reflective of the Kingdom of God.

Dear Mr President

Pastor Dan leads the Oregon Conference of Seventh-day Adventists as they encounter severe cutbacks due to a decline in attendance post-COVID. I wrote him this letter offering encouragement and practical suggestions on empowering the laity to revitalize the church, emphasizing the importance of personal, relational, and communal skills, and expressing willingness to support without seeking financial gain. Oregon's situation and this letter got me thinking and turned into this blog series.

Cultivating a Healthy Narrative - Empowering Lay-Led Church Communities
By focusing our teaching, dialogue and record-keeping on the cultivation of Personal, Relational, and Communal skills, disciple-makers will reshape the church community to hear and tell a healthy narrative about themselves. This intentional approach not only fosters a holistic inreach/outreach community but also strengthens the collective identity and purpose of the lay-led church.

Interpretive Guides are Intentional Disciple-Makers

The Restory Church champions a model of spiritual mentorship where disciples embrace their role as interpreters and guides, fostering a community of empowerment and support. Through reflective practices and deep conversations, interpretive guides help individuals navigate life's complexities, aligning decisions with spiritual values and beliefs. 

If you have any questions, 

ask and I will write another post 

in this Restory Church series

Thanks, 

Dave

A Compassionate Theology (ACT)

Being a Christian doesn't mean you must be judgmental of others or yourself. We can strive to have a compassionate theology! Here's a few examples of what I mean:

ACT: Becoming like Jesus
The Living Word -- ACT: Growing in Christ

Christian Reconciliation – 'Making things right’
Brothers New and Old - The Face of God in Forgiveness
Silent Scribbles - A Testimony of Forgiveness and Reconciliation
Lenses of Love - God's limit-defying love in John 3:16
ACT: Sharing Your Faith
The Faith Journey - Having and Owning Your Faith
Bananas, Nuts and Living Art -- Being Story-Centred
The Gospel - A Discussion Guide


ACT: The Adventist Faith
The Tension of Being Seventh-day Adventist -- Adventist Identity
28 Stories - Adventist Fundamentals
Embracing God - Why I'm a (still) Seventh-day Adventist


ACT: The Bible
of Pizza and Apples - The Shaping and Study of the Bible
What is the Bible? - The Bible is to be Studied not Worshipped


ACT: A Christlike Worldview
Kingdom Worldview - God's People
Being the Body - Why Everyone IS Leaving the Church and Why They SHOULD BE
Progress vs Purpose - Don't get carried away!

ACT: Sabbath
Aisle Seven - Getting to the Point
The Day and the Way - The Why of the Sabbath
Sabbath Giftedness - They shouldn't conflict with each other
Suffering Sabbath - Dwelling in the darkness between the cross and the resurrection


ACT: Origins
Two Dolls -- Creation
The Image of God - Genesis Chapter 1


ACT: Comparative Religions (Interfaith Thinking)
He is Risen! - Holy Days around the World