Discipling and retention

[Rhoni]

Originally Posted by shag

I'm very glad U started this thread Rhoni. I am looking forward to reading it, and trying to soak up ideas to retain folks. I believe that many churches have fallen short in this area. I feel it is because of a combination of reasons of which I am the 1st to admit guiltiness and shortcoming. Too slothful when it comes to 1 on 1 evangelism, and not enuff time spent in the lives/meeting the needs of new converts. I also feel like the churches have preached Acts 2:38, standards, shoutdown, and Deut. 6:4 so much (in my "world") that "we" havent taken the time to train people of the "covenant relationship" with Christ. For better and worse.....thru all. We need 1 God, Jesus name baptism, and Holyghost, modesty etc.. but, We also need people know more than that, like what is covenant relationship w/ Christ. Heb.6 going on into perfection... I'm out of time to post right now, just wanted to let U know I'm looking forward to learning from this thread. Thanks for starting it.

There are things each of us can learn from each other through experience, trainning, and relationship to Jesus Christ. It is an area that lay leaders, saints and pastors need more awareness and training in.

Blessings, Rhoni

[Innocuous]

When I was the new converts pastor at a church we designed and implemented an 8 month discipleship program that taught basic doctrines, basic Christian disciplines, spiritual gifts matched to a ministry, relationship building/repair (taught by a counselor), and basic life skills. We also created a mentoring program where we matched up new people with established church members and the church members were too take these people under their wings and help them assimilate into the church body. We also had a library for new converts that had books and media on many different topics for them to use at their leisure. I felt that the core of the effort was the mentoring and the rest of it supplemented the one-on-one disicpling. For this to work though the idea of reaching out to new people must be part of the ethos of the church. Otherwise it's just another program...and programs generally suck.

[Michael Phelps]

Originally Posted by Rhoni

There are things each of us can learn from each other through experience, trainning, and relationship to Jesus Christ. It is an area that lay leaders, saints and pastors need more awareness and training in.

Blessings, Rhoni

I spent several years in the engineering business while in the ministry, but all of my time was in the automotive tooling field - designing, building and installing automotive assembly lines.

When I was laid off in 1999, I went into the ministry full time until 2005.

When I resigned the church, I spent some time recruiting engineers, and I placed several engineers with the company that now employs me, Jacobs Engineering.

Well, long story short, Jacobs offered me a job with their company, supporting Kellogg's.

I explained that I didn't have an engineering degree, and had absolutely NO food and beverage experience, but they liked my management skills and hired me anyway.

On my first day, my boss said, "I can give you two options - I can hand you this huge procedure manual to read for a month, or I can give you a project to manage, and look over your shoulder and guide you".

I said, "Give me the project!!!!!!!"

I was fortunate, because he mentored me while I was actually working on a project, instead of making me sit at a desk for month and read documentation that I didn't even really understand yet.

My point is that many churches have "new converts training", but it mainly consists of sitting in class rooms, trying to absorb a ton of information, but not being allowed to actually "DO" anything in the church until they've completed a certain number of courses, which by the way, usually takes weeks or months.

I realize that most Apostolic churches have standards that must be met before one can be involved in platform ministry, but I still think we would retain many more people if we actually let them get involved SOMEWHERE in our churches right off the bat, and just look over their shoulder.

THey may make mistakes along the way, and they may not look like the more seasoned saints, but a mature congregation will understand and nurture the new converts thru their foibles and follies.

[Blubayou]

In- looks like the strength of your "program" was that it was an organized program- many churches do not have that- it is just left up to individuals to take the burden of winning and mentoring others.

[Blubayou]

MP - I agree with you - There are many places in a church that they can be used and feel they are contributing to the greater good. When I first got the HG - I was a nineteen year old college student- of course I was from a church family- but I wanted to be used - They found a place for me as secretary of one of the SS depts. I was also used in choir. The point - I felt that I was contributing and a part of the whole.

[Rhoni]

Originally Posted by Michael Phelps

I spent several years in the engineering business while in the ministry, but all of my time was in the automotive tooling field - designing, building and installing automotive assembly lines.

When I was laid off in 1999, I went into the ministry full time until 2005.

When I resigned the church, I spent some time recruiting engineers, and I placed several engineers with the company that now employs me, Jacobs Engineering.

Well, long story short, Jacobs offered me a job with their company, supporting Kellogg's.

I explained that I didn't have an engineering degree, and had absolutely NO food and beverage experience, but they liked my management skills and hired me anyway.

On my first day, my boss said, "I can give you two options - I can hand you this huge procedure manual to read for a month, or I can give you a project to manage, and look over your shoulder and guide you".

I said, "Give me the project!!!!!!!"

I was fortunate, because he mentored me while I was actually working on a project, instead of making me sit at a desk for month and read documentation that I didn't even really understand yet.

My point is that many churches have "new converts training", but it mainly consists of sitting in class rooms, trying to absorb a ton of information, but not being allowed to actually "DO" anything in the church until they've completed a certain number of courses, which by the way, usually takes weeks or months.

I realize that most Apostolic churches have standards that must be met before one can be involved in platform ministry, but I still think we would retain many more people if we actually let them get involved SOMEWHERE in our churches right off the bat, and just look over their shoulder.

THey may make mistakes along the way, and they may not look like the more seasoned saints, but a mature congregation will understand and nurture the new converts thru their foibles and follies.

I agree with this approach, hands on training with a mentor for personal touch. Books, libraries, and hand outs is a bit impersonal and many people don't like to read and would rather be shown/modelled/exampled.