Well, what do you know?

From a Previous Post:

Have the church membership split up between the elders/deacons of the church. Have each one responsible for keeping in touch with the families that are assigned to them. If a family misses 2 or more weeks of services, have them contact the family to make sure that everything is alright. Send out anniversary and birthday cards as appropriate to their families. If a family has a need, they are to contact the elder first, then the elder will contact the pastor if they are not able to meet the need or if they determine that the pastor would be the appropriate one to handle the situation. This frees the pastor to focus on the most important needs of the church, and it also has someone besides the pastor responsible for the congregation and their needs. 

Too many churches think that the only one who should keep up with the members and their needs are the pastor. The elders look upon themselves as the group that tells the pastor what to do. They don’t have to do anything themselves, except maybe pray over someone occasionally.

When a church is new and just starting out, the pastor is the one who does most of the work. But once a solid congregation begins to form, positions in the church are filled and ministries are put into place, then it is time for others to really step up and take on their share of the responsibility. One way to do this is for the elders/deacons of the church to share in the ministry of the congregation.

These are the people who are supposed to be above reproach in your church, and should be comfortable ministering to anyone, whether in the church or the community. So split the congregation up among them. You can use the alphabet, geographic location or any sensible way of dividing the membership. Let each elder/deacon have a copy of the people who they are being given charge over. Share as much information as possible. Then the elders/deacons should make sure that they gather all pertinent information that may be missing. If the elder/deacon is unfamiliar with this particular family, have them contact the family and make an appointment to visit them. If a family that is assigned to them misses church for 2 or more weeks, have them contact the family to ensure that everything is alright. Birthday, Anniversary, Sympathy cards should be sent as appropriate. Have the elder/deacon deliver the card to the person in charge of mailing all church matters so that the church can pay for the cost of postage, unless the elder/deacon chooses to provide that themselves as an offering to God, not their tithe.

Issue a list to each family showing who is assigned to which elder/deacon, and make sure that all contact information is provided, especially cell phones if available in case of an emergency.

It is hard for a pastor to visit each and every family regularly, and this takes some of the load off of the pastor so that they can dedicate their time to the most needy at the moment.

Everyone wins with the effort. The church tends to be alerted easier if there are any needs of a family, the members know that someone cares about them, and the Pastor can minister to the most needy of all.

Of course, the pastor should always have an open door policy for anyone who would like to speak with him. This is not a replacement for the pastor’s role in counseling. It just allows more time for any counseling that is needed.

11 Part Series: How to Maintain a Successful Church

** For anyone who hasn't realized it, this blog is updated on Monday, Wednesday, Friday **
** Each part will be posted on these days **

I've talked some about worship and different areas of a basic church setup. I now want to post what I use for a church that I've pastored and any others that I will pastor. This goes back to help answer a question that I asked in the first blog; "How do you measure church growth?" There are many ways, but a church that follows this basic guideline will be more apt to succeed. I'm going to tear this apart for the next 10 postings and look at many facets that makes this successful.

How to have a successful church:

1.    Find people that are an appropriate fit for your church committee:

a.     If you have a Building and Grounds committee, put your carpenters, plumbers, electricians, contractors, painters, roofers, landscapers, etc on the committee. That way if you need something fixed, you know who is a possible source in your church, plus you can use their expertise to verify what the repair person is telling you.

b.    Put people who work in the financial industry (banks, credit unions, CFO’s, etc on your finance committee.

c.     Nominations committee should have people on it who have been ACTIVE in the church for several years. By active I mean, that they have done more than sat on a committee and showed up at meetings. Someone who leads a group, and/or is involved in an active part of a ministry of the church. These are the people who will be aware of others that have the drive and desire to further the ministry of the church.

d.    Children and Youth committees need to have someone who has a child that is full time in their home in that age group. A senior or junior in high school should serve on the committee (rules can determine if they have a vote or not) so that the young people have a voice in what happens in their ministry. Kids know what kids want. Adults can decide if it is appropriate or not.

e.     Pass out a form with a list of the committees and their responsibilities to the congregation for them to read at least a month before nominations are held. Have interested individuals indicate which committee that they are interested in. Sometimes you may have someone with resources that fit a certain area that you are not aware of. It also gives people a way to drop off of a committee and serve in another capacity without having to request such an action.

f.      Consider having an outsider or several outsiders on a panel or board for your church. Use people who are considered influential in the community. These people are not given a vote on church business, but they are “outside” voices who can guide your church on the direction that it is being put on. They are a great gauge as to how the church is perceived in your community and/or town.

