Thursday, July 20, 2006

Mission Re Do-Do


Our congregation's Church Growth Committee has determined that our churches mission statement needs to be changed in order to energize members and cause more excitement (maybe even enthusiasm) in the church. The below section was some thoughts I put together and used for talking with members in the church. Didn't have much luck with it though, most answers were, "we have to do something", "nobody knows what the old Mission Statement was". After some thought I felt that I may be opposing it for sport and not true concern for the church. After all, I have to believe that mission statements are not even required for a church to have and may very well be an invention from the last half of the 20th century, from the business sector. If it is modeled after what business organizations do it's at best unknown by the majority of the workforce, and ridiculed by the rest. I decided that to oppose it would be silly, it's a symptom, not the problem that we have. Besides I'm going to be in Michigan on vacation next weekend when we have the vote.
I am beginning to see a pattern in the church though. We're told that we shouldn't care what kind music we use in service, we shouldn't care what kind of service we have, we shouldn't care about the kinds of bible classes we do, we shouldn't care about mission statements, we shouldn't care about things we do that aren't biblical. I'm just beginning to not care now. Here's the two statements, I still like the old one better.
Mission Statement:
In response to God's love, people of St. XXXX are committed through Word and Sacrament ministry to make disciples of all ages in the congregation, community, and world.

proposed change

Building relationships in Christ for now and forever.

Lets look at the Mission Statement,
In response to God's love, Good start, it recognizes that we are not doing anything in and of ourselves, rather we are merely responding to God's love, no works or decisions.

people of St. XXXX are committed through Word and Sacrament ministry Word and Sacrament, as Lutherans we know that this is the way that God has chosen to interact with us. Apart from the Word and Sacrament, no relationship can exist with Christ.

to make disciples of all ages in the congregation, community, and world. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, Matthew 28:19. This ending is biblical and good, recognizing that those close to us also need to hear the Word.
The good things then about our mission statement, it's biblical, specific, and reflects Lutheran traditions by referencing our response to Gods love, not our works, and proclaims the absolute requirement of Word and Sacrament to accomplish what Christ has commanded.
The bad, it's not short enough for a bumper sticker, but Mission Statements aren't suppose to be. They are to accurately sum up the purpose of an organization.

Now for the proposed Mission Statement
Building relationships, Who is doing this, and why or how? Silence here could be promoting our works, or believed works in this area.

in Christ Christ is mentioned, and pretty much centered in the statement, nice touch. Unfortunaly that is the only Christ centered connection. "in Christ" in this context is only modifying the type of relationship that is being built. The word "relationship" is actually the focus and subject.

for now and forever. More modification on relationships. I like how it expresses the eternal.

The good, it's short, and will fit on a bumper sticker, it also creates a nice image in people's minds. Socioligist and marketers tell us that people in modern America are seeking relationships and connections with others. So from a marketing standpoint this should appeal to non-members who may hear it.
The bad, it's short, so short that it will fit on a bumper sticker. Mission statements aren't required to be short. They are to tell who, what and how of an organization's purpose, with length of statement only being a secondary concern.

Summary: The proposed statement is not a proper mission statement. It would be a great ad campaign, or even an official Outreach Slogan of the church. The older one gives a fuller and descriptive statement. It should be kept for this reason. Recommend adopting the proposed statement as our official outreach or evangalism slogan.

6 Comments:

Blogger VirginiaLutherans said...

Some thoughts on the "mission statement" issue. First off, I think they are a load of donkey doo in the sun in the summer. I really have no taste or patience with such statements because usually they are so trite to be meaningless. Besides, whatever happened to the Creeds and the Bible? The Creeds have been the definition of the Church Catholic (not Roman, just the true Church) for 2 millenia. Why change a good thing?

On to the proposed statement- "Building relationships in Christ for now and forever." Sounds nice don't it? Lets break it down- Is this Jesus Christ the Son, or a Spanish soccer player? Who is this Christ? Where is God the Father and God the Spirit? Do they still count? Last time I checked my Bible (and Cathechism), the Holy Spirit engenders Faith in us, which allows us to worship God and seek Him. Doesn't that sound important for a "relationship"?

In addition, relationship is a loaded word, full of allusions to a "two-way" street. Once again, simple theological searches bring up nothing of the sort- everything in a Christian's life takes him away from what he does to what God has, is, and will be doing. At what point do we say "But hey there God, this is a "relationship"- lets have a "dialog" and compromise...it's a two way street ya know..."? (For the record, I strongly suggest you don't do this...)

One last look, and I will get off my soapbox. The words "for now and forever" seem to encompass "time" as we know it, but is forever really what is suppossed to be on our minds? Didn't Christ say, in a major paraphrase, 'Why do you worry about tomorrow? Worry about today, and let tomorrow take care of itself.' (for original verses see Matt 6:25-34) Personally, I think you can drop the "forever" part. If you don't have Christ at your death, there is no "forever." Focus on what is gainful (i.e. the Word), and the rest will follow.

Anyway, off the soap box. For the record, my church also has these goofy things, but they actually say something. If you want what the Church should do, it is simple "Peach the Word in its Entirety and Truth." (Baptism is meaningless without that.) If you want something for a bit of explination, throw in the Apostle's Creed. I think thats probably as simple as it comes, and even then it leaves so much unsaid. There is nothing as fresh as the Truth- no matter how "old" it is.

8:58 PM  
Blogger Whey Lay said...

Good comments. These were the same issues I had bouncing around in my head. Like relationships in Christ, I could have someone as my enemy and that would be a relationship also, certainly not one I would want with our Lord. When you use a trite saying to represent an organization you always loose substance. The proposed statement makes it sound like we are the ones doing the relationship building, not the Holy Spirit.
In the end though, a mission statement isn't a Creed or of the Bible. All we have done is make it an advertising slogan, and it was only a mission statement to begin with. I'll save my strength for more important battles.

2:22 AM  
Blogger OSC said...

Yeah. Mission statements are worthless. If we're serious about what we believe, teach, and confess, then it's appropriate to confess what God does in this place.

I link this together with theology of worship and ecclesiology. If we see church and worship primarily as things that we do, then an anthropocentric mission statement necessarily follows. But if we confess worship (Divine Service)as that which God does in, among, for, and to us, then there really is no place for us talking about what we're doing here.

This is not to suggest apathy or inaction on the part of the congregation. But these mission statements really hack me off. Or rather, they hack God right out of the picture.

I'd love to see a mission statement in a church go something like this: "Here at Ten Lepers Lutheran Church, God, by His Word and Sacraments, graciously makes disciples, and sustains them through the end of the age and into eternity."

12:40 PM  
Blogger Whey Lay said...

It's funny/sad that things like creeds and confessions arent enough anymore. We need a statement that is less in substance. Probably just typical of modern America.
I love the name, Ten Lepers Lutheran, with a mission statement like that I would consider myself blessed to worship there. Thanks for stopping by, Jack

4:26 PM  
Blogger Robert Elart Waters said...

Why have a mission statement at all ? Is the Gospel inadequate?

4:26 PM  
Blogger Whey Lay said...

True, mission statements were not instituted in the Bible, and I really feel it is just one more way that the Church is trying to mirror the Business world. In our church the feeling was that we needed to have some change that would be positive and help grow our membership numbers. The most annoying aspect of the new mission statement is that it works it's way into every sermon, most of pastor's bible studies and even some corporate prayers. I feel like I'm at work, when senior management is obliged to repeat our company mission statement at every meeting.
Yes, the "mission" of the Church is to proclaim Christ and his sacrifice for our sin's, why do we need something else?
Jack

7:13 AM  

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