NewSong Board of Elders

Minutes of April 13, 2008 Meeting

 

The regular monthly meeting of the Board of Elders of NewSong Community Church was held on Sunday, April 13, 2008 from 4:00 to 5:30pm at the church. Those in attendance were Linda Blanchard, Brian Brown, Jerry Cauley, and Steve Jackson. Ed Densmore and Vicki Eitel were absent.

 

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

A.    Steve mentioned that both attendance and offering has been good.

B.     Steve also pointed out that May 11th has been chosen for Youth Sunday.

There were no other questions or comments.

 

The following are highlights from the Pastor’s Report:

 

March was an exciting month at NewSong as we began our first-ever second service on Easter Sunday. We also began a new Sunday School class for young adults which has begun with a bang. Attendance has remained strong in all areas and there continues to be a feeling that God is on the move at the church. During the month we had all the usual activities going on (men’s and women’s groups, Sunday School, youth group, Bible Study etc…). We had memorable Good Friday and Palm Sunday services, and our largest crowd ever for a Sunrise Service on Easter. We also had a great turnout for our outreach to the homeless of Atlanta on March 22nd. Things are going well and I’m hopeful we can keep the momentum up between now and the summer.

 

Other Items

Our YTD average worship attendance jumped up to 153, up from 145 last month. Attendance for the five services we held in March was 153, 128, 142, 251, and 148. We are now counting both services and adjusting the number to remove any duplicates.

 

Current membership statistics as of the end of March remain unchanged with 60 member families, 103 full members, 45 preparatory members and 69 constituent members for a total of 217.  I have had a difficult time getting people to come to a membership class.

 

Financially speaking our revenues for the month were $29,841 and expenses were $23,872 for a net income for the month of $5,969. As for our YTD figures (though 03/31/08), our revenues are $69,475 and our expenses are $64,715 with revenues exceeding expenses by $4,750. As of March 31 the balance in our Fidelity account (reserve) was $50,961 and the balance in our operating account was $57,885.

 

UPCOMING AND ONGOING

 

LOVE AREA

As for my preaching I am preaching from the Revised Common Lectionary for the rest of the Easter Season (through May 4th). We are also going to have a “Youth Sunday” on May 11th. We will also honor our Mothers on May 11th (Mother’s Day) and recognize all the graduates on May 18th.

 

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 with a combined average attendance of 37. My old class definitely took a hit numerically when we started the two services, but the new young adult class is more than taking up the slack in numbers and in vitality.

 

Sunday Night Bible Study has remained strong, with us still averaging 20 a night in our Gospel of Matthew study. We will study another book of the Bible (probably James), ending on May 18th for the summer.

 

Our Women’s Group continues to meet. They started a new study on April 1st called “Fingerprints of God” by Jennifer Rothschild with 8 in attendance the first night. The study is led by Michele Green and meets on Tuesday nights at 7pm.

 

The women have stopped their “Coffee and Prayer meeting” which was being held on the first Saturday of each month due to poor attendance.  

 

Our Men’s Group began a new study called “Discovering God’s Will” by Andy Stanley. They have been averaging 8-10 in their last study. The group is led by John Krauss and meets on Thursday nights at 7pm.

 

The men’s monthly breakfast for March was held on the 15th. They will meet as usual this month on April 19th.

 

SHARE

Outreach Ministry Group - B.J. Fisher led a team to minister to the homeless in Atlanta on Saturday, March 22nd. Chuck and Dawn Kirkland have about ten going to the Gulf Coast for a Katrina Relief trip during the week of May 11th. The Ghana trip looks like a “go” unless airfare increases knock us out of the saddle. We’ll be going July 3 to July 13th and are planning a couple of fund-raisers between now and then to help defray the cost of the trip including a Yard Sale on Sat. May 3rd from 8am-12 noon.

 

CHILDREN AND YOUTH

Our youth continue to meet on Sunday nights from 6 to 7:30pm. They had 19 in attendance last week and the group seems to be growing. They have 20 students signed up to go on the “D-Now” (Discipleship Now) weekend on April 18-19.

 

Our children’s programs continue with Sunday School at 9am taught by Greg Citta and Pat Plant. Junior Worship is held during the entire 10:30am service. The kids are worshipping with us via television in the KidsZone room. This group is led by Edith Banta and Shuri Orr. We also have a children’s teaching and activity time on Sunday evenings from 6-7pm led by Rebecca Brown. We are also hoping to have a few occasional outings for the children led by Rhonda Sloyer. McKenzi Fenn recently agreed to lead VBS this year for us. VBS will be held in July. We still don’t have an overall leader for the children’s area.

