Vision FUMCR

cherished past. bright future.

First United Methodist Church Richardson has undertaken an intentional plan to answer the call to make disciples for Jesus Christ for the transformation of the world. You are invited to join us on this journey of faith.

2014-15: Imagine Capital Campaign & Current Construction Updates

2011: Complete Strategic Vision Plan    

• Dec 2014

  Strategic Vision Implementation Committee Update to Council Background In the spring of 2011, the Church Council approved FUMCR’s Strategic Vision, which was created by a team led by Tim Griffy, and charged the church with implementing that vision.  A task force of seven core members and other ad-hoc members as needed has been working diligently since that charge to execute that vision. Progress We have addressed every one of the 11 priority areas and 35 suggested actions detailed in the Vision.  In some instances, we have developed or refined processes or programs to meet the objective.  In other areas, we have redefined the initiative to better reflect the intended goals of the vision and to ensure a cohesive plan.  In all cases, we discovered that this is an integrated approach, as movement in one area impacts progress in another.  A document describing the changes to the original vision document is also on our church website. Following is a detailed list of accomplishments.  The list will focus on the 11 priority areas, as we discovered some of the 35 suggested actions, while a good guide, could in some cases be overly prescriptive so as to hinder the spirit of the initiative. Welcome 1. Provide new places for new people -----Started Group Life.  Currently have 12 small groups with a total of about 150 people.  We have 40 trained Group Life leaders. -----Children’s summer camp opportunities have significantly expanded. -----Growth of New Singles Fellowship Ministry (lay led). -----Formation and growth of Crosspoint Young Adult Ministry and Intramural Sports Program. -----Invite One initiative will be launched in March, 2015. -----Formation of Moms Next Ministry as follow-on to MOPS. -----Growth of Senior Adult ministry opportunities with a focus on spiritual growth. -----Realigned Kristen Ceaser’s job description to include increased involvement with UTD.  She is now the Director of Community Connections. 2. Increase worship participation by at least 20% over 5 years. An initiative regarding commitment to worship attendance will be a focus in 2015.  Obstacles, such as a means for accurate attendance measurement, have caused this to move more slowly than desired.  We will provide Council an update on progress in the first half of 2015. -----Added live video streaming in the fall of 2011. -----Created deliberate advertising initiative centered on worship hours. -----Group Life curriculum is intentionally sermon-based. -----One of the 9 relationships in the My Journey Discipleship Exercise is Worship. -----We are building 2 new worship spaces - the Worship & Arts Center and the Youth Worship space. -----Decided to put on hold the idea of creating a satellite church beyond our campus because we will be expanding our contemporary services with the new facilities, and we support several alternative worship opportunities (Asian, East Indian, and Zimbabwean). -----Growth in youth choir under Caitlin Wells. -----Expected growth of Access with new worship space and time. 3. Ensure our church is intentionally inclusive and looks like our evolving parish -----On-going, focused effort on growing activities, such as intramural leagues, for young adults. -----Alternative worship opportunities, such as our Zimbabwe and Asian ministries, positively impact our diversity, and new facilities will enhance our ability to coordinate worship times and shared space. -----Formation and active participation in Richardson Interfaith Alliance could lead to referrals from a variety of ethnicities. -----Formation and growth of ESL classes, ESL Vacation Bible Camp and Read With Me program (modeled after Project Transformation) at Springhill Apartments and Life Skills class for immigrant women. Grow 1. Create a comprehensive discipleship model for adults -----A comprehensive, integrated discipleship model will be rolled out in the first quarter of 2015.  The My Journey Exercise is so robust that it has attracted attention from a number of UM Conferences. -----Hired Dr. Becky Bruff to lead Intentional Faith Development team full-time. 2. Develop a leadership program/process -----LeadershipFirst is the initial educational offering consisting of 4 classes covering an introduction to leadership development needs and objectives.  It includes an intro to the legacy of leadership at FUMCR, identification of spiritual gifts, creation and value of Discovery Partnerships, and the identification of generational differences and needs for generational integration in leadership.  The Pilot class of 43 participants began in September, 2014 and will be completed in October, 2014.  The plan is to repeat LeadershipFirst in 2015. -----Project Moses will be a more intense offering which includes each of the elements of LeadershipFirst plus a class on stewardship and giving.  