December 2001

MAJOR CHANGES

            A major shift in our way of doing church is taking place.  We are moving from committees to ministries.  In the 1996 General Conference of the United Methodist Church, it was decided to allow each local church the ability to structure the church any way they wished.  The committees of Evangelism, Social Concerns, Missions, Education, Worship are no longer found in the Book of Discipline.  Accordingly, some churches have done away with these committees altogether.  We have decided not to do that, but to keep the areas of Evangelism and Missions and call them the Outreach Ministry.  The Education Committee will become the Education Ministry of the church and largely be made up of those who do the education ministry — the teachers.  The Worship Committee will become the Worship Ministry of the church which will be made up of other areas of ministry: The Greeter Ministry, Music Ministry, Usher Ministry, Decoration Ministry, Media Ministry.  But the change is more than the mere name.  We will be emphasizing each of these areas as ministry opportunities whereby people can serve God and fulfill their calling.  Every member is a minister and should be involved as such.

            This will mean greater opportunity to be involved — not less.  We have decided that there will be no term limits for those serving in these ministry areas.  It used to be that you were on a committee for three years and then you had to take at least one year off.  Being elected to a committee also meant that you were obligated for three years.  That will no longer be the case.  There will be no term limits, and you can serve for one month or ten years.  The nominating committee will not assign people to these areas of ministry, they will be strictly volunteer.  ANYONE can be involved in any area of ministry they wish, and the expectation is that EVERYONE will be involved in some form of ministry. 

            We want people to serve God in ministry in the area of their giftedness and interest.  People who are into the arts may not serve well on the finance committee, and people with a head for finance may not be suited for the decoration ministry.  New ministries are exploding as we develop new ways to serve the community: the wagon ministry which ministers to street youth, neighborhood friendship teams which reach out to the homes around the church, the media ministry which deals with the technological part of our worship experience, women’s and men’s ministries, mom’s ministry and many more are just some of the recent ministries which have started. 

            This is an opportunity to let God use your life to make a difference in the world, specifically in the community in which God has placed us.  The church is not a place where I only come to get my needs met, it is a place that provides opportunities to meet the needs of others.  We are looking forward to you being a part of it!

Rod