A Look into Vision, Mission, and Ministry

It was said that it takes a team to build a skyscraper.  There are those who can envision the building while others see the plans.  Ultimately, it takes a team to envision, design, implement, and build.  There are many members involved in the projects completion, but as a whole, there is only one body.

Vision produces and generates hope while sparking passion.  After the ideas are contemplated and the possibilities projected, vision defines the contours.  It enables the outlining of appropriate boundaries.  It fuels freedom and is the catalyst for ingenuity.  Vision is a fundamental element for leadership.  But vision without design is mindless chatter or vain intentions.  Without vision the Proverb (29:18) tells us there is unrestraint, in other words chaos.  Vision, as it pertains to leadership, is the ability to see what others do not.  A leader gifted in vision can navigate through the thick darkness and find the answers to the question, “What?”

Design or Mission, as it pertains to leadership, is the ability to formulate a plan.  Leadership develops the design or mission process and strategy to accomplish or realize the vision.  One definition states that design is, “adaptation of means to a preconceived end.”  Design answers the question, “How?”; how will the vision be achieved?  It is a journey of the team, working together to to bring the profit of the described vision.

Vision and Design/Mission go hand in hand.  Great entities have a point of view, not just a product or service.  You have to believe in something.  The vision establishes what will be fought for when other items of less value vie for attention and distractions invade deterring the mission.  A strong vision and mission is how to attract superfans.  They spread the word further, wider and more passionately than any advertising could.  “No one can serve two masters, for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other (Matthew 6:24).

Pride tells us we are independent, different, and aloof rather than a piece of the puzzle of God’s unfolding purpose in history.  Our particular story is woven into the various movements of God that have shaped history and the church for hundreds of years.  We must recognize our particular piece, embrace the foundations of the past, and pursue God’s particular part for us in His redemptive work.

In the book, Transformational Church, Ed Stetzer and Thom Rainer write, “A cathartic experience is a moment of experience or change that is beneficial or liberating.”  In January 2012 Coopertown Community Church experienced such a moment when she engaged in the Transformational Survey, experienced a retreat which consisted of elder’s, their wives, and staff, both which unified the leadership and enabled a clearer sense of vision and direction to be developed.  These things were necessary based on the church’s history, providing a cathartic experience.

Coopertown Community Church’s piece of the puzzle began in 1998 when she was planted in conjunction with the Robertson County Baptist Association.  Those who began the church were meeting in homes with the intent of filling God’s call to be a unique church in this county; reaching people that the traditional and established churches were not reaching.

The church experienced quite a bit of leadership transition among support staff during the first 5 years.  There were a variety of reasons and explanations, from theological grounds to differing views regarding mission and vision.  In 2003 a direction change began happening.  From 2003-2005 the staff seemingly strengthened and solidified, increasing to 4 full-time ministers and 1 part-time minister.

In late 2005 there began to be some conflicts within the leadership structure again.  These conflicts culminated in October of 2006 by the Sr. Pastor/church planter resigning.  This precipitated a division in the church of those who followed the pastor (starting another church) and others who stayed with all of the elders to continue the ministry of Coopertown Community Church.  The division didn’t end that year with the start of the new church, there was legal action taken against the elders of Coopertown Community Church in December of 2007, which concluded in June of 2010 when the presiding judge determined the elders were exempt of any wrongdoing and the charges were dismissed.

It was during the season of this division that Matthew Warren, who had been the Youth Pastor since 2003, served as interim pastor from November 2006 to August 2007.  In August of 2007 he was called to be the full-time Teaching Pastor.  In the fall of 2007 Matt, cooperating with David Ellis, Jeff Randolph, Todd Newton, Russ Corbitt, Ron Estes, and Duane Elliott, who comprised the elder body, began the process of clarifying the vision and mission of the church while stabilizing the turbulence in leadership which the church had experienced.

