7/10 - Update

People have been asking if we’re all settled in our new house…and the answer is “no.” We’re partially settled. We’re making progress, but we aren’t there yet. I’ve moved a lot in my life, so I know how hard it is. Even so, I’m amazed at how long it takes to get all-the-way-settled.

I’ve noticed that I operate in “zones”—rooms, closets, the garage. But I also operate in “layers”—achieving deeper and deeper levels of order and organization within those zones. It’s time-consuming work, and it takes energy. I try things that don’t work and have to rearrange. I get things in the right space, but have to go back later and tweak them. Frankly, it seems endless—and sometimes I’m pretty sure I’m just shifting items from one spot to another without actually putting them away anywhere.

I always think I’ll get more done in a day, or a couple of hours, than I actually do. My natural inclination is to be irritated about this. And disappointed. And impatient. But this is demoralizing, so I’m trying instead to rejoice in what I do get done. Usually that’s quite a bit. Last Friday, for instance, we hung 15 pictures. The Friday before that we parked both cars in the garage. Bit by bit, we’re getting somewhere. But I have no idea when we’ll be finished: every box unpacked, every item stowed, every picture hung.

Maybe this in-between time at East Woods, and the interim work, feel like that to some of you. They are similar, I think. I hope each one of you is standing where you can see some of the progress. Perhaps it’s no accident that the Apostle Paul began his Philippian letter with these words: “I am confident of this, that the one who began a good work among you will bring it to completion..,” and ended the same letter with these words: “ “I’ve learned by now to be quite content whatever my circumstances…”

 

By the way, Session meetings at East Woods are moving to the 3rd Thursday of every month…and the General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) is meeting July 3-10 in Minneapolis. This body meets every other year, and there’s often quite a bit of publicity associated with the event. You can follow what’s happening at www.pcusa.org or www.churchandworld.com and in other places. In any matters that involve a change to our Constitution—the Book of Order or the Book of Confessions—the GA’s votes are not the last word; all these matters return to the presbyteries and must be voted on nationwide in the coming year. That’s how our process works. But I also want to make the same offer Scott always did: if you happen to have any questions or concerns about anything connected with GA, please feel free to contact me. I’m glad to visit.

Interim Update

The PNC (Pastor Nominating Committee) is underway…working hard…and will provide you with their own updates. Include those 7 people and their work in your daily prayers!

Meanwhile there have been 2 all-church opportunities to discuss the Transition Team Report. Transition Team members would be delighted to meet with any of you in a smaller setting as well. Let us know if you’d like to do that.

Thank you for your responses to the report so far. Your input helps the PNC do their very best job describing East Woods in the Church Information Form (CIF). Prospective pastors read a lot of CIFs, and not all of them are scintillating. Authentic CIFs stand out, and the PNC wants to write an authentic CIF about East Woods.

I mentioned in my June 27 sermon that the Session had quite a discussion about East Woods’ sense of mission. This came up because the PNC has to include a Mission Statement in the CIF. Here’s the Mission Statement East Woods currently has: Called to Community, Called to Worship, Called to be Disciples of Jesus Christ. It dates back to 2002.

The Session authorized the PNC to use this Mission Statement in the CIF…but they had mixed feelings about it. On the one hand, the Session didn’t want to slow the PNC down. On the other hand, this Mission Statement is obviously generic—any Christian church could say the very same thing. It doesn’t capture anything unique or personal about East Woods, and the Session would like to see a more unique and personal Mission Statement.

As far as I’m concerned, this is great. Many churches in interim situations begin by working on a new Mission Statement. But sometimes new Mission Statements don’t mean all that much, especially if churches write them because the have to. In your case, I thought it was wise to begin with congregational identity instead. Now—after Blast from the Past, the Transition Team’s work, and your feedback—you have a lot more to work with. You’ve gotten more in touch with who you are, with what makes you tick. And this makes it a lot more realistic to work on your sense of Mission…Vision…and Purpose as a church.

Figuring out stuff like this isn’t really a linear, step-by-step process. It’s more organic. You start with what you have, what you know. Now that your congregational identity is more explicit in the form of your code—your congregational DNA—it should be easier to reflect on Mission, Vision, and Purpose. If you have a particular interest in working on this—getting involved with a group like the Transition Team, for instance—please let me know. We need more folks to get involved in this process.

So you’ll be hearing more about this. But, for now, how about a few definitions to chew on?

  • Purpose = the reason East Woods exists
  • Vision = a picture of what would be going on here—say, 10 years from now—if East Woods fulfilled its Purpose
  • Mission = what East Woods is doing in the present to fulfill its purpose and achieve its Vision

I believe these are helpful things to know. When a church knows them, the way ahead is a lot easier to see. The way forward is clearer. And the right kinds of pastoral candidates stand out from the crowd. And what you do is congruent with who you are.

 

Warmly in Christ,

Laurel