Colossians 3:14 (NIV) FUMCLV Where we Love God, Love Others, & Reach the World in 2026 and Beyond

Transcription

1 And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity. Colossians 3:14 (NIV) FUMCLV Where we Love God, Love Others, & Reach the World in 2026 and Beyond It is now the year 2026, and the First United Methodist Church of Lawrenceville is alive and buzzing with a renewed spirit. The congregation has not only continued to grow in Christ but also has continued to grow with each other. The years that we have spent intentionally investing in each other have further united us as a church family that is working together to build up the Kingdom of God. We are known by our community as a church that devotes all of who we are to Christ. Through our worship, discipleship and missions, new life is continually breathed into the congregation. We come to services with holy expectation and with minds and hearts completely focused on God. We are united in Christ, so that any barriers that might have separated us are broken. We know that studying the Bible, praying, singing, and celebrating Holy Communion are not KEY POINTS solitary experiences - they are communal events where we can experience God while growing closer together. IN 2026 We also know Lawrenceville and Gwinnett County. We have taken the time to learn who our community is - its needs, concerns, joys, and passions. We are out in our community using our gifts to build relationships of Christian love. The congregation is empowered to go forth and serve in whatever ways God calls it - in the name of, and with the blessing of, the First United Methodist Church of Lawrenceville. We are known by our community as a church that devotes all of who we are to Christ. Bible study, prayer, worship, and Holy Communion are not seen as solitary events. In 2026, our church is: 1. God-focused in all areas as we strive for excellence 2. United in purpose, united in Christ 3. Focused on laity ownership & involvement 4. Intergenerational and welcoming to all cultures 5. Consistent and timely in our communications 6. Committed to serving the faculty, staff and students at Georgia Gwinnett College. Page 1 of 7

2 God is spirit, and His worshipers must worship in the Spirit and in truth. John 4:24 (NIV) Love God through Passionate Worship In 2026, there are opportunities to attend both traditional and modern worship services that unite the youth and adults so that we can worship together on a weekly basis. Age, race, or gender do not determine which service we attend because we believe in multigenerational worship, and we welcome all cultures to engage in Christ-centered worship. Together we are a united family committed to supporting, loving, and nurturing one another so that we can remain a strong body. Our church has multiple service times, styles and locations (both on and off campus), so that we may worship God in a variety of ways: 1) Sunday Morning Worship: There are opportunities for both modern and traditional services that unite youth and adults to connect, shape, teach and sustain us. The time we spend in worship of God together is the most important hour of the week. Children s Studio services (1 st through 5 th grades) are planned carefully to allow children to participate in their own worship and draw them into the understanding of what it means, at any age, to have a relationship with Christ and be a disciple of Jesus. 2) Evening Worship Services: Held at various times and days throughout the year. Held at various locations to experience God in a variety of settings: Sanctuary Warehouse Campground Family Center 3) Celebration Services Regularly scheduled throughout the year and occasionally held at different church facilities. Designed to bring adults, youth and children together in order to celebrate our blessings, accomplishments, spiritual growth and our flourishing missions. Children are given opportunities to experience and participate in worship (such as reading Scripture or being ushers). 4) Prayer Services While prayer is an integral part of all that we do, specific prayer services are scheduled to bring about healing and ask for intercession from the Holy Spirit for our congregation, our community and our world. Page 2 of 7

3 God is spirit, and His worshipers must worship in the Spirit and in truth. John 4:24 (NIV) Love God through Passionate Worship (TIMELINE) We prayerfully evaluated feedback and took action to transition all our worship services to a bold new level of excellence - regardless of time, place and style. A congregation-wide prayer service was held to kick off the journey season in late summer We held our first Celebration Service and we began to see a powerful shift toward unity and Christ-centered passion in our worship experience We conducted focus groups to gather specific feedback on strengths and weaknesses of the new worship services to ensure that we are continually welcoming to all cultures and generations. We reimagined the Family Center as a Fellowship Hall that naturally draws people in from worship and our times of Christian education but can also be used as a place of worship We held evening worship services and extended an invitation to faculty, staff and students from Georgia Gwinnett College. Church leadership continually reevaluates the effectiveness of changes We celebrated our church family being fully unified in our love and desire for Christ centered worship - no matter the time, place or style. Page 3 of 7

