Where We Are

1. Where We Are Elders are concerned of the condition of this congregation. Seems to be stagnant Much work to be done but so few laborers Used the anonymous surveys to get input

2. Where we are 3 What we are doing right 4 What we are doing wrong 6 What we can do better 1 Do you have any needs we can help you with 3 What can you do to help

3. Things we are doing right • There is a sense of belonging to those who get involved and are active. • E-mail is getting stronger all the time. • Elders are present at functions and involved and are active. • Children’s Bible hour is working well with several ladies and teens. • Friendly church, sermons are easy to understand and notes help with personal study at home. • Keeping the young men involved in services. • The Gospel is being preached and taught, not only in the building but out in the world in the newspaper, internet, and personal evangelism. • We provide food and other necessities to the needy and orphans. • We build up & celebrate our families with Family Day. • Our members ask for prayers and assistance from the congregation. • Building improvements make it inviting to visitors.

4. Things we are doing right The Lord’s work, preaching & teaching, trying to bring people to know and accept Christ. Serving God and praising Him. Supporting an excellent preacher, where love abounds, with great singing, and men volunteer. We greet new members with such love, it is glorious! Serving and worshipping the Lord, practicing sound doctrine. Following God’s word. Elders showing a desire to serve God and being aware of the ebb and flow of the congregation. Showing concern and calling when we are missed. Senior saints are well attended. Teaching the truth, excellent sermons with sermon notes to help us stay focused. Showing love and support to members in need, a sense of belonging for those who get involved and are active.

5. Things we are doing right Keith’s preaching Being found in the work of the Lord, and the cards we receive when we are missed. Encouraging young people to participate in worship services. Our Bible classes both Sunday and Wednesday night along with edifying worship services. Our song service has improved with the older songs from the past thrown in for a change. Encouraging prayers and teaching us the Word. We are a warm welcoming church by being the most successful multi-racial congregation, a “hospital” church in our community. Our teaching and leadership is great.

6. Things we are doing wrong Deacons need vision to be more involved in teaching, find their passion in an area and take hold of it! Changing Sunday evening services to 5:pm. Spend more time talking of self-entertainment (ball team, fantasy football, etc.) than spiritual things. Not utilizing deacons and members to their full potential – sing, prayer, visit the sick & elderly, missions. Entirely too many social, secular programs in our announcements, very little about visitation or other religious activities. Most problems around here are not racial - it’s because people criticize when they are not involved outside of service – things that fellowship us with other Christians rather than the world. Elders need to mingle with newcomers – my family & I have been coming since before Keith and most don’t know we exist. No small groups. No youth minister. We invest $ in the building but not the future of the church. We need someone to lead our youth. Too many pew riders and complainers. Elders need to challenge them to put up or shut up! Don’t be afraid of race.

7. Things we are doing wrong Failing to get the full participation of the members in worship. Failing to activate Family Group Program to help us be more accountable of attendance and participation. Not contacting our weak members to let them know we missed them and concerned about their spiritual health. Our worship services do not convey reverence – a lot of distractions, loud talking, passing notes, playing games or feeding children, not participating in the singing. Song service suffering because men do not choose songs applicable to sermon topic, or appropriate for communion, invitation or baptisms. Many of our men not volunteering on Wednesday nights, so the same ones have to volunteer over and over. Don’t know who the deacons are or what they do. I come to fed spiritually, not hear a bunch of news about activities before or after church. We can read that for ourselves in the bulletin. Isn’t that what they are for?

8. Things we are doing wrong Youth and Teens don’t have an organized consistent program. Much is hit and miss – a hurry up thing. (Middle school is nonexistent). No follow-up on suggestions (LTC) for ideas wondering why it is not effective. Small groups – where are they? Deacons are not used effectively. Some are in charge of things and others don’t seem to be in charge of anything. Membership apathy- many members sit back and do not work – we need to find a way to be more accountable! We need classes designed for specific groups and needs: young married, young singles, widows, training men & women to be leaders. We do not follow through with activities. We need to finish what we start. We need to make others feel welcome and not stay in our little groups all the time.

9. Things we are doing wrong Act as though we don’t want to open our mouth’s and sing. We need more joy! There’s a lot of favoritism toward certain families; baby showers for some and not others. More fire and brimstone preaching in the sermons.

10. What can we do better? Help deacons understand the responsibility of their position and work – not just hold the title. Elders need to stop micro-managing the church and appoint deacons to do the work. Song service needs work – congregation needs to be uplifted in song so members are encouraged to sing along in the worship. Visit the sick. Some of the deacons aren’t friendly and turn away when you want to shake hands or speak to them. This hinders others to work with them in the church. Elders need to visit the sick in the hospital, new members, study and teach classes on living the Christian life. Use elder meetings for good works and getting members’ needs met. Show we are glad to be here and stop being so unapproachable toward each other and especially the visitors. Organize and activate the Family Group program with leaders making sure each one knows when and where they are as a reminder and encouragement so we can be accountable to each other.

11. What can we do better? Install a dimmer switch to show the worship service is about to begin (sit down & be quiet) with worship leader to remind us the Lord is present and act accordingly. Song leader must have some formal training to know how to lead songs appropriately for the sermon topic, communion, invitation and baptisms. Need teacher training session every year. Pair a “teacher-in training” helper with a professional teacher who will get accustomed to teaching so teacher won’t get burned out. Elders must be more assertive & go to individuals who have said on their information sheets that they are willing to do work in the church but won’t volunteer their help when needed. This is both a RIGHT and RESPONSIBILITY of the elders. We need a Ladies Bible class for those who cannot attend the Wednesday morning session.

