Hello RockPointe!

Stafford Greer, Lead Site Pastor

You’ve likely seen the invitation to join me and the Lead Team for a Fireside Chat this Sunday, March 29, 6pm at Bowridge and you might be wondering, “what is this all about?” For some, church meetings can cause some anxiety or be viewed only as ‘bad news meetings.’ That is understandable - frequently in the past, meetings like these have been used as a chance to communicate bad news after the fact with the congregation.

We want to change that perception and practice! In an effort to increase communication with our church body, myself and the Lead Team have begun to schedule quarterly ‘fireside chats’ in an effort to share our heart, communicate vision, celebrate God-stories, and talk about challenges that we’re working through.

In order to help us have a successful first fireside chat, I’ve put together some potential FAQs that we might be thinking about:

Who is part of the Lead Team?

Presently, the Lead Team is made of the Lead Site Pastor (Stafford Greer), the Executive Pastor of Ministry (Nathan Kliewer), the Executive Pastor of Operations (Ryan Brammer), and the Pastor of Missions and Outreach (Ron Gray).

Fireside Chat? Is that the same as Town Halls that RockPointe has had in the past?

Not really. I mean, there are some similarities: it’s an open meeting for RockPointers to gather and to hear from the Pastor, but it differs in that we want to use our time together to share about the things that are happening around RockPointe Church. Think of it less as a Q&A session, and more as a chance to hear the heart of the pastors, to celebrate what God is doing, and to be invited into the next season of ministry at RockPointe.

What is this meeting really about? I’m skeptical that this meeting isn’t about bad news.

Hey, that’s fair, and honestly, we are going to be talking about some of the real challenges we are facing as a church, but it is not a meeting to drop a ‘bad news bomb’ on the church.

Ok, that’s good to know, but I still don’t fully understand what this meeting is about; can you share more about the evening?

Absolutely! We’ll start our time together with a personal update from me (Pastor Stafford). sharing about how our family is doing, what is exciting, etc. I know that I don’t get to connect regularly with everyone at our sites so I want to use our time together to give everyone a brief insight into how we’re doing.We’ll then share some God-stories that are happening around RockPointe Church to encourage one another and celebrate God’s faithfulness. We’ve got some God-stories planned to share, but this might be a great time for you to share a God-story from your ministry, small group, or personal life! We’ll then share some of the challenges facing RockPointe Church - primarily our financial health and attendance trends - and some of the plans and steps we’re taking to address these challenges. Then we’ll conclude our time together with some corporate prayer and fellowship together afterwards. I’m really looking forward to it and trust that it will be a formative time for our church in this season!

I have questions about [fill in the blank], will I be able to get answers to that at this meeting?

That’s hard for me to answer (because I don’t know what the [fill in the blank] question is); we’re not planning to have an ‘open’ Q&A time at this meeting. But just because there isn’t an open Q&A time, doesn’t mean that you can’t get your questions answered! The email addresses for staff and elders are available at rockpointe.ca/about/staff and rockpointe.ca/about/elders-board and I know that our staff and elders would love to connect with you if you were to reach out. 

You mentioned that this might be the first of multiple Fireside Chats? Can you say more?

Absolutely! We’ve recognized that as pastors and elders we need to find more ways to communicate with the church body and that video announcements and newsletters can really do only so much. We also don’t want things like Fireside Chats to trigger “Bad News!” emotions. So, we’re planning ahead and scheduling our next couple Fireside Chats for the rest of the year so that we have meetings planned in advance that provide a space to communicate with one another, share the heart of the pastors, and better involve the congregation in the life of the church moving forward. We have Fireside Chats planned for June, and October with final dates TBD.

Will there be childcare?

Not this time, although feel free to bring your family to this evening and have them join us together! We’ll assess if childcare is something that we need to plan for with future meetings like this.

So… are we voting on anything at this meeting?

No, this is not a business meeting of the church and it is open to anyone (you don’t have to be a member). There are no motions, approvals, or votes taking place. Our Annual General Meeting will be taking place in late-September where we will do the “business of the church.”

Ok, I think I’m planning to come, but I have to know will there be snacks?

YES! Meetings always go better with snacks and refreshments! We’ll have some available for everyone to help keep us from getting ‘hangry’ and to help lubricate conversations and fellowship together afterwards.

I am looking forward to our time together and hope that you’ll be able to join us this Sunday, 6pm at Bowridge! See you there!

Press on!

Stafford