Elders Letter – Jan 2025
Jan 2025
Dear FCC Family,
Dear FCC Family,
19 “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”
—Matthew 28:19-20
—Matthew 28:19-20
Baptize and teach to observe. Find and Follow Jesus. The focus of our church body is to bring people to Christ and help Christians grow in their faith. When each of us submits our talents and abilities to God, He uses them to bring others to Him and build His Kingdom. In this letter, we want to focus on four items: Membership, Momentum, Money, and Missions.
Membership — Every year FCC members renew their membership through our 7 Habits Survey. Please use this survey to help you recognize habits and disciplines in which you are doing well and areas that need attention. Then develop a plan to address these areas and share it with an Elder, Life Group leader or member, or accountability partner. The Elders and Pastors use the survey and updated membership roll to better know how to shepherd the flock under their care (1 Peter 5:1-5). Surveys can be found in The Hub, at fccgreene.org/survey, or by texting “survey” to 423-639-0126. Membership renewal is through the month of January.
Momentum — Our strategy to reach Greene County through multiple campuses is an effective approach to impact people individually while being good stewards of our financial resources. However, this strategy requires a lot of effort on the part of our volunteers. Moving to “1 Service Everywhere” (fccgreene.org/1se) reduces the demands on our volunteers while also generating momentum to further implement our campus-launching strategy. With change comes opportunity. If you have been on the fence about serving, now is the time to commit and join a serving team. Or this may be your opportunity to change campuses to more effectively serve and help other campuses to thrive. Although change can be challenging, it’s vital that we increase our momentum to better equip us to reach our community.
Money — We have not been immune to the challenges and increased costs in our economy. We appreciate your faithfulness in pursuing generosity and strive to be very careful to allocate our finances appropriately. Check out the 2025 budget at fccgreene.org/budget2025. Through careful budgeting and spending we are able to meet our day-to-day financial obligations. However, we are not able to adequately reserve funds for our long-term needs, such as future building/parking lot repairs, portable church equipment replacement/repair, or our next campus launch. Please prayerfully consider beginning or increasing your giving to the local body as we strive to impact those around us with the gospel. If applicable, 2024 giving statements are enclosed.
Missions — As a church body, we are intentional to support missionaries, both locally and throughout the world. God has recently provided us an opportunity to partner with key relationships in Colombia to help them start a new church. Several members of our church visited Colombia last November to assess the needs and lay a foundation. This January, other members are returning to Colombia to provide requested training for church leaders. In May, our students and young adults will travel to provide additional support. This is an exciting time and we pray that God will use us to impact lives in Colombia for years to come. The work moves forward. Last year, we celebrated as 20 people confessed their faith in Christ through baptism. Lives and marriages are changed through re:generation and the Marriage Ministry. Christians are growing in their faith as we apply the sermon series lessons through Life Groups, Pillar, 180 Student and Kids Ministries. Thank you for diligently and purposefully investing during 2024 in the lives of those around you through your service in these ministry areas of the local body. The 2024 Annual Report is available in The Hub or at fccgreene.org/annualreport2024. We look forward to serving together in 2025!
For Christ and His Kingdom,
Your FCC Elders: Carl DelSorbo, John Hamilton, Mark Liebert, Mike Schubert, Scott Wakefield
Membership — Every year FCC members renew their membership through our 7 Habits Survey. Please use this survey to help you recognize habits and disciplines in which you are doing well and areas that need attention. Then develop a plan to address these areas and share it with an Elder, Life Group leader or member, or accountability partner. The Elders and Pastors use the survey and updated membership roll to better know how to shepherd the flock under their care (1 Peter 5:1-5). Surveys can be found in The Hub, at fccgreene.org/survey, or by texting “survey” to 423-639-0126. Membership renewal is through the month of January.
Momentum — Our strategy to reach Greene County through multiple campuses is an effective approach to impact people individually while being good stewards of our financial resources. However, this strategy requires a lot of effort on the part of our volunteers. Moving to “1 Service Everywhere” (fccgreene.org/1se) reduces the demands on our volunteers while also generating momentum to further implement our campus-launching strategy. With change comes opportunity. If you have been on the fence about serving, now is the time to commit and join a serving team. Or this may be your opportunity to change campuses to more effectively serve and help other campuses to thrive. Although change can be challenging, it’s vital that we increase our momentum to better equip us to reach our community.
Money — We have not been immune to the challenges and increased costs in our economy. We appreciate your faithfulness in pursuing generosity and strive to be very careful to allocate our finances appropriately. Check out the 2025 budget at fccgreene.org/budget2025. Through careful budgeting and spending we are able to meet our day-to-day financial obligations. However, we are not able to adequately reserve funds for our long-term needs, such as future building/parking lot repairs, portable church equipment replacement/repair, or our next campus launch. Please prayerfully consider beginning or increasing your giving to the local body as we strive to impact those around us with the gospel. If applicable, 2024 giving statements are enclosed.
Missions — As a church body, we are intentional to support missionaries, both locally and throughout the world. God has recently provided us an opportunity to partner with key relationships in Colombia to help them start a new church. Several members of our church visited Colombia last November to assess the needs and lay a foundation. This January, other members are returning to Colombia to provide requested training for church leaders. In May, our students and young adults will travel to provide additional support. This is an exciting time and we pray that God will use us to impact lives in Colombia for years to come. The work moves forward. Last year, we celebrated as 20 people confessed their faith in Christ through baptism. Lives and marriages are changed through re:generation and the Marriage Ministry. Christians are growing in their faith as we apply the sermon series lessons through Life Groups, Pillar, 180 Student and Kids Ministries. Thank you for diligently and purposefully investing during 2024 in the lives of those around you through your service in these ministry areas of the local body. The 2024 Annual Report is available in The Hub or at fccgreene.org/annualreport2024. We look forward to serving together in 2025!
For Christ and His Kingdom,
Your FCC Elders: Carl DelSorbo, John Hamilton, Mark Liebert, Mike Schubert, Scott Wakefield
Posted in Elders Letter