The New Conference Design Team met on October 8 at the Michigan Area Ministry Center in Lansing. Attendance, commitment, and enthusiasm of team members remain high.
It is a primary desire of the design team leadership to bathe this process of designing a New Conference in prayer. All persons in The Michigan Area are invited to assist this effort by regularly asking God to bless this design process for a single new conference in the state; pray our United Methodist congregations in Michigan will be effective in making disciples for Christ and in transforming the world.
The Rev. David Kim, pastor of Troy Hope Ministries, a congregation within Troy Korean UMC, ably led opening devotions by reminding participants that just as God so loved the world, people who love what they are doing willingly give of themselves without expectations.
David’s presentation was another reminder of our gratitude to God for the blessings of a global church and gifted people. The Design Team is an amazing assembly of 29 clergy and laity from across the state.
Clergy Assistant to the Bishop, Melanie Carey, and Design team co-chair, Marsha Woolley, helped team members reflect on learnings from the September 12th meeting in Lansing with Bishop Robert Schnase of the Missouri Conference. Schnase shared insights from a process of transformation experienced in the Missouri Conference. He highlighted the importance of developing a clear vision and mission and then aligning structure, program, goals, and budget with the vision.
Other learnings from Bishop Schnase and the experience of the Missouri Conference include:
- Design work is descriptive rather than prescriptive
- We need to do something new.
- Working harder as a church is not working. We need to work differently.
- Focus energies doing with excellence one, two, or three things that are most important of the hundreds that could be done.
- Transformation took time for the Missouri Conference. Great change doesn’t happen overnight.
- Missouri established multiple revenue streams for their priority of new church starts.
- Missouri hasn’t cracked the code to figure out how to sustain faith communities for the poor/vulnerable.
- Campus ministries and district health funds were issues of tension in Missouri.
- United Methodist polity doesn’t have a coordinated executive power – power is dispersed between Episcopacy and the Conference and everything that surrounds those.
- It is possible to lead effectively even with diffused power.
- Grief accompanies ministries and programs that might go away.
- Ask, “How do we provide the care and nurture to both what we’re losing and what we’re gaining?”
- Leaders need to be brave and say the hard things. Be honest.
- Authority as a design team lies in understanding what we can do which allows us to be effective.
- Changing things is a process of continual improvement and re-visioning.
- Live with rhythm by allowing time to pause, reflect, and integrate new ideas.
- Even the right things to do are disruptive.
- Thomas Friedman noted that “The world is flat” (our working assumptions are based on a different world than our world is now).
- Intermediaries are no longer needed or need not be as visible.” Example: several decades ago conferences were of central importance in facilitating missions; today much mission occurs with direct connections between a local church and the mission field.
- Be clear about the difference between the conference vision vs. the local church vision.
- Missouri focused on “fruitfulness,” practiced accountability, and took time to measure results.
- Clergy excellence is a high priority in Missouri. Ask, “what does being effective look like?”
- There is power in developing a common language for the church in this design process.
- Like remodelers in a home, we will be deconstructing what exists and re-building for the 21st century.
- Ask, “What would every ministry look like if we are committed to excellence and fruitfulness.”
- Be willing to try new things and “fail fast”. If something isn’t working stop doing it and try something else.
- Stories of innovative multi-generational leaders are useful.
- Our budget should reflect what we say we’re about.
- Intermediaries are not permission-giving but facilitators (this is a role switch).
- Being intentional will help guide the continuing conversation.
Bishop Robert Schnase’s books: Five Practices of Fruitful Congregations, Seven Levers: Missional Strategies for Conferences, and Just Say Yes!: Unleashing People for Ministry have provided helpful information for design team discussions. Those with interest in this work are invited to read these books.
The Design Team worked to clarify operational values for their work including: trust, honesty, team work, commitment, mutual respect, accountability, a willingness to address conflict for the sake of the group and our mission.
Helpful demographic information was shared about the church and State and then agreement was reached on the initial makeup and focus of smaller task groups that will start working on mission and vision, structure, business and personnel issues, clergy excellence, communications, and a dream team to help maintain an outward focus. These task groups met during the afternoon session and then shared their initial findings with the total team outlining how each planned to proceed.
The Design Team will meet again November 19th with consultant Twila Glenn for a day focusing on the vision and mission of the church. Team consensus has been reached that clarifying vision and mission are of highest and first priority.
Other blessings of the day included: a group building exercise led by Phyllis Jackson from Byron Center. Andrew Wayne, a talented younger member who is an attorney from Detroit, gave an insightful presentation on Disciplinary requirements for the New Conference plans. Closing communion was led by Rev. Anthony Hood of Scott Memorial UMC in Detroit and a summary of the day of learning was given by Rev. Benton Heisler, West Michigan Director of Connectional ministries. The Rev. JJ Manchreck joined the team virtually from Wesley UMC Ishpeming with the help of Area Director of Communication, Mark Doyal.
The Design Team welcomes input from across The Michigan Area. Email them via [email protected].
Last Updated on December 22, 2022