Homelessness and the Front Porch

Mik writes:

I would like to see a ongoing discussion of the impact to us and on us as the result of meeting and attempting to help the homeless that we see each day. The future does not look good for this social dilemma.

FOR EXAMPLE: It seems to me many folks want to work for $$$. How might we help them and ourselves 'assuming' we had a few dollars allocated weekly to give them to help out with cleaning and maintenance? We need on-going maintenance and trying out different folks, in gradually increasing their responsibilities, based on proven performance, may be mutually helpful to us both. Certainly not a cure for homelessness in our time, it is however more biblical and meets an immediate need. I will give the first $25 for a small fund for this. What wage would we pay people and how would it be set up? I would also be willing to work with you Christina to develop this and oversee it. Comments/ Suggestions folks?

The Core Journal Re-Launch

Christina, Mik, John & Sondra,

This post will serve as the re-launch of The Core Journal, which for awhile was the online communication hub of The Core's leadership.

How this actually gets used will be worked out as we go along. But the main idea is to get a lot of discussions happening throughout the month, so that when we get together for meetings on first Tuesdays, they don't have to go on and on.

I will probably be the one doing most of the posting, but I want to encourage each of you to do so as you think of something that needs to be discussed among the leadership. When a post is made, each leader will receive an e-mail linking us to that new post, and then we will be able to read it, and add comments.

Each first Tuesday, any discussions from the blog which have not been fairly well resolved in the comments, can be put on the agenda for our meeting.

We're so busy with the actual work of ministry that our schedules don't allow for a lot of meetings, so let me urge you to do you best to make this work... I think it will result in a much better team effort all around.

I am labeling this post with every category, so we can have them established from the beginning. It is very important, any time you write a post, to assign it a category so we can easily track conversations any each given topic.

That's it for now... have fun blogging!

Address, May Luncheon and May Artwalk

Hey guys, three things...

1) Yesterday at the post office I took advantage of their free forwarding service, and had all mail addressed to 310 Avenue forwarded to our P.O. Box. Once we have our phone number, too, I will change the business cards, letterhead and website to always say "310 South Avenue" and include our phone number as well. In the meantime, don't feel like you have to change anything, but anytime you give our address to someone for the FIRST TIME, be sure to give them the physical address on South Avenue, instead of our P.O. Box.

2) Daniel Keeslar said he fully expects the Front Porch to have finished, painted walls, finished floors and working restrooms by late May. Also, we don't need an occupancy permit prior to having a fund-raising banquet at the Front Porch. So I say we plan to have a simple luncheon for all interested parties the last week of May. This can include people who might have an interest in supporting The Core, or volunteering at the Front Porch. Please add your comments regarding what day of the week you think would be best. A weekday would increase the number of pastors who would come (especially if it's a Tuesday or a Thursday,) and a Saturday might increase the number of "civilians". Sunday is probably out. So tell me whether you think it should be Tuesday, Thursday or Saturday, or if you think we should do two separate luncheons for these two groups.

3) May artwalk is coming up fast! On May 4, South Avenue will be pedestrian-only, and we need to have the Front Porch open from 6-10 for people to learn more about it.

-I would like to have some artwork on easels out front. Amy, would you be able to do that? Or possibly find someone who can? Here are the other important things that I think need to happen:
-We need to have two large tables just inside the front door, one for a display and a laptop with a slideshow, and the other for sign-ups, brochures, cookies, etc. We should have at least one person to man these tables throughout the evening.
-We need to have somebody to guide interested persons through the facility. Obviously, that won't take long, but you would need to be able to describe where things would go in the cafe, identify each of the rooms, and say a few sentences about our vision for the place.
-We might want one person to stand out front, with the art, to hand out little flyers or something, and make people feel welcome to step inside.

Please give me your thoughts on these things, and let me know if you can commit to being at the Front Porch from 6-10 pm on May 4 (we will probably need two people there at 5 to set up.

Thanks!
Ryan.

An Organizational Proposal

Based on some recent conversations, I (Ryan) want to share some of the re-thinking I've done in answer to the question, "What is The Core?"

First and foremost, The Core is flexible. We cannot pretend to know what it will be in 10 years or even 2 years. We must hold true to the vision and direction God has given us in the present, but we do not want to set up rigid structures that will make it impossible to flow and evolve as the Spirit leads us. God never changes, but people do. The head of the Church is Christ, and that will remain constant. But a church (or better yet, a fellowship) is comprised completely of people, and must be fluid in nature. Otherwise you end up with people propping up the structure, rather than a structure that props up and equips the people as they minister.

