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    Jan 03, 2016

    A Mystery No Longer

    Passage: Ephesians 3:1-12

    Speaker: Rev. Vivian McCarthy, Pastor

    Category: The Church

    Keywords: focus, mission, statistics, vision

    Today's message is focused on the church council's vision for 2016 and a review of where we have come in the last 2 years.

    Most of you know I can be clueless sometimes.  Football – sports in general.  Well, there’s another area of life where I don’t always “get it.”  I have had 2 Star Wars geeks in my life for more years than I want to admit to since I can’t call either of my children young adults anymore.  The Force Awakens is out, and I keep hearing these Star Wars references and have no clue what they are talking about.  Rich and the kids wink and nod and laugh at me – all the time!  I have often had to face the fact that I’m neither cool nor an insider. 

    Have you ever noticed how churches often use “insider” language?  I imagine that God really doesn’t like that!  From very early in the stories of the people of God, people have been separated – inside the family and outside looking in. 

    Consider this:  God told Israel that they were blessed to be a blessing:  all the families of the earth shall be blessed in you and in your offspring.  The Psalmist proclaimed, “Lord, all the nations you have made will come and worship you.  They will honor you.”  Isaiah said, “In the last days the mountain on which the Lord’s Temple stands will become the most important of all mountains.  It will be raised above the hills, and people from all nations will come streaming to it.  Many nations will come and say, ‘Come, let us go up to the mountain of the Lord, to the Temple of the God of Jacob.”

    Today’s reading from Ephesians is to the church and about the church.  Even the disciples and apostles had fallen into conversation about who belonged and who didn’t.  Peter had his vision of the unclean food and did his best to convince the early church that the Gentiles were just as much a part of the family of faith as were the Jews.  And in today’s reading, Paul discusses – yet again – that light is shining on the mystery through the coming of the Christ.  He said:  This mystery is that through the gospel the Gentiles are heirs together with Israel, members together of one body, and sharers together in the promise in Christ Jesus.  Paul was being very clear that it should not be a mystery that God so loved the world – no exceptions – and the church cannot pretend to be the only ones that have a corner on faith. 

    People of faith still get stuck in that insider/outsider mindset.  It’s not easy for people new to a congregation to really have a place.  The exclusion is often very subtle.  Sometimes it’s glaring.  But the message to new folks can be, “you don’t really belong here.”  We like to do things our way.  We have an insider language and you have to learn it – without much help.  You can only do something if you do it the way we have always done it.

    Today I come with some good news – actually, I might be tempted to call it great news.  I am hearing this kind of talk or perception less frequently.  For some, it will take awhile before they begin to believe it because they have been here for years and they had a rocky start.  For these members of our faith family, there is still a lingering sense that they are not really accepted.  And there are still moments when we say and do things that are hurtful.

    But today I can tell you that, even though it took a long time and very hard work, the team responsible for nominating leaders for this congregation have found some new leaders who have not only stepped up but who know that they need to lead us into a future with hope – which will often mean doing some things very differently. 

    And today I want to share several things with the whole congregation to prepare the way for their leadership and to focus the light for us as to a direction for our ministry in the coming months. 

    I do want to note that at the council planning retreat day, it was suggested that I share with you a sort of State of the Church early this year.  This all ties to leadership, and I am going to share about our life together in very broad strokes today.  If you have any related questions, please feel free to either send them to me on your Conn Card or an email or let’s sit down and talk.  Any questions that come in will be shared in an upcoming Midweek.

    Let me say just one thing about Epiphany.  Remember what an epiphany is?  It’s a moment of deep realization – and for Christians, it’s a moment when God is very, very real.  I want you to know that as I share some information about our congregation as your leaders are continually seeking God’s direction as we shape the plans for our life together.

