image by Dana Robinson
Toward a Mission and Vision for St. Andrew’s
For the last several months, our Administrative Council has been working through a strategic planning process for our congregation. So far, we have engaged in a “SWOT Analysis”: what are our congregation’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats (or challenges)? With that process completed, we’ve turned to consideration of Mission and Vision Statements for St. A’s.
A Mission Statement is an expression of the purpose of a group or individual. It’s best expressed in a clause with an infinitive verb, i.e., “to do something.” You may recall that I preached in June on “Jesus’ Mission Statement,” found in Luke 4:14-21. There, Jesus expresses his God-given mission as “to bring good news to the poor… to proclaim release to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to set free those who are oppressed, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.” One of the most famous Mission Statements in the last 60 years comes from “Star Trek”: “to explore strange new worlds, to seek out new life and new civilizations, to boldly go where no one has gone before.”
In addition to Jesus’ words, the Ad Council considered the Mission Statement of the United Methodist Church: “to make disciples of Jesus Christ for the transformation of the world.” We also discussed the UMC motto: “Open Hearts, Open Minds, Open Doors.” And we looked at a Mission Statement drafted for St. A’s in 2005, during a strategic planning process under Rev. Marilyn Smith. As far as anyone can tell, that statement was never officially adopted.
A Vision Statement is related to a Mission Statement in that it expresses a hope for the future: what will things look like when we fulfill our Mission? In May, the Council of Bishops of the United Methodist Church issued the following Vision Statement: “The United Methodist Church forms disciples of Jesus Christ who, empowered by the Holy Spirit, love boldly, serve joyfully, and lead courageously in local communities and worldwide connections.” Later, Bishop Bob Farr and his leadership cabinet issued a Vision Statement for the Missouri Annual Conference: “The Missouri Annual Conference will equip our pastors and lay leadership to love boldly, serve joyfully and lead courageously so that our congregations might be as loving and outwardly focused as possible in our communities, Conference and world.”
With all of those Statements in mind, your Administrative Council is considering the following draft Mission Statement: “The mission of St. Andrew’s United Methodist Church is to do God’s will wherever we are, loving boldly, serving joyfully, and leading courageously, by:
Opening our hearts to know the love of God and share it with the world.
Opening our minds to hear and teach what Jesus taught
Opening our doors to bring souls to God”
The Administrative Council meets next on September 28. If you have thoughts about our Mission Statement, please share them with Ad Council members between now and then.
Rev. M. Christopher Boyer