Dear First Pres,
A few Sundays back, we held a First Pres Forum. Many of you were there, but I realized this week that I never gave much of a report back to the rest of the congregation about that meeting. Thus, today’s FPC Weekly letter is a brief summary of the Forum.
The purpose of the Forum was to debrief our first phase of the Community Building Initiative, which included summer worship schedule, Community Groups (CGs), and all church activities. So, at the Forum I asked everyone to spend a little time reflecting on these four questions: (1) What did you appreciate about the summer? (2) What would you have done differently? (3) What can we learn from the summer? (4) What concerns or questions do you think are important for us to consider going forward? After some individual time to consider the questions, we gathered in small groups to discuss our thoughts. Then, finally, we discussed as a large group the fruit of the individual and small group work.
Here is a taste of what I heard from those gathered.
Things we appreciated
Many appreciated the new relationships that were developed or started during the summer. In particular, the intergenerational interaction was much appreciated. People appreciated the way the Community Groups manifested emerging leaders in our congregation. Several nodded at the mention that the CGs provided an easy entrance for newcomers. Finally, there was appreciation expressed for the way that the CGs were nurturing a Christian vision for our city.
What would you do differently?
Some mentioned that they would have worked harder to be more proactive in their CGs to reach out to those were not attending. Others talked about being more prepared to reach out to the people they interacted with on August 17 (when CGs met around the city). Another group talked about being more intentional to alter the activities during the weekly CG gatherings to match the audience. Finally, we talked a bit about the reasons for launching something like this during the summer rather than at another time of the year with more consistent attendance.
What can we learn?
A few of the groups mentioned how the summer taught us that people are hungry to connect and are eager for those opportunities. Others mentioned that mid-sized groups are not enough on their own, but need to be complemented by smaller discipleship groups. We learned that the CGs provided a ready infrastructure to serve needs that arise in our church. And, we learned that the CGs (particularly as we went out into our neighborhoods) provided a way for many to use their various spiritual gifts to serve others.
Concerns & Questions?
I think the big question and concern, expressed in several different ways, was this: what’s next? That question was evident in many of the groups. They asked, “How do CGs fit with the rest of our church and life activities? How do they connect or interact with existing house churches? How do we keep it from becoming just another church program? How often should CGs meet?”
Wasn’t that great feedback? I’m very grateful for the folks that were able to be there. I hope this is a helpful summary for those of you who weren’t. If you have additional feedback that you’d like me to hear, please send me an email at jvaccaro@fpcfresno.org.
So, what is next? Here’s where we are in our thinking. We want Community Groups to continue. We don’t want them to be overwhelming. We want the next phase of CGs to be experienced in our various parts of the city rather than on our campus. We want the groups to be a healthy expression of Christian Community that is inwardly attentive while outwardly focused. For this to happen, we need a leadership team for each CG. (Interested? Let me know.) This is a critical next step. Then, we’re working to establish one night each month when all the CGs will meet in their various locations.
We can’t move forward, though, until we’ve established the leadership teams. And, we need a healthy dose of the Lord’s wisdom to consider all the questions and concerns that are brewing in us. Would you please be praying for this? Would you please pray that God would show us what He would have us do?
It’s exciting to consider the possibilities of God’s work at FPC Fresno. There is so much God-given potential, and there is so much opportunity. May the Lord give us the courage to live out His purpose for us.
Blessings,
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