Session Update – April 2023
The Session of Highland Park Presbyterian Church is the ruling body of our congregation, charged with governance, overseeing the Church’s spiritual health, and guiding its mission for Christ in the world. To better do this, the Session frequently communicates with the congregation of HP Pres to report its decisions and activities.
On Monday, April 24, our Session met after prayer and fasting to discuss leading HP Pres. Below are some of the highlights from the meeting that you should be aware of and pray for this next month. If you have questions or feedback about any of these topics, you can contact the Session.
- The Session briefly reflected on Easter and the number of lives impacted through our family of churches on that day. We celebrated a full house and the army of servant leaders who worked to make sure we were great hosts to our guests.
- Steve McLean, Pastoral Fellow of Discipleship, gave an update on our Third Third ministry, which is focused on discipling our people who are in their third third of life (ages 52+). Steve shared a vision for the importance of reaching this group, and the distinctions between each of the three generations represented in the Third Third ministry.
- Simon Kingori, Pastor of All Nations, shared about the spiritual growth in the All Nations community, partially due to the Rooted curriculum the group is following. We thank God for 50 participants, 13 students, and 9 facilitators undergoing this course.
- The Elders spent time in prayer, practicing an exercise taught to them by Calum Lindsay, Pastor of Worship and Prayer, so they can be prepared to pray alongside our congregation inside and outside our worship services.
- Emily Scates, Pastor of Discipleship, gave an update on behalf of the Vision Committee on the topic of emotional health, and upcoming initiatives to educate and equip our congregational to be emotionally healthy disciples of Jesus.
- The Governance Coordinating Committee shared that training sessions for future Elders are underway, and our newly elected officers will join our Session meetings in September 2023.
- On behalf of the Operations Committee, Anne Compton gave an update regarding our Executive Director, Sarah Good. As we’ve shared previously, Sarah is on a 60-Day sabbatical. Now, with this leave of absence wrapping up, and after long hours of prayer and many conversations, Sarah Good has discerned that the best path forward is for her time as our Executive Director to come to an end. Sarah’s presence will be missed, and we are praying for God to grant her clarity and favor in her next steps.
The Session of HP Pres