Years ago when I started my time as a hospital chaplain at Rex Hospital in Raleigh we spent a few days in training. There was some training that was specific to chaplains, and then there was training for all new employees. This was when HIPPA was becoming a part of our healthcare system in the United States, and much of the training was about those regulations.
I specifically remember one session, led by one of the hospital administrators, in which the focus was on the hospital’s “Mission, Vision, and Values.” It was a very polished and smooth presentation, and this session was applicable to all. Whether you were a neurosurgeon, a cook, a custodian, a chaplain, or a secretary. It was important for everyone to be on the same page when it came to the mission, vision, and values for Rex Healthcare and the larger UNC Hospital System.
Those values have been adjusted and changed since I was there, but they still have them. They now have four values: One Great Team, Carolina Care, Leading the Way, and It Starts with Me. You can read all about these by clicking here.
Whether we name them or not, we all operate under certain “values.” They may be good, or they may be not so good, but we work under a set of values. This is true for individuals, it is true for families, it is true for organizations, businesses, hospitals, and even churches. Values are the habits, practices, behaviors, and beliefs that define who we are and how we operate. We all have them.
May Memorial operates by a set of core values, these may be named or unnamed, but we have them. The things we hold most dear: traditions, behaviors, habits, beliefs, and actions. And in addition to May Memorial’s values, the pastoral staff also has values. Foundational beliefs that undergird everything we say and do. I think there is a great deal of overlap between the pastors’ values and our church’s values, but they are most likely not identical.
Over the next several weeks Pastor Carlisle and I will write in the weekly newsletter about our core values. Some of these will represent core values of the church, and some of these may be unique to Carlisle and me.
Our values are what make us unique as a church, and you deserve to know what Carlisle and I think is most fundamental and important. Be sure to notice each week as we reveal these, and consider along with her and I what is most important.