Plans are for the class to be 9 months in length with about 12-15 participants and designed for those who see leadership becoming a life-long ministry. -----Hosted Large Church Initiative in 2011.  This provided leadership experiences for churches across the U.S. -----Hired Beth Smith as Director of Leadership Development. 3. Enhance our youth, college and young adult ministries -----Incorporated once-a-month outings and quarterly mission projects into Youth Sunday School program - result is increased weekly attendance. -----Launched Parent Connections, which invites parents to come together and learn and support each other while raising adolescents. -----Youth mission trips, retreats and ski trip participation has increased. -----Weekly Senior High Bible study has doubled in size. -----Launched successful Crosspoint Young Adult intramural program and continue to host tournaments. -----Creation of Crosspoint Young Adult ministry. -----Launched college-age Group Life group. -----Took Associate Director of Youth Ministries from part-time to full-time. -----Modified use of Youth Intern to focus on junior high ministry. -----New facilities are creating excitement. 4. Transform stewardship efforts into a year-round gifts ministry -----Hired Susan Wilson as Director of Resources and Development, who guides stewardship efforts and forms committees as necessary to execute the plan. -----Eventually, we would like to see efforts around endowments/including the church in wills, etc.  We, however, do not want such efforts to interfere with the current capital campaign, so this effort will continue to be a future endeavor. -----Extra Mile giving continues to grow each year. Serve 1. Align ourselves with the United Methodist focus around the Four Areas of Global Focus:  Fight Global Poverty, Improve Global Health, New Places for New People, and Leadership Development -----Successfully launched an on-going Interfaith Alliance which has over 20 different faith groups meeting on a regular basis to discuss community needs and ways to leverage partnerships across the area. -----Hired Dee Weaver to lead our ESL ministries like ESL classes, VBC at Springhill Apartments, and a woman-to-woman mentoring program. 2. Identify and leverage partnerships to effectively and efficiently serve in the local and global community -----Through a partnership with the Alzheimer’s Association, we have offered conferences for health care professionals and families. -----Partnership with the YMCA, First Baptist Church Richardson and our Family Life ministry. -----Kristen Ceaser actively seeks opportunities to leverage partnerships in the community in her job as Director of Community Connections, and Heather Canny actively seeks sports-related partnerships in her role as Director of Family Life Ministry. -----Senior Adult ministry partners with local senior living facilities. 3. Develop and/or secure a curriculum that can be used by small groups to push the serving leadership agenda -----Deleted this item because we are already pushing the serving leadership agenda through small group participation in service projects.  This agenda is ingrained in Group Life and is a cornerstone of new small groups being formed.  Specific curriculum is not needed. 4. Create an active focus on volunteerism -----New mission opportunities targeting all-church participation, such as Stop Hunger Now church-wide bagging day. -----Group Life serving agenda. -----Added immediate volunteer opportunities on the website. -----Beth Smith has been trained on the Dynamas tool, which helps people to discern best matches for areas of service and is customized to FUMCR opportunties.  She will ensure that we incorporate this tool into our programs. -----Hosting the North Texas Annual Conference and other regional and national conferences provides many volunteer opportunities. -----Crosspoint Young Adult ministry incorporates mission/service on a regular basis. Focus for 2015 We will continue to ensure that programmatic and other decisions are made with the vision in mind.  It is important to remember that our church is Council governed, staff led, and lay-driven.  It takes all of us working together to continue to move from “good to great.”  Although we have made significant progress in executing the vision, we feel that it is important to continue to push the following initiatives through 2015. 1. Increase worship attendance by 20% over 5 years.  Emphasize growth from new members as well as increased participation and spiritual growth from existing members. 2. Continue to work to find ways to measure success in strategic areas, such as worship attendance and demographic diversity. 3. Transform stewardship into a year-round gifts ministry. 4. Continue the successful LeadershipFirst and Project Moses programs.  Ensure that leadership development is a cornerstone of FUMCR, that graduates of the programs are natural resources for leadership positions, and that FUMCR leadership is diverse in ethnicity, gender and age.

