Even though we usually sit at a square table, it helps us as a team to make our everyday work a little more ‘rounded’ and reduce rough edges.

We meet approximately every two months. Just finding a date that suits everyone is not always easy, with so many part-time positions, students, parents of young children and employees with multiple jobs. Beforehand, everyone prepares a report on their area or project. The aim here is to give the others a brief written overview of what you are currently working on, to pass on important information or to ask questions to the ‘group’. When compiling the report, you also note down the points you would like to discuss with the team. These are reviewed by the management and thus provide important topics for discussion.

Reporting gives everyone an overview of the projects and work of the employees and helps to promote the perspective and thinking of the entire mission organisation. The opportunity to share and discuss questions and concerns with everyone

Something I really appreciate is that, as a team, we also have the opportunity to listen to God’s voice together and thus make and support decisions together. This sometimes gives us confirmation when we all receive the same answer in different ways, or at least when the signposts point in the same direction.

Now let me take you along to our last round table in June.

One week before the meeting, our managers ask us to prepare our reports. Everyone provides a brief summary of their work or project. The management of the mission organisation then draws up the agenda and the meeting schedule.

These reports enable me to provide a brief overview of whether our expenditure is within budget, for example, or how we are organising our administrative processes. I can familiarise myself with the ongoing projects and thus contribute much more effectively to the discussion. And when I later receive the relevant receipts and invoices, I already have the corresponding story in my head.

After reading the reports, Silvo Z. begins with an input on John 15: ‘Love one another as I have loved you.’ What a challenge in a team full of different personalities and opinions. Nevertheless, this is exactly what we need time and again and what we need to be aware of, because our goal is not for everyone to do their job as well as possible or to promote their project as much as possible, but for us all to build God’s kingdom together.

Next up are discussion points. These naturally vary depending on the day’s work. For example, we hear from Bernard about the development of plentiful.garden. This allows us to support his project and also tell our friends and family about it. Difficulties and hurdles can be shared, and ideas and solutions can be put forward. Bettina shows us the newly developed logo and explains it.

At the end of June, we held our summer party with a duck race, where we were able to discuss any final organisational matters and questions and assign any remaining tasks.

Or after a camp, which only some of us were able to help organise, we get a brief insight and can thus share in the great work and the stories that were experienced.

Everyday tasks, network enquiries, figures, ideas, holiday replacements, things that hinder cooperation and much more end up on our ‘round table’. In addition, we can benefit from the fact that our personalities can be refined, changed and developed. Because we want to be a team that can live and pass on the love of Jesus. Even if we sometimes fail, we want to grow and change for the better. The best thing about it is that we are all on this journey and can always treat each other with love, respect and honesty.

This gives each of us who is responsible for an area or a project the opportunity to share our concerns and thoughts – and, of course, our joy and gratitude – with others. In this way, we can live out our vision and integrate it into our everyday lives: CONNECTED WITH GOD AND PEOPLE – FILLED WITH JESUS – SENT TO PEOPLE. Together, we can work to realise this vision.