When considering the cathartic experiences mentioned in Transformational Church, Coopertown Community Church has experienced them in positive ways, though sometimes through negative circumstances.  From 2006 to 2010 when the legal matters were pressing, the church was at best attempting to “stay the course.”  However, in October of 2010 there began a fresh movement of God’s working as hearts began a renewal and a fresh wind of God’s Spirit began reviving the lives of people.

Early in 2011 there was a small group representing a cross-section of the church who went through the Transformational Church material to assess the value of implementing the survey and pursing the process for Coopertown Community Church.  It was recommended that the church pursue the material and participate together in the survey.  In 2012 the church members participated in the survey.  The response was an overwhelming success, with a participation means of 86%.

In 2012 the church also made additions to its ministerial staff and elders, calling Dan Markham and Mark Jarrett (Generations Pastor) to be elders and extending a call to Jonathan Taylor Martin as our Worship Leader.  The addition of these men has strengthened ministry of Coopertown Community Church.

Since May of 2012 the church has been involved in compiling the information from the Transformational Church Assessment Tool (TCAT).  The TCAT revealed several elements that have been reviewed, refined, and are now being recommended for implementation.  The most important of these recommendations is what will be addressed in the Town Hall Meeting on October 14, 2012, the renaming of the church.

Through the life of Coopertown Community Church the “drafts” of “who she is to be according to God’s declaration” have been just that, “drafts.”  For years she has stayed in the “revision” process.  In principle, should the revision process never end, construction won’t begin and the building won’t come into being.  Therefore, a decisive action point is necessary.  There must be a moment when the design team announces “Produce the blueprints.”  This doesn’t mean that revisions can’t occur, instead it means that there is a clear vision.  All of the members of the process will have a clear directive to operate effectively, fulfilling their callings, utilizing their skills, bringing to fruition the designers vision for the building.

For Coopertown Community Church the elders understand God to be saying “Produce the blueprints!” with a loud and clear shout.  It is important for the body of Coopertown Community Church to be at the October 14th Town Hall Meeting to get “their copy” of this design, understanding the call of God to go to work for there is a great work to be done together!

“For every house is built by someone, but the builder of all things is God” (Hebrews 3:4).  This is our confession and our charge.  The church is charged to dream and design, while confessing that God is her deepest desire and the “Chief Architect.”  She labors to build a spiritual house, knowing that vision is the end and mission the means all to the glory of God.  Vision is her end product, but mission is her ongoing process.  Her vision is to make disciples steeped in maturity and mission is the process of movement for each person.  Here is our specific call:

The mission of the Church of Jesus Christ, His bride, has been the same since her inception: Make disciples of all nations (see Matthew 28:18-20, Acts 1:8-9; Ephesians 4:12-16)  The message is the same, but the methods are new.  The call is consistent, but the context is ever-changing, as is the audience.

Our mission statement succinctly describes our heart.  Connecting Communities, Changing Lives by Gathering, Growing, and Going as we share the love and good news of Jesus. This emphasizes our call to bring glory to God through gospel centered worship, gospel centered discipleship and community, and gospel centered service and multiplication.  This is the chief aim and end of humanity and all creation.  The glory of God is ultimate.  The Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments share the wonderful news that God is glorified through changed lives.  Life change is both an event (salvation / regeneration) and a process (sanctification).  Life change is conditioned by a qualifying statement in our mission statement: the love and good news of Jesus.

Our lives can be changed by dramatic events, traumatic news or an enticing culture.  But, the only kind of life change that allows a person to have a right relationship with God the Father is through the good news of Jesus Christ.  Jesus died for our sins and was raised to life three days later.  That’s the good news identified by the term “gospel” in the New Testament.

Where the mission of the church is solid, static and not open for change, the vision is a growing and flexible understanding of God’s specific purpose for a local body.  The vision for Coopertown Community Church is dynamic and unique.  However there are also recognizable hindrances that have prevented the church’s growth and effectiveness in her life.  Through recent events, like Transformational Church, the leadership has come to understand the need to identify Coopertown Community Church in the community in new ways.

