A framework for mission

Dear friends,

This year we will be trying to catch the momentum of our exploration group meetings by taking the next step in your discussion (first meeting will be February 7 at the Hill’s house).  You have affirmed the blessings you experience and participate in as part of our church family and expressed concern for youth and young people and the future of our facilities, to name a few things. Now it is time to translate that enthusiasm and these concerns into a mission statement.  Our old mission statement (which you can find in the front of our last picture directory) focused on the Japanese American heritage and the commitment to a multicultural future.  Since we are now a congregation made up of about ten ethnic groups, that multicultural dream has become a reality (although our commitment to total inclusiveness should remain at the forefront).  Our new session will be made up of two Japanese Americans, two Chinese Americans and two European Americans! So as we have evolved, so must our mission statement for the next five or ten years.  That mission could be as simple as “maintaining what we have now for the foreseeable future,” as long as that statement comes from reflection rather than out of complacency.

It may be helpful to remind ourselves of the six great ends of the Church according to our Presbyterian (PCUSA) denomination.  They form the theological framework for our congregational mission. They may sound a bit daunting or even frightening for a small congregation such as ours, but nevertheless they are our reference points. These are 1. The proclamation of the Gospel, 2. The shelter, nurture and spiritual fellowship of the children of God, 3. The maintenance of divine worship, 4. The preservation of the truth, 5. The promotion of social righteousness and  6. Exhibition of the kingdom of God to the world.  Our job is to have these goals in mind as we consider and live our mission.  Let me explain a little.  The first end is about sharing the good news of Jesus Christ. This is done through preaching, Christian education and the way we live our lives. The second end has to do with providing a safe place to prepare the young to become a believing community, but we are all the children of God.  (If the word was “nourishment” rather the “nurture” with our good food we would definitely be hitting it out of the park!) The third end is what we try to do every Sunday and that is prepare and organize a worship service directed to God in gratitude.  The fourth end is about the truth.  This refers to Biblical and theological truth, but also to genuineness and humility in the way we live our lives and treat others and in the statements we make about our society.  The fifth is about social justice, about how the church participates in making our community, society and world a more just place.  There is a real tradition of that in this congregation.  There are many ways to do this, from advocacy to helping the abused to helping empower those who have less opportunities than most of us.  Finally we are to give the world a ‘little slice of heaven,’ e.g. through empathy, compassion, hospitality, generosity as ways of sharing God’s unconditional love for us. So a tall order; but a good question for your discussions is: what is our “piece” as a congregation in all this?  May God give you insight and bless our ministry. Happy New Year and see you in church. Aart.

P.S. Thank you for your Christmas cards. We appreciate the thoughtfulness. If you did not receive a card from us, it is because no one did!  Ministers’ heads tend to be a bit overloaded this time of year. At least mine is. Our apologies!