“This vision*message is a witness pointing to what’s coming. It aches for the coming— it can hardly wait!“ (Habakkuk 2: 2*3, The Message)
“This is important work we’re doing today,” says Tim Mabbott, retired pastor of Cherokee Christian Church in Prairie Village, Kan., as he addressed the more than 70 participants in “Fit, Trim and Holy,” the “charrette” hosted recently by Disciples Church Extension Fund, a financial ministry of the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ).
According to Disciples Church Extension Fund President Rick Reisinger, “charrette” was a perfect term for the gathering in Kansas City, Mo.
“It’s used to describe any collaborative session in which a group of designers drafts a solution to a design problem,” he says, “and a design problem is certainly what is facing our congregations.”
As he described his vision for “Fit, Trim and Holy” to the assembled “designers” – regional ministers, clergy and lay leaders, general ministry and constituency group leaders, architects and other professionals
Rick pointed to the majority of congregations who are struggling to focus on and do mission because their buildings were constructed in and for another era when attendance was higher and construction and maintenance costs were lower. Often, facilities are compromised by unaffordable deferred maintenance, debt is beyond a congregation’s ability to repay, or building location isn’t a good fit for a church’s ministry. For most of these congregations, buildings are no longer serving their ministries.
So, Disciples Church Extension Fund invited creative leaders to Fit, Trim and Holy to identify potential solutions to these issues and ways to counsel and assist congregations and regions seeking to move forward in mission. Following a presentation by Christian Theological Seminary’s Rick Lowery, Ph.D. about the theological context of sacred place, the participants traveled to Cherokee Christian Church and New Vision Christian Church to see firsthand how their buildings are being used in new ways for mission. Stories shared by Cherokee’s Tim Mabbott, New Vision’s Kevin Harris, Robert Brite, formerly of First Christian Church Minneapolis, Bruce Frogge previously with First Christian Church Naples, Sandhya Jha with First Christian Church Oakland and Oakland Peace Center, and Al Terry, architect and member of Findlay Street Christian Church in Seattle enlightened the group about emerging possibilities that come with a transformed perspective on building use. They explained how their congregations are finding new life by sharing space with new congregations and community groups, emphasizing lay leadership development, celebrating rituals and successes, choosing to lease rather than own space, identifying a location and right-sized facility that match ministry, sharing building ownership with other congregations and/or organizations, maximizing space for hands-on mission, merging congregations around a focused vision and more.
With these stories as examples of what is possible when congregations “let go to let come,” charrette participants gathered in groups to identify potential processes to help congregations and others solve building and space challenges. Their discussion was guided by questions such as:
• What is it that makes a place right/not right for mission and worship?
• What were the most hopeful or scariest stories you heard from the speakers?
• What are our biggest challenges related to buildings?
• Based on what you have seen and heard, what solutions would you like to explore in greater depth?
Their “open space” discussion was then distilled into four categories of solutions: decision-making about the future; leadership; asset resolution and housing options. Next, the participants offered up processes for implementation, guided by one of the charrette’s key questions – what would a common approach to our suggested solutions look like?
What’s next? In addressing the group, Rick Reisinger reinforced the collaborative nature of this effort and asked that all commit to continuing the work of implementation together. Coordinated by Disciples Church Extension Fund and other partners, small groups will have responsibilities for various next steps, the results of which will be shared in the “Fit, Trim and Holy” workshop at the 2013 General Assembly in July.
“This is really why we are here,” Rick says, “because great learning happens in groups. Collaboration is the stuff of growth.
The Fit, Trim and Holy charrette was funded in total by gifts raised in an effort spearheaded by Disciples Church Extension Fund President Emeritus Hal Watkins and Donor, Investor and Church Relations Vice President Ellen Mitchell.