Before We Decide

A Different Place to Begin

Urgent decisions often narrow our field of vision. We begin with the problem in front of us, the resources we lack, the expectations we inherited, or the outcome we fear. Then we ask God to help us carry out the plan we have made.

This series begins elsewhere. Before strategy comes identity. Before action comes attention. Before the church asks how to preserve itself, it remembers that it belongs to Jesus Christ and participates in a mission that began long before any congregation, program, or institution existed.

The six conversations draw on Scripture and the Foundations of Presbyterian Polity, but they are not a course in church government. They use the Foundations as a theological map for the church’s shared life: God’s mission, Christ’s authority, the church’s calling, the signs of faithfulness, the possibility of change, and openness to the Spirit’s future.

The River and the Tree

The river was flowing before it reached the tree. The tree does not create the water that gives it life; it receives that life, becomes rooted beside it, and bears fruit. So it is with the church. God’s mission begins with God. Christ gives the church its life, and the Spirit forms a people whose faithfulness becomes visible in the world.

Across these conversations, the river and the Tree of Life become a shared image for discernment. The headwaters remind us that God’s work begins beyond our plans. The roots and trunk speak of a life grounded in Christ. The canopy holds many branches together. Leaves, blossoms, and fruit make growth visible. Old wood and new growth belong to one living tree. The river continues beyond what we can see, carrying life toward a future we do not control.

How the Conversations Move

Each conversation follows the same rhythm:

Pause — Become present before moving toward an answer.

Remember — Return to Scripture and the church’s deepest convictions.

Notice — Pay attention to what is happening in and around your community.

Discern — Ask questions that expose assumptions and open faithful possibilities.

Join — Choose a concrete practice or next step.

Entrust — Release the church, the decision, and the future to God.

The conversations may be read personally, but they are designed to deepen shared discernment among sessions, boards, staff teams, ministry teams, congregations, and other communities of faith. They form a coherent journey and are strongest when used in order. Move slowly enough for the questions to do their work. You do not need to resolve every tension before continuing.

Before the Next Decision

The goal of this series is not to make every decision easy. Faithful discernment may still involve disagreement, risk, grief, and incomplete knowledge. The promise is more modest and more demanding: we can learn to begin in the right place.

We can pause before urgency takes control. We can remember who we are and whose we are. We can notice where grace is already taking shape. We can discern together, join what God is doing, and entrust what we cannot secure to Christ.

Before deciding what to do, where do you see Christ already at work?