A Note from Pastor Tutwiler
I want to invite you to
consider making Our
Savior Lutheran a more
caring and connected
church. We are launching
a new initiative – Adults
Connecting Together –
designed to enhance how
we care, communicate,
and connect with one
another. Take a few
minutes to review this
material and then I’ll let you
know how you can help.
Pastor Tutwiler
Adults Connecting Together
In 2007 Our Savior conducted a church-wide
survey. Two desires showed up again and
again:
1) Better Connections - Many people felt like they didn’t know
others and were having a hard time getting connected.
2) Better communication – Many people felt like they didn’t
know what was going on and were unsure of who to talk to
when they had questions or concerns.
The Background
In response to these desires the leadership of Our Savior
implemented a number of solutions with mixed results.
Small groups were emphasized, which have proven to be a
meaningful place of connection. But at this point small groups
have only touched about 10% of OSL members.
In order to connect a larger portion of the congregation, every
member was assigned to an elder, but again, the
participation in those gatherings fell short of what was hoped for.
Response to the Survey
Biblical Foundation
… … Love your Love your
neighbor as neighbor as
yourself …yourself …
Matthew 22:39
It’s in light of this background that the leadership of OSL is
launching a new initiative in order to connect every member,
both in relationships and in communication. We’re calling the
effort:
Adults Connecting Together
or ACTs for short.
The Way Forward
Enhance communication
Build new relationships
Strengthen current relationships
Expand care within the OSL family
Objectives
ACTs is designed to:
Picture of the PresentOur Savior Lutheran Church
334 families 987 members At present OSL is made
up of 334 member
families. Of this
number, some are well
connected in a small
group or Sunday
School class, or they’ve
just been around long
enough to know a fair
number of people and
to be in the know.
Picture of the PresentOur Savior Lutheran Church
334 families 987 members When life hits – like a
job loss, the connected
people have people to
turn to, people who
can pray for them and
encourage them and
serve them, like
bringing a meal when
needed. These people
are connected to
people who are
connected to other
people who can help.
Loss of job
Prayer Chain, Stephen Ministry, Meals, etc.
Picture of the PresentOur Savior Lutheran Church
334 families 987 members But consider what
happens when life hits
one of the many
members who are not
well connected. A
member suffers a job
loss. Where does this
person turn for support
and help in time of
need?
Loss of job
Prayer Chain, Stephen Ministry, Meals, etc.
Loss of job
???
???
A Recent ExampleLet me give you an example from earlier
this year. One of our members suffered
the loss of their house in a fire. While a
few people knew of the event and
responded, most people remained
unaware.
Our response to the need was less than what we would have desired. Since that time as people hear of this story, the response is the same: “I wish I had known, I would have liked to help.”
ACTs is designed to help on both fronts: we know when people are in need and we mobilize the resources of OSL to meet those needs. As a result, people are connected and cared for.
How ACTs Will WorkHere’s how ACT will work: Everyone is connected to someone. No
one is responsible for more than four people.
So we have four people we will call Tier 1. Each of the four on Tier 1
is connected to four more people. Now we have Tier 1 with 4 people
and Tier 2 with 16. Each of the 16 are connected to four people
forming a Tier 3 made up of 64 people.
Each of Tier 3 are connected to four people,
giving us 256 families on Tier 4 and a total of
340 families all connected to one another.
Remember how many families are at Our Savior
– 334. So we have everyone connected.
Here is a picture of ACT …
The Basic ACT Structure
4
16
64
256
340
ACTAdminOur Savior Lutheran Church
334 families 987 members
ACTs in ActionNow when someone has a need or a question, they know at least
one person to call – the person overseeing their four. That person
may not have an answer, but they can pass on the issue to the
person overseeing them. When a major need arises, like a house
burning down, we can spread the word throughout the entire ACT
structure.
ACTs in ActionImagine the difference ACT would make in responding to a house fire.
Within hours we have meals organized for the next two weeks.
Stephen Ministry is alerted and has someone onsite providing support.
Others provide a change of clothes and toothbrushes for the entire
family. Within two days realtors in the church have identified several
rental properties for the family to look at for temporary housing. You
get the picture: both the one receiving and the one giving are blessed
as they experience the joy of being a part of God’s church family.
Here’s a picture of
ACTs in action …
ACTs in ActionACT
Admin
Loss of jobor house
“Everyone connected to someone, no one walks alone.”
Coordinates the mobilization of OSL to connect people with the people and resources to meet the need.
ACTs Benefits Better connected
Better informed
A place to ask questions and get answers
A better OSL
ACTs Communication
ACTs is designed to communicate: Church wide programs
Benevolence/people issues
Emergencies
Vision/goal updates
Questions regarding programs or goals
ACTs CommunicationACTs is NOT designed to communicate:
Personal projects and businesses
Gossip
Misdirected complaints and criticisms
Violations of the 8th commandment
ACTs CommunicationOn all ACTs communications you will find on the subject line: Our Savior/ACTs: (Our Savior/ACTs: (subject of e-mailsubject of e-mail))
ACTs: Next Steps
At present the four Tier 1 slots are filled and the twenty Tier 2 slots are filled. We now look to fill the sixty four Tier 3 slots.
ACTs is launching in a beta phase where each Tier 2 leader will oversee a group of 20 families. Over the next two months, Tier 3 leaders will be identified in each group of 20.
We need you to step up and fill a Tier 3 slot.
This means overseeing four families who will each be overseeing four families. Please contact Art Hinrichs to let him know of your interest in helping out. You can reach Art at [email protected].
A look at the present matrix with actual names …
ACTs Implementation
Hinrichs
Burg
ess
Gorm
an
Korte
Taylor
Kind
ler
Knig
ht
You
ng
Ch
ristian
sen
Birm
ing
ha
m
Klovstad
Nim
tz
Scrabe
ck
Whalen
You
ng
Zappe
Kram
er
Janco
Stevens
Carpenter
Cargill Tier 2
Tier 1
ACTs Administrator
ACTs FAQHow do I communicate with the four I oversee?
Communication primarily takes place over e-mail.
What if I don’t know the answer to a question or am not in a position to do anything about the problem?
You will be provided with training and resources to help you know where to send people for most of the questions you will encounter. When you don’t know an answer, simply pass the question up to the person overseeing you and they will assist. Your primary role is not meeting every need, but in connecting people with the people who can meet their need.
Will this require a lot of meetings?
There will be one or two training sessions early on, but once the program is up and running we don’t anticipate the need for many meetings.
ACTs FAQWhat if someone has a lot of complaints or criticisms?
One goal of ACTs is to help people not fall into the sin of gossip and violate the 8th Commandment. We do this by making clear we won’t participate in gossip. At the same time we want people to talk to the right people about their concerns. We’ll show you how you can re-direct a person to voice their concerns to the person.
Is ACTs going to fill my inbox with a lot of e-mail?
We will limit the kinds of communication that can be sent on the ACTs structure. It will not be used for personal announcements.
Will this require a lot of time?
Once we are up and running, the primary time will be checking in with your four every couple of weeks through e-mail. If a major event takes place, we’ll need to scramble and help out, but for the most part we don’t anticipate this take a lot of time to maintain.
A Final Word from Pastor Tutwiler
I believe ACT will be used
by God to bless our
congregation. The question
for you: will you help make
it happen?
I’ll be praying for you as
you consider what role God
would have you play in
making us a caring and
connected church.
Pastor Tutwiler