   

• Jan 2014

  Leadership Development in Light of FUMCR's Strategic Vision In late 2011, FUMCR developed a Vision for the near-term future of the church designed to extend the reach of all that we do as a congregation.  The Vision was divided into three basic areas:          Welcome, Grow and Serve and with updates (see FUMCR Website) it is a driver of many of our activities today.  And, in 2012, a Vision Implementation Committee was formed to begin the work of seeing the Vision put into action. The creation of leadership development was a key component of the Vision and specifically part of the Grow initiative.  FUMCR has been blessed by years of sound leadership, and as a result has built a legacy of leadership with our Christian beliefs at the core.  However, as we grow and in order to help grow God’s kingdom on earth, more leaders will be required to continue this legacy. A Steering Team was formed in Spring, 2013 to design, plan and implement leadership development at FUMCR.  Current and past members include: Ken Ceaser, Dorothy and Ken Cheairs, Pavielle Chriss, Paula Harrison, Katie Henson, Christy McWhorter, Rick Shamblin, Beth Smith, Carl Smith, Mike Smith, Eric and Jen Vroonland, Erica Yaeger  After months of due diligence, LeadershipFirst was launched in a pilot form during September, 2014. LeadershipFirst It was clear through the Steering Team’s work that we needed to become more purposeful and intentional around several key points of emphasis.  This could be aided by establishing leadership development as an ongoing strategic process instead of a tactical program within the church.  “Education is the mother of leadership” --- Wendell Wilkie.  Our community also has a rich legacy of the valuing education, and thus the Steering Committee adopted education as a core belief in creating leadership development at FUMCR.  The initial offering, LeadershipFirst, was launched with the following mission – to equip Christians in becoming passionate servant-leaders in our church, the community and the world.  It is a strategic, education-based offering designed to introduce the key points of emphasis referenced above which will help take us to new levels of extending our reach. It consists of the following concepts :   - Christ’s calling and the legacy of leadership at FUMCR   - Identification of where one’s God-talents and spirit-filled passions align with opportunity.   - Creation and development of two-way mentorship called Discovery Partnerships   - Generational needs and opportunities   - Cross-generational integration into leadership (Transitional leadership)  - “Beyond You” leadership;  integrating God’s will into leadership The pilot consisted of four classes built around these concepts in a way to educate our current and future leaders about our needs.  It is speaker-led and activity-based, encompassing approximately 12-15 hours. The following members of our congregation accepted an invitation to participate and provided feedback throughout the 4-weeks:  Molly   Baldwin, Larry Bassuk, Bruce Batman, Kyle Brehm, April Bristow, Jay Brosnahan, Daniel Burdette, Melanie Calvert, Emory Camp, Beth Carstens, Bryan Cheairs, Cathy Chen, Lin Chen, Larry Cottam, Brenda Duckett, Bonnie Edwards, Amanda Fletcher, Adam  Fullington, Kelley Gatewood, Michael Hammer, Glenda Hanks, Tiffany Hoodenpyle, Robin Kelly, Marylee LaJoie, Karen Lanier, Charles Lee, Mark Lee, Jason Lemons, Cheryl Macy, Holly Martin, Kit Mathes, Jim McConnell, Sallye McDowell, Cathy Murphree, Price Newton, Laura Osta, Trey Otte, Walt Parrish, Robert Ramsower, Pamela Shamblin, Melissa Tucker, Cheryl Winnenberg, Jerry Zimmerman By all measures, it was very successful and impactful to the participants.  The LeadershipFirst Steering Team will now take this information and determine ways to make it even better as well as a schedule for delivering future opportunities. Project Moses (coming soon) The second part of leadership development at FUMCR involves the launch an initiative called Project Moses.  Scheduled to begin in Fall, 2015, it will be a more in-depth, education-based offering including an experiential project over about 9 months.  It will include the concepts of LeadershipFirst plus financial stewardship and giving, and be designed for those seeking to answer God’s call of leadership as a ministry in their faith journey. For information regarding Leadership Development, contact .

   

