At the October 1 Worship Grant Project Meeting we discussed the next steps for our study.
Focus Groups Assembled
Here is the list of the six focus groups with the contact person listed.
• Worship Furniture (Bev Marcus)
• Space for Music (Wilson B)
• Seating (Marly B)
• Sound, Lighting, Media, and Power (Chad U)
• Hospitality and Fellowship (Linda B)
• Visual Arts (Kerry B)
If you were not at the meeting and need to join a focus group, you may contact the person listed on the specific group or email Pastor Jeff.
Focus Group Expectations
Each Focus Group will be asked to:
• Read the specific section on your topic in Reader Packet II or III
• Meet with focus group and discuss ideas before the end of November
• Meet with the Worship Grant Core Team by mid-December
• Near the end of January, we will have each focus group present their ideas to all the focus groups
Worship Space and the Visual Arts Conference
We have tentatively set the date for our Worship Space and the Visual Arts Conference for February 16 & 17
• Potential Guest Speakers: William Dyrness, Mark Torgerson, Betsy Steele Halstead, Nicolas Wolterstorff
Highlighting the Project
We discussed the interest level of having classes on Worship Space, and decided that the most effective means of communicating about the project and gaining enthusiasm for it would be a 10-15 highlight of the project on a Sunday morning in January, before the Conference.
Visits to Churches
Once the study of worship space has begun, we will have groups of people travel to other churches to "read" their worship space.
• Some Saturday evening services or Sunday evening services, mostly in Twin Cities area - weekends in Oct, Nov, Dec
• The goal is to have each group present to all the focus groups near the end of January
Next Full Meeting
The next item for those involved in the project is reading and meeting with their specific focus groups before the end of November. We will have another meeting with everyone prior to that point to discuss as a whole group the following questions:
• Do you agree that Worship Space communicates what we believe about God, our church, and the gospel?
• Have you ever thought much about the value of worship space before?
• Is it important to have theology inform our decisions about worship space?
• Was anything you read helpful or insightful to you?
• Were there any tensions that you noticed? How will we decide on those?
• What does history teach us about the issues related to worship?
• How do you think this project will help us generate worship renewal in our church? Is there enough enthusiasm for working on this?
