NewSong Board of Elders

Minutes of March 9, 2008 Meeting

 

The Board of Elders of NewSong Community Church met on Sunday, March 9, 2008 from 4:00 to 6:00pm at the church. Those in attendance were Linda Blanchard, Brian Brown, Jerry Cauley, Ed Densmore, Vicki Eitel, and Steve Jackson.

 

The meeting opened with prayer. Special needs and concerns for health issues, family issues, and job possibilities were mentioned as well as the needs of our own congregation.

 

Pastor Steve then asked if there were any questions or comments about the Pastor’s Report which was emailed earlier to the Board.

A.    It was noted we have caught up with our giving after missing the service in January which had set us back.

B.     It was also noted that attendance has been up in recent weeks.

There were no other questions or comments.

 

The following are highlights from the Pastor’s Report:

 

Pastor’s Report

February was a good month at NewSong. Attendance has spiked, and there seems to be a genuine current of excitement in the church. I’m not totally sure what this is about but I sense it is related to the addition of our second service, a renewed enthusiasm about outreach, and possibly the Extreme Love series. During the month we had all the “usual” activities going on in the church (men’s and women’s group running strong, Sunday School, youth group, etc…). On the 17th, Amy Jackson made a report on her mission to India with YWAM. The same day there was a testimony about a ministry to the homeless in Atlanta. Things are going well. I’m praying we’ll keep up the momentum through March and on into the late spring.

 

Other Items

Our YTD average worship attendance jumped to 145, up from 134 last month. Attendance for the four services we held in February was 126, 142, 169, and 174. That makes the average for the month 152.75. I see this as an answer to prayer (see last month’s report) as well as confirmation we need to proceed with the second service. I have recounted the seats in the Worship Center and we now have 185 chairs set out. 80% of that number is 148 people, so we’re definitely over the 80% figure.

 

Current membership statistics as of the end of February are unchanged with 60 member families, 103 full members, 45 preparatory members and 69 constituent members for a total of 217.  I will be offering a membership class on March 12th.

 

Financially speaking, we recaptured the ground lost last month. Revenues for the month were $21.970 and expenses were $18,963 for a net income for the month of $3,007. As for our YTD figures (though 02/29/08), our revenues are $39,624 and our expenses are $40,843 for a net loss of $1,219. As of Feb. 29 the balance in our Fidelity account (reserve) was $48,237 and the balance in our operating account was $46,684.

 

UPCOMING AND ONGOING

 

LOVE AREA

As for my preaching I continue to preach the “Extreme Love: The Greatest Commandment” series. This series ends Easter Sunday (March 23rd). I have not decided yet what I’ll do after that date, I am praying about that.

 

We have a full slate of Easter Services planned. Sandra Allen will be assisting with the music during the three Easter Services. It looks like the NewSong Singers are also going to sing a few times during the season. I would love to see that group reunite and contribute regularly to our worship experience.

 

On the “love each other” side of the grow equation, Gene and Rene Ellington are planning a church-wide picnic on Sunday, April 20 to mark our 8th birthday as a church. This should be a great fellowship event. We also have another “Friday Night Jam” scheduled for April 25th.

 

GROW AREA

Sunday School attendance has held up and we are still averaging a combined attendance of 36. I feel like we need to monitor this pretty closely, especially after the second service starts and the SS times change. We also have a new SS class starting on Easter, a Young Adult Class including the Woelks, Bowlings, Fenns, Greens, Wilsons, etc… This infusion of young adults has been another great way God has been on the move at NewSong in recent weeks.

 

Sunday Night Bible Study has remained strong, with us averaging 20 a night in our Gospel of Matthew study.  Many of those who attend are there simply because their children are in youth (I asked them last Sunday night). But that is okay! At least they are in a Bible Study!

 

Our Women’s Group continues to meet. They have stated a new study and they also had a spike in interest and attendance. They’ve been averaging about 10, up from 5-6 in the last study. The study is led by Michele Green and meets on Tuesday nights at 7pm.

 

I’m not sure if the women met for their “Coffee and Prayer meeting” the first Saturday of February or not.  

 

Our Men’s Group is continuing to meet as well and they are just starting a new study by Andy Stanley. They’ve also been averaging 8-10. The group is led by John Krauss and meets on Thursday nights at 7pm.

 

Our Men’s monthly breakfast for February was held on February 16th. I missed the meeting due to Amy being in town.

 

Extreme Love Groups – I don’t have any idea how these groups are going. I am sending out an email so hopefully one of us (Elders) will have a handle on this by the BOE meeting time.

 

SHARE

Outreach Ministry Group - B.J. Fisher continues to do a great job leading this ministry.  There will be an outreach to the homeless in Atlanta on Saturday, March 22nd and several folks are signed up to go. Chuck and Dawn Kirkland have also had a good sign-up for their Gulf Coast/Katrina Relief trip during the week of May 11th. I have held two Ghana team meetings for our trip in July. It looks like I’ll be leading 5-6 folks from July 3 to July 13th. We are planning a couple of fund-raisers to help defray the cost of the trip.

 

CHILDREN AND YOUTH

Our youth continue to meet on Sunday nights from 6 to 7:30pm. The Woelk’s are doing a great job and there is a lot of enthusiasm (and love) in the youth group. Our parents are also doing a great job pitching in to help with meals/transportation/places to stay, etc… I feel really good about the work Justin and Kristyn are doing.

