Fishers Bethlehem United Methodist Church
CONSULTATION REPORT April 30, 2014
Introduction
We, the Fruitful Congregation Journey (FCJ) consultation team would like to thank Rev. Ken Mansfield, the lay leadership and congregation of Fishers Bethlehem UMC (Bethlehem) for the invitation to consult with this Body of Christ. The following observations and ministry action plans are the result of this team studying the following information: a) Bethlehem’s members completing the FCJ survey, b) The report from the Mystery Guest Worshippers provided by Faith Perceptions, c) Interviews with the pastor and ministry team leaders, d) a focus group meeting with the Administrative Board, e) a MissionInsite demographic report of the area’s population, and f) input from Tuesday evenings workshop.
Our prayer is that God will use this assessment experience and consultation report to help Bethlehem UMC to more effectively make disciples of Jesus Christ for the transformation of the community and the world.
Strengths
Bethlehem’s greatest strengths are as follows:
1. STRONG SENSE OF HOME AND FRIENDLINESS
The people of Bethlehem are very friendly with one another and create an atmosphere where guests feel like family. The team learned from The Faith Perceptions Report that guests felt their welcome was sincere, awesome, “easily the friendliest church I have ever attended”, and that it felt like they were at a “family reunion.” Those who are relatively new to the congregation also shared that they felt like they were “home” when they first visited the church and that was a factor in their decision to make Bethlehem their church. The warmth of the congregation is extended both before, during and after worship on Sunday morning and at many community events where the church participates such as FishersFest and Spark.
2. LOCATION
Bethlehem is uniquely located in one of the fastest growing and strategic areas of Hamilton County where the population is projected to grow by 22% in the next 5 years. The uniqueness includes relocating recently retired individuals and young people/couples with children. Evidence of this is a large over-55 planned- community, and various middle- to upper-middle-class housing additions to be completed in the next three years within two miles of the church. In addition Bethlehem is very visibly located residing on Olio Road where thousands of people drive by every day. The church is well maintained and serves as its best marketing tool. It is a “diamond ready to be discovered.”
3. GROWING HEART FOR PEOPLE AND OUTREACH
Mission outreach has grown in recent years at Bethlehem. The local “Spark” program, led by a group of volunteers, is taking hold to serve a growing number of children in a local apartment building. The church has recently supported the Henryville storm loss by securing and delivering generators (being the highest contributing church in our Indiana Conference), assisting a group in Central America with welders and being a strong financial supporter of UMCOR. Additionally, the Bethlehem Team attending Phase 1 of the Fruitful Congregations Journey was one of the most faithful and prepared groups with many seeing the need to be a more outward focused church.
Concerns
Bethlehem’s greatest areas of concern are as follows:
1. LACK OF CLEAR VISION BASED ON THE MISSION OF THE CHURCH
The consult team congratulates Bethlehem for the many activities occurring within the walls of the church and community, however, they are not driven by a clear mission, unifying vision or values. This lack of clarity and alignment around a God given mission, vision and values prevents effective support, accountability and evaluation of the lay leadership, ministries, programs, and pastor. In essence, the congregation has no clear understanding, focus or direction to make disciples of Jesus Christ for the transformation of the world.
2. NO CLEAR DISCIPLESHIP PATHWAY
While some attempts have been made to help people grow in their faith, such as Sunday and Wednesday evening Bible studies, there is no other intentional pathway to move people of all ages from seekers to fully devoted and authentic followers of Jesus Christ. The team repeatedly heard the desire to grow in numbers, but did not hear any intentional plan to attract and retain them.
No one could clearly articulate a plan of how a person:
· first connects to Jesus Christ and the church
· grows in their knowledge of the faith
· becomes connected to other believers for support and accountability
· becomes active in service to others for the purpose of sharing the gospel
3 LACK OF OUTWARD STRATEGY
The Consultation Team observed that “a heart for community” is important to the congregation but saw no intentional process to achieve greater impact through their outreach. The “Spark” Program and participating in FishersFest and other local events are good programs, but do not have goals and objectives to determine if desired outcomes are achieved. Additionally, there is a lack of focus and intentional relationship-building, invitation and follow-up to connect people to the life of the community of faith which results in lost disciple-making opportunities. One critical missing component to implement a strategy is a lack of clearly defined organizational structure with defined roles and authority along with financial and budget management.
