Introducing the GAP Team
Pastor’s Ponderings – February 2018
I loved the GAP when I was in High School. At the back of the store there was a wall of multicolored sweat clothes: pink and blue and red and orange sweatshirts and sweatpants and hoodies (although we didn’t call them that then). The jeans were great, but the pretty colored clothes on the wall were soft and inviting. This is NOT the kind of GAP I’m talking about.
The Building Inspiration team was activated during 2017 to discuss issues about building a building and new ministries at the church. They recommended hiring a church consultant to guide our congregation in developing a 3- to 5-year ministry plan which may or may not include building another wing for our church structure. With that hire, the Building Inspiration team completed its goals and was dissolved. A new task force was created to partner with church consultant, Mary Scifres, called the GAP TEAM.
The GAP TEAM is a cohort of people in our congregation with different perspectives, and experiences. Their goal is to bridge the GAP between the past and our future, our dreams and an action plan, our anxiety and our service to God. They will work with the congregation to bridge the GAP through deep listening, prayer-grounded reflection, truth-telling and financial maturity. Any ministry plan for our congregation’s future looks to draw the best wisdom from a consensus-oriented model.
I have a vision of our congregation in the future, with children and families growing in faith, safe in a secured facility and having fun together. I have a vision of our congregation that engages senior people, offering good coffee, great musical programs, quality bible study and worship and never forgets their wisdom and contributions. I have a vision of this congregation getting out into the world, advocating for justice by caring for the homeless, protecting the environment, reaching out to the marginalized and volunteering in many organizations. I have a vision of this congregation as a touchstone of mainline Protestant Christianity in our neighborhood where people of all differing opinions and perspectives challenge and pray for one another. I love this congregation and believe YOU are critical to the well-being and healthy future of Vista and our region. YOU make a difference NOW and I can’t wait to see how you make a greater impact in the future.
During the months of February and March, the GAP team and I will be scheduling home meetings to have conversations about the future of our ministry together. Please watch for those dates, places to pop in, and sign up and come! Your prayerful vision for our future brings us all closer to the Kingdom of God in our midst!
Grace and peace to you, as we look forward to our Lenten Season and our Season of defining our Dreams for our future!
Rev. Dr. Leigh Ann Shaw
The Building Inspiration team was activated during 2017 to discuss issues about building a building and new ministries at the church. They recommended hiring a church consultant to guide our congregation in developing a 3- to 5-year ministry plan which may or may not include building another wing for our church structure. With that hire, the Building Inspiration team completed its goals and was dissolved. A new task force was created to partner with church consultant, Mary Scifres, called the GAP TEAM.
The GAP TEAM is a cohort of people in our congregation with different perspectives, and experiences. Their goal is to bridge the GAP between the past and our future, our dreams and an action plan, our anxiety and our service to God. They will work with the congregation to bridge the GAP through deep listening, prayer-grounded reflection, truth-telling and financial maturity. Any ministry plan for our congregation’s future looks to draw the best wisdom from a consensus-oriented model.
I have a vision of our congregation in the future, with children and families growing in faith, safe in a secured facility and having fun together. I have a vision of our congregation that engages senior people, offering good coffee, great musical programs, quality bible study and worship and never forgets their wisdom and contributions. I have a vision of this congregation getting out into the world, advocating for justice by caring for the homeless, protecting the environment, reaching out to the marginalized and volunteering in many organizations. I have a vision of this congregation as a touchstone of mainline Protestant Christianity in our neighborhood where people of all differing opinions and perspectives challenge and pray for one another. I love this congregation and believe YOU are critical to the well-being and healthy future of Vista and our region. YOU make a difference NOW and I can’t wait to see how you make a greater impact in the future.
During the months of February and March, the GAP team and I will be scheduling home meetings to have conversations about the future of our ministry together. Please watch for those dates, places to pop in, and sign up and come! Your prayerful vision for our future brings us all closer to the Kingdom of God in our midst!
Grace and peace to you, as we look forward to our Lenten Season and our Season of defining our Dreams for our future!
Rev. Dr. Leigh Ann Shaw