Your church's life groups and ministries

Our church is in the process of completing a study in examining who we were, what we are now and where are we going in the next decade. All the issues mentioned here already are pretty much what has been identified in our church. And per the consultant that we hired, those are universal problems in churches. There is a major need to get younger people involved in the church and to provide the appropriate opportunities for fellowship and ministries that appeal to these same people.

One thing he pointed out that really rang true to me that in order to grow and expand, you constantly need to start new groups. No matter how "inclusive" an existing group feels, it is tough for new people to establish themselves within a group that has existed for a long time. His example was his parents joined a young marrieds potluck group at their church over 40 year ago. That same group still exists and pretty much still has the same membership. There's nothing wrong with having a long established core group like that at the church but it won't contribute to any growth in the church.

Thus one of things we are going to look at is developing some new groups that would not only be interesting to current church members but also to some who don't have a church affiliation but would like to find a congregation that suits their needs both on a religious level and on a fellowship/friendship level. Personally, I don't think all church groups need to be all about bible study. Absolutely those groups should exist in a church but maybe something more social would be a better way to introduce people to other members and let them see what a fun and caring congregation we are. We did a speed fellowship a couple of years ago that was really lots of fun. There were two groups of people, one stayed in their chairs and the other rotated around the tables. Their were questions to discuss and we each has about three minutes to discuss each one. I learned SO much about the people I spoke with -- even those I consider I already know.

One of the new groups we have been kicking around is maybe holding a wine tasting club once a quarter. It would be a nice opportunity to be able to invite a friend, neighbor, a couple to come to the church and meet people without seeming like you're getting them to a prayer meeting or roped into a church service they don't want to attend. This would be a way to introduce people to the church on a social level first with the hopes they will at some future time, come to a service to check us out.

Another thing I am considering is once a month opening the church for a few hours on a weekend for "open creative time". I don't want to limit it to scrapbooking or knitting or whatever your craft is but just an opportunity for people to get away from home for a few hours once a month to focus on whatever creative task they want to bring. Or a chance to learn how to do something. We have a dedicated group of older ladies who knit and love to teach it so I know they would come and make themselves available. And again, this is something you could bring a friend along and open it to the community in general.

Anyway, our church is on a very interesting journey right now and I am very excited about being part of the process. My husband is the head of the church council and we feel so blessed to be able to be part of being able to help in this process of growing and bringing our church into the next decade.

ETA:  In terms of ministries, we have something for everyone on that front.  We support and have considerable participation a food pantry, a crisis center, Habitat for Humanity, a homeless shelter, we provide Thanksgiving dinners for over 50 families a year, provide Christmas gifts for over 200 children each year and make a very generous contribution of school supplies for every new school year, among other things.  We have a youth team that participates in a work camp project in a needy area every year and this year we started a mission trip for adults to the UCC Mission called Back Bay Mission in Biloxi, MS. There is no shortage of ways to give back to the community for our church members.  Our primary concern and focus is to grow our congregation so we can continue these ministries and also grow into new areas. 

Sept 29, 2014 16:31:09 GMT MorningPerson said:

Sept 29, 2014 16:24:55 GMT ChicagoKTS said:

Your church sounds like a place that my DH and I would love.  (Truth be told, you had me at wine.)

And the speed fellowship idea sounds like an awesome thing for any age.  

Sounds like you are blessed with a great community.  

Thank-you and yes, we are blessed with a wonderful group of people and a church community that is really, truly a family. 

Maybe, the motto of the wine club if I get it going should be "come for the wine, stay for the sacrament"?