“For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope.” —Jeremiah 29:11
On April 16th, 23 Board Members from Missions, Trustees, Christian Ed, and the Diaconate held a retreat on a Saturday morning to brainstorm a variety of topics to assist in defining our goals for our new Five-Year Plan for FBC. The topics included:
- Ice Breaker. What character traits can we attribute to our Lord Jesus Christ? [Can we find these traits in our future pastor?]
- Missions Projects. We discussed local, regional, national, and international mission projects, both ongoing and possible future projects.
- Community Service Projects. We looked at both ongoing and potential projects to assist local community organizations.
- One-time Engagement / Outreach to the Community. We looked at several of our existing programs such as Trunk or Treat, Easter Egg Hunt, Community Garden, and Rebuilding Together plus potential new projects.
- Learning Series. Possible series could include the world’s great religions, local and national political speakers [i.e. issues forums], religious art featuring local artists, and expansion of computer classes for smart-phone apps, special computer applications, etc.
Much discussion revolved around how FBC can better publicize our events and activities both to members and non-members via news releases, publicity, and social media. The special combined boards retreat provided an opportunity for a positive discussion of our five-year goals at FBC. Since the retreat, the discussion points have been separated and sent back to their respective boards for discussion, review and follow-up.
—Wayne Nowlan, Vice-Moderator