“What’s happening next with Rise?”
Redeemer’s elders and the staff executive leadership team have set two overarching goals for the 2016-17 ministry year. These church-wide goals are intended to place extraordinary cross-ministry emphasis on particular areas that are critical for our long-term strategy and future. The two goals are:
1. Finalize the plan for particularizing into three churches, including the financial, legal, operational and movement architecture, while continuing to optimize performance of the collegiate model and launch our first site.
2. Equip congregants to rise where they are and faithfully discern God’s calling to actively engage the city with the gospel through their relationships, neighborhoods and industries.
Both of these goals tie directly to the Rise vision of becoming a movement of people and churches that work throughout the city to help our neighbors flourish.
Allocation of Funds: Initial approvals to begin in June
The Redeemer Session (elders) is responsible for overseeing and approving Redeemer spending and money allocation. There are already plans of how to invest the collected funds in the Rise campaign projects.Starting this June, the Session will work with the staff of Redeemer and City to City to determine how to initially invest those funds wisely.
Church Planting: West Side Site Launch planned for 2017
We are excited to announce the launch of our first of three new Redeemer sites. The launch will be led out of our West Side Congregation by Reverend Michael Keller, currently the Director of Reformed University Fellowship City Campus Ministry in Manhattan. On July 1, he will join the West Side staff to prepare for an expected launch date in mid-2017.
Please be praying for Michael and his family and for the continued search for the new westside location and venue.
Vocational Ministry Pipeline: Seminary scholarships offered for the first time
To develop pastors and ministry leaders for the city, Redeemer City to City launched an accredited academic seminary degree in NYC offered by and in partnership with Reformed Theological Seminary. This degree program is designed to give a comprehensive biblical education as the basis for ministry. This program is a key part of our strategy for supplying a pipeline of pastors to serve the city through time. Through Rise funding we are offering scholarship awards to 23 incoming and returning students so far.
Lay Leader Development: A working group started and focus groups are in process
An internal team of Redeemer staff is working towards a new model of lay leadership training and development. The team consists of Abe Cho, John Lin, David Kim, Susan Nacorda, Bijan Mirtolooi, Max Anderson, Ed Sirya, and Amilee Watkins. As part of that project, we have hired an external firm, the Barna Group, to conduct focus groups with congregants, staff, and officers to assess the state of lay development, spiritual growth and discipleship at Redeemer today.
East Side Worship Center: We have received counsel on costs and options
In the past six months Redeemer hired an external firm, Wells Hill Partners, to advise the elders and staff on real estate development opportunities and costs for an East Side Ministry Center. It is important to note the timeframe for any property purchase or development is likely several years away. We need to raise the remaining amount for our project budget and then collect the money in order to have the capital needed to move ahead. However, a few large gifts could set the process in motion sooner. We also continue to look at possible properties so that we could potentially submit an offer as soon as funds are available.
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