Congregational Meeting Week 3

Who is Cocoa?  Week 3 of Congregational Meetings

                We already went through our thoughts on what Christians believe, experience, and do.  What are our thoughts on the church?  What is it?  Who are we and what do we do and what results are we to achieve? 

    We said that a church is

·         A place for worship and for teaching the Bible (a location and two activities)

·         A group of people who as a team does the will of God (sharing the good news & helping the poor)

·         A community for mutual support in the walk of Christian faith and in the events of life (ups and downs, breaking bread, sacred ceremonies of marriage & funerals)

·         A community offering the sacraments

Who comes to Cocoa Pres?  Our answer -- about a 100

·         Middle class people

·         WASPs

·         Old but still able people

·         Medium educated people

·         Giving people

·         English speaking

           What do we value?  What gets on our radar screen and how do we do those things?

·         Being formal /  Being informal   ??

·         Being traditional

·         Being not too big

·         Being intelligent

·         Being Presbyterian

·         Being ecumenical

·         Education

·         Praying for the sick

·         Visiting the hospital

·         Pastoral care

·         Lay ministry

·         Music

·         Children

·         Pot-lucks

·         Mission conference

·         Our facilities

·         Preaching

·         Playing it safe/conservative

·         Scouting

What doesn’t get on our radar screen that gets on others’?

·         Small group ministry

·         Men’s ministry emphasis

·         Financial type classes

·         Inward Journey/Spiritual Formation

·         Spiritual gifts

·         Social justice emphasis

The interim pastor shared first impressions as an outsider were –

·         We have more facility than we can maintain

·         There were a lot of signs

·         For all the love there is interpersonal tension between some members

·         The sanctuary and narthex are not well lit

·         Getting an ethnic pastor might be the way to go

·         Being very focused on senior ministry might be the way to go

·         This group is medium on formality and being Presbyterian

·         There have been disappointments here related to some pastors