The first way to identify the church in a new way is in the name itself.  The name, Coopertown Community Church doesn’t identify the church in the correct geographic location.  Historically, the events of the early years of the church have created a negative perception in the community.  In terms of purpose, “Members need a fresh and exciting message to take to their neighbors, family and friends.”

Having assessed this decision with members of the church, the elders are recommending that the name of Coopertown Community Church be changed.  There are a lot of variables that could and should be considered when taking on something of this magnitude.  Variables like geography/location, appeal, pragmatism, people, and history are all elements to be considered.  In the case of Coopertown Community Church we began to look at features of the property and Scriptural concepts that could be married to provide the solution meeting a variety of variables.

When people comment on our property they often identify the trees on the front lawn.  It makes sense to feature these trees in a way that would identify the church and provide a Scriptural basis for the gathering of God’s people in this community as a unique church doing a unique work.  Trees taken together are considered a grove, having both oak trees and cedar trees in a general area, it makes the most sense to use the word grove as the name of the church.

In Psalm 91:1-2 the Psalmist writes, “He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High will abide in the shadow of the Almighty.  I will say to the LORD, “My refuge and my fortress my God, in whom I trust.”  This Psalm depicts a person who is experiencing a growing intimacy with God.  The shadow is only found when one is in proximity to the object; and when sitting in the shelter, the shadow is most appropriately enjoyed by that person.  The Grove is a community that represents this same kind of refuge.  It is a community of God’s people who are committed to others being regenerated, reconciled, revived, restored, repaired, renewed, refined, received, refreshed, released, and redeemed.

Renaming the church is not enough to clarify the vision.  The vision requires core values to be adopted communicating that vision to the members enabling them to impact the community with the fresh and exciting message of God’s movement in the church.  Core values that accurately reflect God’s thematic purposes for His people will provide a sense of clear vision essential for motivating people to carry out the mission of the church.  The desire is to see these values expressed by our members in their daily lives.  By our members expressing these values the people of the Robertson County Region will experience the indispensable God we serve according to the uniqueness of this church and her ministry.

The vision of the Grove is based on these five core values of the New Testament church. These values are to focus on God’s glory, Relationships, Opportunities (for service and ministry), being Vibrant (in joy, style, relevance, and life) and Everyone (focusing on a body accepting different economic, ethnic, and social groups with enthusiasm).  These values are expressed through our membership and extended to our community.

Possessing these types of core values and pursuing them together as a church body will be the fulfillment of God’s Kingdom in Robertson County.  Each of these values relates to biblical values.  In Acts 2:42-47 we have the early account of the church’s history.  These same values are evident there and in other Scripture.

In Acts 2:47, the Scriptures tell us that “the people were praising God and having favor with all people.”  When we emphasize God’s glory as a core value we are emphasizing this same priority.  In Ephesians 1, there are three instances in which Paul emphasizes that salvation is to the praise of God’s glorious grace.  In Romans 15 the purpose of Christ’s service was to establish his truth the Jews and to enable Gentiles to glorify God for His mercy.

Relationships are essential in the church.  Repeatedly we are told to come together, to encourage one another, to fellowship, and to serve one another.  We have been given a ministry of reconciliation, which can only happen when people are knit together in community.  In Acts 2 this was evidenced as the church was together day after day.  Relationships are also essential if other people are going to be introduced to Jesus.  Jesus modeled a life devoted to relationships.  Whether it was Nicodemus, a Samaritan woman, adulterer, or disciple, Jesus knew people and loved them.

At The Grove we will look for Opportunities.  In Acts 2 we read that the church, having members who were selling possessions and belonging, was “distributing the proceeds to all, as any had need.”  Though we don’t know all the specifics there is a guiding principle that ministry opportunities were being pursued by the church and people’s needs were being met.  These needs included the teaching of the word and prayer as well.  As a church we will continue to seek the needs of this community and consider the opportunities and resources God has given to reach those needs.

