I am a life-long church member, and love being involved in ministry. I have worked as a volunteer or on staff in a variety of different roles in churches throughout my life. My favorite verse about ministry is Ephesians 2:10 - "For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do."
We have one class we offer to everyone, which we call "Introduction to Crossroads." We recommend the class to everyone, whether they are transfering from a CRC or other church, or completely new to church, and because of that, the focus is a bit more on our identity as a local church, although we do talk about being reformed and what it means to be part of a denomination. We also talk about why we encourage membership.
The resource we use is a booklet that was developed by our pastor and myself (mostly him!) Originally he offered this class as 3-4 sessions after worship, but more recently we've held it in one day on a Sunday afternoon and ended with a light dinner, a format that has worked really well. The book does occasionally reference and quote from other resources. Many of these we make available to take if people are interested in reading more.
I'll post below more info about the content of our class, and I would be happy to send a copy of our book to anyone who would like one, just send me a message with your address.
Rebecca
Basic Class Outline: (1.) Welcome (2.) Life and Ministry of Crossroads - getting connected, mission & vision, ministries, church leadership, denominational structure (3.) What We Believe - about what it means to be a Christian, what it means to be reformed, and what it means to be a church (4.) What does it mean to belong to Crossroads - about membership and why we encourage membership (5.) Q&A and closing
Other resources we recommend and/or make available:
Available from Faith Alive: The Christian Reformed Church: Who We Are and What We Believe; Ecumenical Creeds and Reformed Confessions; What it Means to be Reformed; Faith Unfolded
Websites: www.crcna.org, network.crcna.org, our classis and church websites
Crossroads resources: Crossroads Ministry Opportunities (a book of ways to get involved in ministries), Crossroads Safe Church Policy
I was the Ministry Coordinator at CrossRoads when this was developed, and while I don't remember specifics of the results, I thought it was a great tool that ended up providing really helpful feedback. I'm glad to see that it's being shared for others.
At our church, I would best describe the feel of Lord's Supper as a "family meal" of sorts. It is always connected to God's grace and forgiveness; celebratory in the sense of our receiving that grace; and something we do in community together.
We (generally) have Lord's Supper on the first Sunday of each month, and also weekly during the season of Lent.
Sometimes the elders offer the Supper at the front of the church, and we simply go forward to receive them, then file back to our seats. Other times, we gather in large circles at the front as we share the meal together. In circles, the bread is passed from one person to the next, and an Elder shares the cup in which we dip our bread. (It takes usually about 3 large circles for everyone to participate.)
No doubt it's this circled gathering that contributes, for me at least, to the "family" feel of this. I look across the circle and enjoy sharing in this tangible experience that is a reminder of what brings us all together.
Also, even prior to the recent change that allowed children to partake of the supper, our children have been included in that the pastor or elder who serves will lay a hand on a child's head or shoulder and say, "Jesus loves you."
I organized one of these last August, a few weeks before several our our ministries re-started for the Fall season. A few weeks ahead of time, I contacted all the leaders of ministry and asked them to participate, and nearly all did. I created signs with bright colors with the "Fair" concept and purchased inexpensive ($1) plastic table cloths in assorted colors to place on the tables and suggested everyone have candy or some kind of giveaway to entice visitors to stop by.
I encouraged the leaders to provide information (a display) about their ministries and required them to have a brief "job description" of what is involved for someone volunteering in that ministry (our office staff helped with these, and we saved them so this will be easier next time!). I provided sign up sheets for each ministry so they could collect names of people who were interested.
Some ministries had clever giveaways, for example:
- "Free hairnets!" - from our ministry that helps serve meals at a local organization
- "We can always use 'S'MORE' volunteers" with a S'mores snack mix
- Our Sunday School ministry made a posterboard with a sample lesson plan so people could easily see what it would be like to teach.
- Our Cadets team brought out some of their activity gear (bows & arrows, tools, etc.)
We encouraged all church attenders to consider visiting the fair, not just because they might want to sign up, but to learn about the other ministries at the church so they could help direct guests or friends to a ministry that might serve them.
Overall, we did not end up with a lot of sign ups this time around, but overwhelmingly people appreciated the opportunity to learn about ministries.
I also planned lunch for all the ministry leaders afterwards as a thank you for their service to the church and for helping with this event in particular.
Hi, Kristin! This one for our church is a brief overview of the whole ministry, but includes a few tasks for the Head Usher (our Head Usher is the weekly point person, different from the person who organizes the overall ministry, if that makes a difference.)
Our church does almost the same as Tim's, where people come forward and there is a note in the worship order, "Gluten-free elements are available at the far left station (second elder)." It is not always announced in addition.
We also sometimes do circles, in which case any person can let the serving Elder know, and another Elder is nearby with the gluten-free bread.
