We have been talking for months and even years about discerning together what God has in mission for the North Street Community.  We're finally to a season of putting some teeth into this process.  Here's where we're at:


Recognizing that...
  • There is a lack of cohesion and collective identity amongst those who are members of the North Street Community;
  • God’s call to any specific and localized church community must be discerned within her context, culture, and neighborhood;
  • We have a core group of people who care about the North Street Community, yet only a handful who are actively engaged more than once a week in the life of our church community;
...this journey is proposed so that:
  • We can re-member the elements of our community, both in person and in specifics of mission;
  • We can collectively focus and bring forth a unified church community dedicated to carrying out the mission of God in our context and corner of the world.
The Journey of Discernment
This journey will take several months, led and overseen by Pastor Jeremy (as advised by some peers and mentors).  It must be bathed in corporate and individual prayer.  It will include an invitation to participate by everyone who expects to be a part of the community in the future.  It will include:
  • Daily Prayer - Individuals have been asked to pick a day of the week to spend a good amount of time in intentional prayer specifically for this discernment journey.  Email Pastor Jeremy to sign up for a day.  
  • Discernment Phase 1 - Surveying - A survey has been developed to be prayerfully completed online or in written form by individuals and families, inviting everyone who will participate to do so.  Please email or call Pastor Jeremy to begin the survey.  All surveys should be completed by January 30th.
  • Discernment Phase 2 - Group Response & Discussion - Once the survey has been completed, individuals and families will prayerfully gather in a group session to review answers and give clarification.  There will be an “outside listener” at each session to aid Pastor Jeremy in the discernment process.  The dates and times are quite varied and intentionally so, as to make opportunity for everyone to be able to be present in at least one group discussion.  To sign up for a group discussion, please first be sure to complete the survey and then email Pastor Jeremy with the date from below that you can attend.  All discussions will be held in the Newell Gathering Room at the chapel. 
    • Thursday, 2/17 7:00 PM
    • Friday, 2/25 7:00 PM
    • Sunday, 2/27 12:30 PM
    • Monday, 2/28 5:00 PM
    • Saturday, 3/5 2:00 PM
  • Discernment Phase 3 - The Heart-Pulse of the Community - Once the groups have been completed, the whole church community will pray with Pastor Jeremy during the Lenten Season as he reviews and discerns the direction in which God is calling us into the future.  He will summarize and compile the responses into a comprehensive foundation for developing the outcomes that will lead to a Covenant of Community. (4-6 weeks)
The Intended Outcomes
We hope and pray that a sense of clarity of identity will arise so that we may develop a collective understanding of who we are and who we will be together according to what we think God is calling us to.  We hope that the North Street Community will be catalyzed to live more closely together.  We hope that an agreed upon Covenant of Community will better foster shared life, collective identity, and a courage boldness together in being the Body and presence of Christ in our context and culture.