Tags: Children, Discipleship, Florida, Location, Medium, Outreach
Cypress Lake UMC is located in a mostly residential area of southwest Ft. Myers, Florida. It is one of 9 United Methodist churches in the immediate Ft. Myers area. While it is composed of a largely retired membership, it has over the past 8 years had a growing attendance among younger adults and families with children.
When people are asked why they come to Cypress Lake UMC a number of answers come to the forefront.
They were invited by a neighbor or a friend. The people of CLUMC are excited to tell about their church and its ministries.
The church is intentional in its efforts to make young families welcome. The church has a growing ministry with children which features age specific activities on weekday evenings and weekends. Child care is offered at every church event. Bible studies and other events are offered specifically for younger parents such as parent’s night out, Mom’s Bible Studies, etc.
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Tags: Discipleship, Evangelism, Hospitality, Medium
At Argyle United Methodist Church, we believe that our effectiveness in evangelism is directly related to how positively we are impacting the lives of the children, youth and adults in our community. Engagement begins with our members, who are encouraged to get involved with our local schools, neighborhood associations, non-profits, and businesses so that they can help our church find creative ways to serve others and offer Christ to the people who live and work in our mission field. To assist in these efforts, our Faithworx ministry team helps identify needs, coordinate service projects, solicit volunteers, and secure the funding we need to relieve suffering as Jesus did. In addition to participating in our ongoing missions, each one of our church’s ministry teams is asked to sponsor at least one servant evangelism event a year. Efforts like our “Spice up the winter” salsa give-away, reverse trick-or-treating, neighborhood pool parties, and outdoor movie nights have helped our church reach out to hundreds of families. On a much larger scale, each year we choose a Sunday to “cancel” church so that we can go out to “be the church”. We call this our Great Day of Service. To learn more about “servant evangelism” visit Steve Sjogren’s website www.servantevangelism.com.
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Tags: Hospitality, Large, Outreach
Established in 1960, the people of Calvary United Methodist Church in Normal, Illinois relocated to a new 40 acre site early in 2002. With the building program came intentional teaching and preaching about growth, reaching beyond the boundaries of the building, and making disciples for Jesus Christ.
We continually ask the question, “What can we do to make our measure of hospitality exceed the expectations of our visitors?” We strategically station greeters at entrance points, offer free coffee, lemonade, and pastries, provide gift mugs to first time visitors, and offer guided tours of the building. At the beginning of each service the Directing Pastor clearly articulates words of greeting to visitors using phrases like, “It is an honor to have you with us today. If you are new to our community or looking for a church home, we invite you to connect with Calvary. We would love to be your church home.” We provide the best of nursery care in a safe and attractive environment, and offer outstanding ministries for children, students and parents.
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Tags: Indiana, Leadership, Prayer, Small Group, Youth
Blue Grass United Methodist Church, located on the outskirts of Evansville, Indiana, is the oldest United Methodist congregation in Vanderburgh County, dating back to 1824. Blue Grass has a long rich history that begins with Circuit Riders, but the congregation refuses to dwell on its past successes. Instead, it has chosen to be faithful to what God is calling us to do today to prepare us for a fantastic future.
Over the past 15 years, Blue Grass has experienced tremendous change. From one traditional worship service to three contemporary and one traditional service. From 130 in worship to 430 in worship. From 250 members to over 600 members. From four staff members to twenty, including, our pre-school ministry. From three acres of land to thirty-three acres.
We are located in one of the growing areas of the county. We have been positioned in this location for 185 years to receive the growth that has finally reached our once rural community. We were once dubbed the “best kept secret” in town and have become one of the most known churches in the area.
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The Foundation for Evangelism’s 2011 Culture of the Call Church is Collegiate United Methodist Church in Ames, Iowa. The Culture of the Call Church Award is presented annually to one United Methodist Church with a history of having people 35 of younger respond to God’s call to fulltime Christian service as a result of their being active in the life of the church. Director of Discipleship, Technology and Communication, Wil Ranney, took a moment to discuss their move into using today’s Social Media tools to communicate and build relationships with their congregation online…
The biggest challenge facing established churches in online ministry is internet literacy amongst our oldest members. Often times, decision makers will have these great wizbang ideas that never catch on, because they can’t seem to get the critical mass involved that it takes to form a vibrant online community. Since our elders make up the majority of established congregations, they must also make up the core of our online ministries. The second problem is related to the first: you can’t just start a website or a Facebook page and expect people to use them. It takes a deliberate plan to get people involved, just like any other church program. The good news is that once online ministries are up and running, they often take less effort to maintain, as the community itself is empowered to contribute.
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The Harry Denman Evangelism Award celebrates its 30th anniversary of presentation in conjunction with annual conference in 2011. Since 1981, more than 2,400 people have been recognized as living examples of the Great Commission at work in the life and ministry of United Methodists across the country. This year, The Foundation for Evangelism recognizes eight annual conferences that have presented this award for twenty or more consecutive years. Think of the multiplying impact of the personal ministry of the approximately 450 persons represented in these eight conferences!
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