As I write this, we are just a few days away from the first of 20 Town Hall meetings. I feel a bit like a person standing at the starting gate of a great and important race. The anticipation is enormous; many have partnered, prayed and prepared for these days before us, and I believe that we have thoughtfully developed these days of dialogue, fellowship and profound purpose.
This brief communication is intended to accomplish three things:
- Serve as a reminder that you are invited to join the Town Hall meeting nearest you. Your presence is the key to our family dialogue and prayer partnership. It is together that we will seek and know the will of the Lord. Go to reimaginefoursquare.org for information. You will also find the latest research done by the presidential task force, letters from the president concerning Reimagining Foursquare and FAQs that will all be regularly updated.
- Give you the basic agenda for the meetings.
- Invite your prayers. I’ve listed a few key prayer points for our unified intercession.
Recently I was deeply impacted when I read an article in USA Today about a pastor in Clarksville, Tenn., who had been called to serve a church in that city. Before officially beginning his new role, Rev. Willie Lyle responded to the Lord’s call to live on the streets as a homeless man for several days. Pastor Lyle told the story of his journey and the powerful, though uncomfortable, lessons he learned.
What so moved me was the complete willingness of this pastor to obey such an unusual directive. He believed that his obedience and his willingness to allow God to reshape his values and priorities would help him preach the gospel message in Clarksville in an innovative, effective way.
Our movement is at a similar juncture. God has challenged us to reimagine going forward as a church that is relevant and relational; a church that has been restored to its apostolic beginnings. I am convinced that we are not to go back just to our own beginning as a church; we must go back 2,000 years and recapture the values and mission of the New Testament church. There is only one institution that the Lord established, and that was His church. I urge you to join me and our leadership on this journey of discovery and obedience.
I have delineated four desired outcomes of these Town Hall meetings; I believe that each of these outcomes is inspired by the Lord. We are to: (1) share a dream; (2) share the journey; (3) engage in helpful conversation; and (4) advise on next steps.
I thank you for your love for our Lord, for our denomination and for our future. As we dream together, we remain faithful to our Foursquare call: “The Whole Church Taking the Whole Gospel to the Whole World.” What we do has the same purpose that Jesus stated: “For the Son of Man has come to seek and to save that which was lost” (Luke 19:10, NKJV). All that we dream, plan, discuss and do is for this very purpose and call.
At the end of the day, we are seeking the following:
- Spiritual vitality (being a Spirit-led movement)
- Missional effectiveness (reaching the harvest and multiplying leaders and churches)
- Organizational health (personal, local church, extended ministries and structural).
Please join with me in prayer, keeping in mind the following key prayer points:
- Pray that we seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness above all else; that we will hear and know the voice of God and His purposes for our Foursquare family.
- Pray for an atmosphere of trust and a genuine desire to hear from one another; we want our conversations to be open, transparent, rich with hope and a willingness to reimagine and reshape our future.
- Pray for clarity and wisdom—that questions and conversations will lead us to fruitfulness.
- Pray for us to seize opportunities before us and remove obstacles that would hinder our future.
- Pray that the desired outcomes of the Town Hall meetings will help frame our next steps and give true and viable traction for moving forward.
- Pray that the timing of the reform journey will be in accord with God’s perfect planning; we do not need to rush through transition, yet we must be willing to take the steps we know we are to take without hesitancy and with great courage.
- Pray for the task groups, which will be helping to lead and guide our steps in all aspects, to be thorough and provide good counsel.
- Pray for safe travel for all who attend the meetings.
- Pray for health and stamina for our leadership team over the next few months.
- Pray for the Lord’s guidance in every step of our journey; we do not want to miss His lead at any point along the way.
Thank you for the encouragement, vision, willingness to engage and faithfulness to the call of Christ as you serve in your significant role within our denomination. We are at the starting gate—ready to run the race the Lord has set before us.
“Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a huge crowd of witnesses to the life of faith, let us strip off every weight that slows us down, especially the sin that so easily trips us up. And let us run with endurance the race God has set before us. We do this by keeping our eyes on Jesus, the champion who initiates and perfects our faith” (Heb. 12:1-2, NLT).
I have included a basic agenda of what you can expect at the Town Hall meetings. I look forward to seeing each and every one of you very soon!
Till All Have Heard!
Glenn Burris Jr.
Basic Agenda for Town Hall Meetings
Worship/Prayer
Overview: President Glenn Burris Jr.
- Share desired outcomes for the Town Hall meetings.
- Give a history of how we arrived at the conversation about Reimagining Foursquare.
- Lay out a framework for our journey. This will be the work of our task groups that will help us arrive at critical decisions.
A. Refocusing our mission: This will bring needed clarity to our mission, vision and values. It will bring affirmation to the DNA of our movement and help build a foundation for our future efforts. Our commitment to diversity has, at times, left us devoid of a clear identity. This effort is incredibly important.
B. Redesigning our roles/responsibilities: We must determine what changes are necessary to help us lead and manage with maximal effectiveness. This will bring much needed conversation and recommendations to the best contributions of the local church, the district offices and the national office.
C. Realigning our polity: We have a 20th-century polity, but we are leading in the 21st century. Our polity needs to be thoroughly examined and shaped to best serve the model of ministry and administration that will help fulfill our mission. Our governance, our property policies, our protocols and our processes all need a thorough review.
D. Reallocating our resources: We must allocate our resources where they provide the greatest return. Our goal is to find creative financing for the central office, while allocating the covenant tithe for ministry in the field. This approach will require continued streamlining at the central offices but will provide much-needed resources for the local church and district offices.
- Identity a timeline for the process leading to Connection 2014.
Q & A: Invite questions from pastors/leaders.
Presentation: Stan Simmons
Summary of the involvement of the presidential task force (PTF) and the role of the task groups, their charters, etc.
Q & A: Invite questions from pastors/leaders.
Beta Tests: Glenn Burris Jr.
Q & A: Invite questions from pastors/leaders.
Available for input/responses: president, general supervisor, FMI director, CFO, supervisor, pastor/leaders (cabinet/board members), district staff, Randy Barton
