Jan. 23, 2024 Session Meeting Recap
Report from Pastor Jesse Larson
Session met last night and were joined by Simon Yeh (director of SSIP Food Closet) and Tom Busch (member of the SSIP Board), as well as our Presbytery's Stated Clerk, Rev. Jeri Dahlke and the chair of the Presbytery's "Vitality in Ministry" committee (VIM). It was a long meeting, and as always, session members engaged in passionate debate.
A year ago, session agreed to include The Fisherman's House in SSIP's lease and will permit them to do renovations to meet their ever-growing needs. However, because we are in the midst of such transition, we think it is wisest to work with Presbytery and a lawyer to move forward. A motion was passed to submit the amended and restated SSIP lease to a lawyer via Presbytery for review.
Over the past few months, session has determined that we are "in over our heads" concerning our massive property. We have decided that it is best for Presbytery to manage our facility. But, we are still determining how we want to move forward as a church - what is realistic and possible and what isn't.
So, a motion was approved to communicate our support of Vitality in Ministry's motion to establish an Administrative Committee with Original Jurisdiction. Bethany's session will be a part of the steering committee that works with this Administrative Committee to formulate our plan for our future.
Elder Jackie Sneed was elected as a commissioner for the Presbytery meeting on February 3, 2024.
A motion was approved to purchase and install an AED (roughly $1,400). An AED stands for "automated external defibrillator" and is used in the event of a cardiac arrest.
Finally, a motion was approved, starting this Saturday, to allow the storage space in the SCLC building to be used by Faith Presbyterian Church for the monthly "Reaching Out" program. The space will be used to store donations and will be provided at no charge, until a vote by Session changes the situation.
We ask that you hold our session in your prayers as we work through a variety of challenging decisions. for better and for worse, Presbyterian churches are led by a session; we operate as a representational democracy. We accept and respect the decisions made by session, trusting that the Holy Spirit is present in our decisions. Presbytery is offering more and more training for lay leaders in a time when finding a pastor can be difficult.
