The Importance of Being Rooted: Introducing Membership at Threshold!
The following is an important vision update from pastor Jake:
This past Sunday I preached a message called The Importance of Being Rooted. We are in a new season at Threshold. Things are coming into place and roots are being put in the ground.
In the message, I shared about the importance of being planted in God’s house. While every Christian is automatically a member of the global body of Christ, the New Testament describes believers joined together in a local church family.
Over the past year, the elder team has been in discussions about how to better provide intentional ways for connection, care, and equipping in our church body. Early this year we began to discuss the possibility of having membership, and how that could enhance the sense of belonging, connection, accountability, and unity in our church.
After prayer and multiple conversations, the team was in unity that we felt the Lord leading us to implement membership. We feel that this is an important step in order for us to keep moving towards all that God has for us.
Why Membership?
In Sunday’s message, I named several reasons for implementing membership:
1. Intentional Connection: Membership gives a clear way for people to make Threshold their home church.
2. Definition and clarity: Go from an assumed relationship to a defined relationship, and we know who calls Threshold home.
3. Family and belonging: There is a greater sense of connection and belonging.
4. Unity of purpose and direction: We can move forward together in a more united way.
5. Care and accountability: We can be more intentional about pastoral care, growth, and accountability.
The Membership Process
We realize that there are many of you who are already plugged into Threshold and consider it your home church, even though we have not had a formal membership process. For those who have been regularly attending for a considerable time, are serving in some sort of ministry/leadership role, or have already gone through the newcomers Discover Group, we are not asking you to go through the entire process of membership.
If you are in this category, we are asking that you attend a one-time meeting on a Sunday morning. We will offer this class on the following three Sundays in a row from 8:30 – 9:30 AM in a children’s classroom: September 17th, September 24th, and October 1st (childcare will be provided). We will also offer this class again throughout the rest of this year.
This class will be an opportunity to learn more about membership and ask any questions that you have. I will be emailing the people who fall into this group to invite them to come to this class.
For those who are new to Threshold, the standard membership process will include going through the newcomers Discover Group, filling out a membership application, and meeting with someone from the elder team. More information on this will be coming soon!
If you did not hear this past Sunday’s message, please take time to listen to it by clicking here: The Importance of Being Rooted. I share my heart for why we are doing membership, and why we think it is an important step for our church family.
I am looking forward to continuing to grow together and see all that God has for us!