• Oct 2013

  FUMCR Mission and Vision Mission: A mission statement defines what an organization does, who it does it for, and how it accomplishes its objectives. The mission provides the present state and purpose of an organization. This guiding statement should be easily articulated by all of an organization’s members. First United Methodist Church Richardson’s mission is: With open hearts and minds, we welcome people for Christ, grow people in Christ and serve people for Christ. Vision: Closely tied to the mission is the vision. The vision defines the optimal future state of the organization – what it wants to become in the next 3-10 years. A clearly established vision enables leaders to make decisions about programs and resources. In 2010, FUMCR adopted a 5-year strategic vision and began implementation in the first quarter of 2011. Implementation Update We’ve made great strides in executing our church’s vision. Our staff ensures that the vision is an integral part of any program evaluation, and we are on target to address every one of the key tenets of the vision within the 5 year goal. We have, through this process, identified some areas of the vision document that need to be amended. The guiding principles of the vision remain unchanged; however, some of the prescriptive details of implementation warrant updating. These changes are noted below. Changes to Vision Document Page 7 – 1(b) "Improve system for connecting people…create a more effective system for inviting and involving…." Change "create" to "measure and monitor." We have an effective system of inviting and involving people. We need to focus on measuring our success in this area for evaluation purposes. Page 1 and page 7 – 2(a) "Identify a step-out satellite strategy of expansion beyond our campus." This initiative is on hold. We have several alternative worship opportunities (Asian, East Indian and Zimbabwean). We have created a Facilities Task Force to evaluate expansion on our current campus to accommodate multiple worship venues. These initiatives have pushed back the timeline for exploring off-campus opportunities. Page 8-1(a)-(e) "Transform the current study opportunities for adults into a comprehensive, yet simple and accessible discipleship model…" (c) Self-assessment process created by end of 2012;change to 2013. (d) Web-based tool roll-out by end of 2013; change to 2015. The discipleship model is comprehensive, well thought out and ready for roll-out. Merely the timeline needs adjusting. Page 9-3(a)-(c) "Enhance our youth, college and young adult ministries…" Change timing to 2014. This initiative is underway and on-going. Merely the timing needs adjusting. Page 9-4(a) "Establish the 'First-Ever' Board of Stewards." Delete this item. We have hired Susan Wilson as Director of Resources and Development. Susan will guide stewardship efforts and form committees as necessary to execute on the plan. Page 10 – 3(a)-(c) "...develop and/or secure a curriculum that can be used by small groups to push the serving leadership agenda…" Delete “develop and/or secure a curriculum that can be used by small groups.” This, in effect, also deletes specific items (a)-(c). We are pushing the serving leadership agenda through small group participation in service projects every 8 weeks. This agenda is ingrained in Group Life and is a cornerstone of new small groups being formed. Specific curriculum is not needed. Page 11-4(a)-(d) "By the end of 2013, we will create an active focus on volunteerism…" Change 2013 to 2014. We have made great strides in this area. A more complete, comprehensive volunteer engagement initiative will be evident in 2014. Revised Leadership Development Section In addition to the above revisions, the Leadership Development piece of the plan was rewritten to provide more detail about the efforts in this area. The revised Leadership Development section replaces the original description on page 9 of the Vision and is presented below. 2. By developing a systematic process through the implementation of a program(s) for people to experience the fullness of servicing and deepening their understanding of United Methodism theology and practice. Our desire is to provide a definable, repeatable and scalable way to grow servant leaders for FUMCR, United Methodism and the community.    A. Evaluate       1. Servant Leadership Needs - By the end of 2012, assess ongoing leadership needs within FUMCR.       2. Generational & Leadership Integration Needs - By the end of 2013, assess the leadership succession needs and methods for integrating younger generations into leadership within FUMCR.       3. Best Practices - By the end of 2013, research “best-in-class” offerings in leadership development (e.g. Summit, UMC district/conferences, Alban, Center of Action and Contemplation, etc.)       4. Strategic Partnership Development for Leadership Programs - By the end of 2013, identify ways to partner with various groups (i.e. business school, seminary, business & civic leadership groups, etc.) for developing a program(s) or organizational approach to foster leadership development.    B. Implement       1. Curriculum, Training and/or Processes - Actionable ideas using various methods and media designed to lay a foundation for meeting the Servant Leadership Needs and Generational & Leadership Integration Needs as identified through the evaluation of such.       2. Servant Leadership Development - By the end of 2015, launch a Leadership Institute or Development Program to offer people a way to grow in a fuller and deeper understanding of their servant leadership interests, opportunities and competencies, using a variety of both educational and self-assessment medium, to ultimately foster the culture of leadership as ministry.

• Apr 2013

  Strategic Plan Achievements Welcome Provide New Places for New People  • Group Life  • New resources, such as a self-evaluation tool, for people to find a way to get involved Increase Average Worship Attendance 20%  • Average of 60 more people in worship in 2012 vs. 2011 (3% growth)  • Added live video streaming in fall 2011 Ensure FUMCR Mirrors Evolving Parish  • Focused effort on growing activities for young adults  • Actively analyzing demographic opportunities Grow Develop Discipleship Model for Congregation  • Developed and in roll-out phase Develop a Leadership Development Program for FUMCR  • Trained over 40 people to be small group leaders  • Completed research; now defining needs Enhance Youth, College & Young Adult Ministries  • Incorporated once-a-month outings & quarterly mission projects into Sunday School program – result is increased weekly attendance  • Weekly senior high Bible study has about doubled in size over past year  • Provide programs for 50+ college students who call FUMCR home when return at breaks; also send care packages during finals  • Launched successful intramural program and hosted first dodge ball tournament  • Exploring opportunities with UTD Enhance Stewardship Efforts  • Identified person to focus on endowment education & growth  • See culture of generosity growing (ex: “Extra Mile” giving = $x/member in 2012 vs. $x/member in 2011) Serve Align FUMCR with Community Leaders to Push United Methodist Agenda  • Successfully launched on-going Interfaith Alliance Create an Active Focus on Member Participation  • Connection Point  • New and expanding resources to promote Intentional Faith Development  • Group Life  • New mission opportunities, such as Stop Hunger church-wide bagging day

