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Implementing Clusters Florida Annual Conference

Implementing Clusters Florida Annual Conference. “Connecting for Transformation”. Florida Annual Conference Vision Statement.

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Implementing Clusters Florida Annual Conference

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  1. Implementing ClustersFlorida Annual Conference “Connecting for Transformation”

  2. Florida Annual ConferenceVisionStatement • God's transforming grace in Jesus Christ calls us to become one dynamic churchwith diverse peoplein many settings, offering a new life of Christian discipleship to the world.

  3. Florida Annual ConferenceMissionStatement • To be a vital connection that is part of God's transformation of the world by: • equipping congregations for the task of making disciples of Jesus Christ;       • transformingexisting congregations from a life of institutional maintenance to a life of transformational mission in their diverse communities and the world; • reproducing vital congregations in new settings; • calling, training and supporting lay and clergy leaders for the church; • and engaging in shared ministries that fulfill the vision of the Kingdom of God.

  4. The United Methodist Discipline “Connectionalism in the United Methodist tradition is multi-leveled, global in scope, and local in thrust. Our connectionalism is not merely a linking of one charge conference to another. It is rather a vital web of interactive relationships.”(Discipline, par. 130)

  5. 2004 Annual Conference “Connecting for Transformation” • Reduce number of districts from 14 to 9 • Establish district Leadership Councils • Shift the emphasis in the district superintendent’s role from institutional maintenance to missional leadership. • Establish congregational clusters across the conference.

  6. A Cluster Advisory Committeehashed out many of the details Dwayne Craig Wayne Curry Ann Lee Earnshaw Russ Graves Jim Harnish Jack Jackson Janet Kelley Candace Lewis Tita Parham Catherine Fluck-Price Edwin Santos Jeff Stiggins Kendall Taylor Bill Walker Then, shared their thoughts with the Cabinet for feedback

  7. What is a cluster? • a natural association of 4 – 7 churches gathered around a common disciple-making mission. • Every local church is expected to be in a cluster as an extension of its congregational life reflecting our shared accountability to Christ for fulfilling the Great Commission

  8. What is the purpose of clusters? • To improve the effectiveness and health of local congregations in the Florida Annual Conference as measured by our vision and mission statements, the eight characteristics of healthy churches and Jesus’ Great Commission.

  9. What is a cluster team? • Cluster teams are small communities (8 – 12 persons) of congregational leaders from every church in a cluster accountable for fulfilling Christ’s Great Commission and committed to discerning and following the ever-fresh leading of the Holy Spirit in their disciple-making ministries. • A cluster team meeting is a corporate spiritual discipline that expresses our connectionalism. • Cluster teams will meet a minimum of six times per year.

  10. What is the purpose of cluster teams? Drawing Together Seeking God’s Heart Touching Our World

  11. How will clusters be formed? • Clergy and laity should begin thinking about clusters now. • Clergy should be intentional about educating laity about clusters and involving them in discussions about cluster formation. • The district leadership council will have final authority to set the congregations in each cluster. • By Sept. 30, 2005 all churches will be in a cluster.

  12. Who will participate in cluster teams? • All clergy under appointment. • Laity in equal number. • Lay participants will be selected by their lay leadership committee and approved by their administrative council. • Extension pastors may attend the cluster team for the church with which they associate. • No more than four persons will be involved from one church in a cluster team. • Churches with more than two appointed clergy will participate in more than one cluster team.

  13. What is expected of cluster team participants? • Committed to their congregation fulfilling Christ’s disciple-making commission. • Open to the development of community among participants on the cluster team. • Open to discerning the fresh movement of the Holy Spirit and obedient in following the Spirit’s leading. • Willing to think creatively about fruitful Kingdom work in their local community, rather than institutionally about maintaining their church. • Committed to communicating back to their congregation’s resident leaders what they hear the Spirit saying to the cluster leader team.

  14. What will happen at cluster team meetings? Prayer & Worship Witness & Sharing Learning & Growing

  15. How willCluster Leaders be selected? • Because districts are different, DS’s may choose to select cluster team leaders differently. • In some districts the DS will ask pastors to become cluster leaders. • In some districts, the cluster team, in consultation with the DS, will select the cluster leader during their first couple meetings. • In most cases, cluster leaders will be elders; however, there may be situations where the best leader in a cluster team is a local pastor or a lay person.

  16. How will Cluster Leaders function? • They will be pastoral servants of the cluster team’s participants, purposes and processes. • They will receive ongoing training, beginning with an initial, 24 hour, overnight event in early Nov. • They will receive focus resource material for each cluster meeting. • They will be supervised by the district superintendent. • They will not be involved in appointment making.

  17. Time Table for Implementing Clusters • Sept. 30, 2005 – All churches in a cluster. • Sept. 30, 2005 – Lay participants selected. • Oct. 31, 2005 – Cluster teams will have their initial meeting select a team leader • Early November, 2005 – Cluster team leader initial, 24 hour, overnight training event • Cluster leaders will meet periodically with the DS for supervision, continued training and support.

  18. We expect clusters and cluster teams to bring growth in four areas: • The horizontal connection between congregational leaders who see themselves increasingly as being in ministry in a community that extends beyond their local church. • A fresh focus upon Christ’s Great Commission to His church to make more and better disciples. • A growing sensitivity to hearingand receiving what the Spirit is saying today to a cluster’s congregations. • A new accountability to and effectiveness in being fruitful in ministry.

  19. To Summarize: Clusters will build a vital connection of churches as we . . . Draw Together Seek God’s Heart Touch Our World

  20. No two clusters will be alike! Since God is the fountain of creativity, we assume that cluster teams open to God will be vastly different one from another as they discern and follow His leading.

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