Some Important
Matters FromMonday's Meeting!
Short Report On Assembly Meeting, Elections, Finances,
Invitations!
Thanks to all who attended Monday’s congregational Assembly meeting. This is an important time to gather as we discuss our church’s ministry. Of course, what’s even more important is when we are all out in our neighborhoods and places of work doing ministry, but our twice annual meetings are still important to us.
Your leadership knows how important communication is. I encourage you to remember to talk to a Director or a board member soon about their hopes and dreams for our continued work together. Talk about it. Dream together.
For my part, I’ll use the Page this week to share some of the basics of what happened and a little bit of my perspective.
Elections
Ellen Hageman was re-elected to another term as congregational Secretary and Charles Umphenour to another term as Treasurer. They join Jim Telle (President) and Darryl Stroup (Vice-President) as the executive committee of the Board of Directors.
Laura Murphy was newly elected as a member at large to the Board as was Chris Thomson. Carl Horstman was re-elected. These three join Nancy O’Neal and Kay Storck as your leadership team of nine.
My special thanks and “Well done, good and faithful servant” to Bev Garnant and Krista Kotur who are going off the Board. They are both continuing very active roles in leadership in the congregation. Thanks for your faithful, extraordinary service!
The Topic
I’d suggest that there is really one major overriding topic for the Board of Directors in the coming year: will we make the transition from an inward focused church to an outward focused mission outpost?
This is huge. It’s bigger than any amazing program or reorganization. It’s the core of what we are to be and do in the days ahead. The decision to become more concerned with the needs of the lost in our community than the needs of our members will change everything we do.
Like most seventy year old congregations, we’ve fallen into a pattern of asking what our membership wants and desires from a church. We serve our members for one of two purposes: either to equip them for service in God’s kingdom by binding the hurts, strengthening the weaknesses and filling up the empty spots, or we serve our members because they, in their infirmity, represent the presence of Christ among us. We don’t do what our members want to make them feel good. We serve one another to prepare the able for works of service, or to carry the infirm through to glory.
A
dramatic shift to ask first, “What do the not-yet-Christians of our community
need?” before we ask, “What do our members want?” will change many of the
things we do and the way we do them.
Pray for your Board of Directors and for your Pastor.
Nominations
I’m pleased that so many of our Board members are also involved with the “doing” side of ministry. Our core group of extraordinary servants who lend themselves to the church’s ministries is slowly growing. I’m especially encouraged by the work Cory and the 3D (Discovery, Development and Deployment of Gifts) Task Force is doing to bring more and more from the stands to the playing field.
But we need more leaders to work in team partnerships to give direction and focus to the work at hand. The nominating committee will contact many of you in coming days about serving as a Board member or a Board chair. I hope you will give serious consideration to the appeal. We cluster people in teams to work together, joyfully, and do all we can to equip our leaders for the significant tasks before them.
If you are contacted, I’d love the opportunity to visit with you about the calling to serve in your church’s ministries. 968-2360 (office), 822-3539 (home), 580-4608 (cell), darrell@mtcalvarylcms.org (e-mail) or climb into my car and wait for me. I’m in and out of it all day long. Let’s talk.
And if you are interested in finding a service opportunity, the 3D Task Force is offering a discovery course on Friday evening and Saturday December 6&7. Ask Cory or me about it.
Church Finances
We adopted a spending plan for 2003. Please remember that the Bible never teaches us to give to meet a budget. We give sacrificially and joyfully not an amount that will “pay the bills,” but based only on the Lord’s goodness to us, our capacity to give generously and in loving response to his goodness.
When you the members of our church family indicate your level of sacrifice, we base our spending plan on your indications. For 2003 we have approved a spending plan that is smaller in dollars than we approved last year.
Some of our families make an annual testimony of their faith, their love and their trust in the Lord by their generous, firstfruits, right off the top giving. I know that you give because you need to and because you love to and you don’t do so to get a thank you from the Pastor. Thank you anyway.
For those who have not yet settled the money issue with the Lord, I encourage you to give extra attention to our stewardship education month in January. I want you to know the joy of trusting in the Lord and the joy of responding to his calling to serve by giving.
Some say “God will provide.” I say, “God has provided all we need to do all the ministry he has planned for us. He put it in the pockets of our members.” Let’s grow in the grace of giving this year, and by our generosity, do far more than expected. When your giving exceeds the spending plan, we will have a meeting and decide how we can give to missions and serve more than we planned to! Our spending plan fixed expenses should not increase. Over and above giving goes to missions and ministry expansion!
One More Great Topic
That’s already 987 words. I only have 331 left and I just wasted these 15! I better make this brief.
Laura Murphy and I heard at a workshop this morning that across the nation, 85% of guests in worship are brought by members and that 85% of first time guests who return the following Sunday will stay at your church. That tells me two things.
One, we’re way below the national average for invitations. The majority of our guests come uninvited. (Not that they’re not welcome. They just invite themselves.) Jesus said, “Go and make disciples.” He didn’t say, “Sit around and make disciples of those who come to you.” Thanksgiving and Christmas are great times of year to invite a friend, a relative, a co-worker, a neighbor to worship. Thanksgiving worship is Wednesday at 7:00 PM and Thursday at 9:30 AM. And plant some seeds now for Christmas..
By the way, Christmas Eve worship times have changed. In an effort to be more family friendly, the Children’s Service led by the Sunday School will be at 5:30 PM. The Candlelight Communion Service will be at 9:30 PM.
Two, (remember, “That tells me two things…”) How we treat our guests has eternal significance. At the workshop, we heard of a church that asks it’s members to sign a covenant promise that they will not speak to anyone they know after worship until they speak to two people they do not know.
Some of our newer members still feel like guests because no one speaks to them. And I hate to think how many first time guests do not return.
Just a thought. Bring a friend. Make a friend. See you in worship!