We have a separate plate and dipping bowl for the gluten-free elements, and it's distinct enough that our preparers always know which serving pieces are for gluten-free, but similar enough in color and material that the difference isn't very noticable to participants and observers.
Shane, Thanks so much for sharing your thoughts. Our church is definitely considering all sides of this issue, so your thoughts about segregating rather than integrating different ages are helpful, as is the comment about volunteer issues trying to have many ministries at one time. The prompting for asking these questions at our church was based on the observation that we have 4 different ministries (all serving students/kids) that are meeting on 3 different nights. The question that started this for us was, "Can this be simpler?" Naturally, one simple question has given way to many more questions, but it's been good discussions so far. Thanks again!
If you happen to see this before the weekend, I wonder if you could include in your test whether this bread recipe holds up to "dipping"? Our usual practice is to have congregants here dip their bread into the cup of wine, and we've found even some "regular" breads disintigrate almost immediately. Thanks in advance for considering my question!
We just talked about this question of reserves last night at our deacon's meeting. Our church has had some years where it has been tough to meet expenses, the budget was trimmed and trimmed, with the result that we now have no reserve for big expenses. Within the last year we had to complete a large air conditioning repair at a cost greater than our annual building budget. I feel grateful that our "surprise" was a "mere" $10,000 compared to some of the numbers others have mentioned, although our building is still relatively new.
We are grateful that for now we are on target with the current budget, but aware that our lack of reserve could result in a collective heart attack, not just with a major building issue, but with anything that needs replacing over time. Other things we may consider building a reserve for include office equipment (computers, copiers) and our technology for worship (more computers, microphones, sound board.)
So, here we go into budget season again (fiscal June-May) and we'll be asking our budget committee to consider this as they wrestle with next year's numbers.
Posted in: What's the best way to do a Membership class for both new and transfer members and what resources do you use?
Hi, Richard,
We have one class we offer to everyone, which we call "Introduction to Crossroads." We recommend the class to everyone, whether they are transfering from a CRC or other church, or completely new to church, and because of that, the focus is a bit more on our identity as a local church, although we do talk about being reformed and what it means to be part of a denomination. We also talk about why we encourage membership.
The resource we use is a booklet that was developed by our pastor and myself (mostly him!) Originally he offered this class as 3-4 sessions after worship, but more recently we've held it in one day on a Sunday afternoon and ended with a light dinner, a format that has worked really well. The book does occasionally reference and quote from other resources. Many of these we make available to take if people are interested in reading more.
I'll post below more info about the content of our class, and I would be happy to send a copy of our book to anyone who would like one, just send me a message with your address.
Rebecca
Basic Class Outline: (1.) Welcome (2.) Life and Ministry of Crossroads - getting connected, mission & vision, ministries, church leadership, denominational structure (3.) What We Believe - about what it means to be a Christian, what it means to be reformed, and what it means to be a church (4.) What does it mean to belong to Crossroads - about membership and why we encourage membership (5.) Q&A and closing
Other resources we recommend and/or make available:
Available from Faith Alive: The Christian Reformed Church: Who We Are and What We Believe; Ecumenical Creeds and Reformed Confessions; What it Means to be Reformed; Faith Unfolded
Websites: www.crcna.org, network.crcna.org, our classis and church websites
Crossroads resources: Crossroads Ministry Opportunities (a book of ways to get involved in ministries), Crossroads Safe Church Policy
Posted in: What's the best way to do a Membership class for both new and transfer members and what resources do you use?
I have uploaded our booklet to google docs, and you should be able to click this link to view it:
https://docs.google.com/viewer?a=v&pid=explorer&chrome=true&srcid=0B6Lo-VGLV1YAMmRiZmQwNzQtNmE0NC00ODg2LTg3ODItNWY2NzMwZWIzYjdi&hl=en_US
Please post here or message me if the link doesn't work. I did my best with the sharing settings, but of course sometimes I make mistakes!
Posted in: Tool for Evaluating Ministry Programs
I was the Ministry Coordinator at CrossRoads when this was developed, and while I don't remember specifics of the results, I thought it was a great tool that ended up providing really helpful feedback. I'm glad to see that it's being shared for others.
Posted in: Salesforce for Church - Part II
I am searching for a solution for our church (I've already posted elsewhere, and now revisiting this as an option.)
Here's my question about SalesForce - the price is right, but what CAN'T this program do that churches might need it to do?
Anyone?
Posted in: The Lord's Supper — A Joyful Occasion?
[quote=dmelenberg]At the risk of being risque, we affectionately call the two options, Sit'n Sip, or, Rip'n Dip.[/quote]
I did not expect, upon reading a thread on this topic to laugh out loud - and then I read this. :)
Posted in: The Lord's Supper — A Joyful Occasion?
At our church, I would best describe the feel of Lord's Supper as a "family meal" of sorts. It is always connected to God's grace and forgiveness; celebratory in the sense of our receiving that grace; and something we do in community together.