We will be a vibrant church.  Vibrant means alive and full of energy.  We are made alive because of Jesus.  John recorded Jesus telling his disciples, “I am the vine; you are the branches.  Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing.”  As followers of Jesus we have been given new life and it is life that reflects his fruit in us as we now are in him.  Later in this same passage Jesus is recorded as saying, “These things I have spoken to you, that my joy may be in you, and that your joy may be full.”  It is the vision for the church to be a life representing, life giving entity in the community that is intentional, stylish, and relevant in its efforts to reach people who need new life in Jesus.

Then there is Everyone.  The gospel message was clearly communicated to be a hopeful message for everyone.  In Acts the message was given from Jesus that the disciples would be his “witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.”  The significance wasn’t in regards to specific towns or locations, but to the people groups and nations that were represented in those regions.  That is why Matthew recorded Jesus commanding his disciples to make disciples of all nations.  We have that same opportunity, both locally in Robertson County as well as in a broader sense to the world through missions.  In Romans 10:13 we read, For “everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.”  Embracing everyone with the love of Jesus and intentionally pursuing everyone without discrimination is glorifying to God.

In order to accomplish this we must include everyone in the ministry of the church.  In 1 Corinthians 12:18-20 Paul writes, “But as it is, God arranged the members in the body, each one of them, as he chose.  If all were a single member, where would the body be? As it is, there are many parts, yet one body.”  Together as members of this body of Christ we are to cherish and nourish one another (Eph. 5:29-30).  Placing value on Everyone is essential should the vision of Jesus’ bride be fulfilled to completion by our church.

Articulating these core values for the vision of the church is one thing; accomplishing the vision is another.  It is essential that short term projects be identified and completed in order to achieve the goal that the vision directs to.  These projects will be incremental tasks along the way.  There was a story of an architectural firm working on the completion of the Gatlinburg Convention Center.  The building was well under way in construction when the design team realized that they had failed to include an elevator in the design plans.  This realization meant a lot of the short term projects had to be reorganized, put on hold, and details of design, schematics, mechanics, etc, all redrawn.  The goal for the completion and use of the convention center never altered, but the project definitely changed directions.

For the vision of The Grove to be realized, there are going to be definite projects that we will have to pursue.  At some point you have probably moved or considered selling your home.  One of the first principals regarding the sale of that property is the “curb appeal”.  There are certain qualities of the facilities and ministry that make up the “home” of this church family.  For us the “curb appeal” consists of our website, entrance, grounds, foyer, and sanctuary.  These are the things that make the “first impressions” on those we are trying to reach in our community.  As we approach the public announcement for The Grove we must address these matters to present the best for the sake of Jesus’ name, putting our best foot forward.

To accomplish these projects we will need generosity of resources and time.  Just as new mulch, new flowers, fresh paint, and manicured grass set a house apart in the neighborhood, these things will set us apart.  We will need your presence too, the mulch doesn’t spread itself, the flowers don’t plant themselves, the grass doesn’t cut itself and the paint doesn’t apply itself.  The family members all have to be invested together and in special moments to get the tasks done.  We need everyone of you for these things to be accomplished.

The elders are recommending that as a part of this 2020 Vision to begin effectively that we have a series of special offerings, a few special S.O.S. Days and a celebration as the presentation of the church is ready for the public showing of the church to begin.

There are other aspects to the achievement being reached that we also need to consider.  For several years we have been patiently awaiting the Lord’s direction regarding Deacon ministry.  We are convinced that this is the time for this process to begin.  We are asking that you, the body, nominate men for consideration.  We are hoping to instill at least three men, one to serve in each area of our ministry process, Gathering, Growing, and Going.  If there is a fourth that The Lord leads us to we would like to consider the oversight of our facilities and maintenance to be his area.  We want to offer you this next week to pray over the men The Lord would have you nominate and next week we will gather these nominations.