   

• Nov 2012

  Strategic Vision Implementation Update The Strategic Vision Implementation Team has made significant progress this year. There are many on-going efforts, and we continue to provide updates in First Connections. A few highlights are provided here:  • Small Group training began in October. Small Groups are an integral part and address several key components of the Vision. Participation in small groups have a profoundly positive impact on a person's quest to deepen his faith journey. The Small Group curriculum centers around the weekly sermon. This ideally translates into an increased worship attendance. As Small Groups will be forming on a regular basis, this provides an excellent opportunity for visitors and new members to get involved and meet people. And, Small Group leader training feeds nicely into the leadership development component of the vision.  • The Intentional Faith Development Model is nearing completion. The model helps each member to personally assess various aspects of his/her faith journey and select ideal course offerings and provides a connection to mission opportunities.  • In direct response to the Vision's initiative to align FUMCR with community leaders to further the United Methodist agenda, FUMCR teamed with the City of Richardson to form the "Richardson Interfaith Alliance." This group of over 20 different faith groups meets on a regular basis to discuss community needs and ways to leverage partnerships across the area.  • We are focused on strategizing ways to achieve our goal of increasing worship attendance by 20%. This is an audacious goal put forth by the vision team and will take the efforts of the entire congregation to bring this goal to fruition. Expect to see more on this topic soon. As you can see, we've had several successes in 2012, and we recognize that we have much to do as we approach the beginning of Year 3 of implementation of our Strategic Vision. Increasing Worship Attendance "And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds, not giving up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging one another—and all the more as you see the Day approaching." – Hebrews 10:24-25 When each of us joined the Methodist Church, we made a sacred vow, a commitment witnessed by God and the congregation. We promised, individually, to support the church through our prayers, presence, gifts, service and (added recently) our witness. Like many promises in our life, we can tend to focus on this as an obligation we have to fulfill—a burden that we have taken on. But, as the quotation from Hebrews above affirms, when we meet together, there is something beyond meeting a “requirement” that happens. Attending worship provides us support, affirmation, and encouragement in our faith that is essential to our Christian lives. Being a part of a Christian community means that we are present, both as part of a body of believers coming together to offer God our worship and praise as well as to spur others and receive their encouragement to acts of love and good deeds. The strategy for First United Methodist Church Richardson was aspirational in nature, put forth with the intention of creating the church that we believe God wants us to be. The elements of the strategy were filtered down to only the most important and critical “to do’s” for us to become that church. And, among those critical elements was for us to grow worship attendance by 20% over 5 years. There is opportunity for improvement; as Clayton noted in a recent sermon, our percentage of attendance in worship is below average for Methodist congregations. He noted that if we as members of the congregation are in town and not ill, we should be in worship. This is, in part, fulfilling that vow we made. But it is also an opportunity to take advantage of the blessings of being a part of a body seeking God’s kingdom. And, if we are not in church on Sunday, that opportunity is lost. Let’s, as a congregation, rise to the challenge of meeting—or exceeding—our goal of 20% worship attendance growth over 5 years.

