April, 2008
People of
the Fire, Growing in Faith
Vision or
Discernment?
I had called a
special FCC congregational meeting in February 2008. This meeting was to
determine if the cost of the restoration of the bell tower chimes would be
added to the capital campaign for the remodeling of the fellowship hall,
kitchen, lobby, and first floor restrooms. Included in the discussion was also
how to finance the new Visioning process.
At this meeting,
a member of FCC asked me “What will a Vision process do for us? I just don’t
understand the whole thing.” The “vision” question was asked because the
remodeling project did not register as directly coming out of our latest
visioning process. The question centered more on the vision than the capital
campaign. Either way the question was a reminder that not everyone understands
the “what” and “why” of a visioning process.
It became obvious
to me, and others on the Vision task group, that more information about
visioning and discernment needed to make its way to our congregation. That
person was asking the basic question about what we as a church are doing, and
why. Here is that information.
The Following the Fire visioning process started close to ten years
ago. Ray Schulte from the Center for Parish Development led us for several
years in that process. We as FCC prayed, studied, listened, discussed, and
ultimately pushed forward. Just like the Israelites from Egypt, we too followed
a pillar of fire through our wilderness, hoping to come upon a promised land
here at 25th and University.
Ten years ago, we
as a church were struggling. Our membership was declining, money was hard to
come by, spiritual growth was tough, and that Promised Land seemed so far away.
Along with our own struggles, the surrounding neighborhood was teetering on the
verge of collapse. Drake’s ties with the larger church had been severed. People were afraid to come to 25th
and University. So much has changed!
We are still here
as a church because of that Visioning process. Out of that process we redesigned
our worship service and rebuilt our worship space. People still attend here
today to worship - gathering to worship a God that brought us out of our
wilderness. A relevant and strong vision statement leads us, kids are singing,
people are praying, the Drake neighborhood is better, and personal faith is
growing. We are different now from ten years ago. Better? Yes! But still
different.
We as a church
need to continually look at who, and where, we are in God‘s world. Our
demographics have changed, our neighborhood has changed, and the society that
we live in is always changing. It is
because of this ever-changing dynamic that we are starting a new discernment
process.
Over the next 18
months, again with the help from the Center for Parish Development, a vision
task group will be once again leading this congregation through a discernment
process. This congregation will be hearing a new theme, People of the
Fire, Growing in Faith. This is the next installment of our witness
here at FCC.
Our vision
statement will probably not change. We will, though, still need to discern what
God wants from us, and for us, here at 25th and University. This
process will be more discernment than vision, but always looking forward. We
are called, by God, to witness in this neighborhood, our promised land.
My hopes for this
process this time? I hope that we as a church body, together, will be able to
answer members’ questions once again, “what are we doing and why?” Answering
that question by being People of the fire, Growing in Faith.
Shalom,
Sheldon Henderson