    1. In a few minutes we will be consecrating the leaders of the church for their work of ministry. I want all of us to pray for them at least weekly.  And I want all of us to consider what it would look like to really support these men and women as they lead.  I remember one evening Terri Rae and I were conducting charge conferences together.  She was the DS and I was working on her region.  She said to the people that she was always open to receiving feedback and to having substantial conversation about the ministry of the church.  Then she said, but if you attack me, it will be a very different conversation.  She went on to say that no one, and I would say myself included, responds well when they feel attacked or are the subject of constant complaining or negativity.  Our faith family needs to inhabit a loving, caring, supportive place.  We can discuss things we need to discuss.  And we need to know that the decisions may not change.  When the council feels that a certain direction is important, we will continue in that direction.  I continue to pray for grace to permeate everything we do.
    1. The church council has agreed on 2 visions that will shape our ministry and our prayers for our shared ministry in the next year. The first vision has to do with engagement, and part of that vision has begun to take shape, if only as several new people take positions of leadership!  Sometimes it has been difficult to stay positive when the leaders look around and perceive that very few people participate in Bible study or help out with things like Sunday School.  Praise God, there have been several more adults who have stepped forward to work with the youth group, making it possible for the group to have more in-depth conversations.  I am praying that this trend will continue to increase – and not only in regard to the youth group, but in several areas of our church’s life such as serving on a program or administrative team or working in the Sunday School.  You might be interested to know that we have made an agreement that rotation in leadership is very important and our administrative teams are committed to rotating every 3 years with the possibility of serving no more than 2 3-year terms. 
    1. The second vision is centered on family ministry. But here’s the thing:  family ministry is intended to be focused on the WHOLE faith family.  These ministries are being planned to provide time for all of us, no matter what our household families look like, to spend some time together over a meal or in some kind of activity where we can actually talk to each other and get to know each other.  We have had a number of young families visit with us for a time in the last couple of years.  Several have “stuck” and become part of the fellowship here.  Others have not been able to build a relationship that helps them become “grafted” into the body.  Honestly, friends, there need to be several “levels” of that grafting so that people truly become part of the body. 

    First, they need to feel that they can belong – that they aren’t treated by the church in general as if they don’t exist.  On my list of thanksgivings, this one is close to the top as I have heard from several newer parts of our faith family that they have been welcomed and cared for. 

    Secondly, most folks need to bond with a group of others with similar life circumstances, usually similar in age.  Think about most of our groups.  Many of you tell me that you came with so-and-so and you raised your kids together or something similar to that.  Groups are usually the glue that keep people together and help us to feel truly part of things.  My hope is that new groups will form naturally out of these shared conversations and interests.  Groups that form this way have an internal vitality that moves them forward.  It is usually very difficult to fit into a group that has met for a long time.

    1. Because of time constraints, I have prepared a written accounting of our recent statistics for your perusal. These stats are in the study guide in the center of your bulletins today.  I hope you will read them. (That guide is attached to this sermon on the website.)

    To be honest, our congregational health picture is a bit mixed.  While we are not losing people like we were a couple of years ago, average attendance is still decreasing – albeit at a slower rate.  And our financial picture is still not where we would like to see it – although there are some positive signs in this area as well:  The Imagine No Malaria offering put us over the goal we set and we ended 2015 in a slightly more positive position than 2014.

    It would be easy to throw up our hands because our numbers aren’t where we want them to be.  That would be a shame!  I have been hearing very positive things in the community for months now.  I hear gratitude and recognition that the church is a strong partner in the life of the community expressed by other leaders in town.  We have posts on our Facebook page that express gratitude.  Two years ago a desire expressed by the church council was that our church be a community center again, and I believe we have made positive steps in that direction – perhaps in some ways we never imagined, but positive nonetheless. 

    One other thing I want to mention, and that is the signs of spiritual growth in so many in this faith family.  I hear you talking about how the scriptures and reflections we hear on Sunday or in a small group are shaping lives.  Many of us are opening our hearts and lives to God’s ways.  I hear you witness to how you are discerning God’s guidance in difficult life decisions.  Some of us are letting our guard down and allowing God to speak to us in the tender places of our lives, bringing our hearts and our minds to bear on our faith and how we live it out every day.

    As we move forward together, my prayer is

    • that we will each move deeper into our relationship with God – and our relationships with each other;
    • that we will not take our faith or our family for granted;
    • that we will each take a step back when we are frustrated or realize that we are on the verge of having to have our own way or to saying something hurtful or unnecessary;
    • that we will practice radical hospitality so that every person whom God sends our way will know immediately that there is room here for their ideas and their idiosyncrasies;
    • that we will practice living in grace.