From Michael
This week we took our annual staff retreat. I was surprised by how much work it turned out to be. We went to Avalon, New Jersey which is a beautiful place, but it was cold and rainy (actually a good thing, because no one was tempted away from our agenda).
The group is a great team who really enjoy being together. They include Tom (my Associate), Maria (Adult Ministry), Chris (Student Ministry), Lisa (Children’s Ministry), Lucas (Creative Director), Brian (Weekend Director), Kathleen (Membership Director) and Kristin (whose title needs some defining because she does a lot of creative things with students and children). Mitch, our Operations guy also joined us and we were led by two of our friends, Jack and Greg.
We spent one day just learning more about one another and our various behavioral and work styles. We used an assessment called the DISC Profile that I found very helpful for building on our strengths as a team and increasing personal effectiveness. The next day was spent discussing themes and series we’re interested in working on for next year and some really exciting ideas emerged (really exciting). The final day we discussed other areas of development for the year ahead and what needs to be accomplished this summer to be ready for the fall. It looks like God wants to take us to a whole new level in the coming year and we returned home with a lot of confidence for what’s next.
By the way, we also had some great meals, thanks to Chris: the guy is just an amazing cook. Pasta, grilled salmon and shrimp, even homemade bread. People are willing to work a lot harder, a lot longer if they know there’s good food on the other end.
