As I sit down to write this article I cannot help but to think how proud I am of this church.  Last Sunday night we had a business meeting.  In that meeting we voted to change the church constitution to allow us to have quarterly instead of monthly business meetings. This, of course, does not preclude us from calling special business meetings when they are needed. 

We will have quarterly business meetings for one year and then evaluate the arrangement to ensure that it is adequately meeting the needs of the church.  It is our intention that each of the quarterly business meetings be special events.  We will be planning fellowship times in conjunction with the business meetings to help ensure this and to encourage greater attendance and participation.  I am proud of this congregation for having both the flexibility to allow change and the wisdom to evaluate the changes that we make.

In the same business meeting we voted to hire Doug Abrams as our Director of Senior Adult Ministries.  It has been my desire to have a staff member devoted to ministry to our Senior Adults since before I became the Senior Pastor.  Senior Adults are a vital part of this church, and it is essential to us being a healthy church that this age group receives on-going ministry and support.  I am convinced that Doug Abrams has the heart, the work ethic, and the tools to provide leadership in this area, and that he is going to do a superb job of ministering to our Senior Adults.  I am proud of this congregation for recognizing that God has set Doug aside for this ministry and for their enthusiastic support of him. 

The third reason I am so proud of this congregation is the way that you all handled yourselves and modeled Christian character during that business meeting.  There was to be a vote on a candidate to fill the part-time Director of Music and Worship position, but a motion was made from the floor to make this a full-time position instead. 

There was a lot of discussion on the subject from people both in favor of and against making this position full-time.  In spite of the fact that there were passionate people with differing opinions, everyone was heard and treated with respect as they presented their positions.  There was never an atmosphere of “us against them” in the meeting.  We were simply a congregation seeking to discern God’s will in this matter.  When the vote was taken to indeed make this a full-time position, there was no gloating on the part of those who were for it.  Likewise, there was no pouting by those who opposed it. 

The church had an open and honest conversation about an issue that most members had strong opinions on.  As a family we respectfully discussed the options and then voted in accordance with the way we felt led by God to vote.  We now have both a course of action to pursue and an opportunity to both trust God and join Him in His work. 

I am proud of this congregation for the maturity it demonstrated and the godly character it displayed during this meeting.  Philippians 2:3-4 says, “Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves. Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others.”  God was honored by the way in which you as a congregation lived this out.  What damage might have been done to the Kingdom if you  had not?