Archive for the ‘Sharing Ideas’ Category
August 27th, 2010 | 
Author: I like to share something we are going to begin at our church. We have noticed that the sponsors for our baptismal candidates are usually family members who live a great distance away from the church. So, even though they make promises to help in the faith development of the child, they really can’t be there in the day to day ministry of the child.
Therefore we have decided that at each baptism, the family will not only choose their sponsors, but also choose one member of the congregation as a “church sponsor.” Following the baptism, the church sponsor will present a child and family with a prayer doll (really cute dolls for either boys or girls, that when you squeeze it, it says the “Now I lay me” prayer) and a copy of “Child’s first prayer book” (a little book of forty simple prayers).
We feel that having a church sponsor will help build a stronger safety net for the baptized child, especially if we know that the other sponsors are unable to help in this area.
We are really excited about starting this. God bless, Dan
When I began my ministry in Argyle, I found in Madison (about an hour away) St. Benedict’s which is a Catholic retreat center. Once each month I would drive there early in the morning, carrying with me only my Bible and my spiritual books. I would spend the day in reading, reflection, and prayer. By the time I got home at night I felt like I had just taken a couple of days off.
Over time, St. Benedict’s began opening up their center to more and more conferences and it became difficult to get a room on the day I needed it. So, once a month, after I got the kids off to school, I would sit in my favorite chair, turn on the coffee pot and the answering machine and have my holy retreat day at home.
I am still doing this once a month and I just want to encourage all of you to do it. I know we all lead busy lives and I’ll even admit after all these years, I still feel guilty when I tell someone I can’t meet on the day I plan on retreating. I also still wrestle with, especially in the morning, the feeling that I should get busy and “really do something.”
But I also know that at the end of each one of these days, I know that I just did one of the most important things in my month – time alone with God.
Give it a try – force yourself to do it. Fight the guilt and know that your relationship with God is your job. I have no doubt that you will find it just as refreshing and rewarding.
God bless, Dan
Here is the “Praying 10 in 2010″ that we are beginning on January 19th at our church. January 19th is 30 days to Ash Wednesday. This would certainly work for a Lenten activity or any time of the year.
I realize that my timing is probably really bad here, but I want to share with you some Sunday School material that is working really well for our church. It’s from Cokesbury and its called, “One Room Sunday School.” Because our Sunday school at both churches consist of about fifteen kids (if all of them show up), we found that the rotation Sunday school, wasn’t working as well as when we had a larger group.
The One Room Sunday School begins class, by having all the kids in the Sunday school gathering together to hear a story from the Bible. The story is shared in one of many different ways. After that, the group is divided into two groups and they then work on age appropriate material that delves deeper into the Bible story. We divide our classes into: pre-school through second grade and third through sixth grade.
Not only do the kids like it, we found we don’t have to “recruit” as many teachers, since we don’t have five grades needing teachers, and also when some kids don’t show up (which happens always!), it doesn’t leave the teacher with a single student.
Check it out, it may be what you’ve been looking for to meet your Sunday School needs. Dan
We are beginning a new ministry at Apple Grove and Yellowstone, and it’s simple, easy and really important. It’s a type of farmers market. We have many gardeners who, throughout the summer, find that they have more fruits and vegetables than they can use. Also bring meat, items like bouquets of flowers to buy for loved ones or a stringer of fish! What we are asking is that you bring your extra to church on Sunday and set your produce out on the picnic table. We’ll announce each Sunday what is out there for people to purchase (free will offering). All proceeds will go to support our local food shelves that are really being taxed during these difficult economic times.
(See the blog from July 31 which explains how this ministry began)
One thing that has been a smashing success at our parish is having our Sunday school youth lead the dismissal. It is the traditional in our denomination that during the closing hymn the pastor walks to the back of the church when the hymn is completed, he or she says, “Go in peace. Serve the Lord.” The congregation then replies, “Thanks be to God.”
I try to do two “youth sermons” a month, but our Sunday school numbers are small and during the summer, it became downright embarrassing to lead a youth talk with one other child. How could I involve the youth in some way without having to do youth talks? One Sunday I was explaining the closing the service to the kids during a youth talk, and I told them that I wanted them to help in the dismissal. So during the closing hymn, I followed the acolytes to the back of the church and had all the kids leave their pews and follow me. When the hymn ended, I counted to three and the kids yelled out, “Go in peace. Serve the Lord.”
The congregation burst out laughing at their enthusiasm and an idea was born. Every Sunday for the last ten years, the youth leading the dismissal has been their part of the service.
Neither one of our churches has a choir anymore. The hey-day of the Wednesday night choir practice and weekly choir anthems each Sunday disappeared in the 1960s. But it is still mourned by many who remember those glorious days.
One way I have found to still have a choir is to take advantage of joint services between the two parishes I pastor. On special days like Lent services, Christmas Eve and Christmas Day, when we come together to have one service, we have a joint choir.
Not having enough singers at either one church, together we can come up with a group of ten or more.
In preparation for the choir anthem, and knowing no one would come out on Wednesday’s anymore to practice, what we do is for the four Sunday’s leading up the service, we practice the song separately at each church, with the members from that congregation.
Then on the day of the service, we all come together forty-five minutes early and practice as one large group. We all know the song by this time, so all we really have to do is work at blending our voices together.
Not only does this allow us to have great music on these special Sunday’s, but it gives the parish the added benefit of working together, which is something a lot of churches, though yoked together, don’t do a great deal of.
God bless and good luck with your choir!
The “Sharing Ideas” section is just that. Please share things that you have found works in your current setting. It may be a particular worship service, how you formed your council, evangelism ideas, Bible studies, etc. Most pastor-leadership seminars or worship seminars, are geared for the large and fast growing churches. This section is a place for rural pastors to share ideas for the small church. Let’s help one another out.
Share your idea’s about anything below with a quick reply.