   2.  Make sure that the church ministries are doing something to minister to the congregation and community. Is this a time when the men or women meet, eat, and gab about the latest news? Or do you have speakers who can come in and motivate, educate and get something going or furthering a goal of the group? Have the ladies start a quilting/sewing club that meets, and can also listen to the heartbeat of the community when they come to join in the group. Men, start a group that gathers regularly and goes hunting or fishing or some other popular sport in the area. Invite non-church members who love the sport to join in. Have a “wild life” supper near the end of the hunting seasons to celebrate the time and the catch that was shared together.

  3.   Jesus Jar: pass out glass jars for people to put their change in regularly. This does not take the place of tithes. This is offerings. Decide on what the money should be spent on (building fund/missions) and at least semi-annually or annually disperse the funds to the appropriate people/agency. Collect the monies monthly in a large container. Many banks have a machine that will count the change for you. Also, many churches have a Christmas tree in their sanctuary or somewhere in a prominent place. Have them bring “gifts” of money to put under the tree during a service that will be used for a predetermined fund of the church. This is great to use to bless a family in need at Christmas. Doesn’t have to be a church family. If there is not a need in the church, then anyone in the community should be eligible to receive aid.

  4.   Have a long term goal and a short term goal for the church. Short term should be 1 year or less. Long term should be 3 to 5 years. Examples:

Short term: Develop a plan to find out what the needs of the community are. How can the church resources be used to further the development of the community? Are there organizations that need a place to meet? Are there Christian charities/ministries that need extra volunteers? Find people to meet the needs. Start an after school daycare for latch key kids.

Long term: Increase membership by ____ % (use the population trend of the area for a guideline). Build new building (gymnasium/sanctuary), Replace roof or whatever is going to need replacing or repair in a few years. Upgrade facilities to more modern and efficient.

  5.   Make sure that you have a vision of not only increasing membership, but also attendance. If people do not come anymore, find out why. Did they move? Is there a problem with transportation? Hurt feelings? Find out and fix it. Have a team solely responsible for this. People who feel led to minister to others through comforting words or who can also find solutions will make good members for this team.

6. Have the church membership split up between the elders/deacons of the church. Have each one responsible for keeping in touch with the families that are assigned to them. If a family misses 2 or more weeks of services, have them contact the family to make sure that everything is alright. Send out anniversary and birthday cards as appropriate to their families. If a family has a need, they are to contact the elder first, then the elder will contact the pastor if they are not able to meet the need or if they determine that the pastor would be the appropriate one to handle the situation. This frees the pastor to focus on the most important needs of the church, and it also has someone besides the pastor responsible for the congregation and their needs. 

7.   Lastly, make sure that you have a regular number of salvations for unsaved attendees. We are responsible for leading people to the Lord. We can’t make them choose God, but we can lead them to the decision time. If you’ve gone a year and no one has accepted Christ, find out why. Are you tracking the people who attend the church and getting to know them? Assign groups of people to the elders of the church for them to shepherd and get to know intimately. This way spiritual guidance can be given on a more frequent personal basis, and the church and/or pastor can be kept apprised of any situations that may arise where the church/pastor can help.

This Little Light of Mine

I was watching a popular TV show last night and a thought hit me like a lightning bolt. Have you ever noticed that you can often easily distinguish if someone is a homosexual. Especially the guys. Their mannerisms are different. Their speech is different. And often their style of clothing is different. I have seen it over and over again. This is not always true. I know someone who is caught up in the lifestyle, and to meet him, he just appears to be your average redneck. Unless you knew that he lives with another man and they sleep in the same bed, you’d never have a clue. He keeps his “secret” well guarded.

Using this as a basis, what kind of Christian are you?

If I met you on the street and we had never seen each other before, would I know that you are a Christian? Would there be something different about you?

Have you ever noticed that you can usually tell a priest/pastor from anyone else in the room? Usually, their dress code will be somewhat of a give-away. But not always. Sometimes it is just that they stand out. They may seem cheery, hold their head up more, and present a different countenance than the others around them.

There are some religions that make it easy to distinguish their followers. In the US, you will see young men riding around on bicycles, wearing black suits with white button-up shirts. You immediately know what religion they belong to.

