Last spring our congregation was blessed to receive 30 new members.  These new members are excited to be here and are enthusiastic about becoming a part of our church. All of them without exception have committed to serve in at least one ministry in our church.  It is a very hopeful time in the life of St. Mark.

          However, based on 28 years of experience as a pastor in 3 churches, I know, with a reasonable degree of certainty, that unless these enthusiastic new members connect soon to a small group, they will not stay long.   New people need to find a niche in our church where they can belong. Where they can:  

                                      ·         build  relationships with other members, make new friends,

                                      ·          be prayed for and receive emotional support, and

                                      ·         pray for and support others in return.  

                    It has been my experience that unless these new members can find such a place in our church, it is very likely that within 6 months most of those enthusiastic well intentioned new members will be gone out the back door.  And you know, now that I think about it, that kind of support and encouragement and friendship is something that all of us need, long time members as well as new members.

          In the recent past, our church participated in the (NCR) Natural Church Development Self Evaluation Process. The results of the survey indicated that our congregation’s greatest weakness is a lack of functioning small groups.

          In an attempt to address this issue, our Health and Healing Task Force recently interviewed and hired Kathy Otto as our new Small Groups Ministry Coordinator. I think she is a great choice, and we are very blessed to have someone with her gifts serving on   our ministry staff.  Working closely with Kathy we hope to offer 6 new opportunities for people to experience the kind of encouragement and support that being a part of a small group of Christian believers can offer.   These new offerings will include caring groups that will address our physical, spiritual, emotional, psychological, social, and financial needs. More details will be coming soon but please consider whether being a part of a small caring group of Christians might also enrich your life.                                                            

                                                            Your brother in Christ,     

                                                                 Pastor Jay