 

Our children’s programs for now include Sunday School on Sunday mornings at 9am taught by Greg Citta and Pat Plant, Junior Worship during our worship services led by Edith Banta, Shuri Orr, a children’s teaching and activity time on Sunday evenings from 6-7pm led by Rebecca Brown, and occasional “outings” for the group led by Rhonda Sloyer. We will have a palm processional by our children on Palm Sunday and Shuri Orr is planning a special event for the children on Easter morning (craft event) to teach the true meaning of the Easter season. We still don’t have an overall leader for the children’s area, but the group seems to be onboard with us about the two services. They have worked very hard and seem to like the idea of having more time with the kids on Sunday morning.

 

 

Old Business:

 

  1. Yellow Pages Ad:  Per Elder agreement we did not renew our Yellow Pages Ad in June.
  2. Elder Mentors: Most all ministry team leaders have been contacted by “their” Elder to let them know that we are praying for them and their needs.
  3. Quarterly Budget Review: Treasurer Ed Densmore will receive budgets and YTD expenses for each ministry area at the conclusion of the fiscal quarter to check to see how our leaders are doing on their budgets.
  4. Second Service Discussion: Vicki Eitel gave the following report.
    1. There still seems to be some confusion about times and location of some activities
    2. The congregation would like the opportunity to provide feedback about the service
    3. There was a discussion about putting the schedule in the newsletter and bulletin.
    4. There will be some new rooms for Sunday School classes and signs will be put on the doors.
    5. There will be an announcement in the local paper, as well as information about Easter activities.
    6. We will have to change the website and answering machine. This has been delegated by Vicki.
    7. Some set up will be required due to the changing of rooms, etc… It was agreed this could not be done until after the pancake breakfast on Easter morning.
  5. Evaluation of Second Service: A method of evaluating the second service was then discussed. It was agreed that a short evaluation form should be passed out in Sunday School and putting them in the chairs at church was mentioned. It was decided that the best idea was to have a bulletin insert. Vicki will come up with 3-5 questions and e-mail to the Elders for comments. It was decided to do the evaluation on April 27 and have the responses by May 4th.
  6. Church Directory – Almost all the photos have been taken by Catherine Bennett. Michael Smith will be working on the actual directory now using Access. A cover page was discussed, with no particular design decided upon. Since the directory wasn’t budgeted for in 2008 Vicki will check on the price for printing, and the Elders can vote to approve by Email. The goal is to have the finished product by mid-April.
  7. Finance Committee – We referred back to the minutes of the last meeting to see the make-up and purpose of this group. Steve had assumed that a group of this type would determine that we need our own building. The list of possible members of this committee is made up of a cross section of our members including our largest givers, those with jobs in the area of finances, and others. Steve presented a handout showing the structure of the committee, along with a timetable for meetings and completion of the project. Discussion followed of when and how to plan for a permanent facility. Financing and pros/cons of the idea was discussed. After discussion, it was decided to take a couple of days to pray and think about the situation.
  8. Church Website – We agreed that the content is very good, but we want a new look. A large percentage of the people who find us say they did so because of our website. Brian Brown will talk this over with someone he knows who may be able to help. We’ll discuss this further at our next meeting.

 

New Business:

 

  1. Youth Service: Justin Woelk has asked if the youth can have May 4th for a youth service. Steve’s only reservation was that it is during the two-service trial. After discussion the Elders agreed to let them do it.
  2. Good Friday Service – Steve mentioned the idea of the service being on the seven last words of Christ from the cross. We would use a different church member to make short comments on each one, using seven different people Everyone agreed this was a great idea.
  3. Katrina Trip Support – The possibility of using El Salvador money for the Katrina trip was mentioned since there is no El Salvador trip planned for this year. It was decided that this was not really needed.
  4. Justin Woelk Review – Brian Brown reminded us that the 90 day review of Justin Woelk was coming up. Brian agreed to contact the Adult team consulted in Justin’s hire to involve them in this. We will talk to Justin at our April meeting.
  5. Transition Plan – Vicki Eitel brought up the idea that we do need to begin considering a transition, or succession plan for when Steve is no longer our pastor. Everyone agreed, but there was no in depth discussion at this time.

 

Big Rocks Discussion:

 

  1. Facilities: We feel as though this is being addressed through the two-service idea along with the possible formation of a Building/Finance Committee.
  2. Staffing – We still have the need for a children’s minister. Steve mentioned two ideas he had: A “Minister of Grow” to lead the discipleship/spiritual formation of the church and a “Minister of Assimilation/Alignment” who would help newcomers find their place in the church as well as monitor that we are all loving, growing, and serving at NewSong.  We discussed the option of an associate pastor being able to handle both of these jobs.
  3. Assimilation – We feel like we are going in the right direction here.
  4. Alignment – We are slowly going in the right direction and we hope to have a grasp of this by the fall when we hope to align all our ministries under the labels love, grow and serve.

 

 

Closing Prayer – Pastor Steve closed the meeting with prayer, remembering again the needs mentioned in our opening prayer, and the meeting was adjourned at 6:00pm.

 

Elder of the Month for April – Linda Blanchard

 

Next Meeting Date – Sunday, April 13th at 4pm at the church.

 

Respectfully Submitted,

Jerry Cauley

Secretary