Moving Forward in Faith: The Church Released, Part II

The Church Released: A Call to Wait, Pray, and Move as the Spirit Unleashes Us

In her keynote “The Church Released” at the Moving Forward in Faith conference, hosted from November 14-15, 2025, in Oakville, ON, by Resonate Global Mission and Diaconal Ministries Canada ,Danielle Strickland invited the church to return to its earliest posture in Acts 1–2. Rather than offering a new strategy or ministry framework, she called leaders and congregations to rediscover what it looks like to be a people who wait, pray, and then move in response to the Spirit’s power already at work.

Strickland’s message was especially timely for churches navigating uncertainty, change, and fatigue. Instead of asking, What should we build next? she challenged the church to ask, What is God already doing, and how are we being released to join in?

Waiting and Prayer as the Starting Point

Before Pentecost, the early church did something profoundly counter-cultural: they waited! They gathered, prayed, and listened to the voice of the Holy Spirit before acting. Strickland emphasized that waiting is not passivity or indecision, but an intentional spiritual practice that creates space for God to lead.

For many churches, this is difficult. Declining participation, limited resources, and external social or financial pressures often push leaders toward immediate solutions. Yet Strickland suggested that renewal rarely begins with activity; it begins with attentiveness.

Actionable steps for churches and ministry teams:

• Establish a regular prayer rhythm that prioritizes listening, not just requests. This could be a weekly prayer gathering or a monthly prayer night focused on Scripture, silence, and communal discernment.
• Before major decisions or new initiatives, set aside intentional time for waiting. Consider a half-day or full-day retreat centered on prayer rather than planning.
• Reframe staff and leadership meetings by opening with extended prayer and reflection before moving into agendas or decision-making.

Receiving the Spirit’s Power as a Shared Gift

Strickland reframed the idea of power in the church by pointing to the way the Spirit’s power in Acts was shared broadly across the entire body of Christ, not just in a few notable leaders. The entire community was empowered for witness.

This challenges church models that rely heavily on professional staff or centralized leadership to carry the mission. Instead, Strickland described a church shaped by the Spirit’s “gift economy,” where every believer is equipped to participate in God’s work.

Actionable steps for churches and ministry teams:

• Identify and affirm the gifts already present in your congregation. Use tools such spiritual gifts surveys, listening sessions, or testimonies to help people name where God has equipped them. Your congregation is full of amazing people - find out what skills and talents they have been gifted with!
• Create pathways for people to serve based on calling rather than convenience. Instead of working endlessly to try to fill volunteer slots, ask where individuals feel stirred to serve and witness. This may lead in exciting new directions.
• Encourage people in your church to see their everyday contexts, such as their workplaces, schools, neighborhoods, and hobby groups, as primary places of ministry and mission.

Proclaiming the Gospel in Context

At Pentecost, the good news was heard in many languages. Strickland highlighted this as a reminder that the gospel is always both contextual and relational. Faithful witness requires learning how to speak in ways that connect with people’s lived experiences and current reality rather than expecting them to adapt to church culture.

For today’s church, this means paying close attention to language, culture, and community dynamics. It also means recognizing that proclamation often begins with listening.

Actionable steps for churches and ministry teams:

• Train members to share stories of faith in accessible, everyday language rather than Christian jargon. This can be challenging, especially for people who have been part of your particularly Christian culture for their entire lives.
• Build intentional partnerships with local organizations, schools, or community groups to better understand neighborhood needs and strengths.
• If your community is culturally and/or linguistically diverse, invest in translation, interpretation, and cultural learning and celebration as a deliberate act of hospitality. 

Witness Over Systems

Throughout her talk, Strickland shared stories of ministry that emerged not from strategic plans but from prayer and presence. In places marked by poverty, trauma, and injustice, she described how long-term faithfulness opened doors that no program manager or ministry PhD could have engineered. These stories serve as a reminder that while structures can support ministry, they should never replace embodied witness. The Spirit often works through relationships, trust, and courageous presence rather than well-designed web pages and well-funded top-down ministry initiatives.

Actionable steps for churches and ministry teams:

• Evaluate where systems may be crowding out relationships. Ask whether programs are serving people or simply sustaining themselves.
• Create space for testimonies and storytelling within worship and community life to highlight where God is already at work.
• Encourage ministries to experiment, reflect, and adapt rather than striving for perfection or permanence.

An Invitation to Be Released

Strickland’s message ultimately invites the church to reimagine itself. How can we build the body of Christ as a Spirit-empowered people released into the world, instead of attempting to maintain an institution of power? Waiting, prayer, sand contextual witness may look different in different settings, but the invitation is the same. Trust the Spirit and follow where God is moving.

Reflection for church leaders and communities:

• Where might your church need to slow down and wait?
• What gifts are present in your community that have not yet been recognized, nurtured, and released?
• How is the Spirit inviting your congregation to move beyond familiar patterns into deeper witness?

We'd love to hear what it looks like for your church to move forward in faith. Share with us in the comments below!