Cycle Starter Plans

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Having understood your church a little better with the help of the NCD Church Survey, its now time to start cycling together towards a healthier church. You’ve chosen to start experimenting and learning more about the topic to the left. Now, select one of the cycle starter plans below and write number 1 in its box. Put this sheet on your wall, then, go do it!

Next time you are meeting with others who are also working through a topic, ask each other the questions from the cycle, starting at “do” and finishing at “plan”. After a cycle you may decide the most important thing to do now is to keep going with the same plan, modify it, or choose another option from below. If choosing another from below, just write 2 in its box and so on.

If you’d like more cycle starter options, or to work on another topic highlighted by your NCD Church Survey results, just visit ncdchurchsurvey.org/cycle-starters

Prayer

  • Find a book or video with teaching about intercessory prayer to help you understand what it is you are achieving when praying.
  • Listen to yourself when praying and consider whether God would find your prayer language distant or unusual compared to how you would normally speak to a very close friend. Then consider the Psalms as examples of direct, honest and expressive prayer.
  • Read a Psalm each day and, if anything in it relates to feelings or circumstances you are currently facing, read it again out loud as a prayer to God. Pause in silence for a while when you have finished reading it.
  • Reflect on challenging circumstances you face in daily life or ministry. If you rarely speak, even briefly, to God about those challenges, consider what image of God (and yourself) you may have. If you don't face significant challenges, consider what if any implications that has for your prayer life.
  • Regularly meet with someone who is known as a prayerful person and whose prayers are answered. Talk to them about their experiences of prayer and pray with them.
  • Share with someone close to you about a time of personal or public prayer that was inspiring for you and see if you can express why it was.
  • Start a small group that places a priority on prayer for its members and their needs.
  • When you meet with people from your church, offer to pray for them before you finish your time together. This may be to do with a specific challenge they are facing or simply that God might abundantly bless them even more.