Five-year Vision statements

(Adopted May 6, 2007)

Preamble

The heart of our worship and our work is God’s love revealed in Jesus Christ. Christ is the sole head of the church, our guide in all we do, our source of wisdom and strength, our Savior and our Lord.

In fellowship with Christ and with each other:

1. we gather for worship and for work, proclaiming that all are welcome here;
2. we listen attentively to the word Christ speaks, allowing God’s word and God’s way to reshape our words and our ways;
3. we share eagerly the meal Christ offers, inviting others without prejudice to join with us, sharing the blessing, comfort, and healing power of intimacy with God;
4. we send our members into the world, commissioned to enact the love of God through evangelism and works of charity and service and justice.

Vision

Within the next five years, First Congregational UCC will have become:

1. a church committed to mission:
   • forging effective partnerships with local agencies, churches, community leaders, and neighbors to identify and address issues of common concern;
   • educating and mobilizing our membership for personal involvement in mission (evangelism, charity, service, and justice) close to home and around the world;
2. a church committed to youth ministry:
   • dedicating ample resources of facilities, funds, and people to promote the spiritual, physical and social well-being of youth in the Cedar Valley;
   • creating multiple opportunities for interaction between church members and area youth for the purposes of mentoring, mutual understanding, and mission;
3. a church committed to small group ministries:
   • encouraging an ongoing proliferation of a diverse spectrum of small groups, organized for the purposes of support, spiritual growth, education, and mission;
   • providing an invitation and an opportunity for every church member to affiliate with some small group within the First Congregational UCC church family.