4 Your love for one another will prove to the world that you are my disciples. John 13:35 (NLT) Love Others through Strong Discipleship In 2026, our relationships are not put on hold when we exit the building. We continue to pray, study, and serve together outside of the church doors. We have enabled laity to take on leadership, initiative and responsibility in the life of the church. There is an expectation for laity ownership and involvement which is being passionately met by the congregation. The clergy and staff became not the people who do the ministry of the church but rather the team that facilitates the ministry of the church. Our congregation leaders are recognized, involved and communicated to the church so that everyone knows who they are. Through life groups and spiritual assessment tools, we are able to help each other discern and strengthen our spiritual gifts. Where we previously saw scarcity, God saw abundance. This has allowed us to encourage each other to understand our individual and group callings as well as to be involved in the areas in which we have a natural talent. This discernment ultimately strengthened, and continues to strengthen, our body of believers. Our various life groups are a foundational aspect of the discipleship that spreads through FUMCLV, and there is a multitude of options for involvement: Life groups: Offer tailored opportunities to address unique concerns of particular groups (youth, college age, singles, married couples, seniors, etc.) at all stages of their Christian walk and vary from intense Bible study groups to prayer groups to small covenant groups. Groups vary in size, can be short or long term and held on or off campus: Short term o Sign-ups occur several times a year, and at the end of a session, people sign up for new groups or expand and multiply existing groups. o People from outside our church are encouraged to join our short-term life groups. We ve found that many people frequently stay with our church once they have become involved. Long term study and accountability groups o Sunday School classes and Bible studies (including Disciple) still exist and continue to thrive. o Small covenant/accountability groups are transforming lives. Community Bible Studies o Meet in places that are more visible to the community: o Gwinnett Medical o Local coffee shops o Georgia Gwinnett College o Individual homes o Participants study together while also encouraging those around to take part as well. o We offer weekday morning devotionals with area teachers that take place in the schools prior to the start of the school day. Page 4 of 7

5 Your love for one another will prove to the world that you are my disciples. John 13:35 (NLT) Love Others through Strong Discipleship (TIMELINE) The fall of 2016 saw more life groups forming to deepen relationships and provide spiritual nurturing Through the life groups, a process was developed that helped us to understand God s calling in our lives by understanding our individual spiritual gifts and how we might be able to use our gifts for the good of our church. It was amazing to see how the Holy Spirit moved through us by calling members and equipping them to take on leadership roles We continued making connections with each other through community Bible Study and using our spiritual gifts in mentoring for Biblical leadership. In the fall of 2021, we held our first weekday morning devotionals with teachers at the area schools prior to the school day We continued equipping leaders, both youth and adult, with the skills they needed for their new leadership roles. The role of the clergy and staff continued to evolve allowing them to focus their energies on empowering the laity to be in mission and ministry. Page 5 of 7

6 Then he said, "Go into the world. Go everywhere and announce the Message of God's good news to one and all. Mark 16:15 (MSG) TIMELINE Reach the World through Christ-Centered Missions In 2026, the people of the First United Methodist Church of Lawrenceville don t just go to church, we ARE the church, and we exist for the world. We recognize the importance of growing together as Christians, and we know that it is our mission to share Christ s love with the world. In fact, Christ gave us the Great Commission which our church embraces whole-heartedly. We constantly seek to see where Christ is already at work in the community and how we can join Him. God has led us to focus on how to reach new people with the Gospel, nurture them into disciples of Christ, and then into apostles of Christ. Our focus is no longer on doing missions to our community, but on doing missions with our community, and as a church, our service is thriving. Some of the people our church serves include the homeless, unemployed, incarcerated, elderly, hungry, sick and needy. Our church-wide missions seek to follow these criteria: 1. Be transformational, not transactional. 2. Proclaim the Gospel by our actions and our words God strengthened us to put the UNITED back in FUMCLV and confront our challenges and implement change We prayerfully evaluated ALL programs to discern what God was calling us to do, and those programs that did not meet the missional criteria were discontinued or restructured. The programs that met the criteria for missions continued to thrive and began to have more congregational involvement Our ministries thrived as life groups grew, and the adults and youth became more connected as we worked to join God where His Holy Spirit was already at work within the community We changed our focus from doing missions TO the community to working WITH the community by collectively shifting our thinking from programs to the disciple making process. Page 6 of 7

7 And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through Him. Colossians 3:17 (NIV) Hospitality Although we have built strong connections with each other through our life group ministry, we also strive to welcome new people into our growing family. Our greeters are trained to identify visitors and to connect them with a church member who will make sure that they never leave our church feeling unnoticed or unwelcomed. Follow-up with visitors is key, and we take our responsibility to them very seriously. Communications We are utilizing technology to help promote clear and concise communication about church events, Sunday school classes, various life groups and Bible studies, as well as opportunities for service. Our website is dynamic and appealing and allows for subscriptions based on desired content (children s ministry, youth ministry, life groups, specific missions and prayer lists). Even though we re using more technological advancements for communication, we still recognize the value of face-to-face contact. Face-to-face, eye-to-eye and heart-to-heart interaction is what God is calling us to do, and we understand that a personal invitation is vital to bringing new people into our church. Our passion for people can even be seen on Sunday mornings in the parking lot as members eagerly guide people into the church or run into the rain to cover someone who forgot an umbrella. KEY POINTS IN 2026 Hospitality We strive to welcome new people into our growing family Follow-up with visitors is key Communications We utilize technology to deliver clear and concise communication about all church events Our website is dynamic and appealing, and allows for subscriptions based on desired content Face-to-face communication is highly valued At the First United Methodist Church of Lawrenceville, we are making disciples of Jesus Christ who: Love God through passionate worship. Love Others through strong discipleship. Reach the World through Christ-Centered missions. Page 7 of 7