I’m excited about the first Leadership Council of the
Carlisle United Methodist Church! It took a lot of work and prayer to get to
this point in the development of our new church. It would not have happened
without the work of CO:LAB, the Transition Team and the 111 people involved in
various Focus Groups, and the assistance of every member and friend of our
three churches. Really, I am excited! If you missed the list, here it is:
Our prayers
and support cover the nine newly elected members of the group that will set
vision and policy, ensure. We say, “welcome aboard” to:
Gary
Ankabrandt (Grace) Kerm Leitner (Grace)
Bill Bunt (Allison) Jerry Stuart (First)
Jeff Barnes (Grace) Lois Weibley (First)
Kathy
Charette (Allison) Bill Yufer (First)
Ron
Chipriano (Allison)
The Council
will be meeting monthly as an entire group beginning in February, with sub
group meetings in between. They will set vision and policy, ensure support for mission and ministries, and
continually evaluate with and eye on improving our witness for Jesus Christ to
Carlisle and beyond. Pastor Jim will serve as Chairperson for the
first year of the Council. The Council will function very similarly to a “Board
of Directors” and oversee all the work traditionally done by Boards of
Trustees, Finance Committees, Staff Pastor Parish Relations Committees, Lay
Empowerment Committees and the program ministries that will line up under the
four pillars of our church: Worship, Grow, Serve and Connect.
Obviously,
nine people will not be able to carry this load by themselves. The Council will
form sub-groups of people just like you to lend them and our church a hand in
these efforts. If you are called upon to serve, I hope you will say,: yes” – or
better yet, please step forward and contact someone on the Council and
volunteer yourself!
Some of the
immediate agenda items they will be considering are: securing staffing for the
new church to be in place by July 1, 2013; bringing together the three
current church offices into one; set internal ground rules for the group and
their meetings (much of which is guided by the Discipline of the United
Methodist Church); and begin gathering the final recommendations of the various
Focus Groups of the Transition Team.
The
Transition Team will continue meeting twice a month through June when it will
formally disband. All the work to get to this point is a direct result of the
hundreds of hours the Transition team and 111 members of our churches who have
served on one of the Focus Groups. Great job.
Lastly,
each member of the Council had to sign a Leadership Council Covenant developed
by the Transition team. It asked them to exhibit
a commitment to Jesus Christ and Carlisle United Methodist Church by:
1.
Being
an Active Worshiper – I will
passionately exalt the Lord and worship weekly.
2.
Being
a Generous Giver – I will
sacrificially give my time, treasure (10% tithe) and talent.
3.
Being
a Servant Leader – I will humbly
serve others and will participate in a hands on mission opportunity annually.
4.
Being
a Prayer Warrior – I will
communicate with God and pray daily for the Council and our church.
5.
Being
a Lifelong Learner – I will be in an
ongoing Bible study or small group.
6.
Being
a Bridge Builder – I will pursue a
deeper relationship with Jesus Christ and continually share Christ.
7.
Living a lifestyle in
accordance with the Scriptures and the community of Christian faith.
8.
Showing support of the
ministries, staff, volunteers, congregation, pastors and church leadership.
9.
Attending each meeting of
the Leadership Council.
Please
continually give them your prayer support that they may live up to the covenant
– and pray for yourself that God would give you the strength and commitment to
do the same.
Pastor Jim
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