We (generally) have Lord's Supper on the first Sunday of each month, and also weekly during the season of Lent.
Sometimes the elders offer the Supper at the front of the church, and we simply go forward to receive them, then file back to our seats. Other times, we gather in large circles at the front as we share the meal together. In circles, the bread is passed from one person to the next, and an Elder shares the cup in which we dip our bread. (It takes usually about 3 large circles for everyone to participate.)
No doubt it's this circled gathering that contributes, for me at least, to the "family" feel of this. I look across the circle and enjoy sharing in this tangible experience that is a reminder of what brings us all together.
Also, even prior to the recent change that allowed children to partake of the supper, our children have been included in that the pastor or elder who serves will lay a hand on a child's head or shoulder and say, "Jesus loves you."
Posted in: Ministry Fair—Tips or Practices?
I organized one of these last August, a few weeks before several our our ministries re-started for the Fall season. A few weeks ahead of time, I contacted all the leaders of ministry and asked them to participate, and nearly all did. I created signs with bright colors with the "Fair" concept and purchased inexpensive ($1) plastic table cloths in assorted colors to place on the tables and suggested everyone have candy or some kind of giveaway to entice visitors to stop by.
I encouraged the leaders to provide information (a display) about their ministries and required them to have a brief "job description" of what is involved for someone volunteering in that ministry (our office staff helped with these, and we saved them so this will be easier next time!). I provided sign up sheets for each ministry so they could collect names of people who were interested.
Some ministries had clever giveaways, for example:
- "Free hairnets!" - from our ministry that helps serve meals at a local organization
- "We can always use 'S'MORE' volunteers" with a S'mores snack mix
- Our Sunday School ministry made a posterboard with a sample lesson plan so people could easily see what it would be like to teach.
- Our Cadets team brought out some of their activity gear (bows & arrows, tools, etc.)
We encouraged all church attenders to consider visiting the fair, not just because they might want to sign up, but to learn about the other ministries at the church so they could help direct guests or friends to a ministry that might serve them.
Overall, we did not end up with a lot of sign ups this time around, but overwhelmingly people appreciated the opportunity to learn about ministries.
I also planned lunch for all the ministry leaders afterwards as a thank you for their service to the church and for helping with this event in particular.
Posted in: Does Anyone Have a Job Description for Head Usher?
Hi, Kristin! This one for our church is a brief overview of the whole ministry, but includes a few tasks for the Head Usher (our Head Usher is the weekly point person, different from the person who organizes the overall ministry, if that makes a difference.)
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1lrUyCxXj4EdorNE7LsF8TM_We11Mo0Mui6zdUIP2fRg/edit?usp=sharing
Posted in: Gluten-Free Bread for Lord's Supper
Our church does almost the same as Tim's, where people come forward and there is a note in the worship order, "Gluten-free elements are available at the far left station (second elder)." It is not always announced in addition.
We also sometimes do circles, in which case any person can let the serving Elder know, and another Elder is nearby with the gluten-free bread.
We have a separate plate and dipping bowl for the gluten-free elements, and it's distinct enough that our preparers always know which serving pieces are for gluten-free, but similar enough in color and material that the difference isn't very noticable to participants and observers.
Posted in: Advice on "Church Night"
Shane, Thanks so much for sharing your thoughts. Our church is definitely considering all sides of this issue, so your thoughts about segregating rather than integrating different ages are helpful, as is the comment about volunteer issues trying to have many ministries at one time. The prompting for asking these questions at our church was based on the observation that we have 4 different ministries (all serving students/kids) that are meeting on 3 different nights. The question that started this for us was, "Can this be simpler?" Naturally, one simple question has given way to many more questions, but it's been good discussions so far. Thanks again!
Posted in: Gluten-Free Bread for Lord's Supper
If you happen to see this before the weekend, I wonder if you could include in your test whether this bread recipe holds up to "dipping"? Our usual practice is to have congregants here dip their bread into the cup of wine, and we've found even some "regular" breads disintigrate almost immediately. Thanks in advance for considering my question!
Posted in: Do you know of any established Reserve Fund Guidelines?
We just talked about this question of reserves last night at our deacon's meeting. Our church has had some years where it has been tough to meet expenses, the budget was trimmed and trimmed, with the result that we now have no reserve for big expenses. Within the last year we had to complete a large air conditioning repair at a cost greater than our annual building budget. I feel grateful that our "surprise" was a "mere" $10,000 compared to some of the numbers others have mentioned, although our building is still relatively new.
We are grateful that for now we are on target with the current budget, but aware that our lack of reserve could result in a collective heart attack, not just with a major building issue, but with anything that needs replacing over time. Other things we may consider building a reserve for include office equipment (computers, copiers) and our technology for worship (more computers, microphones, sound board.)
So, here we go into budget season again (fiscal June-May) and we'll be asking our budget committee to consider this as they wrestle with next year's numbers.