Everybody needs goals.  Goals give us something to point to.  Goals help us to stay on track. Goals help us to be accountable.  And goals help us to stretch. 

The Personnel Committee this year encouraged me to set some goals that might help me and the church grow.  Last month we sat down and talked about just what some of those goals might be.  They encouraged me to select three or four that I could focus on and then report what I had decided on to Session. 

At the March Session meeting I shared with them the goals I had decided on.  I would also like to share them with you.  I am excited about them and on some of them I am going to need your help. On all of them I am going to need your prayers.  So … here they are in no particular order:

·         Have an Easter Sunrise Worship service.  I hope by now you have heard about it.  IF you are an early riser why not join us at 6:00 a.m. this Easter Sunday and help us welcome the Sonrise (no typo).

·         Have a second Christmas Eve service at 11:00 p.m.  I love Christmas Eve services that cross over into Christmas.  There is something about being with a bunch of people who share your faith on Christmas that just gives me a warm and fuzzy feeling all over.

·         Continue to push our Long Range Planning Committee (think Fellowship Hall) along.  We have made a good start, but I want to make sure we don’t lose steam.  This church has a tremendous upside.  We have great people, a wonderful place to worship, fantastic programs, and a whole lot of God’s spirit flowing in, around and through us.  That translates into growth and we need to plan for it.  If we build it, they will come.  I believe that!

·         Hold a middle school confirmation class.  I have only held one confirmation class since I have been here.  It is about time to have another one – most likely in the fall.  So if you will be in the 5^th through 8^th grade – plan to join me in September.

·         Conduct a seminar to help Session figure out how to recruit members to join their committees.  I guess that means that I also need to help you all figure out how to get on the right committee that will help you grow/contribute.  No twisting of arms, though, I promise.

·         Implement the “40 Days of Purpose” churchwide spiritual growth program this coming fall.  Have you read Rick Warren’s “40 Days of Purpose”?  It is a book on spiritual growth that has swept the country.  There is also a program for the church with the same name.  We are going to try it and I’m excited.  I will definitely need your help to pull this off.  More information to follow.

·         And then finally – we will close our “40 Days of Purpose” with an All-Church retreat.  You may have heard a little about it at a recent worship service.  It will be lots and lots of fun for members and friends of all ages. 

Okay, I know that’s a few more goals than three, but I got so excited I couldn’t stop.  I look forward to all of us working together, growing together, laughing together, and serving together. 

And as always, I’ll see you on Sunday!

Pastor Tom