BIRSTWITH CHURCH STRATEGY

ADOPTED BY PCC NOVEMBER 2001

In 1997 our church adopted the following mission statement:

St James's Church is a welcoming family, worshipping God and extending Christ's work in the world, joyfully serving and caring for all in the village community

In 2001 as part of the Living is For Giving Campaign our church adopted the following values which we recognised as being essential to achieving our mission:

To be a welcoming and caring family we need to:

· Keep our house in order
· Help and encourage each other
· Listen and understand
· Recognise the good in others and our own limitations

To worship God at St James's Church we need to:

· Maintain the building handed down to us
· Ensure that our offering to God in worship is the best we can manage

· Provide a comfortable, warm environment conducive to prayer

In the summer of 2001 the Parochial Church Council undertook an audit of recent achievement, looking at our successes and our failures. We concluded that:

· We had done well to sustain congregation numbers (largely by the variety and vibrancy of services, the success of sick visits and the consistency of a friendly welcome) but that we could have done better (if we had prevented some from feeling excluded)

· We have sustained a culture of involvement (by being open to new people, by good organisation, by using the varied gifts of many in the community, by the development of local theology, by work with young people) but that we could have done better (if we had been more open about our needs and problems, if we had been more inclusive in the way decisions have been taken, if we had found ways to actively encourage youth activities in the village)

· We had shown an ability to change and a resilience under stress but that we could have done better (if we had better explained the reasons for change)

· We have achieved a great deal but that we could have done better (if we had not tried to do too much, if we had not failed in some of the things we have attempted, and if we had done more for our friends in Gipton, if we had had more resources with which to reach out and help both within and beyond our community)

CONSIDERING OUR MISSION, OUR VALUES AND OUR AUDIT ASSESSMENT THE PCC HAS AGREED A STRATEGY FOR THE FUTURE OF OUR CHURCH THAT SETS FIVE CLEAR OBJECTIVES

OBJECTIVE 1

We aim to

· Strengthen our faith as the foundation of all that we want to do and be.

To achieve this we recognise that we need to

· Help each other to feed and strengthen our spirituality (for instance by developing a Bible study group)
· Have the active and focused commitment of shepherds - both lay preachers and priests

OBJECTIVE 2

We aim to

· involve all ( the young and the old, those new to the village as well as those who have lived here for a long time)

To achieve this we recognise that we need to

· consider carefully not only what we do but how we do it so that we are sensitive to all opinions and do not unwittingly offend
· help each other
· be open to new ideas wherever and whoever they come from
· provide active help to ensure all can be involved (for instance a baby-sitting circle to help younger families)

OBJECTIVE 3

We aim to

· be active and helping and giving within our community

To achieve this we recognise that we need to

· improve our pastoral outreach by greater involvement of more people
· undertake training for a difficult task
· commit ourselves to real and active help as well as counsel

OBJECTIVE 4

We aim to

· be active in helping and giving outside of our community

To achieve this we recognise that we need to

· involve the church and its congregation in charitable work
· give a bigger percentage of our income to charity each year (we propose that the amount and the major beneficiaries should be recommended, debated and agreed at the Annual Meeting to ensure that these targets are owned by the whole church)

OBJECTIVE 5

We aim to

· succeed in what we set out to do

To achieve this we recognise that we need to

· be realistic
· be focused
· define priorities and then act

In order to guide the successful delivery of this strategy the PCC recognises that it must take account of all views and opinions and consult widely before making decisions, but that once decisions are made the PCC must be strong and united in seeing the appropriate action through.

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