The Presbyterian Church of Deep Run is a church in which God’s love is nurtured by its parishioners and shared with each other. We are at our best when we carry each other’s burdens. The mutual concern and tender mercies foster the cohesiveness of the congregation. There is a distinct sense of community that we feel sets us apart and should remain vibrant in the future, even as we grow. It is vital that we continue to carry on mission work and service to others within our congregation, our community, and our world.
In studying our history and culture, we have come to understand that we have functioned at times as both a pastor-centered church and a program-centered church. While the lay leadership of the church has become more empowered over recent years and has become a solid foundation for the administration, programs, and spirituality of the congregation, Deep Run still relies heavily upon its pastoral leadership to lead us in directing our energies and resources. We realize that we have become better at working together and collaborating with each other. We have also come to realize that, when we take on leadership responsibility, we are able to have a more collaborative relationship with our pastor. So as we look forward to establishing a relationship with our next installed pastor, we are seeking someone who is able to combine being a strong pastoral leader with working as part of a leadership team to help Deep Run become the church that God wants us to be.
In our last vision statement prepared in 2009, we envisioned working toward some specific goals—developing greater lay leadership, becoming a more mission-minded congregation, seeking greater participation in adult educational opportunities, and expanding our spiritual growth. We have worked hard to accomplish these goals. We now see these as some of the strengths of our congregation. We believe we have in place the leadership and programs so that these areas of church life will continue to be a strength even as we look to developing new priorities.
As we envision the future with our next installed pastor, the congregation has made known that it has particular aims and goals. The congregation has made it known that it wants to make ministry to families, youth, and children a high priority. Since our congregation is concerned not just about today, but about our future, we realize that we must make a stronger effort to attract and retain families, youth, and children. We realize that developing our priorities in this area will likely mean that some of the next pastor’s time, talents, and energies will not be as focused on some other areas of church life. But, we believe that prioritizing family ministry is best for Deep Run over time.
As Deep Run looks to the future, it does so with a mixture of hope and apprehension. Yet, we know that it is only by trusting more completely in God and by having faith in Jesus Christ that we can be the church God wants us to be. We are ready and willing to make the adjustments, the adaptations, and the sacrifices to truly be Christ’s church here at Deep Run.
Adopted by the session of the Presbyterian Church of Deep Run November 12, 2015