Looking Toward the Future

On March 11^th, we had the beginning of our visioning process for Harrison UMC.  We gathered to talk about the future of the church with regards to all the varied facets of church life – fiscal, physical, outreach, ministry, as well as talking about where we want to be in 5 years.  It was a great conversation and began what I hope will be a productive, innovative, imaginative and Spirit filled time for our church as we begin to seriously ask ourselves where we wish to be as a church in the future, both near and far. 

A second step was the District event that took place this past Saturday at Tyner UMC.  It did not get the advertising it needed, and we only had two persons attend, but it was a good (surprisingly good) event that made quite an impression on all of us.  As such, during August, I will be leading a four-week study of the book Get Their Name by Kay Kotan.  This study will be for anyone interested, but 

I would strongly encourage anyone in leadership within the church to attend.

While that is some ways off, I will be working with the church over the next several months to begin to develop our larger vision.  Here is how:  Over the next two months I will be visiting with each of the Sunday School classes to talk to them about the future of the church.  The classes will receive the questions that we discussed at the visioning meeting on the 11^th and will be encouraged to discuss them as a class.  I will then meet with them the following week to hear their thoughts and ideas.

In September, we will have a second visioning meeting where I will be sharing some of the visions I have heard and we will begin to develop the vision for the future as well as beginning steps to getting there.  Then, over the course of the remainder of 2017, we will be working together to coalesce our vision as well as our short and long-term plans for reaching our goals.

It is an important time in the life of the church.  We have opportunity, but we have challenges before us.  Together, as we gather to do the work of the Kingdom, I believe we can take those perhaps frightening steps into the future and find that there is tremendous possibility before us.  What we may find is that the thing that limits us the most is ourselves.  If we can work together, though, we can do great things. 

I am looking forward to where we go as a church and I look forward to working with the leadership of the church and the congregation in general as we establish the outline for the future of Harrison United Methodist Church.