Getting started as an LEP (Local Ecumenical Partnership)

Members and ministers of Local Ecumenical Partnerships (LEPs) are travelling companions on a journey.

Like the Magi, each denomination has its own treasure chest of gifts and resources which can be opened and offered to others. (Matthew 2:1-11). A Methodist Way of Life is one of the treasures in the Methodist chest.

All Christians are called to go on a journey of discipleship and the twelve practices, commitments or stations of A Methodist Way of Life are a helpful resource for every denomination. They are not unique to Methodists – or to Christians – but their expression may be different in different communities.

Ideas to try

Every context and church community is different. The most appropriate ideas will be the ones that are authentic for the people and place you’re in. Here are a few ideas to consider – more can be found on the pages for each commitment, and on the MWOL resources page (including a series of service outlines).

• Identify your home stations: Invite people to gather at the station/practice where they feel most at home – a practice through which they meet with God most easily. Use this as a way of noticing and talking about what people from different denominations have in common. Where different denominations share an interest in a commitment but express it very differently, discuss both the challenges and the gifts of these differences.
• Visit less familiar stations: Invite people to say which practices/stations they associate most with a denomination other than their own. Use this as a way of affirming and celebrating the gifts and graces of other traditions.
• Mission Planning: Use the twelve practices/stations in your mission planning. Review what’s already happening in the LEP and pick one of two practices which could be developed. Focus on these for a period of time.
• An Ecumenical Way of Life: Give people a blank sheet or paper and get them to design a set of stations which represent the key practices and core values of the LEP. You may wish to downloaded graphics from the Methodist website to assist with this.

Note – Some of the MWOL resources (eg the floor mat and badges) do not have the word Methodist printed on them. It is still important to present them as a gift from the Methodist Church, and to ensure that the treasure chests of different denominations are also opened and offered on other occasions. You may also wish to create your own resources that don’t include the word Methodist, or that include all the denominations present in your church. Graphics can be downloaded from the Methodist website to assist with this.

The Evangelism and Growth team of the Methodist Church run events and webinars throughout the year for individuals and church leaders to explore what A Methodist Way of Life means for your community, including ‘Rural and Rooted’, a series for rural churches.