Urgency

With a church the size of Covenant, communicating clearly and effectively to everyone is a big challenge. We are always striving to find the best mode of communication to get important information to you, as well as the most effective time and place to share it. It’s probably a bigger problem than you realize!

We have multiple services. We print vital information in the bulletin. But, if it’s really important stuff, I speak it out loud. I always try to say things the same way at the Saturday service and at both services on Sunday. Sometimes, however, I go home wondering if I shared the information with all three groups the same way.

Not everyone comes every week. On any given weekend, we may only have ½ to ¾ of our folks in attendance. There is never a weekend when everyone is here.

People come late. Sometimes when I share information that everyone needs to know at the traditional time for such communication—the announcement time—there are those who miss what has been said because they’re not yet in their seats.

Not everyone reads the mail or emails from Covenant. I understand. I don’t read everything sent to me, either. We send out things, knowing that ministry briefings, Web announcements, and letters in the mail don’t communicate to everyone. Even the readership of the Covenant Weekly (which you are reading now, thank you!) is only about 23% of those who actually receive it!

Hence, you now understand the reason for next week’s Urgent Covenant Meeting. We need all those who call Covenant their church home to come….everyone who has a stake in the mission to which our Lord has called this church.

Let me calm your fears. This meeting is urgent, but it’s not an emergency. There has been no scandal, and no staff people are leaving. We call it “urgent” rather than just “important” because some of the information that we need to share with you is time-sensitive. We are asking you to come because we need for everyone to hear the information in person and, preferably, at the same time.

At this meeting, we will be updating everyone on the next phase of Covenant’s ministry. It has been very clear to me and our staff team that we have many people (including many of our most faithful and regular servants) who are in the “dark” about our next steps. I would like to have an opportunity to briefly share about some specific directions that we believe are vital to the work of God at Covenant over the next year.

We will also hear from Don Cousins, a trusted and seasoned ministry partner to our church over the years. Don’s training material, called LeaderShift, is the primary textbook for us as we train leaders and ask God for guidance into the future. He is the former Executive Director for one of the country’s largest churches. Don will give us an encouraging word as we embark upon our next journey of faith as a church.

So, I’m inviting you to come out on a Monday night for a congregational meeting. As the name states, it’s vital that you attend and that you know meetings like this one are not the norm at our church. We simply want everyone to be on the same page!

Branson

PS. Please register (if you haven’t done so already) by clicking here. If you need childcare (through 5th grade), you can sign kids up on this same form as well.