• July 2012

  Strategic Vision Implemetation Update The Strategic Vision Implementation Team and FUMCR staff continue to move forward. Importantly, we are finding that through the tactical implementation of the various initiatives, there is an intentional, gradual shift toward a church home filled with congregants committed to deepening their discipleship journey. Through emphasizing regular  worship attendance, small group participation and serving the church, fellow FUMCR members/visitors, community and world, congregants will grow in their faith and see the inter-connectedness of all aspects of the faith journey. Following are milestones that we have achieved in the various specific vision initiatives. Welcome Ensuring that FUMCR is intentionally inclusive and more closely mirrors our evolving parish. Over the last several years, the number of young adults (23-40 years old) in Richardson has grown. A young adult task force has been researching and benchmarking our current ministries to other churches our size. The task force looks forward to sharing its findings this fall and is excited to move toward an implementation phase of its work. Several task force members will also work with the leadership development team. In addition to the young adult task force, we began using a new analytical tool acquired through the UM Conference. This tool enables us to better understand the demographics of our community and to evaluate our effectiveness in the quest to more closely mirror our parish. Grow Intentional Faith Development model. The FUMCR staff continues to make significant progress toward the implementation of the Intentional Faith Development model. The team expects to roll out a portion of the tool to focus groups late summer or early fall. A key piece to the discipleship model is also the emphasis on small groups. The team has created a strategy and curriculum for newlyformed small groups, leader training materials, and is in the process of identifying potential leaders of the small groups. Leader training will occur this fall. Small groups will begin in the first quarter of 2013.  Leadership Development. The team has been working on assessing and better defining FUMCR’s needs with respect to fostering and encouraging future leadership. The initial focus has been on researching existing programs at other churches and non-church organizations. From this research, we learned the North Texas Conference has created a Center for Leadership Development and is formulating a basic program for churches throughout the Conference. We continue to explore this initiative while we focus on our needs. We hope to be in a position to determine whether their platform (possibly with some adjustments for FUMCR, or larger churches in general) will mesh with our needs. It is possible FUMCR could serve as a focus group as early as this fall. As we identify current and future leaders for FUMCR, an over-arching goal of the team is to equip them through relevant training, relationship building and leadership experience, further enhancing their roles both inside and outside our walls as disciples of Christ. Serve Align FUMCR with community leaders to push United Methodist agenda. An exciting success this spring has been the creation of the Richardson Interfaith Alliance. Participants are invited by the mayor and gather to discuss issues impacting our faith community. There are sixty identifiable worship groups in Richardson. About twelve different faith groups were represented at the first Interfaith Alliance meeting. (Twenty-one groups were at the second meeting.) Debra Hobbs-Mason will lead this group that will meet monthly and hopes to continue to grow.  Active Focus on Volunteerism. As a part of the small group DNA, mission/volunteerism will be an integral component. All groups will be asked to actively participate in outreach. Parameters, guidelines, and suggestions for this are being defined.

   

  July 2012

  Strategic Vision Implemetation Update The Strategic Vision Implementation Team and FUMCR staff continue to move forward. Importantly, we are finding that through the tactical implementation of the various initiatives, there is an intentional, gradual shift toward a church home filled with congregants committed to deepening their discipleship journey. Through emphasizing regular  worship attendance, small group participation and serving the church, fellow FUMCR members/visitors, community and world, congregants will grow in their faith and see the inter-connectedness of all aspects of the faith journey. Following are milestones that we have achieved in the various specific vision initiatives. Welcome Ensuring that FUMCR is intentionally inclusive and more closely mirrors our evolving parish. Over the last several years, the number of young adults (23-40 years old) in Richardson has grown. A young adult task force has been researching and benchmarking our current ministries to other churches our size. The task force looks forward to sharing its findings this fall and is excited to move toward an implementation phase of its work. Several task force members will also work with the leadership development team. In addition to the young adult task force, we began using a new analytical tool acquired through the UM Conference. This tool enables us to better understand the demographics of our community and to evaluate our effectiveness in the quest to more closely mirror our parish. Grow Intentional Faith Development model. The FUMCR staff continues to make significant progress toward the implementation of the Intentional Faith Development model. The team expects to roll out a portion of the tool to focus groups late summer or early fall. A key piece to the discipleship model is also the emphasis on small groups. The team has created a strategy and curriculum for newlyformed small groups, leader training materials, and is in the process of identifying potential leaders of the small groups. Leader training will occur this fall. Small groups will begin in the first quarter of 2013.  Leadership Development. The team has been working on assessing and better defining FUMCR’s needs with respect to fostering and encouraging future leadership. The initial focus has been on researching existing programs at other churches and non-church organizations. From this research, we learned the North Texas Conference has created a Center for Leadership Development and is formulating a basic program for churches throughout the Conference. We continue to explore this initiative while we focus on our needs. We hope to be in a position to determine whether their platform (possibly with some adjustments for FUMCR, or larger churches in general) will mesh with our needs. It is possible FUMCR could serve as a focus group as early as this fall. As we identify current and future leaders for FUMCR, an over-arching goal of the team is to equip them through relevant training, relationship building and leadership experience, further enhancing their roles both inside and outside our walls as disciples of Christ. Serve Align FUMCR with community leaders to push United Methodist agenda. An exciting success this spring has been the creation of the Richardson Interfaith Alliance. Participants are invited by the mayor and gather to discuss issues impacting our faith community. There are sixty identifiable worship groups in Richardson. About twelve different faith groups were represented at the first Interfaith Alliance meeting. (Twenty-one groups were at the second meeting.) Debra Hobbs-Mason will lead this group that will meet monthly and hopes to continue to grow.  Active Focus on Volunteerism. As a part of the small group DNA, mission/volunteerism will be an integral component. All groups will be asked to actively participate in outreach. Parameters, guidelines, and suggestions for this are being defined.

