Calvin Synod Herald, 2007 (108. évfolyam, 1-12. szám)
2007-03-01 / 3-4. szám
8 CALVIN SYNOD HERALD What Does It Mean to be a Church Member These days, all of our churches, including many throughout the denomination, are struggling with membership issues. Not only new membership growth, but existing members can determine if a congregation is viable. What does it mean to be a church member? Church members fall into several categories. (A) Those who are on the membership list, but rarely come to church. This does not include those who are homebound or who have physical reasons for not attending. (B) Those who come on Easter and/or Christmas, but contribute little in participation and stewardship. They also insist that the church is there for their baptisms, confirmations, weddings, and funerals, but you rarely see them. (C) Those who attend some or all of the Christian Holidays, and come to church once a month or so. They can also sometimes be involved in a church activity now and then. (D) Those that attend church every Sunday, and are faithful in stewardship, even when they miss an occasional service. But they rarely participate in anything beyond Sunday services. (E) Those that attend always. Like category D, but go further in that they are active in many church activities and are the backbone of the church. They are always there when something is needed. (F) These members don’t attend services regularly, but can be very involved in church activities. Many times, they are spouses or family members of category D. Keep in mind that these are generalizations and that many times members move from one category to another throughout their lives. Ideally, you will have a vibrant, healthy, living church if your members are in categories D, E, F and are in trouble if your congregation has a majority of members in categories A, B, or C. Many church bylaws list the requirements of a church member in order to be in good standing. They include: To worship regularly - some say to attend every Sunday and every Christian holiday, others give a specific number of Sundays you must meet. To commune faithfully - participate in Holy Communion, either every time it is offered or a certain number of times per year. To give generously - is to practice Christian stewardship in regard to our material possessions. Some say the amount is to be determined by the faith and conscience of every member, others a tithe (tenth) of income, and others give a specific amount per year in order to maintain membership. To learn continuously - is to be teachable - to grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, and in the application of His Spirit and teachings to life. This can be through baptism, confirmation, and continue through Bible study and various Christian education programs. It can also include family devotions, and reading of daily devotional materials. To witness courageously - is to confront persons with the Gospel in order to bring others to Christ. “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations....” Matthew 28:19-20. The Bible also tells us what are the “marks of the true Christian:” Let love be genuine; hate what is evil, hold fast to what is good; love one another with mutual affection; outdo one another in showing honor. Do not lag is zeal, be ardent in spirit, serve the Lord. Rejoice in hope, be patient in suffering, preserve in prayer. Contribute to the needs of the saints; extend hospitality to strangers. Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse them. Live in harmony with one another, but associate with the lowly; do not claim to be wiser than you are. Do not repay anyone evil for evil, live peaceably with all. Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.” Romans 12:9-14, 16, 17- 18,21. So if you do all of these things, does this really make you a good church member? We must all keep in mind not to judge too harshly when our fellow members can not meet all the standards. “Like good stewards of the manifold grace of God, serve one another with whatever gift each of you has received.” 1 Peter4:10. Each member has their own gifts given by God to share. “For as one body we have many members, and not all the members have the same function, so we, who are many, are one body in Christ, and individually we are members one of another. We have gifts that differ according to the grace given to us:” Romans 12:4-6. Some give large sums of money, but for others on fixed incomes, it is impossible. Others give their time freely, but others have family, health or work commitments that limit their time. In today’s society, we must keep in mind that most of the laity have full-time jobs and support their family needs (working, cleaning, and raising their children). The time they give to the church has to be worked into their daily lives. What priority should it be? For others, church is way down on the list of daily needs. We all need to make a commitment in some fashion to place our church life near the top of the list of priorities in our daily lives. The big challenge for the fűmre and survival of our churches is how to convert the A, B, C members into D, E, and F members. This will keep our churches alive and well for many generations to come. I offer one program that might help all members and every local congregation. I would call it “the three a week program.” It is simply this: A leader of each church takes on the task of contacting three (3) members of the congregation each week. First, the leader should be in most cases the pastor. It is the duty of a good leader to be in touch with all its members. If the pastor is unable to do this, it should be the chief elder or a person in a similar capacity. Second, all members should be contacted, whether they come to church every week or you have never seen them. The contact should be in a personal way, either by telephone or a personal visit. You need to speak with each member directly, one on one. The purpose of the contact may be for different reasons. It might just be a “How are you doing?” call. Or for members who are active and always attending or working for the church, how about “Thank you for all your hard work and dedication.” For members who are not coming to church regularly, it could be “We haven’t seen you for some time, is there something we can do for you?” And so on. The key is to tailor the call to whom you are calling. Or in some cases, such as the shutins of the church, “Can I or someone come for a visit?” The purpose of all this is to find out how and in what way your congregation might be strengthened. Lastly, this leader on monthly basis, perhaps at consistory meetings, should report the findings. Share how many and who was contacted and if they
