WITH CHRIST AT THE CENTER
MARCH 2024
CONNECTIONS OUR STUDENT MINISTRY TOOK A TRIP IN JANUARY TO WINTERPLACE, VW FOR A WINTER SKI RETREAT!
From the Senior Pastor On Sunday, March 17, we will take another step forward together in our process of revisioning our church’s lay leadership and governance structure. Back in January, many of you either attended one of the two Sharing and Listening sessions or responded to a survey; these were designed to get congregational input on what’s working well, what needs to improve, and what our priorities should be when it comes to how Providence is organized to do good ministry and make good decisions. There was a lot of positive energy in the room at both sessions, and that energy generated a lot of input – 67 pages worth, to be exact! Some of this input took the form of constructive criticism, some of it voiced hope about what lies ahead for Providence, and some of it – frankly – was skeptical about this project and anxious about the future. There were also questions
and a good deal of confusion about how we’re currently organized and how decisions currently get made. The team that has been leading this revisioning project – Hunter Cook (immediate past-moderator), Donna Eason (2023 Nominating co-chair), Lia Hinson (2024 deacon chair), Natalie Lodato (2023 Nominating co-chair), Harrison Marshall (moderator-elect), Stacy Mercer (2023 deacon chair), Rita Stanley (current moderator), and Amy Stokes (2024 Nominating chair) – spent February, first, collecting and discussing what you shared, and then discerning together where the Holy Spirit might be leading through the collective wisdom of the church. Now it’s time for the team to follow up, share what they’ve discerned so far, answer some of the questions that came out of the January sessions, and discuss what happens now. To do this, there will be two
opportunities for churchwide engagement called Sharing and Listening: Next Steps on March 17 – one at 9:15 a.m., the other at 4 p.m., both of which will be in the Fellowship Hall. Whether you provided input in January or not, I hope that you will choose to participate in one of these follow-up sessions on March 17. Good congregational governance depends upon good congregational engagement. In other words, because your voice matters, it needs to be heard. Our process is better when more people are involved. That’s one thing you said loud and clear in January – now, let’s follow up on March 17. May the peace of Christ be with you!