Rural Churches Can-A small town United Methodist Church I once served was complaining they could not compete with churches in nearby cities and felt they had no future. It was started in 1816 but its first history wasn’t written until 1911 so much of its early history was lost. I began contacting churches around the church to get their histories because many of the churches shared a circuit at one time. I counted about 16 churches started by that church back when northern Ohio was a virtual wilderness. It wasn’t the pastor, because they shared their pastor with up to twenty other churches. Once they built a building to worship in, there was no record they established any new churches. Somewhere along the way they lost the vision. I surveyed some of the local people and found that one out of ten people in that town were of Methodist background but did not attend any church. Since I was in seminary full-time nine months of the year, I had little time to do more than preach, however I spent my summers visiting members of the church and community. Both churches experienced noticeable growth for the first time in years from my work alone. Pastors need to train their members to become fishers of men. Though many rural churches are failing, some are still succeeding. A couple local churches have proved there is still a future for rural churches. One church recently celebrated its 25th anniversary. It started from a couple families meeting in a house basement because they did not like the way the theology of their church was going. It has grown to over 250 members in only 25 yrs. by reaching out and ministering to those around them. Another local church started as a house church 20 years ago, now averages 200 in its main church and has a satellite church. While some mega-churches today are growing by watering down the Gospel to draw anyone they can, such churches are growing by ministering to those around them like the New Testament church did. I discuss it further in my book “Rebuilding the Kingdom”.
Posts Tagged ‘church ministry’
Sixth Sunday of Pentecost-July 2
Neighborhood Center Ministry-Poor areas have many problems caused by poverty. Lack of transportation makes it difficult to get assistance from agencies and there are many needs that agencies can’t help. The Salvation Army has developed the greatest network of neighborhood centers of any church. Each church is usually in a poverty area and provides not only a religious center but social services and community programs. People coming to get social services become aware of religious services and other services. Formerly, churches were centers for community activities since they had the only facilities for community gatherings other than schools. Many churches today close their facilities to non-members. Any church today, especially those in poverty areas and rural areas, should be a community center ministering to social needs around them, as well as their spiritual needs. Ministering to the community often leads non-church people to ask why they do it opening the doors to tell them about the Love of God.
Fifth Sunday of Pentecost-June 25
Visiting homebound-As the government has developed home care services for those elderly who can no longer take care of themselves, more of those who need a little help each morning getting bathed and dressed, but can take care of themselves after that, have been able to stay in their own homes instead of going into a nursing home. The result has saved the government a great deal as home care usually costs only 1/2 to 1/3 of nursing home care and has enabled many to stay in their homes, however it also tends to isolate them. Workers come in daily but must complete their work and move on to the next client so they can not stay and visit. In addition, there are many who can take care of themselves and don’t need help, but they can no longer drive and get out. The grocery may deliver their groceries and the laundry picks up, cleans, and returns their laundry but they don’t have time to stop and visit. Many elderly confined to their own homes do not see anyone besides any care givers and medical personnel they have, and could use someone who is willing to come and spend time talking to them. The elderly often appreciate visits by children who are well behaved and teens because they may have grandchildren but have never seen them because they live at a great distance and the children and teens often enjoy visiting the elderly who have the time to sit and talk with them or play games with them, because their parents often work and don’t have the time.
Fourth Sunday of Pentecost-June 18
Meeting A Need-If there is a need in your area and there is no one meeting that need, you may consider organizing a ministry through your church or in your community. The small groups may check to see if there are nearby residents needing lawns cut, snow shoveling of simple repairs. If the group doesn’t have anyone available, they can ask neighboring groups. Churches often claim they don’t have the resources. Some needs may be beyond the resources of the local small group. Churches often claim they don’t have the resources. In the mid-1970’s, I belonged to a house church consisting of only six families. They became concerned about the large number of suicides in the area after I told them about the hour, I had spent the previous week on a railroad bridge with a teenage girl who could not decide whether to jump. They set out to organize a crisis hotline and contacted Contact International and with their help laid plans for a crisis phone line for the county. In only 12 months, the members of that church gathered 129 volunteer phone workers and trained them, and secured enough voluntary contributions to support a phone bill of almost $1500 a month, plus cover utilities and rent for an office, to provide a place where people could call toll-free 24 hours a day, 7 days a week from anywhere in the county. They went on the phones only a year after we began planning and are still serving their community to this day, after 44 years of continuous phone service. They drastically cut the suicide rate in their area. If a church of only six families can do that, what can a church of 100 or more families do?
Intro to Neighborhood Ministries NW Ohio-video
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Book promo-In The World Not of It
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