But apart from that, we must determine how we will answer the question at hand in the "here and now." I believe there must be a simple answer, and a detailed answer. The simple answer would be useful for legal and logistical purposes, or with those who have no real interest in our ministry philosophies or the inner workings of The Core.

The Simple Answer

So when those people ask "What is The Core?" the simple answer is: "The Core is a new (non-denominational) church serving the people of Center-City Springfield."

If they want just a little more information, we can say that it is a church comprised of small groups. This is not a foreign concept to many people, and it will explain to them why we don't have typical "big-event" church services.

The Detailed Answer

When it is apparent that we are talking with someone who is really wants to learn about The Core in-depth, we can give them the detailed answer, which might be: "The Core is an organized Community of Christ-followers endeavoring to live out His message in a missional and relational way in Center-City Springfield. Our methodology is manifested in various venues, primarily including the Front Porch downtown, and a network of semi-autonomous Home Fellowships." (Of course I would not expect anyone to learn or recite this verbatim.)

This explanation would effectively strip the word "Fellowship" from our name, and identify us more as a "Community." Then the word "Fellowship" would be freed up to refer to "Home Fellowships" which is a better term than "Home Churches".

Ramifications of the Detailed Answer

I believe that some of the ramifications of this shift would be as follows:

1) Team Members would not be required to belong to a Home Fellowship in The Core Network. Although, they must understand that joining The Core Team is a commitment to be a vital part of its vision and ministry, and not simply a membership card to stick in your wallet. It should probably also be stated that a Team Member is expected to be committed to some specific group of Christians for consistent worship, fellowship and discipleship.

2) Team Leaders might also have the option of continuing to belong to another local church entity, again with the understanding that there is a very serious commitment involved... even moreso when being a leader of a particular area of ministry. Daniel Keeslar (our Front Porch General Contractor) is one example of this. I have no sense from him that he plans to leave Second Baptist, but he has shown tremendous commitment to the specific ministry of The Core.

We might go an extra step with Team Leaders, and expect them to see the importance of intimate spiritual relationships with their brothers and sisters. This could take the form of a) belonging to some kind of regular small group, accountability group, or Bible study, or b) meeting consistently with an accountability partner or mentor. I think it's very important that anyone leading a ministry with The Core have some unity with us in this area, because we believe so strongly that anonymity in the body of Christ is not conducive to spiritual maturation.

3) Coordinators and Directors (together known as "Overseers") would probably need to belong to a Home Fellowship in The Core Network. Since Overseers are responsible for the overal vision, direction and maintenance of The Core, I don't believe it is practical to expect that they can also maintain a commitment to an outside church body. Either the other church would keep them from focusing on the work of The Core, or The Core would keep them from any relevant involvement in the other church. And we should not be guilty of encouraging or condoning a lifestyle of empty commitments, either to The Core, or to any other organization. (By that token, we should also be careful that our expectations of leaders do not jeopardize their commitments to their spouses, children, jobs or personal health.)

Conclusion

Please be aware that this proposal is just that... a proposal. I am posting it here to start the conversation, not to end it. But I do believe that the ideas presented here dramatically alter some of the ways I have seen The Core in the past, and that may be true for you, as well. As if we were not "revolutionary" enough already, this proposal would make us look and operate even less like any organization I've ever known. So there are steep challenges involved. But the challenges are not only for us... because I think this mode of operation would also challenge the larger Body of Christ to really re-think what it means to be the Church. We could set an example for people to see that there must be an increased openness and cooperation among Christ-followers if His Kingdom is truly going to be manifested among us.

Please add your comments here. I would like to get everyone thinking about this, and discussing it prior to our meeting on Tuesday. And thank you for hearing me out... I know this is heavy stuff.

Paid Staff Manifesto

Here are my current convictions regarding a day when The Core may have paid staff (I don't expect this to be relevant anytime soon, but I want to get these thoughts down while they're fresh, and hopefully create some dialog.)

1) The only reason The Core will ever have paid staff is if it seems right to us and to the Holy Spirit to expect a greater time commitment from someone than can reasonably be expected of a volunteer. This includes the consideration that staff members should prioritize their time alone with God, spouse and children higher than time spent in formal ministry work.

