The Chapel - OUR MISSION: Bring The Good News To Our Culture
Where we have come from is important – but it only provides the foundation for where we are going. We celebrate what God has done at The Chapel, but we look with anticipation for what He will do in the future.
Our purpose,“ to bring people closer”, will never change. We will continue to passionately pursue that into the future. Our values will also not change, they are the DNA of who we are as a church.
But some things will change. They have to! The Bible makes that clear. Jesus said to all his followers, “you will tell people about me everywhere.” Paul put it this way: “I try to find common ground with everyone so that I might bring them to Christ.”. At least two things have to change – location: “tell people everywhere” and forms: “find common ground with everyone”. The goal of our church is not to have a building where those who choose can come, but rather to have a base of operations from which we reach out to those needing a relationship with Jesus. The goal of our church is not to have our “Chapel ways of doing things” and invite those who like them to come and enjoy them – it is to find ways that will relate to our culture and take God’s love to them.
EXTEND THE VISION PART 1: Add multiple venues, building common ground to reach the community we live in. One church, one message, different styles.
Over the past 20 years we have changed:
Music styles: from organ and choir to praise band
Use of technology: hymn books to power point
Who does ministry: Pastors to lay people
Where ministry happens: small group to large group to large group and small groups
Together times: from all together at once, to multiple service times
Day we meet: from Sunday to Saturday and Sunday
All of these were done to with the goal of opening doors to more people. But our culture continues to change, so common ground will change.
Forces that are changing the culture we live in:
Expectation of quality – People expect things to be done well, and will look for places, in every area of their lives, where that happens
Choices: People want options – one size doesn’t fit all
Need for personalization – People want to feel noticed and valued
Experience orientation: People don’t just want to watch, they want to be involved.
What changes can we make to establish common ground and reach our community in 2006 and beyond?
- Start multiple worship services with different worship styles, done with the same heart and quality of our current services.
- More emphasis on building small group communities.
What will we have to do?
- Add rooms for multiple services – instead of a larger worship center
- Increase technology and staff for expanded worship venues.
- Add KC space for enlarged numbers of people attending.
- Develop more leadership for small groups.
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