From time to time, I will write about St. Andrew’s Vision, Mission, and Values. Even though the VMVs are short, concise statements, they are also dense in meaning, which will take time to unpack.
This week I want to start with the Vision statement: “We envision a time when all people are valued, injustice and suffering are abolished, and God’s love and joy abound.” When the 2035 Team presented this vision statement to the Session in August, they started by explaining that this is not a typical vision statement. Vision statements often articulate what the organization envisions itself to be. Here are some real examples of these types of vision statements: “We exist to know Jesus and to make Jesus known,” “a place for everyone,” or “We are a multicultural Christian congregation located in the downtown area.”
Our vision statement is different—our vision does not state what kind of church we want to be, it states why we want to be a church in the first place. “We envision a time when all people are valued, injustice and suffering are abolished, and God’s love and joy abound.” We believe that this is the goal to which the work of faith communities are leading. It is a worthy goal. We hold to it especially at times like these when it feels as if the world will never get there. This is a statement of faith that affirms that what we do here at St. Andrew’s has a deep and meaningful purpose that extends beyond our own lives.
There are a lot of benefits to being a member of a church. Weekly worship enriches our lives. We find lifelong friendships here. We get to watch children develop. We sing and pray together. And yet church is bigger than all those things. Church is about the restoration of all creation through the love of God. As imperfect as we are, we get to play a part in that.
God is remaking the world through every act of compassion, every relationship restored, every injustice reconciled, and every life renewed. This vision is the “why” of church and it sets the foundation for all that we do.
Yours in Christ,
Pastor Jen