2) The Core will strive not to hire someone to do work that could effectually be done by volunteers. Otherwise we risk denying said volunteers the opportunity to worship God with their gifts.

3) The Core will do its best to offer fair market wages to all paid staff, based on the wages of those with similar levels of skill, experience, education and responsibility in the secular marketplace. However, team members of The Core who are offered a paid position will be asked if they can afford to take less, for the sake of the ongoing financial solvency of The Core. But for the record, no one will be guilted into this, or second-guessed about their answer.

4) The Core will not consider some positions to be "ministry" positions, as opposed to others. We are all to work "as for the Lord" whether we are cleaning, singing, filing, or teaching. If a job is necessary, then it shares equal importance to the Kingdom, and to The Core, with all other necessary jobs.

5) The Core will not hire people from the community unless it is absolutely necessary. In other words, we will not deny a team member of The Core the opportunity to do a job well, just because we have the money to hire someone from the community to do it better. (see also #2)

6) The Core will treat all staff with the utmost respect and professionalism. We do not have an excuse to cut corners or mistreat people because we are a church. We will always strive for clarity and honesty in working relationships, steering clear of spin, sugar-coating, and politics.

7) In light of #6, we will not withhold affirmation and reward from those who excel, or corrective action from those who do not. If any staff members are not performing well, we must consider it our Christian duty to help them find a better fit, even if such a fit does not exist within The Core. We will not string people along in a wrong job in order to avoid hurting their feelings.

Planning Meeting, 12/13/06

Hey guys,

This is for those who missed out on last night's planning meeting. In attendance were Mik, Phil, Amy and myself, and we met at the MudHouse.

The only topic that really required discussion was the upcoming Open Mic Church. There were some questions about whether to use the word church, and after explaining my thoughts about that, we all pretty much agreed. This is how I explained it: If you just have an open-mic night in a gallery, that's normal. A few people will come, and they may really enjoy it, but there's nothing impactful about it. However, this is the way I expect people to react mentally to the phrase "Open Mic Church." Following is a list of probable sequential thoughts:

1) Oh, it's a church having an open mic night
2) But it's at a gallery
3) And it's associated with Randy Bacon, so it might be cool
4) And "The Core" is not a church I've ever heard of, and it sounds kind of different
5) But how on earth do you have an "open mic church?"
6) I've always thought of church as a place where they tell me what to think
7) But if it's "open mic" that means they want to know what I think
8) Then how can it still be considered "church"?
9) Maybe I should go and find out.
10) I'll sign up to sing that song with a few cusswords in it, and see if they still care about what I have to say.

And that brings me to the second point. We had some vigorous discussion about what to do with people who want to get up and do something offensive. It went without saying that we needed to be more permissive than a typical church. But it also went without saying that we couldn't tolerate a MichaelRichardsesque racist rant, or the like. We settled on the idea of, when people sign their name on a sheet when they arrive, saying that they'd like to perform, that they agree to keep it "respectful." That's it. If there are children present, we may also want to call that to their attention.

[which begs the question... maybe we should advertise that small children are not recommended at this event, especially considering that we have no way to sequester them, and the floor is solid concrete... not very safe. Unless I hear otherwise from you, I will put on the flyer that bringing children under 13 is not recommended.]

Where was I? Oh yeah... I think we can just use the word "respectful" and leave it at that. If they ask for a definition, we can ask them to avoid hatefulness, and deliberately attempts to offend people. If they do it anyway, we can just cut the mic, then ask them if they have something more respectful they can share. If the violation is extreme, we can just cut the mic and ask them to have a seat. But I believe that we should only remove the offender from the premises if we feel that he or she is making threats or putting people in danger.

Another thing we talked about was Mik's idea of having three platforms... a pulpit, a soap box, and a drama stage, to emphasize that we are open to all different types of expressions. I'd like more feedback on this idea, please.

Lastly, we decided that there will be leaflets for each of us to hand out to those we encounter, and several posters to put up around downtown in January.

That's it! Give me your thoughts.

Open Mouth, Insert Mic

Hey guys... here's my first idea for a promotional flyer for our Saturday Night deal.

Like I said, it's just a first idea... so tell me what you think. As you can see, according to this the name of the recurring event would be "Open Mic Church" and the name if this occurence would be "Open Mouth, Insert Mic."