Description of Ministry Responsibilities for Various Teams.
The Ministry Action Team is comprised of member from the Engage, Connect, Grow, Send, Trustee, Finance, and Human Relations/Personnel Teams. This group is responsible to hold the other teams accountable for their progress in making passionate disciples of Jesus Christ and to assist them in their work. This group is charged with vision casting and communication so that all of the teams, and therefore the entire church, are focused on our goal of making disciples and we do not get distracted from this mission. Through cooperation with other teams, especially the trustees, we establish church policies, such as the van policy, the kitchen policy, the wedding policy and building use policy.
Ministry Leadership Teams: engage. → connect. → grow. → send.
The Engage Team has the tremendous responsibility of reaching out to the people in our community who do not have a relationship with God through Jesus Christ and Engage them in some way. We are often the first point of contact between the church and a
member of our community. Our team coordinates things like the Back-to-School Bash, Thanksgiving Day dinner, Saturday morning street ministry, and Marshall University outreach. A member of this team should have a heart of compassion and love for those who are not yet part of God’s kingdom, or a love of mission work, a desire to see people give their life to Jesus and some imagination and creativity in ways to make contact with “unchurched” people would be helpful. One of our goals is to make church less frightening and meet people where they are.
The Connect Team has the responsibility to help people with their first encounter with Jesus Christ as a personal savior. Once they have been Engaged, our primary goal is to offer radical hospitality to everyone who chooses to attend worship or an event and we try to make folks feel comfortable at Community of Grace United Methodist Church. Our areas of focus include meeting, greeting, driving the church van, and ushering. Greeters will be at the entrances to the Narthex and Fellowship Hall. If you think we could employ your gifts, talents and graces then we want you as a disciple in God’s service on our team.
The Grow Team exists to help followers of Jesus Christ mature in their faith – grow in a deeper relationship with Christ.. Once people from the community have been engaged and connected to the church, our task is to help them Grow in their understanding of God and then Grow in their faith. Our areas of responsibility include: Sunday school, covenant groups, short-term study groups, and continuing education events such as the child protection policy training. A member of the Grow Team should have a passion to work with current believers who may not be as far along on their journey of faith and help them move deeper into their faith. You do not have to be a teacher to be on this team.
The Send Team has the responsibility to help identify people’s gifts and talents and to work with individuals to find areas of service where they can use those gifts. Once a person has been Engaged and connected to the church and they are growing in their faith, our role is to find the right place for them to serve God. Sad as it is, many people go through life never recognizing their true gifts and talents that God has bestowed. By taking a brief questionnaire (Spiritual Gifts Assessment) your gifts can be identified. Once the questionnaire is completed, a member of the Send team will discuss with you your talents and can recommend the area of service.
The Trustees is the group who is responsible for the physical buildings and property as well as the invested funds. This group is a legal necessity and acts on behalf of the entire congregations in legal matters. We are responsible for protecting our property with appropriate insurance, investing funds wisely, maintaining the buildings owned and making them available for ministry, purchasing equipment, maintaining the parsonage, and keeping informed about current laws that may affect the church. Since this is a legal group with liability for their work and they are recorded at the courthouse, all members must be of legal age.
The Finance Team is responsible for monitoring the financial health of the church and taking the steops necessary to assure the programs and ministries of the church receive the funding they need to make disciples of the Jesus Christ. The team is a resource for the other teams and is primarily associated with the Send Team.
The Human Resource/Personnel Team is another resource team that primarily relates to the Send Team but has the responsibility to assist all other teams in doing their work. This team is responsible for the oversight and evaluation of the paid staff of the church (and hiring and firing, when necessary). This s the group that helps maintain a healthy relationship between the staff and congregation. They also consult with the district superintendent to provide the appropriate pastoral leadership for the congregation. This team also works with the Ministry Action Team and pastor to cast a vision for the church and hold us all accountable to remain focused on making disciples of Jesus Christ.
Obviously, there are a number of ministries and activities at Community of Grace where there is an overlap of responsibilities, such as Vacation Bible School (VBS). VBS is an event to help people Grow in their faith, but may also Engage people from the community.
Other leaders in the church: Treasurer – responsible for the funds of the church and making a report of such; Financial Secretary – responsible for recording the offering made and issuing a report to all donors at the end of the year; Children’s coordinator – responsible to coordinate the ministries for children; Communications coordinator – responsible for in-church communications as well as getting events published in the paper and other means of advertising; Health and Welfare – responsible for promoting a healthy lifestyle and arranging for events to promote overall health. Mission Team leader – encourage and enable mission work.
