“The most pathetic person in the world is someone who has sight, but has no vision.”- Helen Keller
Helen Keller is a good example of someone who had great vision. Although there were many around her who could only see her blindness she was able to see beyond what she was and saw what she could become. She could see in the distance a woman of great potential who could learn how to triumph over her disability. Within her lay the seeds of greatness.
Within a church, like an individual, lie dormant the seeds of greatness. These seeds are the raw materials that are waiting for a vision to cause them to germinate and come to fruition. An authentic vision like a beacon beckons us onward through the darkness reminding us of what we aspire to become. We can be more than we are, we can be better, we can be all that God wants us to be.
Over the summer a committee of faithful parishioners went on a search by sifting through pages and pages of transcripts from cottage meetings, mutual ministry review by vestry and clergy, in-focus gathering on May 31st and subsequent meetings with the active small groups within our parish in order to find those seeds of vision. The final draft that was approved by the vestry:
We seek to be a vibrant community of people who
Worship weekly,
Pray daily,
Learn constantly,
Serve joyfully, and
Live generously.
- A vibrant community, is one that pulsates with the energy of the Holy Spirit and draws others in while at the same time enlivens our own faith.
- Worship weekly: this does not limit us to just one time per week but gives our entire community a goal to strive toward. Just think how our community would be transformed if every member of St. Mark’s attended worship each week.
- Pray daily: through Morning Prayer here at the church, using the prayer book on our own, on-line resources and our own spontaneous prayers we seek to maintain our connection with God.
- Learn constantly: one of the hallmarks of being a disciple or follower of Christ is a commitment to lifelong learning about our Christian faith.
- Serve joyfully: Our faith is meant to find expression in our daily lives. As we each grow in our faith we will need to find ways of sharing our gifts with our community and the world.
- Live generously: As a people richly blessed by God it is our honor and privilege as stewards to give of our time, talent and treasure.
These six things will give us all plenty to live into in the months and years ahead. I hope we will commit them to memory and seek to live them out that we might become the church God knows we can be.
Yours in Christ,
Carey+
