Dear friends,
Albert Einstein once said; “Imagination is the language of the soul.” Here at First Christian Church we are a place where people from many backgrounds can learn about and experience God’s love, where artists collaborate on projects that nourish our community, and where families facing housing insecurity are given shelter and tools they need to thrive. We can see the imagination of those among us and those who have gone before, whose passion for community, justice, and deep Christian spirituality, transformed seeds of possibility into a harvest that is plentiful today.
Last month, our Board kicked off the year with a retreat during which we reflected on what makes FCC vital in our personal lives and in the wider world. We shared stories about the ways this community has made a positive impact on so many lives. We engaged in an activity that challenged us to come up with ONE word that would be a focus for our work as we discern our future as a congregation. Among many apropos words emerged Imagine.
As a congregation, it is time for us to actively Imagine our future and continue to create our legacy. We must consider the costs of fairly compensating our talented and dedicated staff, paying for the utilities and maintenance of our campus, all the while seeking to continue our outreach efforts to the causes we have deemed important.
We have savings at Christian Church Foundation, both in a Permanent Endowment Fund and in an Investment Account. Both accounts represent dollars that were given faithfully over many years to support the mission and ministry of FCC. Generous giving by our current congregants is an integral and vital part of our budgeting process. To put it plainly, appropriate use of our Endowment and Investment accounts coupled with current congregational giving is not enough to sustain our church as it currently exists and functions, beyond 2025. We must have a strategic plan for managing this reality. With the Spirit's help, now is the time for us to Imagine God's future for our church.
The first step in our imagining process took the shape of a survey made available to all via email and snail mail. Thank you to those who thoughtfully completed it. Our next step is to hold guided listening sessions at various times over the next 2-3 months, led by members of the newly formed Congregational Transition Task Force.
The Task Force emerged from the melding together of the Mission Possible Team and those of our members who participated in the Land Stewardship Cohort training, as well as interested Board members; members are Tom Moore, Gary Bosley, John Unterreiner, Gloria Utley, Vicky Carlson, Karen Murray, Alison Unterreiner, and Doug Collins.
We respectfully ask everyone to be willing and ready to participate in this discernment journey. With courage, hope and imagination, we look forward discovering what God has in store for our community in the years to come.
With gratitude,
Doug Collins, Pastor
Alison Unterreiner, Moderator