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The Mission Coalition Mission Statement Impassioned by the Holy Spirit; Called by the Father; and, Commissioned by Jesus, we join together to: 1) spread the message of Jesus to those who do not yet know Him; and, 2) To bring all to a deep and abiding relationship with Him. It is our joy, our privilege and our duty to tell others of Jesus and His love. Purpose Statement The Coalition is an intentional association of congregations and individuals committed to mission. Its purpose is to share the good news of Jesus the Christ with all peoples so that all people of the San Joaquin Valley will know and love the Lord Jesus. This will be accomplished by two equal foci:One focus will be to help existing congregations focus on evangelism in order to help their members grow in evangelism skills and to help the congregation grow in new members. Congregations will partner with each other to encourage, support and hold each other accountable to this goal. One focus will be to help the congregations join together in starting and supporting new congregations in the San Joaquin Valley. This will be done through prayer and sharing of time, talents and financial support. A Brief History For several years, pastors of the San Joaquin Valley have met weekly to pray together and to encourage each other in their ministries. A continuing prayer concern was and is the decline in the membership of the Sierra Pacific Synod and in their local parishes.By the leading of the Holy Spirit, these pastors, and the congregations that they serve, formed the Mission Coalition. There were originally 10 congregations and 3 individuals that made up the membership of the coalition. Membership in the Coalition To be a member of the coalition, a congregation must be committed to evangelism.Each congregation will have an evangelism consultant come and work with them to help them grow through intentional outreach to their own neighborhood. Each member congregation will commit 3% of their yearly budget to the coalition; each individual member, $500 per year. Each member congregation and individual member will commit its prayer, along with its time and talents to new mission starts. The Dream The coalition will gather for evangelism workshops and encourage each other in their efforts.The coalition will train its members by sending members from each congregation to national and regional evangelism events. Each congregation will bring in an outside growth consultant for help and advice. The coalition will raise enough monies to fully support new mission starts. The new mission starts will be:Gospel-driven Creative Leadership by team Risk-taking Fully-supported Grace-centered Non-traditional Focused toward the unchurched Spirit-led A new approach to mission in the ELCA The member churches will receive grace upon grace as the excitement of being involved in such an exciting, local mission project reinvigorates their own ministry How can you get involved? Pray for the Mission Coalition, that the new mission starts may be led by and filled with the power of the Holy Spirit. Organize the congregations in your area to form a similar coalition. Support the Mission Coalition as an individual member. Bring your congregation into membership of the Mission Coalition. Contact Us |