The Heartbeats of Central Union Church
By Pastor Rushan
“As God’s chosen ones, holy and beloved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience. Bear with one another and, if anyone has a complaint against another, forgive each other; just as the Lord has forgiven you, so you also must forgive. Above all, clothe yourselves with love, which binds everything together in perfect harmony. And let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in the one body. And be thankful. Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly; teach and admonish one another in all wisdom; and with gratitude in your hearts sing psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs to God. And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.” —Colossians 3:12 – 17
Last Sunday I shared with you some of the thoughts of Rabbi Edwin Friedman in his book,
A Failure of Nerve, where he talks about how too many decisions in churches and other groups and organizations are driven by reactions to people’s emotional anxiety. He goes on to make the point in his book that we need to stop being reactionary and being driven by anxiety but rather to think about what core values define our identity and shape our mission and ministry.
What are the core values of Central Union Church? What are our heartbeats?
As you think about it, here are some prompting questions:
What are our values that shape our thinking and decision making?
What makes our hearts race? What breaks our hearts?
What do we spend a lot of time on? Or money on? Or energy on?
If we had to cut back on the things we did… what would be the last things we would give up?
What are three words that describe us here at Central Union (or that we would like to use to describe us)?
I invite you to reflect on these questions because it will help us to stay focused and open to the promptings of God’s Holy Spirit as we move into a future filled with hope while holding on to all that is essential, while being flexible enough to respond to the needs of a changing and changed world.