12. What can we do better? To save money on heating, cooling and lighting the auditorium, Sunday and Wednesday evening services should be held in the fellowship hall. We should use some companion study material for Bible class (Foundations, etc.) as they are instrumental in growth and participation. The lecture type style is antiquated. Be more concerned with one another, pray for one another, stop judging, be true Christians. Encourage members to attend more than Sunday morning services: classes including Thursday Bible studies. It’s sad to see so few attend. Let members know when we’re about to have things done & allow input from us. I miss the pot luck dinners. Check on members who have fallen away and are sick. Congregation as a whole (members) need to be more attentive to the visitors by learning their names and addresses when they come back. Make sure we send them a thank you card and ask their needs.

13. What can we do better? Let’s post the financial statement EVERY month for all to see. There’s more than one reason our congregation is 16K short in the budget. Have a change of heart in respect to God – adjust what we think is important from secular to social activities. We need an Elder who is not classified as white. The audio/video operator needs to pay more attention to the teaching and singing slides as it is very distracting- otherwise do away with it altogether. The Lord’s supper is a very important part of our worship so we need to give it more time by cutting the singing or preaching or prayers. Fellowship with other churches (W.S. Young & Belton) Restart the Keeping in Touch Groups Sponsor Gospel meetings.

14. What can we do better? There needs to be a way that those without e-mail to know what’s going on. Get different men to lead singing and help with different things in the congregation. Reach out to members who haven’t been coming. Do some daring but biblically sound ideas for reaching the lost in this town. Get small groups together each month for a purpose: bring a friend, call a weaker member in, do some work in the community, etc. Expand our “dinky” foyer, improve our front bathrooms, get more colors in our classrooms. Try changing up the worship service by preaching before the communion, and all the announcements at the end, to keep us on our toes. If I had to choose a van expense or a family/youth minister, I’d choose the minister.

15. What can we do better? We need a congregation wide phone tree established to get information out quickly and easily to those without computers. Visitation with more involvement of members, Elders, deacons, preacher and their wives. More fellowship opportunities to get together and luncheons or other activities. Hail/Farewells need to stay on the calendar. Be more aware of who is coming and going so no one falls through the cracks.

16. Are there any needs? Just your prayers. Prayers for each other and to love one another. Pray for us to put God first. Prayers for myself and my family to be a part of the work in our church. Pray for one another to cope and endure these last days. We all need encouragement and feel important in the congregation. We need to get to know you so don’t leave as soon as church is over. Let’s visit each other! If you knew me better, you would not need to ask!

17. What can you do to help? So much more – lazy and need to do better! I’m at the breaking point –how much more can I do? Please consider these questions we’ve answered for you. Support! Participate in all of this myself: write letters, encourage others, notice others and their good works. Practice what I have written every single minute of every single day! Help with teacher training, call visit or send cards, help with VBS, help with office secretarial tasks, grade Bible correspondence courses, and continue daily e-mail devotionals to encourage others.

18. What can you do to help? Be encouraging to everyone all the time. Pray for the church, that goes a long way! Support our Elders. Support the body financially. Help when needed. Encourage and edify others – follow the Elders lead. Call people I’ve noticed not being at church and pitch in to help with things going on. Be more pro-active in the church and participate in the work. Place membership. Be ready to serve when needed. Pray for all of us.

19. What can you do to help? I can only help when I know what’s going on. Continue to pray for Southside and help in whatever way I can. Anything you need from wielding a paintbrush to having a group in my home, to helping with education. Do whatever is needed, organize a phone tree for the congregation, participate in a visitation program, and reach out to members on the side.

20. We are Family..all my Brothers, Sisters and me...... 1Peter3:8-12 Finally, all of you, live in Harmony with one another: be sympathetic, love as brothers, be compassionate and humble. Do not repay evil with evil or insult with insult, but with blessing, because to this you were called so that you may inherit a blessing. For Whoever would Love Life and see good days must keep his tongue from evil and his lips from deceitful speech. He must turn from evil and do good; he must seek peace and pursue it. For the eyes of the Lord are on the righteous and his ears are attentive to their prayer, but the face of the Lord is against those who do evil.

21. We are Family..all my Brothers, Sisters and me...... 1 Peter 3: 13-Who is going to harm you if you are eager to do good? But even if you should suffer for what is right, you are blessed.” Do not fear what they fear, do not be frightened.” But in your hearts set apart Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect, keeping a clear conscience, so that those who speak maliciously against your good behavior in Christ may be ashamed of their slander. It is better, if it is God’s will, to suffer for doing good than for doing evil.

22. We are Family..all my Brothers, Sisters and me...... What will the Lord say to us on that day... Will he say to us? Well done, thou good and faithful servant: thou hast been faithful over a few things, I will make thee ruler over many things: enter thou into the joy of the Lord. Christ says in John 14 1-6 Do not let your hearts be troubled, trust in God; trust also in me. In my Fathers house are many rooms; if it were not so I would have told you. I am going there to prepare a place for you. And if I go to prepare a place for you. I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am. You know the way to the place where I am going? Thomas said to him.”Lord we don’t know where you are going, so how can we know the way? Jesus answered, "I am the way and the truth and the life, No one comes to the Father except through me. So brethren..Upward and onward...... The invitation is yours....