Your Transition Team has prepared four small group meetings that will take place January through May. We sought to schedule small group times that will enable as many of our disciples as possible to participate. You need to attend only one of the sessions on each monthly topic. 

Whether you are a long-time disciple or a more recent disciple our conversations with each other will seek to build on the good things and not repeat those things which hindered our mission and ministry in the past. 

The Transition Team Members include:
Stephanie Alumbaugh, Cynthia Fain, Sundae Johnson, Rose Moser, Jacob Schlosser, Mark Steen, and Paul Wells.

Location of group meetings may change depending on size of group.

APRIL SMALL GROUP SCHEDULE 

Identify key gifts and skills required for the next Lead Pastor
This wiLL BE LAST TRANSITION SMALL GROUP

SMALL GROUP RESULTS

JANUARY SMALL GROUP TOP JOYS AND CHALLENGES:

Great Conversations were held by well over 100 disciples at our first Transition Community Meetings. The Transition Team reviewed all the responses and collated the top Joys and Challenges of St. John's.

FEBRUARY Summary of Small Group Meetings:

Looking at the Demographics

• Culture has changed and the church no longer at the center of life

• Growth of technology has changed and challenged the church’s outreach efforts

• St. John’s is a geographically diverse congregation not a neighborhood church

• We do have many disciples living within 15-20 minutes from the church

• Change vs always done this way is a challenge for churches – especially mainline churches which are declining, while non-denominational churches are growing. What can we learn from them?

• Coming back from COVID some disciples have taken a break or withdrawn from active participation. We face financial and volunteer challenges.

• Need to evaluate and substantiate our list of disciples and how this impacts our future     potential for participation and financial support.

March Summary of Small Group Meetings:

Mission Statement: Team consensus is that the current Mission Statement is good and does not need any changes:

To be and make disciples of Christ, in response to God’s grace

Vision Statement: March community gatherings provided a lot of feedback on the current Vision Statement and how it could be improved. The team considered all feedback and would like to propose that the Leadership Board consider adopting the following new Vision Statement:

A community of faith, inviting all to experience Jesus’ love

Values: The congregation has not adopted a Core Values Statement. These should be core values that the congregation is not willing to compromise. The team discussed the community gatherings feedback and would like to propose that the Leadership Board consider adopting the following Core Values Statements:

Grace: Through Jesus Christ
Worship: Gathering around word and sacrament
Generosity: Inviting all to use their time, talent, and treasure
Compassion: Serving the needs of others
Inclusivity: Showing Christian love and respect to all people 

Questions? Contact Pastor Len Hoffmann at phoffmann@stjohns-springfield.org.