The Weblog of Dennis Dawson
Fast, Flexible and Focused - 2009-01-19
It is hard to imagine that I have been your Executive Director for four months already. I am thrilled to serve you and to have the opportunity to assist you, the local church, to be all that God wants you to be.
To be effective as an association in the day in which we live we must be fast, flexible, and focused. Let me explain.
We must be able to respond quickly to your needs. If we are encumbered by long decision-making or approval processes, you will go to another source before we have time to get the necessary approvals to respond. Fortunately, we have a plan in place that allows for fast decisions. We need to feel good about and use that process consistently.
We must be flexible in our planning and implementation. We must be strategic and intentional in our work to assist you, the local churches. We must not block ourselves in by doing things merely because we have always done them. For example, you will not see a lot of planned events on the MEBA calendar; however, you will see that we will respond to needs as they arise within our churches. Budgeting will follow that strategy. We are not a church and should not be doing the work of the church; we are a resource to assist the local church to do its work. We will transfer anything that looks like the work of the local church to you. And then, again, we will assist you.
We must stay focused on our mission, our purpose, and our vision. The simple way to say it is that we assist local churches. Period. Here are some first steps:
• This begins and continues with relationships. I have met with 46 MEBA churches thus far and will continue with that effort.
• I have asked each of our Task Group Leaders to contact churches in one of the six regions. Their goal is to build relationships, assess needs, and contribute to the strategy and action plans that will be implemented based on those needs.
• We are seeking Task Group participants. Would you enlist those from your church who have a passion for one of these areas?
• I would like for us to give an all-out effort in 2009 to work through our Task Groups. We will then evaluate and adjust accordingly.
• We will do whatever it takes to assist local churches to become stronger.
• We are identifying and training leaders to assist you: 12 from our churches are traveling with me in mid-January to the North Central States Rally.
• Also, you will see pastoral support through new affinity groups and one-on-one consultations
• Further, we will prioritize reaching people groups through assisting churches to plant other congregations: We have three new church starts thus far and actually have a 4th and 5th in the works even as we speak.
• We are available to assist churches to go to their Acts 1:8 mission fields.
• I have assigned Vance Vyers to concentrate on assisting churches in evangelism and reaching young adults.
We must be fast, flexible, and focused if we are to achieve our vision. Our association must be built around priorities, not programs. Indeed, I see a day when every person and every people group in every community of the Metro-East will have opportunity to hear the Gospel, respond with faith in Christ, and participate in a New Testament fellowship of believers.