Tuesday, October 9, 2007

SHARING OUR GIFTS




On Sunday I gave a brief presentation about a new emphasis we are launching at Hope called "Sharing Our Gifts." This came about as a result of discussion we had in our Natural Church Development Church Health Team in recent weeks.


Our Church Health Team set three goals for our efforts. We will encourage fellow members of Hope to grow in their ability to: (1) Share information; (2) Share ourselves; and (3) Share responsibility. Each of these goals on their own may not sound like much, but when taken together, we believe that they will result in a much richer spiritual life among our members at Hope.


Sharing information is important to the health of our congregation for many reasons. First, we are a large congregation (even though church attendance may appear low to many.) We have over 400 households enrolled as members of Hope, some much more active than others, but they are on the rolls because, as far as we can determine, almost all of them are still living in our community. We don't "write off" families from the church's rolls when they are still living nearby and are not attending another church. In fact, over the past 25 years, I have seen many people come and go and come back into the mainstream of our church's life. I wish they would ALL be active, but that's just not the way things are, so since they're still around, we try to keep some line of communication open to them—the monthly ANCHOR, special mailings, and, if possible, the ANCHOR NOTES e-mail newsletter.


Second, we have four services each weekend, and most people attend a particular service every time they worship. That means that they may not see other members they know for a long time and may be out of touch with them. Add to that the sporadic worship habits of some, and it could be months before members see certain others they are close to.


Third, there are many activities, groups, and programs around the church, and they are constantly coming up with new ideas. Only a few groups like our musical groups, the XYZ Fellowship and the Men's Breakfast have "routine schedules," and even they have special events and information to share from time to time. Keeping people informed can enable people to become more active around the church.


Sharing ourselves is a second goal we are pursuing. It isn't easy, of course, given the nature of our diverse congregational community, to create the opportunities for people to share themselves with each other. One current effort is the creation of some "No Experience Necessary" groups that we hope will get people together in more intimate settings so they can become more comfortable in sharing with each other. Other things we do like the Farewell Party of Josh, the Bowling League, and the Steak Barbeque provide opportunities for people to share themselves beyond the "Hi, how are you?" level. But we still have a long way to go.


The "Sharing Our Gifts" emphasis is related to this particular goal in that it encourages people to look at themselves as "servants of God" with gifts God provides for the work of mission. Through the intimate setting of a personal or small group "interview," people have a chance to share their ideas and insights and fill out a survey of their own gifts that we can draw upon as opportunities arise. In the past, with our "Acquire the Fire" surveys, we collected a lot of detailed and useful information about people. Now, with many newer members and with the inevitable evolution of the Total Life Caring Ministry vision, the Health Team wants to make the interview process a regular part of the way we assimilate new members into our church.


Ultimately, of course, as people become better informed and develop more meaningful relationships with one another, they will be more inclined to share responsibility for the mission God has given us at Hope. Unlike churches in previous generations, Hope's "Lutheran identity" is not linked to any ethnic heritage or immigrant story. Most of our members are "first generation" members of Hope, and many are even first generation Lutherans as well.


When it comes to taking responsibility for ministry, therefore, there is no "Loyalty Button" we can push to get an automatic response to needs or crises that arise from time to time. Our members always respond well to special needs, but that says more about the kind of people that they are than anything else. We are hoping that as members form deeper roots in our congregation and community, they will feel more comfortable about taking responsibility for providing leadership and resources to advance our shared mission.


"Sharing Our Gifts" is being launched now so we can start the process of bringing more people on board for mission and ministry at Hope. As interviews are held and ideas are shared, we will see new things springing up that we can't even imagine right now. That's the way God's Spirit works in our life together.


A recent ELCA advertising emphasis uses a catchy slogan that I like: "God's Mission—Our Hands." I am convinced that "Sharing Our Gifts" is a vehicle that God will bless if we are willing to lend our hands to the effort.