SPIRITUAL DIRECTIONS REPORT
Friendship Baptist Church
March 3, 2019
STRENGTHS
1. Staff
Friendship is blessed with deeply spiritual and talented ministers who genuinely enjoy working with each other and are passionately eager for this congregation to reach its full Kingdom potential. While recognizing that every minister has areas in which he can and should improve, these ministers have the love and support from the congregation at large that each of the three men rightly deserves.
2. Friendliness of the congregation.
People of all ages report the genuine friendliness of this congregation, both to members and guests alike.
3. Fall Festival response from the church and community
It is a phenomenal accomplishment that Friendship, a church that has approximately 150 in attendance, to produce an event that has attracted 400 – 700 children and adults from the community.
4. Location
Thousands of people daily pass by Friendship because it is positioned on a major artery that connects several neighborhoods. Additionally, and very importantly, the Jacob’s Road Elementary School sits almost across the street from the church causing hundreds of families to see that Friendship Baptist Church is in their neighborhood.
5. Concern and passion to move forward
A high percentage of Friendship’s core members are both concerned about the church’s future and have demonstrated a desire to discover the transitions and to make the paradigm shifts necessary for Friendship to reach its full Kingdom potential.
CONCERNS
1. Worship and Unity
While the church is blessed with ministers who genuinely appreciate both the contemporary and traditional worship styles, a very small percentage in each service has expressed an unhealthy attitude toward fellow sisters and brothers in Christ whose worship preference is different from their own. Not only has this attitude disrupted the foundational unity of the church, but also it makes impossible any long-term, sustainable numerical growth. Tangentially, the time of the early service is a detriment for most, not all, families with children.
2. Absence of a Trusted, Spiritually Wise Group of Guiding Leaders
Because the deacons appropriately focus on congregational care ministries and the church council has primarily functioned as a calendaring group, the pastor is without a select group of wise and trusted spiritual leaders to discuss, develop, and execute the actions needed to fulfill the church’s mission and vision. Additionally, unfortunately and inappropriately, this void has left members with only the quarterly business meetings to fully discuss the pros and cons of important matters.
3. Lack of Outward Focus
While recognizing the ministry to homeless, the strong annual fall festival, and the budget allocations for missions, the congregation’s primary focus of time and resources is to the needs of the church as an institution and to the personal needs of its members. This inward focus has caused Friendship to forfeit its wonderful opportunity to become a blessing to the thousands of its community neighbors.
4. Unfinished Building Improvements
The current, on-going building improvements and de-cluttering efforts have been long in coming; are deeply appreciated by all; and are a good start. However, there remains much work to do to make a better first impressions on guests.
5. Under Developed Outreach Potential
· Needed and appropriate follow-up with children and families who attend the Fall Festival are almost nonexistent.
· The principal of the nearby school has verbalized a desire for a partnership with Friendship. This golden ministry opportunity has received no priority or action by individuals in the church.
· Training for next-generation children’s workers is sorely needed, recognized and desired by current workers.
RECOMMENDATIONS
1. Worship and Unity
Not to address this issue will cause the church to be spiritually unhealthy and unfruitful. The large majority of the core workers who attend both worship services express concern about the disunity this issue continues to cause. Therefore, between the time church votes to accept these recommendations and the beginning of the fall ministry season, the church shall discuss and attempt to resolve the many complicated and emotionally laden issues related to worship. Included in these conversations will be ways to become more “family friendly” with the start times.
Having made this recommendation, it is fully recognized that no solution will be agreeable to everyone. However, like the early church in Acts 15, the body of believers must discuss and resolve complicated issues for the sake of church unity and the furtherance of the gospel. The church coach, upon request of the pastor and church leaders, may provide guidance and insight regarding these discussions.
2. Spiritual Directions Team
Recognizing the church’s efforts in updating the bylaws and the current practices and operating practices of the congregation, and that 71% or survey respondents indicated that vision accomplishment was one of Friendship’s weak spots, the pastor and church would benefit from an officially sanctioned group of leaders to guide the church in becoming more fruitful and healthy in accomplishing God’s vision for Friendship. The team will be composed of the pastor plus five to seven leaders (men and women) who are spiritually mature, wise and trusted by the congregation. This team shall:
· Be nominated by the congregation; selected by the pastor; approved by the deacons and presented to the congregation for final approval. Currently this Team shall be considered a temporary, ad-hoc committee that will function for at least three years. Furthermore, after a reasonable period of time to prove its effectiveness, this Team will, hopefully, become permanent and established in the bylaws.
· The two primary functions of this team are to assist the pastor:
A. In guiding the congregation to become more spiritually healthy and to reach its full Kingdom potential.
B. Provide leadership, structures, and discussions with the congregation at large and appropriate committees to accomplish the five recommendations of the Spiritual Directions Report.
3. Increase Outward Community Ministry
Given the excellent response of the church and community to the congregation’s Fall Festival, it is recommended that additional ministry opportunities be identified that provide the congregation as a whole and as individuals to more directly and personally connect with people in the community for the sake of meeting their felt needs and demonstrating the transforming love of Jesus.
The Spiritual Directions Team will work with the ministerial staff to reallocate their time to model missional engagement. The Personnel Committee will be consulted in these changes.
Additionally, the Spiritual Directions Team will encourage the Outreach Committee and other groups, Sunday School and Bible Study groups and other ministries to adapt their current schedules and programming to meet this need.
4. Creation of a First Impressions Team
It is recommended that the building improvements and de-cluttering efforts continue and be completed by this fall. Additionally, it is recommended that the Pastor and Spiritual Directions Team, in consultation with the Nominating Committee, appoint a “First Impressions Team.” This team will suggest additional building improvements and be responsible for recruiting and training of greeters, ushers and other such persons to ensure that guests have an exceptionally positive first impression of the church beyond the warm and genuine welcome that visitors currently receive. Additionally, and very importantly, this team shall receive input from outside individuals / consultants whose expertise is “first-impressions and hospitality.”
5. Children’s Ministry Director
Noting how God has honored the church’s recent willingness to risk and step out on faith by going from a part time music director to a full-time position, so it is recommended that the church call a Children’s Ministry Director on a contract basis for three years. The number of hours this person will serve each week will be determined by the pastor and the Spiritual Directions Team in consultation with other appropriate church leaders such as the Finance and Personnel committees. Both the church and Children’s Ministry Director may extend this contract as agreeable to both parties.
The rational for such a significant step of faith is that Friendship is at a crossroads of need and opportunity. The current children’s leaders have recognized and recently expressed the need for such a person. The 600 – 800 children and parents who annually attend the Fall Festival demonstrate the potential for church growth and for calling a person who can lead the church to capitalize on the ministry opportunities with younger families by developing other outreach ministries, strengthening the current children’s Sunday morning children’s experience and by creating teams to accomplish these challenging opportunities.