Weekly Updates on Key Church Initiatives
Q: In August of 2009, the church voted to elect a Governance Study Group to study our current church governance structure to see what changes, if any, needed to be made. Where are we with that process?
A: This elected study group, chaired by Bruce Basden, met from August 2009 until January 2010 to carefully review the church's constitution and by-laws, and they developed suggestions on changes that may help us to make decisions for the church in a more strategic and timely manner. Per our current governance structure, a separate Constitution Review Committee (CRV) was elected (with Larry Fisher as chair) to review the changes suggested by the study group before a recommendation is brought to the church for a vote. The CRV has been meeting regularly will be ready to present their questions/recommendations to the Governance Study Group for joint discussion within a week to ten days.
Q: When will we know something about the building program?
A: The conceptual designs you see in the Great Hallway are sketches that were used in a church conference presentation earlier this year to give us an idea of how we could benefit from having an additional worship/multi-purpose space, as well as having gathering/transitional spaces with extended atrium and hallway areas. Expanding our community ministry center is also in the plan, but not in the conceptual sketches. Building program-wise, we are to the point where any additional work (architectural drawings or otherwise) will require a significant financial investment. Therefore, we are awaiting the appointment of our Capital Campaign Committee who will make recommendations to the church regarding fund raising plans. The Committee on Committees is presently working on the enlistment of co-chair persons for this group, and the other committee positions will be enlisted thereafter. Expect these nominations to be brought to the church for a vote this summer. Once a committee is in place, initial capital campaign information will be presented tot the church in early fall.
An Update on the Church Budgeting Process for 2010-2011
The responsibility for crafting the church budget lies with the Budget Committee. Their first priority and responsibility is prayer. The Budget Committee (BC) realizes that contributions given to the church are the response of God’s people obeying God’s command, and there is an awesome responsibility in determining the most effective means in using the resources God has provided.
In addition to prayer, there is a process. This process starts with a request from the BC made to ministerial staff and various committees to meet with the BC to do a presentation of the anticipated funding needs for the various ministries of the church. These meetings have been taking place since early May, and will continue until August. Parallel to this process the BC is prayerfully giving to consideration what we can expect in the way of resources in the coming budget year. This estimating process involves evaluating the growth rate of the church, present giving patterns and the rate of growth of the economy in general. In instances where proposed expenses exceed expected contributions, the BC must determine what expenses should be cut, curtailed, or postponed. Once proposed expenses are less than expected contributions, the budget is ready to present to the church for consideration and discussion. At this point, it is anticipated that the budget will be ready for review by the church by the first of September to be discussed and voted upon for implementation in the fiscal year beginning October 1. Please pray for the budget committee as they continue this process, and feel free to contact Gary Laird, Business Administrator with any questions you may have.
An Update on Church Governance
After several weeks of discussing possible revisions for the church’s governing documents, members of the Governance Study Group (GSG) have presented suggested changes to members of the Constitution Review Committee (CRC). Healthy introspection and dialogue marked a joint meeting of the committees, and their work has resulted in a proposed document to be presented to the church in the August conference.
It is emphasized that at the initial presentation in August, no vote will be taken. In the weeks following the August conference, there will be ample time for everyone to review the proposed modifications to our governing documents. Members of the GSG anticipate providing numerous opportunities for the church family to learn about the modifications and ask questions about the proposed changes during the following weeks this fall
Members of both committees have invested extensive time and prayer, and it is further anticipated that their work will be of great benefit in the future. The GSG chairman is Bruce Basden; CRC is chaired by Larry Fisher.
For a complete list of GSG and CRC Committee Members, please click “Who Are We?” link located on the homepage of the website.
What is the P.L.A.C.E. ministry?
Among the reports and recommendations the Strategy Planning Group brought to our church, one of them was in regard to a new program to be implemented called P.L.A.C.E. ministries. (PLACE stands for: Personality discovery, Learning your spiritual gift(s), Abilities Awareness, Connecting passion with ministry, and Experiences in life.) PLACE helps equip church members by helping them understand how their personality, gifts, talents, abilities, and experiences equip them for finding their place of personal ministry inside and/or outside the walls of the church. Like many worthwhile things, PLACE requires a lot of preparation in order to do it well When it is eventually offered to new and existing church members, it will consist of four sessions on the PLACE elements, followed by a one-on-one coaching/consultation session, and the opportunity to “try on for size” several different ministry opportunities that are a good fit with how God has uniquely equipped each Christ follower. The PLACE process is considered complete when an individual has found one or more places of service.
Where are we in the preparation process with PLACE?
At this point, all of the ministerial and office staff have gone through the PLACE sessions to develop their personal PLACE profiles, both for personal benefit, and to gain an understanding of the material. Paige Easterling, who will do administrative coordination of the program, has been to a regional leadership training session, and PLACE Ministries is scheduled to come to FBC Burleson this October to conduct a regional training for area churches and to train our own key leaders who are being enlisted at present. Have questions about PLACE? Contact Paige Easterling or David Green in the church office.
When will we have an update on our Children’s ministry staff vacancy? Any time we have a staff vacancy, it is a good time to evaluate the existing job description and current needs of a particular ministry in order to develop a strategic plan for the future. The Personnel Committee is presently evaluating ways we can do this as it relates to our ministry to children . At present, they anticipate having updated job description and information ready to present to the church for the August conference. Additionally, within the next two weeks, parents of children in this age range can expect to receive a survey which will allow them to give input and suggestions for developing the ministry for the future.