 

 

Old Business:

 

  1. Second Service Discussion: Vicki Eitel had emailed a report to the Board in her absence which the group discussed. Everyone seemed to feel that things are going well so far. There seemed to be some concern that some of the youth are coming only for Sunday School and not attending a worship service. The drop in attendance in the Pastor’s class was mentioned, but both Jerry and Linda feel that it is due to those working in the second service and is not a concern.  It appears  that the adult Sunday School classes want to continue past May 18 and go through the summer. Sunday Night Bible Study will stop, as well as children’s Sunday School.
  2. Church Directory – The directory is finished! Michael Smith is taking it to be printed.
  3. Elder Mentors – Steve reminded all Elders to make contact with their ministry team leaders during the second quarter (April 1 to June 30).
  4. Finance Committee – Steve said he is having a hard time getting this together. After prayerful consideration he is just not sure about the list of names. Also not sure about who might be willing to lead this team. After discussion it was decided to send a letter to the group and see who expressed interest, and then proceed from that point.
  5. Quarterly Review of Budget – As Ed Densmore was absent, there was no report.
  6. Church Website – Brian talked to Heath Fenn about this project, but he was not interested. Heath said his brother might be interested, but Brian and the Elders felt we should probably go with a company who does church websites. Steve noted that Cumming Baptist is advertising a new website on their sign, he will check with their pastor about who they used. We will make this a more pressing issue once the directory is completed and in everyone’s hands.

 

New Business:

 

  1. Justin Woelk Review – Brian Brown has sent an e-mail to the adult advisory team for the youth concerning Justin’s performance. He is still waiting on feedback, as all responses are not yet in. Brian will make a report to the Board of Elders, and we will have Justin attend the May 18th meeting for encouragement, etc… All responses received thus far have been positive.  
  2. Sign at Baseball Field: Steve received an e-mail from the Forsyth Central Baseball Booster Club to put up an advertising sign on the outfield fence. The group decided this was more of a goodwill gesture than positive results for the church, as well as a big expense. Vote was unanimous to say “No.”
  3. Praise Band Situation – Steve brought the group up to date on a problem in the praise band. Last Friday in an email exchange concerning song selection Steve made both Scotty DePriest and Tracey Brewer angry and they have decided to resign from the Praise Band. Steve has apologized and asked them both to reconsider, but they declined. Tom Frederick was out of town last weekend, but upon his return he has also decided he needs a break as well. Steve believes there are two root causes of this problem. First, we have not had an acknowledged leader of the Praise Band since Sandra Allen resigned. Scotty, Tom and Tracey have been sharing the responsibilities. This may be causing some confusion concerning expectations and vision for our music. A second, related cause appears to be a difference in creative and philosophical viewpoints between Steve and the leader(s) concerning song selection. Steve said he will try to rally the remaining praise band and look into alternatives for us in worship going forward.
  4. Senior Pastor Employment Agreement – Steve reported that his Senior Pastor Employment Agreement needs to be modified to reflect the current breakdown of his salary and living expenses. He will get a copy for the Elders to review by next month’s meeting.

 

Big Rocks Discussion:

 

  1. Staffing – The group decided that we need to do a sincere search for a Worship Leader in light of our current praise band situation. Steve asked, and was given permission to start asking around by word of mouth, and to advertise by website, etc… for this position. There was then a discussion concerning staff member Justin Woelk. Steve pointed out that Justin will be graduating from Kennesaw State in December and will have more time available to work at NewSong. Steve suggested that maybe we should consider giving Justin more responsibility in the church and possibly helping him with his seminary tuition and costs, with the goal of him possibly moving up to an Associate Pastor position in the future. Linda asked about the children’s ministry situation. The volunteers appear to be doing a good job at this time but, like the praise band, there is no acknowledged leader. Brian mentioned the finance committee again. It does not seem to be a major issue at this time, but we want to be prepared and start looking at all possibilities.

 

Closing Prayer – The Board then entered into a time of prayer for our known illnesses and concerns in the congregation, as well as our praise band situation, worship and children’s leader, finance committee, a job opportunity for Brian, and more people to fill our services.

 

Elder of the Month for May – Brian Brown

 

Next Meeting Date – Sunday, May 18th at 4pm at the church.

 

Respectfully Submitted,

Jerry Cauley

Secretary