Massachusetts Conference Helps Grow the Bouquet of Congregations
by Stephen Sterner, Interim Minister and President
June/July 2005
As our first spring in Massachusetts begins to unfold, Judy and I are delighted by the revelations of which trees and shrubs produce flowers and by how many places bulbs spring to life from below the ground. Over the last few days, every morning has produced a new and beautiful surprise.
That experience is something of a metaphor for my first eight weeks as the Interim Conference Minister and President.
As I meet with local congregations, experience the wonder of worship, and begin to see the many mission projects of the Conference, I am delighted by the diversity, the richness, and the beauty of them all. There is so much life and spirit within us that one must simply stop in awe. Yet I have also come to see that much like old bulbs that no longer flower, there are places in our life where we must recognize the need for new plantings and new, and perhaps as yet unknown, opportunities for mission and ministry. The Conference Board of Directors has recommended a simple mission statement: “The purpose of the Massachusetts Conference is to nurture the vitality of local congregations and the covenant among our churches.”
As we begin to move more fully into that vision and mission, we will need to tend our garden carefully to discern where the places of growth already are found, and where new seeds must be planted.
I look forward to this spring season for our life together.
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