In theory, everything a congregation does should serve its mission. Traditional strategic planning starts with a mission statement and progresses through strategic vision, goals, objectives, timelines, budgets, and a tagline for the T-shirts—each expressing and reflecting the mission. If leaders…
Read MoreAvoiding Mission Drift
Visiting a relative who lives on the Great South Bay off the shores of Long Island, several of us joined him for a boat ride. We were on the bay in early afternoon, enjoying the breeze and fast ride. Some…
Read MoreThe Vision to Embrace Change
I had always thought I had perfect vision—or at least near-perfect vision. As an adolescent I sometimes “manipulated” my eyes a little during eye examinations to read the 20/20 line on the eye chart. Corrective lenses? I wanted nothing to…
Read MoreAsk Alban: Visioning: Creating a Shared Picture of the Future
Q: Should we take the time to hold a retreat to create a vision statement? A: Synagogue leaders have heard that organizations need a vision, strategies, and goals, but they often are not sure what they should do next. Observers…
Read MorePutting Your Money Where Your Mission Is
Some pundits see a silver lining in our recent economic troubles: Americans have finally kicked the habit of conspicuous consumption. I’ll believe it when I see it. Over the last couple of years, I have consulted with a number of…
Read MoreFootsteps Not To Be Followed: Ten Mistakes Churches Make When Applying for Grants
As Sunday offerings have gone down for many congregations, their interest in alternative revenue sources has gone up. Many churches are now considering grant funding as a way to support some ministry programs. In my twenty-plus years of writing grant…
Read MoreCENTERview: Choosing Technology That Forwards Mission and Ministry
My two-member household is awash in a sea of technology. That’s one reason we were interested in reading Better Off by Eric Brende. A technology consumer, Brende did graduate studies at M.I.T. on technology and its effect on society. He…
Read MoreShine Your Light: How to Build Buzz and Reach Your Community
It was a lovely winter Sunday, and I was sitting with four friends in the pews of a Unitarian church in the small town of Littleton, Massachusetts. Nothing terribly unusual—except that none of us were Unitarians and we had never…
Read MoreWorship Is Mission
My mandate was clear when they called me to be their pastor: “Help our church to grow.” Looking back, I was very naive. It honestly never occurred to me that the members of a congregation would, on the one hand,…
Read MoreKnowing Your Community, Defining Your Mission
Getting to know the community that your congregation will focus on is a critical step in defining your mission. To start, work on getting answers to several key questions: What are the primary issues in your community? How do the…
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