   

   

• Jan 2012

  Strategic Vision Implemetation Update The Strategic Vision Implementation team and FUMCR staff have continued to work diligently toward executing the initiatives outlined in the Strategic Plan. Importantly, the approach is an integrated one. Welcome, Grow and Serve are the cornerstones of our mission statement and are not designed to be independent of each other—they overlap, with synergies among the three circles. While aligning the efforts across the circles, we also continue to push ahead in each specific area. We have some exciting successes in Welcome, Grow and Serve to share with you. Welcome New Asian Ministry. As a part of our overall congregational goal to increase worship participation by at least 20% over 5 years, we planned to identify a satellite church and/or community United Methodist congregation. A focus in our Serve area was also to intentionally find ways to more closely mirror the diversity in our community. On September 3, 2011, Pastor Salim Dill began leading an Asian service in our Chapel at 7:00pm on Saturdays. As of January 8, 2012, they have moved to Sundays at 7:00pm. This group is growing and currently serves an average of 30. This FUMCR ministry targets Christians and non-Christians from India and Pakistan, and the language spoken is Urdu. Growth in access Worship Service. Our 5:00pm Sunday contemporary worship service is growing. In 2012, we are averaging over 100 each week in worship, and new people continue to visit every week. Participants are coming from as far away as Irving, Celina and Rockwall County. We will continue to explore a diversity of worship venues to fulfill our mission of welcoming, growing and serving people for Christ. Grow Intentional Faith Development model. The FUMCR staff continues to make significant progress toward the creation of an Intentional Faith Development model. This will be a systematic way for us to discover where we are on the journey of faith and see the right next steps for us as individuals and groups. It will involve a holistic approach challenging us to grow in the areas of worship, study and service. It will drive the study and small group opportunities and help all of us to grow as disciples of Christ for the transformation of the world. Large Church Initiative Conference (LCI 2012). Our church has demonstrated its leadership capabilities in a big way by planning and hosting LCI 2012. Typically, a church is given 3 years to prepare for such an event, and in order to fill a national conference need, we pulled off this conference with just ten months of preparation—while maintaining our already very active schedule. This conference, attended by about 550 clergy from around the nation, specifically addresses our strategic goal of hosting a Servant Leadership Institute. Over 400 FUMCR volunteers have sprung into action to ensure the success of this conference. We will apply the many lessons learned through this journey to host other leadership events for area community and church leaders in the future. Leadership Development. To begin addressing the initiative to develop “a leadership program for people to experience the fullness of serving and deepening their understanding of United Methodism theology and practice,” we have hired a Director of Leadership Development. Beth Smith will join our team March 20. Our desire is to grow servant leaders for FUMCR, United Methodism and the community. Serve Address United Methodist Focus on Ministry with the Poor and Global Health. One initiative in our plan is to align ourselves more closely with the UM church around the Four Areas of Global Focus: Global Health, Ministry with the Poor, Congregational Development and Leadership Development. This has long been a focus of our International Christmas Market, which this year raised over $100,000 for missions. Through our Zimbabwe Ministry, we are supporting over 260 AIDS orphans so that they can attend school, which is their pathway to a better life. In 2011, we took a mission team to Haiti following the devastating earthquake. Another team will go in March of 2012. In 2011, the Church Council voted to partner with Willows Methodist Church in Pretoria, South Africa for the benefit of students at the Skuinkloof Primary School in a rural area north of Pretoria. In May of 2012, a team will travel to South Africa to build an extension onto the school. We have been blessed to be a blessing to others and will continue to seek opportunities to further the UM agenda. Partnership with Alzheimer’s Association. A strategic goal is to identify and leverage partnerships to effectively and efficiently serve in the local and global community. Through a partnership with the Alzheimer’s Association, we have offered two conferences for health care professionals and families. We are exploring the possibility of beginning a daily respite program for Alzheimer’s patients here at the church.

