The Burning Platform: Why do we need to do anything differently?

The Burning Platform was discerned through the MAPP Process. In particular, at the Current Reality Workshop and early meetings of the MAPP Team.

• Lack of Growth: The congregation went through a significant decline in average worship attendance from 444 in 2000 to about 350 today. The rate of declining population in the study area of Macomb and its immediate surroundings is slowing from 8.1% decline from 1990 to 2000, and 3.3% from 2000 – 2008, to a forecast 1.7% decline in the next five years.
• Do we have a heart for people who don’t know Christ? The community seems to be going through a projected transition in the mix of residents. Early Adolescents (ages 11 – 14), through College/Career Start (ages 20 – 24), age groups are expected to decline from 4788 in 2008 to 2359 in 2013. However, during that same period, Preschool (ages 3 -5) and Early Adolescent (ages 5 – 10), age groups are expected to climb from 1644 to 2218. Singles and Young Families are expected to grow even faster from 3924 to 6137. The unreached opportunity to transform young lives for Jesus Christ is significant and changing.
• Hospitality is lacking: The assessment and congregational survey completed early in the MAPP process both revealed a lack of radical hospitality, or as some members of the MAPP team at the Vision Retreat preferred to name it, “caring” hospitality. Wesley’s door to the community represented by the hospitality and worship experience that visitors would likely experience if nothing changes was largely inadequate at the time of the on-site assessment.
• Worship lacks passion: There is a general feeling that worship at both services lacks passion.
• We are losing our children and youth: While adult Christian education is doing rather well, children and especially youth have been on a steady decline. Some preliminary action has already been taken with the hiring of a part time coordinator of Christian education. There is a strong desire to add a full time youth director and a recognition that the current Associate Pastor does not feel comfortable in the role of youth director, creating a dilemma that the Staff/Parish Relations Committee is addressing.
• Families have been drifting away: Wesley UMC has been steadily becoming irrelevant in the lives of people under age 35. There were only 6 people, ages 20 -34 who responded to the congregational survey, while 48 people over age 75 responded. There is a huge disparity in ages of the congregation compared to the community. 20 - 34 year olds make up 37.9% of the study area, while those combined age groups make up only 2.4% of the respondents to the congregational survey. By contrast, the percentage of people age 50 and over is only 25.3% of the study area, but 73% of the congregation.
• Missions are seldom hands-on: While the congregation is generous in its support of missions, especially global missions, few people are actively serving in mission or service opportunities. There is an awareness of this and plans are under way to help people get involved in local mission opportunities.
• We have experienced conflict and many are hurting. There is a need to come together in Christian unity, loving each other and actively working to bring about healing in our congregation.
• Not sure of our direction: We need to clearly discern God’s vision for our ministry going forward and embrace and rally around that vision.