"Recalibrating" the mission of the church

Our pastor has begun a new preaching series that will, he says, "recalibrate" the mission and vision of our church. This recalibration is a product of much discussion with the elders, and yet it is also his own "prophetic vision" for the future of our church. In other words, it is both a carefully thought out group decision and a vision from God.

Since I have been quietly dissatisfied with my church for some time, this comes as a ray of hope. The need for such a "recalibration" implies a recognition among the pastor and elders (perhaps) that we had in fact drifted from certain practices or emphases that had once been central, but were no longer so. In fact, as we talked it over in our small group last night, several other people seemed to agree with this assessment.

I hark you back to yesterday's post, in which I quote Craig Larsen, who says that the role of preaching and teaching in the church is to transform the believer's personal cosmology from one that is self-centered (i.e., all things take on their importance or usefulness insofar as they relate to me) to one that is God-centered. But it is possible to preach in such a way as to validate self-centeredness on a spiritual level. And this is the curse of the modern church.

So what I am looking for in this "recalibration" of the mission and vision of the church is an answer to the simple question, "What's at the center?" I am cautiously encouraged by this recalibration process so far (optimistic would be too strong a word). My pastor, a man for whom I have great respect, by the way, has preached two sermons in this series so far, the first of these introducing the new mission statement and the second introducing us to the "vision."

Here's my plan. I'm going to blog through this process with you. In the next couple of days I'll get caught up by sharing with you the mission statement and the vision statement that were "unpacked" in those last two sermons. I'll share my thoughts and concerns, and I'll seek your wisdom.

Hey, blogging has become my way of thinking out loud. Humor me!