   

• Fall 2011
   

  Implementation Team Formed In the spring of 2011, a team led by Tim Griffy recommended a Strategic Vision for our church for the next five years. The Church Council approved the vision and charged the church with implementing the vision. Since that time, an implementation team was created, and the ball is now rolling. Members of the team are:      Holly Lee, chair      Ken Ceaser      Tim Griffy      Rev. Debra Hobbs Mason      Kevin Knox      Dr. Clayton Oliphint      Rick Shamblin This team has already and will continue to enlist the support of a number of members. This is a congregational effort. This is a solid group with a nice complement of people that served on the group that developed the Strategic Vision and people that have a passion to see the Vision implemented and joined the team to be a part of that process. Integral to the vision is a “Good to Great” theme—we are building on the wonderful traditions, accomplishments and strengths of our church, while pushing ahead and challenging the status quo. The Vision centers around our mission statement. There are 11 priority areas and 35 suggested actions, all categorized under Welcome, Grow and Serve. Our church staff has already made significant progress toward some of the goals. One particularly exciting initiative is the creation of an Intentional Faith Development system to guide people in their journey as disciples of Jesus Christ. It will include a self-assessment tool and process for helping people to determine the right next steps that would be ideal for their personal faith journey. Look for more details on this soon. Essential to successful implementation is monitoring and accountability. That will be a focus area as we implement the various priority areas. Expect to see regular communication about the team’s progress. As our senior pastor recently said, “The vision being proposed here is one that can only be accomplished when we all join together in a common quest to do something great for God that we could never do on our own or without God’s help.” Support the vision. Get involved. Contact a task force member if you want to help.

  
   
• March 2011
   

  Respectful of the Past, Recognizing Today, Relevant for the Future Given the unique history, foundation, and world in which FUMCR exists, no one view nor process can be used to inform the initiative. Consequently, a strategic visioning team was appointed by Church Council to provide history, perspective and skills to guide the process and planning for this important step in the life of the Church. Following a year-long process of listening, studying, praying and discerning, a five year strategic vision plan was adopted by the Church Council on March 7, 2011. The plan is grounded in the FUMCR mission statement and says, "The over-arching goal is to drive a transformational process that creates a strong culture of welcoming people for Christ, growing people in Christ and serving people with Christ. Highlights of Strategic Vision Plan  · Provide new places for new people through inviting, welcoming, including and supporting people not yet a part of our faith community  · Grow average worship attendance by at least 20%  · Ensure that our church is intentionally inclusive and looks more like our evolving parish  · Develop an integrated intentional faith development model  · Grow servant leaders for FUMCR and the community  · Establish a "Best-In-Class" initiative for Youth and Young Adult ministry  · Create a year-round gifts ministry  · Link FUMCR local initiatives to the global United Methodist Church  · Identify and establish partnerships with churchs, agencies and community groups to effectively and efficiently serve the local and global community  · Create an active, coordinated focus on volunteerism so that a pool of trained, capable persons is available to serve others

  
   
• Fall 2010
   

  Background: An Abundance of Riches The Mission of the United Methodist Church is to make disciples of Jesus Christ for the transformation of the world by proclaiming the good news of God's grace and by exemplifying Jesus' command to love God and our neighbor in all that we do. In carrying out this mission, we are seeking the fulfillment of God's reign in the world. As United Methodists, we believe it is critical not only to believe, but to live out our faith in our personal lives, our communities and the world. In order to bear a faithful Christian witness to Jesus Christ, we believe we must reflect critically on our biblical and theological inheritance, striving to express faithfully the witness we make in our own time. FUMCR has a rich and deep foundation of vision connected to “change through leadership” for over 100 years driven by our abiding faith as Christians and United Methodists, abundant God-given gifts and congregational members whose personal spiritual journeys have greatly affected the world in which we live. The Challenge: A Transformative World As such, with this rich legacy of leadership and serving, we are once again challenged to think about the future, as we come to rest on yet another firm foundation in which to look to the future as stewards of Jesus Christ. The world in which we live, work, play and worship is undergoing unheard of transformation and together with our commitment to the Five Practices of Fruitful Congregations raises the critical question: what or who is God calling us to be in the future? The Response to the Challenge: Creating the Future Today This is the basis for the formation of the Strategic Visioning Initiative, since it is imperative that we understand our times in order to lead the church in this twenty-first century of recognized, transformational change. Whether it is to eradicate abject poverty, stamp out deadly diseases by improving health globally, renew church worldwide based on Five Practices, or the development of principled Christian leaders for the church and world, FUMCR is at a unique moment in time in which it can take a leadership role to address many of these issues. How? By leveraging its abundant blessings and gifts, while simultaneously providing for congregational spiritual development in this journey.