And quite usually, when Satan has his grips on someone, you can tell it too. The haggardness of their appearance, the eyes that are blank or dark with despair, a countenance that makes you want to back up and not be a part of them.

So why is it that the world can’t tell we’re a Christian before they ever see us pull into a church parking lot? (btw, this doesn’t make you one!)

It’s because we are too busy doing things that we shouldn’t be doing, saying things that we shouldn’t be saying. We are always wanting to “fit in” with the crowd, instead of “standing out” so that we can be an example to the rest of the world.

When I meet someone, I can usually tell if they at least try to follow God. Their overall appearance (and I’m not talking about their clothing/hair style/etc) is calming, soothing, and they are someone that you want to be around. They always lift you up, instead of beating you down. You know that you can go to this person for guidance when you have a problem in your life.

Now, these people are not always Christians. There are some people who are just “Good People.” But for a large majority, these people in the above paragraph do follow Christ. And it shows. They will always be content in their troubles. Sure, they will have problems, they will not necessarily be wealthy, although if God chooses to bless them, then their storehouses will be plentiful.

Christians, let us start to be different. Live your life in a way that anyone who meets you in Wal-Mart, the grocery store, or the mall can see that you are different, even if they don’t realize that it is God within you that is making you this way. Quit thinking that your style of dress, lack or abundance of makeup or what car you drive or anything else is going to make you “Christ-Like.”

Let’s start being Christians. I used to sing a song as a kid in church, and I think we need to start singing it again.

“This little light of mine, I’m gonna let it shine.”

“This little light of mine, I’m gonna let it shine.”

“This little light of mine, I’m gonna let it shine.“

“Let it shine, Let it shine, Let it shine.”

Keep on shining until next time!

Denomination Abomination

I’m going to attempt a blog that will probably make a lot of people mad before they get halfway through this reading. If you’re easily angered, read the blog just before this one so that you’ll be better prepared to handle it.

Denominations. We have plenty of them in the US. Methodist, Baptist, Episcopal, Pentecostal (AOG, COG and all of the others, including IPHC). There are more, but I just wanted to point out some of the bigger ones. And there are off shoots of the ones listed above.

It seems that they have taken over Christianity. There are no open Christians walking around anymore. Just ask someone. They will tell you. I’m Baptist. I’m Methodist. So on and so on. Or I belong to Rock Springs Baptist, or Bethlehem Methodist church. How about I belong to God? How many times has someone ever told you that?

When you start out in the ministry, you have to go through a committee that reviews you and your beliefs, goals, etc. They kept asking me questions about being a Methodist, and upholding the doctrine and such. The emphasis wasn’t on my daily walk with God. The word Christian was barely mentioned, if it was at all. I don’t really recall it coming up in conversation, but I’ll give them credit for it just in case. (a dozen or so people firing questions constantly, it’s hard to remember it all.)

I told them that I was a Christian. I agreed to work in the Methodist church, and that I would teach the bible in the Methodist ways. But I was a Christian, not a Methodist.

I won’t call his name, but one guy became so inflamed that I almost thought he would come after me. He turned so red and became mad. But I held my ground. I could tell that I had visibly upset the majority of people in the room, but so be it. It didn’t upset me. Anyway, they still gave me the church to pastor. I’m hoping that it was because they reconsidered for the moment, but it didn’t last very long. I was still a target with a large bulls eye on my back. Finally, the target was hit and I was down. That is when I walked away. It was all about numbers. How much tithe was given? How much did I send to the state office? The church grew over 200 percent while I was there. Yet I was derailed because I wouldn’t kiss the right person where no one should kiss anyone. What happened to church? To preaching the word? To having people saved? To having the spirit hit so hard in a Methodist church that members were at the altar speaking in tongues. (if you ever study the Methodist church, you’ll scratch your head over that one).

That is why I am not in a denominational church at the present. I want the focus to be on God in whatever church I serve. Now, if I ever do get to go to a denominational church, whether it is to speak or to take on as pastor, I have no problem with that, as long as they understand, it’s all about God, and not the denomination.

Moreover, it’s about helping the church members and local community at home first, and then reaching out to the rest of the world. When your house is in order, then you are able to do more for others. Just ask any financial advisor.

Am I saying do not have missions? NO. If your church is successful, your members needs are taken care of, then reach out past the normal boundaries. But when you have a successful church that prospers at home, coffers will overflow and spill out to the rest.

Next blog gets tougher, so prepare your hearts, your minds and your spirits for what we need to examine next.