Feasibility Study 2014 from Dakotas UMC on Vimeo.

I invite you to join me in embracing God’s unlimited imagination! Imagine launching 10 new churches and/or multi-site ministries in the Dakotas Conference over the next seven years. Imagine equipping more than 100 congregations to start a new life cycle in that same time frame. Imagine preparing leaders to pursue congregational renewal and grow healthy churches.  Imagine reaching thousands of the 58% of Dakotans, many of them new residents, not currently involved in a congregation or faith community.

                                    Bishop Bruce R. Ough, resident bishop, Dakotas-Minnesota Area

Did you know that over 58% of the population in the Dakotas Conference is not affiliated with a church?  Of those people that do claim an affiliation to a church only 44% attend church on a regular basis. 

A plan is developed

The Equipping Missional Congregations Link in collaboration with the Dakotas Conference Common Table has developed a plan to reach out to those who are not active members of a church community.  The plan calls for starting new churches and transforming current churches throughout the Dakotas. 

The specifics efforts for the vision have been articulated in a case statement.  Leaders throughout the Dakotas Conference drafted the case statement including the: Common Table, Equipping Missional Congregations Link, and the Extended Cabinet. 

Outcomes in the plan specify starting 10 new churches in the next seven years and transforming 40% of the current churches in the Dakotas Conference.  The plan also calls for mentoring, coaching and teaching local church leaders so they are equipped to live out the vision. 

Where will the funds come from?

The vision for congregational development requires a major funding effort.   The Dakotas Annual Conference voted in June to conduct a feasibility study to determine if the conference is ready for a capital campaign to raise funds for congregational development.  The resolution to conduct the study was affirmed at the twenty-first session held in Rapid City, South Dakota.

A consulting firm, Tyler Associates has begun the tasks of gathering information through interviews and an online survey.  The data collected will inform the conference of the readiness to launch a capital funding campaign.

Your input is needed

Bishop Bruce R. Ough invites everyone throughout the Dakotas Conference to give input into the Capital Campaign Feasibility Study by taking an online survey.

“We want to involve all United Methodists throughout the Dakotas in this conference-wide feasibility study.  Please take the opportunity to participate.  It will take just a few minutes, and your input will help the Conference achieve its vision to be a more adaptive, more fruitful, more faithful expression of the Kingdom of God. “

Responses to the survey are completely confidential.  Tyler Associates, the consultant conducting the feasibility study will prepare a report of the responses without identifying any one person or group. 

“Please keep this effort in your prayers as we seek to honor God in all we do,” said Bishop Ough.

Feasibility Study 2014 from Dakotas UMC on Vimeo.