Ministry Action Plans (MAPs)
In order to address the above concerns, Bethlehem must implement the following MAPs:
Please note: The Coach and new Pastor will connect as soon as possible, and no later than July 31 to confirm dates and activities.
1. DEVELOP A CLEAR, FOCUSED, AND SHARED VISION
The day this consultation report is accepted, the congregation will accept and communicate the mission of Bethlehem, which is “to make disciples of Jesus Christ for the transformation of the world”.
The congregation will have a worship service of prayer and forgiveness, to embrace God’s mandate for making disciples. This will allow the membership to be fully prepared for the Lord’s vision for the future. By August 1, 2014, the New Pastor, in consultation with Catherine Turcotte, will establish a date for this service.
The coach will conduct a Core Values Workshop followed by a Visioning Workshop for the congregation. These workshops will be completed by October 1, 2014. Following the workshops, the pastor, in conjunction with the coach and the leadership of the church, will create a small team to discern the core values and vision for the church. Upon adoption by the Administrative Board, the results of this process will be presented to the congregation by December 1, 2014.
After the core values and vision are presented, the coach will conduct the Transitioning the Vision to Ministry Workshop to align all the church’s ministries to the vision.
2. DEVELOP A DISCIPLESHIP PROCESS
The pastor, in consultation with the coach, will put together a team of three persons on or before September 1, 2014, to create a clear discipleship path for moving people from where they are on their spiritual journey to becoming a fully-devoted follower of Jesus Christ. The discipleship path will be designed for everyone, whether a non-believer or one who is maturing in their faith. This discipleship path will represent a lifelong process.
The Team will discern a faith development plan within a Wesleyan model that encourages all persons:
· to grow in their relationship with Jesus Christ
· to help them be transformed by studying the principles of the Christian faith
· to help them increase their biblical knowledge and wisdom
· to provide connection opportunities with other believers for support and accountability
· to help them discover their spiritual gifts
· to be in service to others for the purpose of the mission
The coach will provide a Discipleship Pathway Workshop by October 1, 2014, to assist in creating the above pathway. This new process will be adopted at all levels by January 31, 2015.
3) CONNECTION WITH THE COMMUNITY FOR RELATIONSHIP
The Pastor, in consultation with the coach, will form a Community Connection Team by October 15, 2014, to develop an outward-focused strategy for the church to reach its community that is based on the church’s vision and the MissionInsite demographic report. The team will document all of the current ways the church connects with the community and will then explore additional means of connection to the surrounding community such as bridge events (similar to the Ice Cream Social), worship services, ministries for all ages, and needs-based programs. This strategy will be completed by February 15, 2015.
The coach will conduct an Accountable Leadership Workshop for the pastor and leaders by November 1, 2014. Upon completion of the workshop, the pastor and Administrative Board, in consultation with the coach, will initiate an ongoing process for defining roles, planning that includes accountability and a clear communication pathway. This process will be reviewed and approved by the Administrative Board by February 1, 2015.
In order to develop leadership, the pastor, in consultation with the coach, will develop a leadership development plan and initiate it by June 1, 2015. This plan may include the following:
• Shared learning through guided study of books and teachings
• Spiritual-gift inventories
• Practicing spiritual disciplines (e.g. prayer, study, retreats, tithing, service)
• Using a goal-setting and budgeting process that supports the mission and vision
• Use of apprentices or vice-chair when appropriate
• Regular rotation of leaders (e.g. 3-year terms as defined in the Discipline)
The pastor, in consultation with the coach, will create a Worship Team of 3-5 people by October 1, 2014. This team will begin to participate in preparation of Sunday morning worship and will then evaluate and develop ways to improve the overall worship experience with respect to the outward strategy to be implemented.
Conclusion
We, the consultation team, want to thank you for the opportunity to serve your congregation through this Fruitful Congregation Journey assessment process. Our prayers and hope for your congregation is that God will use this process to help your church become more effective and fruitful. May God give you courage and strength as you move forward.
- Dave Neckers, Lead Consultant
- Karen Powell, Consultant
- Gary Eberhart, Coach
Town Hall Meeting Dates
May 7 at 6:00
May TBD
May
Church Conference Date:
TBA
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