At this worship service, “Creating Joy and Getting Stuff Done,” the Board will present its Vision of Ministry for the 2020 church year. We'll highlight some of the great work that's ongoing in support of that vision. We'll extend an invitation for folks to work with Rev. Cynthia and come up with new ideas to help with that vision. These are difficult times that call for creative ways to support each other and our neighbors.
At the beginning of each church year, the Board looks ahead to the coming year and reflects on the past year to create a "Vision of Ministry" for the coming year. A Vision of Ministry tries to be a simple answer to a challenging question: "In what new and different ways will we transform lives this year?
This question comes from Dan Hotchkiss's book "Governance and Ministry." This book has been the basis for Greater Nashville UU's governance structure for about 7 years now. It helps the congregation, the board, and the minister work together by setting clear expectations and boundaries for their different roles.
Ministry, in this context, means the actions of the congregation to serve the congregants and the broader community. Some call it mission-based programming.
So a "Vision of Ministry" is a road map, a direction, that the Board thinks is important for the congregation this year. But, it's the Minister and congregation that come up with the specific ideas and actions. Put another way, the Board looks around at the current situation, thinks about the mission, and says, "This is how we think we can best do the mission this year."